Key & Compass presents:
The Purple Pearl
by Amanda Walker

In this small fantasy two-player puzzlefest, the Purple Pearl of Luck has been stolen from the kingdom, and you two volunteered to help get it back. To test your capabilities, the king imprisons you in separate cells where you must solve puzzles and cooperate with each other until you both have escaped.

This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release 1 of the game.

SPOILERS AHEAD. Reading a walkthrough prematurely can sometimes diminish one's enjoyment of an interactive fiction game. Please make an honest effort to play the game before reading this walkthrough.

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Walkthroughs
- Player A Walkthrough
- Player B Walkthrough
Extras
- Characters, Credits, Inventory
Thank You to my Patreon supporters
Support me on Ko-Fi
External links:
- This game at Homepage, IFDB, and IFWiki.
- Post about this walkthrough on X.

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Walkthroughs

To play this game properly, team up with another player. One player plays the player A storyfile, and your partner plays the player B storyfile. You also need to be able to communicate freely with the other player, perhaps by text messages, to pass along info, advice, requests, and code numbers.

If you prefer, nothing is stopping you from running both halves of the game simultaneously and playing as both players. That's what I did to write this walkthrough, but that's not the intended way to experience this game. (I did play it the intended way with ClubFloyd beforehand, so I'm not feeling at all guilty.)

By the way, code numbers are fixed. They are not generated based on the date or players' names, for example.

Also, while the game is technically merciful in that you can never make the game unwinnable, it's possible to miss key information in the text that only appears once. For example, when writing this walkthrough, I totally missed seeing when the oval package was dispensed, and it's not mentioned in the room description. Also, I don't know of any command that re-lists codes that the player learned about. You gotta pay attention.

Player A Walkthrough

What is your name? > Hansel (or whatever your name is)

What is your partner's name? > Gretel (or whatever their name is)

You volunteer to help King Myron recover the Purple Pearl of Luck. But you're injected with something and wake up in...

Stone Cell (player A's cell)

> x note. x window.

> x picture. (Its verse suggests a down-middle-up sequence.)

> x panel. x switch. x 1. x 2. x 3. (all down initially)

> flip 2. flip 3. flip 3. (The panel opens, revealing a cylinder.)

> x cylinder. take card. x it. ("Spin it: pearls, people, cats.")

That fly is annoying.

> x fly. kill it. x it. take it.

> x pink square. x dial.

> x picture.

There's one pearl, two people, and four cats in the picture. So, according to the card's clue, you should spin the dial to 124.

> spin dial to 124. (A cavity with colored buttons is revealed, and the claw machine beeps.)

> x machine. pull lever.

> take package. x it. open it. x coin.

Send the coin to your partner.

> put coin in cylinder. push button. (You're given code 481.)

A: Gretel, I just sent you a coin in a cylinder. Use "code 481" to get it.

A: Do you have the coin yet? And can you put your rock into the cylinder?
B: I got the coin, thanks, Hansel. Inserting the rock now...
B: Code 276. And if you can send a hex key my way, I'd appreciate it.

> code 276. (The rock arrives, but the cylinder shattered.)

A: I got the rock, thanks, but, the cylinder shattered on arrival. I can't send anything back that way.
B: Drat.

> x rock. take it.

A ray of sunlight now highlights a protruding brick.

> x bucket. throw rock at bucket.

> take bucket. look in it. take key. x it.

> x brick. (acrostic clue: SING)

> sing. (A frog arrives.)

> x frog. x basket. give fly to frog. (It leans forward.)

> put key in basket. (The frog leaves: code 106.)

A: Gretel, code 106. Sending a hex key by Frog Express.
B: Got the key, thanks.

> push brick. (Code 748.)

A: Oh hey, I pushed a brick here and it gave me code 748.
B: Okay, gimme a sec...

B: Right. Sending you a cube via pigeon. Code 346.

> code 346. (A pigeon delivers a cube.)

> take cube. x it. put cube in cavity.

> push lime. push red. push puce.

> push lavender. push yellow. (The claw machine beeps.)

> pull lever. take package. open it.

> x potion. drink it. (Your arms grow long!)

> u.

Tiny Room (above player A's cell)

Your arms return to normal length.

> x door. open it. (locked)

A: Reached a tiny room, but the door's locked. I think I'm stuck unless you can unlock it.
B: Hang tight, Hansel. Still working on stuff here...

B: I'm now in a tiny room too. There's a dial...
B: Try code 067. And unlock my door!

> code 067. (The door opens!)

> n.

Hall

> x bar. take bar. (code 725)

A: I took the bar off your door and I've escaped! Code 725.
B: Thanks! I've escaped too!

You both escaped.

*** The End ***

author's note? > yes

Player B Walkthrough

What is your name? > Gretel (or whatever your name is)

What is your partner's name? > Hansel (or whatever their name is)

You volunteer to help King Myron recover the Purple Pearl of Luck. But you're injected with something and wake up in...

Stone Cell (player B's cell)

> x note. x window.

> x picture. (Its verse suggests an up-down-middle sequence.)

> x panel. x switch.

> x switch 1. x switch 2. x switch 3. (all down initially)

> flip 1. flip 1. flip 3. (The panel opens, revealing a niche.)

> x niche. x rock. take it.

> x plaque. x cavity. listen to cavity. ("Before, before, before")

> x gray square. x cage. ("HOMER")

> x pigeon. x bag.

> x machine. x slot. x knobs. (A to Z and 0 to 9)

A: Gretel, I just sent you a coin in a cylinder. Use "code 481" to get it.

> code 481. x cylinder. take coin. x it.

> put coin in slot.

Using the cavity's "before" clue:

> turn B. turn 4. (The machine dispenses an oval package and the plaque changes to show puckered lips.)

> take oval package.

> kiss plaque. (The plaque changes again and the cage rises on a box.)

> x plaque. (Shows eye above a crack.)

> x box. (It's a safe and needs a hex key.)

A: Do you have the coin yet? And can you put your rock into the cylinder?
B: I got the coin, thanks, Hansel. Inserting the rock now...

Send the rock to your partner.

> put rock in cylinder. push button. (code 276)

B: Code 276. And if you can send a hex key my way, I'd appreciate it.
A: I got the rock, thanks, but, the cylinder shattered on arrival. I can't send anything back that way.
B: Drat.

A: Gretel, code 106. Sending a hex key by Frog Express.

> code 106. (The frog arrives.)

> x frog. x basket. take key. (The frog leaves.)

B: Got the key, thanks.

> unlock safe with key.

> open safe. x seeds. take them.

A: Oh hey, I pushed a brick here and it gave me code 748.
B: Okay, gimme a sec...

> code 748. (A brick pushes partway out.)

> x brick. (acrostic clue: CLAP)

> clap. (A cube arrives.)

> x cube. take it.

> give seeds to pigeon. put cube in bag. (It leaves, dropping a coin and a feather. Code 346.)

B: Right. Sending you a cube via pigeon. Code 346.

> take coin and feather. x feather.

> put coin in slot.

> x plaque. x crack. look in crack.

> clean crack with feather.

A: Reached a tiny room, but the door's locked. I think I'm stuck unless you can unlock it.
B: Hang tight, Hansel. Still working on stuff here...

> look in crack. ("ELATE")

> turn L. turn 8. (A round package is vended.)

> take round package. open it. x potion.

> open oval package. x egg.

> break egg. x scroll. ("Spin it: cats, people, pearls.")

> x picture. (2 cats, 1 person, 4 pearls)

> drink potion. (You float up to...)

Tiny Room (above player B's cell)

B: I'm now in a tiny room too. There's a dial...

> x dial. x copy.

> spin dial to 214. (code 067)

B: Try code 067. And unlock my door!
A: I took the bar off your door and I've escaped! Code 725.

> code 725. (The door opens.)

> n.

B: Thanks! I've escaped too!

You both escaped.

*** The End ***

author's note? > yes

Extras

Characters

A fly is buzzing about in player A's cell.
A frog visits player A's cell and can deliver something to player B.
A pigeon named Homer is in a birdcage in player B's cell and can deliver something to player A.

Mentioned:

King Myron wants his stolen pearl back.
King Bradd is Myron's brother. He rules a neighboring kingdom and stole the pearl.
A herald makes a public announcement in the prologue.
A crowd cheers the herald, approving King Myron's plan.
Cows are producing curdled milk.
Chickens are laying rocks.

Credits

This is the response to CREDITS:

This two-player parser game was inspired by Milo van Mesdag's The Last Night of Alexisgrad and Rusty Lake's The Past Within. Thanks to my fabulous beta testers: BJ Best, Henry Best (the Bests really lived up to their surname as they did last minute testing!), Jade, Zed Lopez, Travis Moy, Eva Radke, and Edo Rajh. And thanks most of all to my sweet love, Tom, for everything.

Inventory

Player A's items

These are the items that are originally found by player A.

a note. Player A has it.

Read it. It reminds you what your partner's name is, tells you to find a way to open the brass panel, and cryptically tells you that the picture has clues for the switches.

a card. It's in the cylinder in the hole revealed when you open the brass panel.

Read it. It's a clue for the dial on the pink square: "Spin it: pearls, people, cats." Examine your painting and count the pearls, people, and cats. Now you know to spin the dial to 124.

a dead fly. A fly is buzzing about. Kill it and take it.

Give it to the frog. It's now friendly.

a white package. It's vended by the claw machine when you successfully pull its lever the first time.

To enable the claw machine the first time, spin the dial (on the pink square) to 124. This code is clued by the card and the painting.
Open the package to obtain the first silver coin.

a silver coin. The first coin is inside the first white package.

Player A: Put the coin into the cylinder then push the button. The cylinder and coin leave. Tell player B about code 481.
Player B: CODE 481. The cylinder arrives. Take the coin and put it into the vending machine's slot.

a bucket. it's hanging from a thread, out of reach.

Throw the rock at the bucket to make it fall. Take the hex key from the bucket.

a hex key. It's in the bucket.

Player A: After giving the dead fly to the frog, put the hex key in the frog's basket. The frog leaves. Tell player B about code 106.
Player B: CODE 106. The frog delivers the key to your cell. Unlock the safe with the key. The key breaks.

a white package. It's vended by the claw machine when you successfully pull its lever the second time.

To enable the claw machine the second time, first put the cube into the cube-shaped cavity. Note the strobe sequence then push the colored buttons in the same order. If you make a mistake, push RESET and start again.
Open the second white package to get a potion.

a potion. It's inside the second white package.

Drink it to elongate your arms temporarily. Now go up through the opening in the ceiling.

Player B's items

These are the items that are originally found by player B.

a note. Player B has it.

Read it. It reminds you what your partner's name is, tells you to find a way to open the brass panel, and cryptically tells you that the picture has clues for the switches.

a rock. It's in the niche revealed by opening the brass panel.

Player B: After reading the clue on the painting, flip the switches as appropriate until switch 1 is up, switch 2 is down, and switch 3 is in the middle position. The niche opens. Put the rock into the cylinder, then push the button to send the rock to player A. Tell player A about code 276.
Player A: CODE 276. The rock arrives but the cylinder shatters. Throw the rock at the bucket to get the bucket to fall. The rock shatters.

a oval package. It's vended by the vending machine when you insert the first coin into the slot then turn knobs B and 4. "B4" is clued by listening to the plaque's cavity which whispers "before".

Open the oval package to acquire an egg.

an egg. It's inside the oval package.

Break the egg to acquire a scroll.

a scroll. It's inside the egg; break the egg.

Read the scroll for this clue: "Spin it: cats, people, pearls." This clue, combined with the info on B's painting, tells you to spin the dial (on B's door) to 214. This unlocks player A's door.

some seeds. They're in the safe. Unlock the safe with the hex key.

To reveal the safe, kiss the plaque when it's displaying puckered lips. The safe is initially presented as a box underneath the birdcage.
Give the seeds to the pigeon. It's now friendly.

a small cube. It falls into your cell when you clap, as clued by the brick.

Player B: After giving the seeds to the pigeon, put the cube into the pigeon's bag. The pigeon leaves. Tell player A about code 346.
Player A: CODE 346. The pigeon delivers the cube. Put the cube into the cube-shaped cavity. Note the strobe pattern and repeat it by pushing the colored buttons in the same order. Now pull the claw machine's lever and get a second white package.

a silver coin. The pigeon drops the second coin when he leaves.

Put the coin in the vending machine's slot, then turn knob L and knob 8 (as clued by the plaque; see feather). The machine vends a round package.

a feather. The pigeon drops it when he leaves.

Examine the plaque then examine its crack to note that it's filled with gunk. Clean the crack with the feather, then look in the crack to see the word "ELATE". Read this clue as "L8".

a round package. The vending machine vends it when you insert the second coin, then turn the L and 8 knobs (as clued by the plaque; see feather).

Open the round package to obtain a potion.

a potion. It's inside the round package.

Drink it. You float up through the opening in the ceiling.

Thank You to my Patreon supporters

This walkthrough is provided free of charge since the work it's based on has less than fifteen locations. Please consider it a thank you for your support!

I create larger walkthroughs too! Please visit my Patreon account if you're interested in helping me create more interactive fiction walkthroughs. I appreciate all the help I can get! Thanks again.

Ko-Fi is a way to send me small one-time donations. Every little bit helps, and thank you!

Key & Compass presents: The Purple Pearl by Amanda Walker

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