Tempus Fugit: The Past is Yet Unwritten is a Z-machine interative fiction game written with Inform 6 and is © 2025 by Gianluca Girelli. It was an entry in the Text Adventure Literacy Jam (TALP) of 2025, placement to be determined.
In this sci-fi time-travel game, you play as John "Max" Walker, captain of the Koseidon, humanity's first time ship. After you and your crew fought invaders from the stars in 2225, they created and entered a wormhole into the past. You persued, but something forced you out of the wormhole midway. Main Base no longer answers. Stop the invaders before it's too late.
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 interative fiction game. Please make an honest effort to play the game before reading this walkthrough.
Noisy Dark Place / Cockpit
> open eyes.
> L. x me. i. x suit.
> x screens. x seat.
Explore the entire interior of the ship before exploring whatever's outside.
> s.
Briefing Room
> x copilot. talk to her.
> ask her about me. ask her about herself.
> ask her about ship. ask her about invaders.
> ask her about wormhole. ask her about crew.
> ask her about time mother. ask her about CERN.
> s.
Main Hull
> x cargo. s.
Main Computer Room
> x engineer. talk to him.
> ask him about wormhole. ask him about anomaly.
> ask him about time mother.
> x computer. talk to it. (can't reach 2225)
> x monitor. (shows where and when)
> x QMMU. take it.
> x QHDD. take it.
> open door. g. s.
Dimensional Engine Room
> x tech. x engine.
> talk to her. ask her about singularity.
> ask her about wormhole. ask her about housing.
> ask her about injection. ask her about cooling.
> ask her about herself.
> n. n. u.
Lounge
> take newspaper. x it. read it. drop it.
> n.
Captain's Quarters
You can HACK things with the PDA.
> x PDA. take it. wear it.
> x furniture. x painting. x creature. (kirin)
> s. s.
Crew's Quarters
Nothing here.
> n. d. w.
Time Ship Premises
> x bubble. x ship.
> n.
Front of CERN
> x CERN. x guard.
> w.
Parking Lot
> x booth. x panel. hack it. (using PDA)
> d. w.
Corridor West
> x gate. x grille.
> s.
Utility Room
> take screwdriver and bolt. x bolt.
> n.
Corridor West
> unscrew grille with screwdriver.
> w.
Behind Desk
> x technician. x desk.
> x consoles. x monitors. x button.
> throw bolt at technician. (He's out cold.)
> n.
Control Room
> x technician. take bolt. push button.
> e.
Main Server Room
> x server. x slot. put QHDD in slot.
> w. n.
Time Mother Room
> x computer. x server. x slot.
> put QMMU in slot. (You hear the tech run away.)
> talk to Mother.
The false tech was an invader from the distant future. This timeline is fixed.
Return to your ship:
> s. s. s. e. u. e. s. e.
Main Hull
Your copilot, Marilyn, calls you to the briefing room.
> n.
Briefing Room
All of your crew is here.
> talk to copilot.
The next goal to to acquire an IBM5100 and a legacy interface from Tokyo, Japan, 2001 to counter a software attack.
> s. w.
Time Ship Premises
This time, the bubble exit is south.
> s.
Woods
> x Dome. x statues.
> s. e. u. e. e.
Raremono
> x wares. x owner.
> ask owner about IBM5100.
> ask owner about A1000.
> ask owner about toy.
> w. s.
Gundam Cafe
> x lever. x gashapon.
> pull lever. (no one's watching you now)
> hack gashapon. (using PDA)
> take Gundam and change. x Gundam.
> n. e.
Raremono
> give Gundam to owner. (He gives A1000 in exchange.)
> x A1000.
> w. w. d. n. n.
Interfaces Shop
> x man. x interface.
> buy interface. (using all your change)
> s. w.
3D Action Figures Shop
> x figures. x woman. talk to woman.
> e. e.
Memory Devices Shop
> x microchips. x guy.
> ask guy about IBM5100. (previous owner, now a monk, might know)
> ask guy about monk. ask guy about shrine.
> w. s. u. w. w.
Aomori Shrine
> x shrine. x monk. talk to monk.
> ask monk about shrine. ask monk about kami.
> ask monk about IBM5100. (willing to trade)
> give A1000 to monk. (He gives the IBM5100.)
> x IBM5100.
> e. e. d. w. n. n. e.
Main Hull
Will calls you to the computer room.
> s.
Main Computer Room
> talk to Will.
> give IBM5100 to Will.
> give interface to Will.
> talk to Will. (The extracted software has been sent to the Time Mother.)
> talk to computer. (The invaders may be trying to avert an extinction event in their future.)
Then there's a power failure. Emergency power kicks in, followed by summons to both the cockpit and to the engine room!
> s.
Dimensional Engine Room
> talk to Sarah. (She tells you about the Pliotron, and now the ship is in Philadelphia, 1982.)
> n. n. n. n.
Cockpit
> talk to Marilyn.
> s. s. w. w.
18th Century Garden
> x gazebo. n.
Chestnut Street Center
You see someone suspiciously run west. Give chase.
> w. n. n.
Front of Franklin Museum
The man climbs the east wall. You hear him fall on the other side.
> climb wall. (can't: no footholds)
> n.
Construction Area
> search junk. take tube. x it.
> x door. x chain. break chain with tube.
> open door. w.
Tool Shed
> x ladder. take it.
> e. s.
Front of Franklin Museum
> drop ladder. climb it.
Parking Lot
> x invader. search him.
The man runs east and gets hit by a car.
> e.
3rd Street North
> x invader. talk to him. (He dies.)
> search him. take all.
> x device. x schematics. x Pliotron.
Head back to Will on the ship.
> s. s. w. s. e. e. s.
Main Computer Room
> give device to Will.
> give schematics to Will.
> give Pliotron to Will.
> talk to Will.
The game prompts you to visit your quarters.
> n. u. n.
Lounge
Before you reach your quarters, Marilyn reports everyone's findings, and the ship lands on Oshima Island, Japan, but in an unknown year.
> d. w. w.
Clearing
> x bones. x light. w. n.
Forest Path North
> x debris. n.
Burned Clearing
> x ship. read markings. ("TS05" and "KOSEIDON")
> x debris. x blood.
> w. n.
Inside of Colossal Cave
> x landforms.
> x chief. talk to chief. (He dies.)
> search him. x card. read it.
Return to the ship:
> s. e. s. s. e. e. e.
*** You have won ***
> amusing
This is the response to AMUSING after you've won the game:
Here are some trivia about the game:
- The name of the protagonist is inspired by the 1994 movie "Time Cop", starring Jean-Claude Van Damme.
- The name of the copilot is a direct reference to the 1999 PlayStation game "Omega Boost" by Polyphony Digital. In the intro to the game, the protagonist is asked to come back from the past with an autograph from the famous actress.
- The entire Akihabara section is a direct reference and tribute to the game "Steins;Gate".
- The search for the vacuum tube is another direct reference to "Omega Boost".
- The name of the technical engineer is also taken from the movie "Time Cop". In addition, calling the engineer "Cristina" and the Japanese response is another reference to "Steins;Gate".
- The PDA the protagonist can wear was inspired by the Pip-Boy used in the "Fall Out" games franchise.
- The name of the software engineer, "Will Crowther", is a direct tribute to the inventor of the first-ever text adventure, "Colossal Cave" (1976). In addition, "Colossal Cave" is also the name of the last location of this game.
- The time ship is informally called "Koseidon" by its crew. This is a direct reference to the Japanese 1978 TV series by the same name.
- Finally, the date on the newspaper inside the lounge is a direct reference to my birthday. That day I will be 255 years old. :-)
Note: If a character appears in multiple regions, I only list them in the first region they're seen in.
Crew of the Koseidon:
In CERN:
In Tokyo:
On Oshiwa Island:
Found dead:
Mentioned:
This is the response to CREDITS:
Concept, game design and coding by Gianluca Girelli. Additional story plot and consulting by Isabel Alejandra and Isaac Garcia. Additional code courtesy of Garry Francis. Play testing by Garry Francis, andrewj, Andrew Schultz, Ruggero Simoncelli, Isabel Alejandra and Isaac Garcia.
This walkthrough was funded via Patreon with
Ko-Fi is a way to send me small one-time donations. Every little bit helps, and thank you!