ANOTHER FINE MESS - Copyright 1992-96 Ray R. Dunakin III
This complex game took over 900 hours to create. It is shareware. If you like it, please send $10 (U.S.) to:
Ray Dunakin Please include the version number,
4665 Huggins St. and your disk requirements
San Diego CA 92122 (DS/DD or High Density)
When you register, you will receive complete instructions, hints and a map.
More Great Games!
Look for these games on AOL, the Internet, and World Wide Web, or order them direct by mail. These prices include shareware fee plus shipping and handling:
"A Mess O'Trouble" - $15 - The fantastic sequel to AFM!
"Twisted!" - $20 - New! You're a storm chaser cast into a bizarre, Oz-like fantasy world.
Watch for more incredible Ray Dunakin games in the future!
Email: RayDunakin@aol.com
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IMPORTANT: As of version 1.6, AFM is now 32-bit compatible! This means it can be played on any Mac, without the need to turn off 32-bit addressing and restart.
Note: On some of the newer PowerMacs, it may be necessary to increase the game's "Preferred memory" to 1024k.
-- If you use "chimes" on your Mac's clock, you must switch off the chimes.
-- Sound Manager 3.0 may cause the sound to be choppy at times.
-- On PowerMacs and Av, the sounds may not play at all. Pay close attention to the text and you won't miss any clues.
-- If you have played A Mess O'Trouble before playing this game, you should be aware that there are some differences in the gameplay. Unlike AMOT, the verb "use" doesn't always work in this game. You may have to try a more specific verb. Also, save often, since you can be killed at any time.
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OPENING SAVED GAMES: On some Macs you can open a saved game by double-clicking on it. However, sometimes this results in the loss of sounds. If you can't open a saved game by double clicking, or you experience a loss of sound, you must boot up Another Fine Mess, then CLOSE the new game (not quit) and open the saved game from the File menu.
"Another Fine Mess" is multi-layered, with plots and sub-plots, and puzzles inside of puzzles. But it is also non-linear -- that is, you don't have to finish one area before moving on to the next. Like real life, you can move freely, discovering as you go. As you move through the worlds of the Maze, you will become involved in a number of complex storylines.
Here are some things you NEED TO KNOW:
TAKE NOTES!!! This is a very complex game, and you must find and piece together many clues to solve the puzzles you will encounter. Since many of the clues will only be given once, or may take a lot of time to find, you don't want to forget them. Taking notes is the only way to insure that you will remember when the time comes to put these clues to use.
EATING, DRINKING, SLEEPING: You must eat, drink and sleep from time to time. If you get too hungry or thirsty, you will be given a warning.
SAVING YOUR GAME: There are many ways to be killed in this game, so you should always SAVE YOUR GAME frequently! Especially before entering Jump Doors, since you may end up in a very unhealthy environment.
SEARCHING: Search every scene. And just because you've searched a scene once doesn't mean you shouldn't search it again later. After all, things may have changed since you were last there. Click on objects to examine them, to open secret panels, or to find hidden clues and objects.
ALWAYS READ THE TEXT and pay close attention to clues. (This seems obvious, but you'd be surprised how often people fail to read the text and then miss important clues.) The view shown for each scene may face a different direction than the last. The scene description tells you which way you are facing. Pay attention to this and you won't get lost.
TALKING: You should talk to EVERYONE you meet. To do this, just enter "TALK" (or "INFO"). You can talk to each character more than once, they may have more to say. Even after running out of information once, a character may have something new to tell you later in the game. Some characters may talk to you first. Just answer the questions and respond appropriately. After they've finished you might be able to TALK to them for additional info. Use GIVE or OFFER if you want to give something to someone.
IMPORTANT: When you are talking to a character, and must answer "No", enter the entire word, not just "N". The program reads that as North, and may move you in that direction, breaking the chain of the conversation.
The flashlight works automatically. When you enter a scene that has no light source, your flashlight will "dispel the darkness". But if your batteries are dead the scene will be black, and you can't search or get a scene description. If you have the extra batteries, just enter "USE BATTERIES".
JUMP DOORS: Jump Doors are interdimensional passages. When you go through a Jump Door it is a one-way trip. You may end up someplace fatal! Unstable Jump Doors flicker when opened, and will always send the player to a random location. When using an unstable Jump Door, you may pass through one or more blacked-out scenes before stopping. This is normal.
PICKING UP OBJECTS: The standard command to pick things up is "GET". Just enter GET followed by the name of the object you want to pick up. You can usually pick things up by clicking on them, however there are many times when you must specifically use the GET command, usually when the object you want to pick up is something uncommon or not directly visible. ("TAKE" will also work.)
LOOK: Use the Look command to get a description of the scene. You can and should look under beds or other furnishings, out windows, in holes or pipes, or anywhere else that seems appropriate.
ACTIONS: If you want to use an object, just enter USE followed by the name of the object. However, at times you must use a more specific command. Sometimes you can link the command, to use an object with another object or thing. Just say "Use (name of object) with (name of second object)".
If you want to break something, just say HIT or BREAK followed by the name of the object you want to break. At times you may be asked for more specific directions.
Use the Weapons menu to attack another character. DO NOT use the weapons menu if you want to shoot an object. Enter "SHOOT" followed by the name of the object.
CHECK YOUR SPELLING! I've tried to include common misspellings in the command vocabulary, but obviously I can't get them all. If you try something that you think should work, but only get the "Huh?" or "What?" response, make sure you haven't mispelled anything. Also, you might have to word it differently.
If you need more hints or have any comments, look for Another Fine Mess in the Adventure Games folder on America Online, or send me e-mail.
My email address is RayDunakin@aol.com
Also, you can upload Another Fine Mess to your local bulletin board. If you like this game, post a message telling people about it!
OTHER ADVENTURES: Try the sequel to AFM, called A Mess O'Trouble! "A Mess O'Trouble" is even better than AFM, with better story, sounds and puzzles, and allows the player to choose between two player characters, Fearless Frank or Daredevil Dawn. It is also less "fatal" than AFM.
"A Mess O'Trouble" is available on America Online and other online services. If you can't find it, I'll be happy to mail it to you for $15. That includes the $10 shareware fee.
The first game in the series can be found on some online services. Since the first game (Ray's Maze) is not equal to the quality of my more recent games, I am no longer distributing it, so please don't ask me to mail it to you!
-- Ray 7-3-94
BUG FIX-- In earlier versions it was possible for the player to lose the Ezekiel Spell before using it at the right time and place. This has been corrected. If this has happened to you, you can regain the spell by going to the "secret chamber" and entering the word "FIX".
VERS.1.6 -- This version is 32-bit compatible.
VERS 1.7.X -- This version fixes an annoying bug in one of the inns, and a bug in the Grid world involving the magnet, as well as a couple of other little things.
VERSION 1.8 -- I made several of the puzzles non-fatal, and added some special "escape codes" for a few of the trickier areas.
