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Sarien Encounter - orat puzzle variations


cloudee1

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So in the original Space Quest, there's the Orat puzzle. In various versions of the game, this puzzle had some slight variations. I was wondering what the general consensus was out there about "how it should be"

 

In version 2.2,

  If you get to the Orat cave before you are being chased by the spider droid then the orat is there waiting for you.

  If you return with the spider droid in tow but before visiting the lower depths of the planet, the orat is missing.

  If you show up with the spider droid in tow after visiting the aliens, the orat is there.

 

version 1.0 i think, 

 The orat doesn't ever show up until after you have visited the aliens below, regardless of the spider droid.

 

 

Personally, I don't like that the Orat pulls a disappearing act. In my opinion he should either always be there, or not show up until you have been given the quest. And if I had to be nailed down to a single scenario I am going for always there.

 

I know this is kind of a weird question but I would like to know if anyone has any opinions on this. Best case Orat scenario?

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This is a classic example of You Shouldn't Know This Already, one of my favorite tropes. Sometimes programmers like to do stuff like this...setting things up so that, even if you know what you're supposed to be doing ahead of time, you can't actually *do* it until it's time for it plot-wise.

 

Logically speaking, Roger has no reason to kill the Orat before talking to the Keronians underground. Realistically, if he stumbled across the creature's cave while exploring, he'd GTFO and stay the hell away...wouldn't you? ;) It isn't until you visit the underground hologram that you're given the 'quest' and have a reason to interact with the creature.

 

It seems as though the programmers wanted to use this trope to maintain plot integrity. The change from the early version to the later one actually seems more like a gesture of convenience to the player. In the early version, the Orat doesn't appear at all until you get the quest; that means new players wouldn't have any idea where to look for him, since they'll likely have explored the cave earlier and found nothing there. The newer version sets it up so you still can't kill Orat early with the droid, but at least he shows up when you're first exploring, so you know where to find him later on.

 

Personally, I believe in the preservation of narrative causality, so I have no problem with setups like this. By the same token, I hate Sequence Breaking with a passion...

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They should have shown the orat leaving his cave or something, to give the players the idea of where the orat might be and also explain his absence (if they saw him leaving). Perhaps they were limited by the technology at the time, though they did have the spider droid moving in what seemed to be a controlled manner from scene to scene...

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That is true. Especially considering the placement of the Orat cave, there are really on two screens in either direction before you were in the desert and screens that Roger couldn't venture accross. It wouldn't have taken much at all to get that accomplished. Or at the very least, show the orat leaving the screen in the opposite direction as Roger's entrance at the cave entrance room. At least that's what I would do if I were to ever attempt any kind of remake.

 

It just bugs the crap out of me that he's there, then he's not, then he is. I am all for story continuity but do it with a bit of grace please. 

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