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WAXWORKS
(1984) (Text from
Inside Cassette label): |
REVIEW
by AtariGrub
You
awake in the leisure lounge of a deserted and locked waxworks museum. Your only
goal is to escape! So begins the eleventh and final 'Mysterious Adventures'
game from Brian Howarth. At the start of Waxworks, you begin with meagre possessions
including a coin, some matches and a piece of paper (in-game advertising!).
The first few locations include a washroom and two exploration exhibits, featuring
Hillary & Tensing's Everest ascent and Jacques Cousteau, the famous oceanographer.
There are a number of objects to interact with in these first locations, and
some hidden items that are required for later puzzle solving.
It's not long into the game before you come across the first of two mazes - the Hall of Mirrors and the Sewers. Both are typical of text adventure mazes, in that they initially appear vast, but actually consist of only a few locations, some of which exit back onto the same location. Helpfully there are many items in the game that can be dropped to help you map out these mazes. Alternatively scroll down this webpage for a downloadable 'Atari Cave' Waxworks map.
Saving
your progress is recommended, due to a few 'sudden-death' situations, which
can occur simply by entering a new location for the first time! For those playing
an emulated version, saving has never been easier. I'm sure I'm not the only
one who remembers the hassle of recording your progress to tape, only to find
out later it can't load due to a poor recording.
Atmospherically, you never get the feeling your life is under threat, unlike Howarth's 'Escape from Pulsar 7', where you could almost imagine a salivating alien waiting around the next corner! That said, there are a few dangerous situations to be found amongst the 36 locations, including the killer shark Jaws and Torquemada's torture chamber.
Overall a fairly
logical adventure in its puzzle solutions, although I felt I was more in a theme
park than a waxworks museum. The inclusion of increasing bizarre characters
and situations may make more sense to you when you reach the end of the game.
Maybe not Howarth's best, but playable all the same.
 |
"Earwax!"
(6/10) |
GAME
HINTS
Hold down the mouse button and drag cursor across the appropriate Hint or Solution
for help.
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PROBLEM:
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How do I get out of the Hall of Mirrors? I can't squeeze through the crack in the wall! |
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HINT:
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You need to drop all your items to get through the crack or find a magical solution to this problem... |
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SOLUTION:
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RUB LAMP (found in the Studio Junk). This will take you to a store where you can leave all your excess objects. Rubbing the Lamp again will also return you to your previous location…. |
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PROBLEM:
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How can I catch the Sewer Rats? |
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HINT:
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You don't need to. |
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SOLUTION:
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However, there's an important object in the Rat Trap which will come in handy later… |
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PROBLEM:
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I keep drowning every time I enter the Airlock! |
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HINT:
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You need to answer Jacques Cousteau's question for a useful item… |
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SOLUTION:
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SAY 46 and an Aqualung will appear East of the Airlock. (The age of Jacques was 23 when his son was born, so when his son was 23, he was 46.) |
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PROBLEM:
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A shark keeps eating me! |
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HINT:
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No use trying to kill him, just get away fast! |
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SOLUTION:
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SWIM |
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PROBLEM:
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How do I unlock the Grid in the Wash Room? |
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HINT:
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You need the key, which can be found in the Leisure Lounge. |
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SOLUTION:
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SEARCH SEATS |
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PROBLEM:
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It's too dark to see! |
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HINT:
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The Matches are no good. You'll need to win a prize, which will help light your way… |
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SOLUTION:
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INSERT COIN in the Leisure Lounge's Slot Machine |
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PROBLEM:
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I'm lost in the Hall of Mirrors / Sewers…. |
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HINT:
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It's best to leave a trail of breadcrumbs to map out your route… |
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SOLUTION:
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Drop an object in each location and note down on paper where each Exit leads. Some Exits lead nowhere. Alternatively use the AtariCave Map found at the bottom of these Hints. |
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PROBLEM:
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The Wooden Beam is too long to fit through the airlock... |
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HINT:
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You can use the same magical item that allows you to remove objects out of the Hall of Mirrors… |
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SOLUTION:
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Leave Beam in Aladdin's Cave. Pass through the airlock and then RUB LAMP, TAKE BEAM, RUB LAMP again to return with the Wooden Beam. |
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PROBLEM:
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What can I do in the Enchanted Wood? |
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HINT:
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Both Guy Fawkes and the Pied Piper have obtainable objects, plus there's a sign! |
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SOLUTION:
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LOOK PIED for Piper's Flute. MOVE GUY for Barrel. WAIT. |
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PROBLEM:
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How can I get down the Rustic Well? |
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HINT:
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You'll need some rope. Answer the Hillary & Tensing question. |
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SOLUTION:
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SAY 1953 (the year Hillary & Tensing ascended Mount Everest). |
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PROBLEM:
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A Pendulum cuts me in half! |
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HINT:
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Hungry rats lurk nearby…. |
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SOLUTION:
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DROP CHEESE (found in Humane Rat Trap in the Sewers) |
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PROBLEM:
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The Zombie kills me! |
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HINT:
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Well you know the saying…. 'He who shoots first…' (Search the Washroom.) |
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SOLUTION:
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LOAD PISTOL with Silver Bullets. SHOOT ZOMBIE. Both items can be found in the Jacket behind the Toilet Door. Note: it sometimes takes more than one shot! |
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PROBLEM:
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My passage is blocked by Masonry…. |
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HINT:
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Only an explosion will clear that lot! |
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SOLUTION:
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You'll need the Barrel of explosives and Matches. |
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PROBLEM:
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Hmm, I'm not sure where to find the items I need to remove the masonry? |
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HINT:
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You start the game with the Matches, as for the Barrel… you should seek out the expert - Guy Fawkes! |
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SOLUTION:
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MOVE GUY for Barrel. In the blocked Passage - LIGHT MATCH, LIGHT FUSE, DROP BARREL, then WEST before you get caught in the explosion! |
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PROBLEM:
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How do I open the Sarcophagus? |
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HINT:
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You'll need a tool to level off the top… |
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SOLUTION:
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Carry the Crowbar found in the Studio Junk and OPEN SARCOPHAGUS |
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PROBLEM:
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I keep breaking my neck falling through the trapdoor… |
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HINT:
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You'll need to brace it from below… |
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SOLUTION:
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Go through the other side of the Airlock and FIX the Wooden BEAM into the trapdoor in the roof. |
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PROBLEM:
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How do I open the Golden Casket? |
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HINT:
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You'll need a key that's been used before... |
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SOLUTION:
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TAKE KEY from the Tree House Cupboard then OPEN CASKET |
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PROBLEM:
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What can I do with the Mummy? |
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HINT:
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You can revive him with some Tanna Leaves. |
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SOLUTION:
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GIVE TANNA. These are in the Golden Casket in the Jewellery Exhibit. |
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PROBLEM:
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I keep getting strangled for being an 'Unbeliever'! |
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HINT:
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You'll need an item of magical protection. |
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SOLUTION:
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WEAR TALISMAN found on the Altar. |
FURTHER GAMES
in the series by the same author:
|
MYSTERIOUS
ADVENTURES
(Chronological order) |
MYSTERIOUS
ADVENTURES
(Channel 8 Software order) |
|
| 1) The Golden Baton 2) The Time Machine 3) Arrow of Death (Part 1) 4) Arrow of Death (Part 2) 5) Escape from Pulsar 7 6) Circus 7) Feasibility Experiment 8) The Wizard of Akyrz 9) Perseus & Andromeda 10) Ten Little Indians 11) Waxworks |
1)
The Golden Baton 2) Arrow of Death - Part 1 3) Arrow of Death - Part 2 4) Escape from Pulsar 7 5) Feasibility Experiment 6) The Time Machine 7) Circus 8) The Wizard of Akyrz 9) Perseus & Andromeda 10) Ten Little Indians 11) Waxworks |
The games above are listed on the left in the original release order and on the right in the Channel 8 Software numbered order.
All these adventures were also available on other computer formats, including graphical versions for the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum.
The following adventures
were announced in the mid-eighties, but never released:
12) Mid-Winter
13) After the Fire
14) Beyond the Infinite
Madame Tussauds
- Waxworks Museum
(Branches in London, Amsterdam, Las Vegas, New York and Hong Kong)
www.madame-tussauds.com
The London Dungeons
(Now with branches in York, Hamburg and Edinburgh)
www.thedungeons.com
The Vicent
Price Film Site
(The House of Wax - movie information on this 1953 horror film)
pages.prodigy.net/beatlebob/wax.html
ifiction.org
(Play Waxworks on-line!)
www.ifiction.org/games/play.phpz?cat=43&game=272&mode=html