My new game, A Wise Use of Time

No problem. Sending it now.

Is it possible to romance Benjamin?

@Atheena_Tee
As far as I can tell, it isnā€™t possible to romance Benjamin.

If anyone has an idea to get some last Achievements, help would be appreciated.

They are:
New Barnabus
Convinced Kate
Going Out of Business
One Step Closer - I always get to Milford, and even freed Marcus, but I canā€™t seem to get this achievement

Looks like One Step Closer requires the third choice there.

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Convinced Kate: In chapter 6, talk to Kate (she has to be the lead on the Silvio account). Your charm needs to be 80 or over (I charm her into giving Kyle the referrals.) or you have to be her romantic interest or have relationship 70 or over. The other way is to talk to Benjamin first and have him tell you heā€™s disappointed with her performance. You can use that to convince her.

Going out of business: In chapter 12, kill Terrance (requires high Self-Indulgent)

New Barnabas: In chapter 12, reach the end with Dr. Oden. You need to have high Mischievous. Choose Knock out the agents and get revenge on Dr. Oden for betraying me. If you have a high Self-Indulgent stat, you get this achievement.

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Thanks a lot Bugreporter! Nice to know some of choices opened up with high enough stats :slight_smile:

Frankly, Iā€™m still getting a tough time with the Kate one. I get Benjamin to tell me to be ready, but when I talk to Kate, and she asks what was saidā€¦I donā€™t get an option to convince her of anything. Iā€™m probably just doing something wrong.

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@Lys

One Step Closer
In Chapter 1, when asked how you feel about your fatherā€™s disappearance, choose:
Now I wonder if my newfound ability has something to do with his disappearance.
In chapter 10, Marcus must be freed.

Iā€™m just going to give up on the Achievement. Just having those stat values/be in a relationship doesnā€™t work. Iā€™ve probably spent about 5 hours collectively to get it. Iā€™ve gone over things time and again with what @Bugreporter said, and nothing comes of it.

I even went to the point of manipulating/editing the values before I got there (maxing out Kate, Kyle, Benjamin, and Charm) as well as copying/pasting that file right before that point to try the other choices, but nothing comes up. I never get an option from Kyle to suggest giving him the filesā€¦and thus I can never get Kate to do it.

I guess there is a reason that only 0.1% of people on Steam got the achievement

At this point, I get the following. Bearing in mind, Benā€™s relationship is 78, Kate is 93, Kyle is 90, and Charm is 100.

[spoiler]You knock on Benjaminā€™s semi-open office door.

ā€œCome in,ā€ you hear Benjamin shout through the door. You swing it open and step inside. Benjamin sits at his desk, a small pair of glasses on the edge of his nose as he glances at his monitor. In the background, instrumental music plays.

ā€œAnyway, close the door and have a seat. I want to talk to you about the Silvio account.ā€

ā€œI thought Kate was handling the account.ā€

ā€œShe is, but Iā€™m concerned with her work so far.ā€

ā€œItā€™s only been a week,ā€ you say.

Benjamin takes off his glasses and rubs his face with his hands. ā€œTrue, but her inexperience is showing. Setting up new accounts is slow-going. Sheā€™s working hard but not making good judgments about the claims.ā€

ā€œIs there something I can do to help?ā€

ā€œBe ready to take over the entire Silvio Group account. Keep an eye on Kate in the meantime, and tell no one of this conversation.ā€

Benjamin slips his glasses back on and checks his computer screen. ā€œAnything you need to discuss with me?ā€

With choices:

  1. Ask Benjaminā€™s opinion on your performance at work.
  2. Ask Benjamin about his hobbies.
  3. Thatā€™s all I want to discuss with Benjamin.

Then going to Kyle:
You walk down the hall and peek into Kyleā€™s cracked office door. He sits at his desk, feet on the corner, bobbing his head and shaking his shoulders; thin white headphone wires hang from his ears. He taps on his computer keyboard like itā€™s a piano.

You knock and step in.

ā€œHey, come in,ā€ he shouts and waves you over. He yanks out the earbuds and music pours out of the tiny devices. He clicks a button and the music shuts off. ā€œSurprised Iā€™m not deaf.ā€

You take a seat right next to the desk. His office overlooks the city with a clear shot to the park nearby, and with the blinds open, sunlight sets the room in a glow.

This gives choices:
ā€œWhy do you work every Saturday?ā€
ā€œHave you heard anything about me around the office?ā€
ā€œTell me about your investment property.ā€
ā€œHave you heard any news on the Silvio Group?ā€
ā€œWhat can you tell me about Zhou Hu?ā€
ā€œDid you enjoy the casino the other night?ā€
ā€œI better get back to work.ā€

Choosing all of them never gives anything about the files.

Then going to Kate gives:
You walk over to Kateā€™s desk. Sheā€™s leaning in close to her computer screen. Her lips move as she reads, and she lifts the top of a muffin to her lips for a bite. As she notices you walking over, she wipes her mouth quickly and tosses the rest of the muffin into the trash bin beneath her desk.

ā€œHi there,ā€ she says. ā€œI canā€™t believe we have work on Saturday. I know we have to get our reports done, but why spend our weekend at it? I have to drive into the city five other days of the week.ā€ She takes a sip of tea from a mug beside her keyboard. ā€œSorry, I donā€™t mean to vent. So, whatā€™s up?ā€

With Choices:

  1. ā€œHowā€™s your dad doing?ā€
  2. ā€œHave you heard anything about me around the office?ā€
  3. ā€œWhat can you tell me about Zhou Hu?ā€
  4. ā€œWould you like to go out sometime?ā€ I say, hoping to set up a date with her.
  5. ā€œDid you enjoy the casino the other night?ā€
  6. ā€œIā€™d better get back to work.ā€

Choosing Option 2 gives:
ā€œHave you spoken with Benjamin lately? He stopped by looking for you,ā€ Kate says. ā€œNot sure what itā€™s about but Iā€™m guessing it has to do with the Silvio account.ā€

With Choices:
ā€œYes, I met with him.ā€
ā€œNo, I havenā€™t seen him yet.ā€

If you choose the first option, then you just end up with something like this:
ā€œNot happy with me?ā€ Kate says and slumps in her chair. ā€œIā€™ve been enrolling people nonstop. Look at that pile.ā€ She points to a microwave-sized stack of papers on the corner of the desk. ā€œIt will take me days to do all this work. I donā€™t know how much more I can do.ā€

ā€œDonā€™t worry, Kate. Just talk to Benjamin.ā€
[/spoiler]

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The best I can do is revise the code to make it easier to achieve. I tried the path and triggered the achievement but if itā€™s too hard for others to reach, itā€™s a pointless achievement. Sorry itā€™s causing so much trouble.

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I didnā€™t even know this achievement existed .___.

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Sorry if Iā€™m grumbling about that Achievement. Iā€™m not trying to make more work on something that is just minor in the grand scheme of things.

I just honestly donā€™t know what Iā€™m doing wrong with it, and I admit I can get a little anal when I think I should be able to hit something.

However, I do believe you when you say you are getting itā€¦and obviously other people got it.

Well, Iā€™ve just done two play/read throughs of the game/story, and then I went and read the codeā€¦ and noticed what I believe to be a mistake in the code, which conveniently appears to relate to the very issue which people are talking about right now.

Okay, we have this block, in scenes/chapter6

*set count 0
*label KyleConvo
*set count 1

This is followed by blocks under *if count = 2, 3, 3 (yes, there are two 3s), 4, 5, and >=6.

If Iā€™m understanding correctly, this should be *set count +1 instead, like we see under *label KateConvo and *label BenjaminConvo. As is, it would appear that none of Kyleā€™s *if count blocks will ever actually happen, because during KyleConvo, count will always = 1. One of these blocks includes the part when Kyle asks for the referrals. None of these conversations popped up during my playthroughs, and none of the referral plot line ever came up.

This leads me to wonder how even the small minority got the achievement to work.

That aside, I very much enjoyed the story. Iā€™d say I actually got pretty jealous of my in-game persona after the second run (not the first, because I died :stuck_out_tongue: ), because, well, I had an ability that Iā€™d really like to have, a good friend in Olivia, a warm romance with Kyle, and a budding partnership with a brilliant scientist. Iā€™d say my favorite aspects of the writing were the characterization of Kate and Kyle (Oden was pretty great too), followed closely by the attention to the time-stopping itself. I think my biggest reservation with the writing is that, while we see the poor relationship between Kyle and Kate early on, it doesnā€™t get followed up on later. Mostly what I got from it was that Kyle thinks heā€™s being a lighthearted tease towards Kate, but he actually really deeply hurts her feelings. Once Kyle and I were dating, I really wanted to be able to talk to him about it. Right now it feels like thereā€™s some opportunity to talk to Kate about Kyle (although she never appears to react to it if youā€™re dating him, which I think she would), but not really the other way around. Even if it would mega-backfire, Iā€™d want to address it!

Anyway, Iā€™m just going into all that because of how much I appreciate the characters. Like Kateā€™s troubled past and complicated family influence but donā€™t define her. Kyleā€™s got a bunch of dimensions between his goofball side, his business ambition, his insensitivity to Kate, and his sweetness to his romantic partner and his son.

Actually, I do end up being curious about Kyleā€™s ex, because I kind of end up taking his word for it that sheā€™s as bad as he says. Matty still seemed affectionate to her. I certainly get why you chose not to explore that; you canā€™t just go and write everything that someone might want to do. Iā€™m just saying, if I were actually in that situation, and actually able to stop time, Iā€™dā€™ve snooped around. And, like, talked to her, though I guess that wouldā€™ve been awkward. (ā€œHi, Iā€™m your replacement. Are you really an awful person, or is he just saying that?ā€) Actually, I found myself having a lot I wanted to say or do that I couldnā€™t, just as a result of the limitations of the medium. (Like, ā€œI wish youā€™d told me about Matty sooner because I like kids! Hey, this saves having to adopt!ā€ I also wish I still had the opportunity to tell Kyle that Matty and I are time controllers even if I follow his request to call an ambulance.)

Raj was really frustrating, but in a well-written way. Olivia was nice and I felt for her, but seemed less complex. Odenā€™s comments made me laugh a lot, and I would love to work with her. Barnabas was very hateworthy, especially when he goes around killing and/or threatening people, but I donā€™t think he was over the top. (Okay, that sounds a lot dumber now that I review what I wrote. ā€œI donā€™t like him because he kills and threatens people.ā€ Wow, really?)

One thing I donā€™t get:

Get out of the car and push it off the road. It may tire me out, but I only risk my friends and not the busload of people.
*set self_control %+10
*set virtue %-20

Why does that reduce my virtue? I was trying to stop an accident the safest way available.

In chapter6:

You find a cute young secretary, and your natural charm kicks in. ā€œFancy seeing you here,ā€ you say, and before long the two of you are talking about the drudgery of working on a beautiful Saturday, and this leads to laughing and flirting. Eventually, you turn the conversation into a rip on management, and the enthralled secretary mentions that Mr. Hu made
*if likes_males
him
*if likes_females and not(likes_males)
her
work today.

The secretary doesnā€™t get a pronoun if the player character likes neither.

Oh, one other code thingā€¦

The third floor housed offices, which are locked or destroyed by years of neglect. The fourth floor has old treatment areas, which you quickly search and find nothing of interest. Itā€™s not until the fifth floor that you hear movement as soon as you step off the staircase.
*if (self_control >= 60) and (responsibility <= 40)
*set time_stopped true

That should check for mod_nullify.

One last thing!

In chapter10, at *label ChapterChoices, itā€™s not apparent that you can plant the bugs and still do another thing. I skipped planting the bugs because I wanted to go to Ocean City. Iā€™dā€™ve planted the bugs and then gone if I realized I could. So I think this wouldā€™ve been a lot smoother for me if the choice to plant the bugs were presented separately, and after I either go through all that, or decline, then I pick what I want to do that day.

This encourages me to go check out Zombie Exodus and ZE: Safe Havenā€¦ Iā€™m not generally one for the zombie genre, but it sounds like thereā€™s a good deal of character focus, so that should be up my alley.

Thanks for a fun read!

(Also, this is my first post on the forum, so, yay :slight_smile: )

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@Lys no need to apologizeā€“I wish the achievement was not so unachievable.

@TSSL thanks for finding that error. I think youā€™re rightā€“if you never reach count 3, Kyle never asks for help.

Thank you!

I really tried to make the characters complex, with their own motivations, and arcs. Itā€™s a little different than ZE due to the amount of time (no pun intended) I had to explore characters. In ZE, I had 800,000 words to do it :slight_smile:

Choice of Games provides deadlines so I wanted to finish on time which means I canā€™t follow all paths and write every option I may want to add. Originally in the scene where you meet Matty, I had a part where you go in the exā€™s house and explore. I cut it not to over-complicate things.

Sounds like the other things you mention are bugs Iā€™ll have to fix.

Please do try them. ZE is free up to Part 3, and SH is free during the development period.

Welcome!

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@TSSL Thank you very much for spotting that. I didnā€™t think to check the codeā€¦Iā€™ve spent to much time in RenPy, and didnā€™t think outside the box here.

And I would highly recommend Zombie Exodus. Iā€™m not into zombie games, but I really enjoyed this. And Iā€™m really enamored with Safe Haven.

@JimD I still shouldnā€™t be so grumpy. Iā€™m just glad to know I wasnā€™t the only one getting the achievement, and it wasnā€™t just me being thick-headed :slight_smile:

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Youā€™re welcome :slight_smile:

You definitely succeeded with having multidimensional characters with their own arcs. As for the stuff I was saying Iā€™dā€™ve liked to have seen, I donā€™t want you to think of that as a complaint so much as me sighing and going ā€œif only.ā€ You could write for decades and not include everything someone could ask forā€¦ even if you had the power to stop time, that wouldnā€™t entirely help because time would need to be running to operate the keyboard :stuck_out_tongue:

Iā€™m not even sure how Iā€™d go about mediating Kyle and Kate if they were real people, anyway. ā€œOkay, Kyle, Kate has actual feelings. Kate, Kyle isnā€™t being venomous, heā€™s just an idiot. Discuss.ā€
ā€¦Yeah, somehow I donā€™t see either of them liking me after that.

Iā€™ve started out Zombie Exodus. Pretty intrigued once I got to interacting with Emma and Heather, and in particular upon arrival at the Cathedral itself. Is New version of Zombie Exodus the current correct place for feedback?

(The big question, of course, is what ā€œA Zombie Exodus Use of Timeā€ would look like. Being able to stop time would certainly come in handy in a zombie apocalypse!)

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@TSSL [quote=ā€œTSSL, post:139, topic:11712ā€]
Iā€™ve started out Zombie Exodus.
[/quote]

Awesome. I hate Parts 1 and 2. Hurry up to Part 3 :slight_smile:

Yes.

Maybe Iā€™m make this a downloadable mini-game for Safe Haven. :grinning:

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I realize this is months later, but I have 7 missing hidden achievementsā€¦ though I can only think of 6:
Free Marcus (think Neo led me in the right direction, I hope)
Two head are better than one
Convince Kate (think I can do this)
New Barnabas
Work for the casino
Going out of business.
For the life of me, I cannot see a 7th I missed
Any tips or where you can point me?

@Elbertina
If you manage to get Convince Kate to work for you, Iā€™d appreciate if you could tell me how. I know as I pointed out to JimD that I, and others havenā€™t been able to get it to work. Obviously, some have as the achievement did get unlocked on Steam, but it isnā€™t easy.

As for 7 missing achievementsā€¦actually, 26 are technically hidden, out of 38 total.

The following are the Shown Ones (such as on the Choice Website), so Iā€™m not going to put it in spoiler tags.

Management Material
Ultimate Firefighter
One Step Closer
Solved the Mystery
Met your Lifelong Goal
Rescued Raj
Mastering Time
Revenge Tastes
Research Funder
Ink Master
Helped Kate
New Career Heights

The following are the Hidden Ones. There should be 26 here

Love Someone
Threeā€™s Company
Frenemies
Friend of the Time Controllers
The Plot Thickens
There Can Be Only One
Revenge Tastes Delicious
Saved Jeremy
Recruited by the FBI
Freed Marcus
Saved Eternity
Killed Barnabus
Suspended in Time
Twos Heads > One
Peaceful Resolution
Made Them An Offer
Evidence is Mightier
Going Out of Business
Work for the Casino
Saved Livvie
Frozen
Cityā€™s Guardian
New Barnabas
Fugitive
Government Worker
End Time

Wow, thank youā€¦ I see the (now) 6 I need to get. Kate is oneā€¦ if I manage it, Iā€™ll let you know. Iā€™ll have to learn the how-to-hide-spoilers trick. :wink:

The spoiler trick is easy. To put obscure things, put the word spoiler in brackets with no spaces:[ spoiler]

To take end it, do the same, but put a / before spoiler like so: [ /spoiler]

Note that the samples have an extra space after the left bracket.

And good luck with the Kate one. I know some people get it (the Steam Achievements showed it), but from a numbers point of view, it is the toughest one. And if you need help with the others, donā€™t hesitate to ask.

I canā€™t ever get my time control over 77 and I always use it, always make choices to enhance itā€¦ is there something Iā€™m missing. Iā€™ve only got 4 achievements left and Iā€™m a dunce for t
Not getting this!

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