Summary
: This is the update where shit’s going to start getting weird.
: “Loud and clear. Inomata and Timrod are both OK.”
: “I’ll forward you the set points. Get on your respective points and get into formation.”
: “Got it.”
: “Timrod, calm down… wait for my orders. Stay in position. Inomata, do you read me? The obstacles in front of you create a blind spot. Make sure to get proper confirmation.”
: “Don’t forget that the perp is armed, or you’ll get yourselves killed…”
: “I know!”
: “Stop fucking around, you idiot! You’re in the nucleus of the 24 Wards private railroad. Innocent citizens are gonna get killed if you start shooting like a maniac.”
: “Got it.”
: Okay, no war crimes apart from the whole being a government hit squad thing. Got it.
: “Sakamoto, go in ahead. Relieve Timrod.”
: “Got it!”
: “Timrod, listen up. There’s a plate ahead of you. Check it out.”
: “Going up to the second floor, Chief.”
: “Wait, don’t move yet.”
: “Got it.”
: “OK! Timrod, get moving. It’ll take some time before you get used to the controls, and it’ll seem complicated at first. But don’t worry. You’ll get used to it.”
: There’s a tutorial I’m going to skip in favor of explaining it myself. In the bottom-right, you can see the menu ring. There’s three commands: Contact (which is your “interact” button), Implement (for using items) and Movement. We can try contacting Sakamoto and Inomata, but they don’t have much to say.
: If you turn to the left, the “plate” that Natsume is talking about is hanging on the wall. I haven’t played the PS1 version, but I’m pretty sure that in the original game, this was how you were meant to work out the puzzles in this area.
: Speaking of which, there are puzzles in this area. Most of the puzzles were changed from the PS1 version (ostensibly to make more sense in English) and there’s a manual included with the game that gives you the solution to most of them.
: The re-release also includes a “solve the puzzle automatically” button, which I will be using extensively because the puzzles in this segment are mostly time-wasters.
: “Maybe it’s for real estate authentication?”
: “Looks like it.”
: “Chief, I’ve found a switch.”
: “Probably the lights. Turn it on.”
: “Got it.”
: “There should be a control panel nearby. Check it out.”
: “Inomata, what’s up?”
: “I think I saw someone up above. I’m going in ahead…”
: “Wait, don’t act on your own.”
: Inomata wants to go in because this is kind of a horror game and somebody’s gotta die first.
: “Sakamoto, stand down. Let him go on ahead. Inomata, I’m gonna forward you the target point. Don’t go too far.”
: “Got it! Thank you.”
: “This gonna be OK…?”
: “I don’t care. If anyone’s in a hurry to die, I won’t stop them.”
: “Got it.”
: There’s a brief tutorial (which I skipped) where Natsume teaches you how to look up and down.
: If we go around the pillar in the middle and look down, there’s something we can pick up. I’m not sure what picking these up actually does, but they’re apparently missable.
: Comic BEAM is a real manga magazine - it’s a small monthly aimed at the ‘seinen’ audience. I did a quick search and it looks like most of what it carries is stuff that’s so niche that no one bothers to fan translate it.
: This here is what we’re actually after. First, we have to look down.
: “I’ll check…”
: “Not yet — it’s probably something that’ll change the structure. It’s for decryption code input. Until we work it out, don’t mess with it.”
: “Timrod, I’m gonna go back up Inomata. I’m going up, come with me.”
: “Sakamoto, I can’t pinpoint Inomata. This room is using an absorber.”
: “An absorber… like an anti-jamming device?”
: “Seems like it.”
: “That’s what the data says.”
: “It’s designated as a structure of unknown use. This sort of accident was to be expected.”
: I’m not sure if the weird grammar is just a localization fuckup, or if it’s intentional.
: “So what about Inomata…?”
: “Back him up.”
: “Got it!”
: “You ready, Sakamoto? You take the lead from here on out. I’ll pinpoint and set our sights on the target. Lead him up to the roof. I’ll take care of him.”
: “Got it.”
: “Timrod. There’s a door lock past here. The code input is complicated, but don’t worry. We’ve already got the info required to unlock the door. A text string needs to be decrypted.”
: “But unfortunately, we don’t have the password yet. First, find the password.”
: The dialog is kinda cryptic about how the puzzle actually works, and I think it worked differently on the PS1.
: “Timrod. That control panel code is a Caesar cipher. Only engineers come and go from here. That means… they would want a code with easy to memorize rules.”
: “Caesar ciphers are decrypted by shifting letters in the alphabet. You can see how this version works using the control panel. Get to the first floor quickly!”
: So anyway, here’s how this puzzle is supposed to work. I didn’t realize this until after I finished playing through this whole thing.
: You see the word “Please” on that input screen? That’s the password. What you’re supposed to do is take it down to the computer on the first floor, which then decrypts it for you.
: Anyway, this isn’t really a Caesar cipher. A Caesar cipher works by taking all of the letters on a page and shifting them a certain number of positions down the alphabet.
: The key to a Caesar cipher is that all of the letters are shifted the same number of positions, which clearly isn’t the case here because both E’s translate to a different character.
: The cipher used here is actually a Vigenere cipher, which is a modification to Caesar that uses a codeword (or code alphabet) to determine how many positions to shift each letter.
: Thankfully, the encryption table for the Vigenere cipher was found sometime in the late 19th century. I found the decryption alphabet to see if Suda snuck anything in, but it’s super basic. The alphabet is “BCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZA”.
: All of this is shorthand for “this puzzle is bunk and Suda knew it, that’s why the skip puzzle button exists” and this is pretty much the only reason I’m okay with it and not screaming.
: This door only has one thing we need behind it.
: “You did it, Timrod. Do this door next.”
: In the 90s, I can imagine that writing a program to solve the Vigenere cipher was kind of a pain in the ass. Today, it’s relatively easy - there’s dozens of solvers out there for it.
: “Her heart rate is normal… she seems to be OK. Keep her warm and she should be fine. Hm…?”
: Sakamoto does not strike me as the sharpest tool in the shed. I’m picturing this lady bleeding out from a gut shot and Sakamoto going “It’s fine, just bit of hypothermia.”
: There’s a text box here that scrolls by EXTREMELY quickly. The text reads “H E L P MIKA” except the “HELP” is spaced vertically.
: “It’s OK. We came to rescue you. You’re gonna be OK. Don’t worry. Stay calm. We’re here to help you. Everything is fine now. Don’t worry.”
: “We came to help. We’ll protect you. Just stay calm.”
: “Don’t worry ma’am, I’m from a government black ops hit squad and I’m here to help, and by help I mean I’m not immediately going to murder you.”
: “This is dangerous - until she calms down, don’t let her move. Timrod, I’m gonna go help Inomata. Let’s hurry to the third floor.”
: “You OK?”
: “Take a fucking look… I’m pretty far from ‘OK’.”
: “Are you hurt pretty bad?”
: “Just a bit… but I can’t move my goddamn arm.”
: “You fall back — can you move on your own?”
: “Yeah. If I force it.”
: “Then force it.”
: “That’s not very nice. I’m injured, you know…”
: “You acted on your own. I got no sympathy for you. We’re getting back up now. There are survivors on the second floor. Get them out of there.”
: Survivors? You mean the one survivor who may or may not have been dead?
: “Got it… you heard him, Timrod. I’m going downstairs. Our guy is in the back. He’s pretty fucked up. It’s like he’s not afraid to die —”
: “No, it’s more like he’s enjoying the risk of death. He’s laughing. About the fact that he’s about to get killed. What the fuck…”
: “Laughing all cynically like that. He can’t accept his own death. A typical criminal. Timrod, kill the motherfucker. Don’t even let the world know this guy exists. Just dispose of his ass.”
: “Hey Sakamoto… you listening?”
: “That’s my job…”
: Sakamoto, psychiatrist with a gun.
: “This guy’s pretty stiff.”
: “Is that a problem? I don’t screw around.”
: “I’m falling back. Sakamoto, Timrod - it’s up to you guys.”
: This puzzle is the same as the last two - it uses the Vigenere cipher with the same code alphabet.
: "Christ… she was so young… Timrod, the target is up above. I can’t let this guy get away with this. I’m gonna kill the motherfucker !! Let’s move !!! "
: I read somewhere that all of the dead bodies in this part of the game are characters from Moonlight Syndrome, a game Suda worked on a few years earlier when he still worked for Human.
: Yes, that Human. The one who developed Clock Tower and gave us all the amazing trainwrecks that were Clock Tower: Ghost Head and Clock Tower 3.
: If we turn around, there’s another code-locked door. If we try using the same cipher as before (or, you know, just hitting the skip puzzle button)…
: “Inomata, do you read me?”
: “…”
: “Inomata! Respond!!”
: “…”
: “Son of a bitch - again…? We’ve just gotta roll with it… I’ll go back down and revert the control panel. Once it’s been restored, open this up. Be ready.”
: As soon as Sakamoto leaves, the lights in the room shut off.
: “Inomata, where are you? Answer me. Timrod, something’s wrong. I can’t find Inomata or the woman. There’s no sign of them. Everything OK there?”
: “I’m at the control panel… I’ll fix it.”
: “Restoration complete… but, it’s no good. The password has been changed. Looks like he switched it on us. We’re screwed…”
: All that’s changed is the key to the Vigenere cipher. I’m not sure how exactly you’re meant to work this out, other than maybe going down to the computer again. The new code alphabet is “GVLXKFPSEQU”.
: “This is Natsume… Timrod? I’ve got you locked. I haven’t found the target. He may be hiding in a blind spot. Move with caution.”
: "What happened to Sakamoto and Inomata? Have they gone in for backup?
: There’s a contact point right outside the doorway, but it’s not immediately visible.
: That’s because it’s another Comic BEAM. I looked up what these do and the answer is nothing.
: “What happened?!”
: “A survivor… Timrod, leave them for now. Got it? Don’t fuck this up. The target is hiding close by.”
: Yep, just a lady covered in blood holding what appears to be a severed head. No big deal.
: I feel like Persona 5 would have been a much better game if at random points during the long, pointless cutscenes they had cutaways to stock footage of the moon.
: Just imagine that one scene with Sumire and Akechi at the cafe, only halfway through it cuts to a moon shot and then the cutscene is over. 100% improvement.
: This entire thing is more or less a giant reference to Moonlight Syndrome… at least, from what I understand. Moonlight Syndrome was never localized.
: Supposedly, the guy working on the Eternal Punishment PSP translation (more like not working on it) is also working on doing Moonlight Syndrome. I doubt it’s ever happening.
: “Timrod!! Fire!! Don’t hesitate!! Shoot the motherfucker!!!”
: I get that this is supposed to be horror but it’s kinda dumb.
: Kusabi gives no fucks about weird horror shit.
: “This falls under our jurisdiction. Don’t act without our permission.”
: I think Sakamoto is the only person on a hit squad who is going to complain about jurisdiction.
: “You hear that from Natsume? Is that it, Natsume?”
: “The chief has nothing to do with this. We hold the disposal rights for this target. This doesn’t concern you.”
: “So this is how you wanna handle it, huh? This isn’t fuckin’ high school, Natsume. Is this what you wanted to do? Answer me, BITCH!!”
: “Chief, who is this asshole anyway?!”
: “The Kotobuki Syndicate.”
: “Kotobuki?!”
: Metal Gear!?
: “Drop the shitty nicknames. It’s the 24 Wards Heinous Crimes unit - the same as you assholes. Like a disposal service.”
: “So, does that mean… it’s supposed to be OK? Chief?”
: “It’s the guy who cut off your lead.”
: “Fuck!”
: “Well, that’s just how it is. Now clean things up here. Hey, Babyface — you there, the one that looks like a chinchilla.”
: It’s not a chinchilla. It’s a fluffy, bat-like monster thing.
: “You mean Timrod?”
: “The fuck should I know? The chinchilla. Why the hell didn’t you fire? You frozen in fear or something? You’re gonna get your ass killed.”
: “My face is burned into this guy’s eyeballs. These pieces of shit are fucked in the head. So don’t even leave a bit of skull. Wipe them the fuck off of this plane of existence!”
: “Hmph.”
: “You listen up too, Straight-edge… why’re we disposing of these guys? Any idea?”
: “They’re criminals.”
: “So?”
: “This guy is a killer!”
: “I’m sick of this childish bullshit… you’re a funny guy, Natsume. You do some really unique shit. Listen up. ‘Disposal’ means cutting these motherfuckers out of this world.”
: “Get rid of their very existence, so nobody ever has to see them again. This crime virus they’re spreading around, cut it off at the source.”
: We’ve already heard in the last update about “transmittable crime”, though as far as I’m aware the game never really goes into what that is - whether it’s copycat criminals or some kind of brain virus.
: My guess is that it’s probably a reference to a common thing in the 1990s where you had advisers to Bill Clinton warning that the violent crime rate was going to spiral out of control until society collapsed.
: There’s a book called Freakonomics that goes into that pretty well, but in reality by the time those people were saying that shit (and this is as late as 1995 and 1996) the crime rate was already falling.
: “Annihilation of the self… that’s what we do — tenacious. You guys take over from here. And watch your backs.”
: “This creepy motherfucker is at it again.”
: “Look! This is what crimes brings. This is the demon brought on by their criminal powers.”
: I didn’t typo that, that’s what the game actually says.
: “Can you shoot him, Chinchilla? Can you take them on? Fire!! Destroy this very moment!”
: “I finally understand… I won’t falter again. Bring the hammer down on these unforgivable bastards! Timrod, get rid of them!”
: “So the sleeping lion has been awakened. This is gonna be a long journey…”
: And that’s it for Lunatics. Decoyman is the next chapter in the Transmitter arc, which we’ll do next time - this is the only time we’ll be doing two Transmitter arcs back to back.