The Vespozian Affair

I have been working on debugging a recent port I made to the MC-10 from Sinclair Spectrum (which itself was a port from Dragon 32 program). "The Vespozian Affair" is a pretty cool little text adventure. Added my own graphic to make it even more spiffy:

The Basic code from the Sinclair Spectrum that I worked from was very buggy and unwinnable. My sense from the C&VG magazine scan of the original Dragon version I used to help with the debugging, is that version might be unwinnable too. If that's the case this might be the only working version available.

The Computer & Video Games Year Book 1984

There is a BBC micro version you can play online at: http://www.bbcmicro.co.uk/game.php?id=3000.

I tried playing it using my playthrough (See below) and I discovered that the game did not seem to recognize the command PUSH BUTTON in the hanger to open the bay doors, which means that the shuttle can't be launched, which would prevent the possibility of being able to win the game. There were also a number of minor annoying but non-catastrophic bugs shared with the Speccy version.  You can drop the space suit and the asbestos suit while wearing them, which results in them being listed as being (WORN) even when they are just items left in the room. The Dragon version has some fancy LEFT$ string cutting to remove the worn message after using the REMOVE command, but it might also not prevent dropping. But that string cutting seemed to have been removed from the Speccy version. The interactions with the captain in his cabin don't work either, nor is the spy always present there to prevent you from getting the items in that room by entering it directly.  You're supposed to have to sneak into the room by a hidden crawlway from the Core, but this is unnecessary since the spy doesn't automatically show up there as he is supposed to when you enter by the direct route, at least from what I can see in the scan of the Dragon code. The captain also "leaves" if you look at him, instead of giving you the subtle "wink" message you can see in the Dragon code.  The occasional message noting a feeling one is being watch, or when the Spy removes the suits if you leave them in other areas might not be working either, as they are broken in the Speccy version.

Is this why this program has no play-through on the Solution Archive and why it seems to be "missing" from so many games collections for various machines (See this thread: https://stardot.org.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12062&start=30)?-- It was unwinnable all these years on all the systems it was ported to from an original Dragon version? And maybe even that version was too buggy to complete? If so, this is a real shame because it is an incredibly rich and subtle puzzle, with a female protagonist (pretty rare for back then), NPC interactions (also rare), good story and evocative mood created through many little flourishes. Definitely not something you could finish in an hour. It would have kept me occupied for many days, if not possibly a week or two back in the 80s. That being said, it is pretty brutal in it treatment of even the most minor mistakes on the player's part, such as forgetting to close a door behind yourself:

Despite its brutality, with careful attention to all the in-game story elements that you can discover, you can obtain all the clues necessary to complete the game.  Still, I added some additional instructions and story background just to help get players off on the right track (if there ever might be additional players).  And in case they should get frustrated, find a walkthrough below.  The game VESPOZIA can be played from my Game Jolt site under the "Text Adventure" link: https://gamejolt.com/games/jgmc-10games/339292

* SPOILER ALERT *

Walkthrough for MC-10 Version (heavily debugged) of The Vespozian Affair.

You are continuously being dogged by the Bloodline Empire spy "Grakta." The following list of actions are the ones needed to win, but they can't include the random occasions when Grakta will appear in a room. When he is present you must avoid taking items, opening doors or going through bulkheads, otherwise Grakta will take you out with extreme prejudice. But you can "LOOK AROUND," which will produce clues. You can also do a few other mundane actions like "LOOK SCREEN" in the navigation room. Hit enter or "LOOK AROUND" as much as necessary until Grakta goes away, and then continue with the list of actions. INVENTORY is also okay when he is around.

LOOK and EXAMINE are the same command. You can use them on some specific items for additional details. The disks provide the information you need to figure out the story, but retrieving them and "INSERTing" them in the navigation room to view their contents is not included in this walkthrough. Avoid viewing them when Grakta is present. LOOKING at Beszel in the Captain's Cabin will have him wink at you and look at Grakta. He's clearly on your side, but can't speak out loud.

Your bunk in the crew quarters can be used to store items safely from Grakta when you don't want to carry them. Just drop them, and they will be slipped under your pillow. LIFTing your pillow will reveal them again. Don't leave the suits anywhere but under your pillow or in the suit room, otherwise they will be discovered and removed from the game. You can wear the asbestos suit in the core, just outside the core or in the suit room. Otherwise make sure to carry it or put it under your pillow. The space suit should normally be carried and only worn in the shuttle bay, shuttle and (obviously) when you venture outside the ship.

GO FORWARD
GO UP
LOOK AROUND
GO BULKHEAD
TAKE KEY
PRESS BUTTON
H
YUSES FAR
E
GO OUT
UNLOCK DOOR
DROP KEY
OPEN DOOR
GO DOOR
TAKE ASBESTOS
WEAR ASBESTOS
GO PORT
GO PORT
LOOK AROUND
GO CRAWLWAY
TAKE CONTAINER
GO CRAWLWAY
GO STARBOARD
GO DOOR
REMOVE ASBESTOS SUIT
DROP ASBESTOS SUIT
TAKE SPACE SUIT
GO PORT
GO DOWN
GO AFT
PRESS BUTTON
GO BULKHEAD
WEAR SPACE SUIT
PRESS BUTTON
WAIT (TYPE AS MANY TIMES AS NEED UNTIL YOU ARE IN ORBIT AROUND YUSES FAR)
GO OUT
TAKE POLYPS
GO VESPOZIAN
GO SHUTTLE
PRESS BUTTON
YUSES FAR
GO OUT
GO EAST
DROP POLYPS (THEY VANISH INTO ROCKS)
GO WEST
GO SHUTTLE
PRESS BUTTON
VESPOZIAN
GO OUT
PRESS BUTTON
REMOVE SPACE SUIT
GO PORT
PRESS BUTTON (CLOSE BULKHEAD OR GRAKTA WILL NOTICE WHERE YOU HAVE BEEN)
GO FORWARD
GO UP
GO BULKHEAD
PRESS BUTTON
C
20 (CRYOGENICALLY FREEZE CREW FOR 20 YEARS--THEY DON'T SEEM TO NOTICE-- WAKE UP IN YOUR BUNK)
GET UP
GO STARBOARD
TAKE TONGS
TAKE DEVICE
PRESS BUTTON
GO BULK
WEAR SPACE SUIT
PRESS BUTTON
GO SHUTTLE
PRESS BUTTON
YUSES FAR
GO OUT
GO EAST (YOU'LL SEE A GLOWING ROCK)
DROP CONTAINER
DROP DEVICE (SWITCH STARTS MOTOR, DRILL ENGAGES AND FILLS CONTAINER-- NOW YOUR CONTAINER IS A FUEL CONTAINER)
TAKE CONTAINER (YOU NEED THE TONGS TO DO THIS)
GO WEST
GO SHUTTLE
PRESS BUTTON
VESPOZIAN
GO OUT
PRESS BUTTON
REMOVE SPACE SUIT
GO PORT
PRESS BUTTON
GO FORWARD
GO UP
GO DOOR
DROP SPACE SUIT
TAKE ASBESTOS SUIT
WEAR ASBESTOS SUIT
GO PORT
GO PORT
DROP CONTAINER (VESPOZIAN IS NOW REFUELED)
GO STARBOARD
GO BULKHEAD
PRESS BUTTON
H
GYRATES
E
WAIT (TYPE "WAIT" AS MANY TIMES AS NECESSARY UNTIL YOU ENTER ORBIT AROUND GYRATES-- ABOUT A DOZEN)
PRESS BUTTON
L
STARGATE (WHAM-- YOU HAVE VAPOURISED THE STARGATE AND SUCCEEDED IN YOUR MISSION-- YOU WIN!)