Escape From The
Underground Space
There are many things people try to escape from. Boredom. Work. Prison. Responsibilities. Meetings. In-Laws. It's not often, though, that you'll find yourself attempting to escape from an industrial hole in the ground. Unless you weren't watching where you were walking, that is. Welcome to Escape from the Underground Space!
Created by Tesshi-e, maker of Escape from the Living Room... No, wait! Don't run away! It's different, promise! At any rate, created by Tesshi-e, maker of Escape from the Living Room, Escape from the Underground Space is a light, fun escape that leans heavily on the uses of found objects rather than puzzle solving, although there are a few puzzles as well.
You start in a bare (well, nearly bare) underground space. Despite the barren appearance there are lots of things to find and manipulate. Already figured your way out? Found the "quickie" escape? (Yes, there is one.) Go back and see if you can discover another way.
It soon becomes clear that, despite a few nice decorative touches, you are not in a living space. Can you get the door open? No. Can you get to the concrete catwalk above? That depends on how good you are at combining objects and reasoning. For those who enjoy "how can I use this object" scenarios then this is the game for you.
Analysis: Once again Tesshi-e has created a lovely 3D background to wander in. Lighting effects are sharp and clear enough to make you feel the heat. Navigation is smooth and easy, with bars appearing along the top, bottom, and sides of the screen to help move you around. The pixel hunting, one of the major complaints of Escape from the Living Room, has been done away with. It is much easier to find hot-spots and manipulate items this time around. Yes, there is some item construction, but it is very intuitive and flows along with the storyline of the escape. No cars made from cell phones here!
There are a few minor problems. Some of the hot-spots are very close to the navigation bars, making it easy to accidently move away when you meant to pick something up. The music is a nice light jazzy number, but if you are in the game for longer than five minutes you might be grateful for the provided mute button.
Inventory control is simple and functional, with items handily displayed on-screen and an "about item" button to bring any one of them into close-up. The escape itself, even the longest scenario, is pretty simple. A little more complexity might have been nice. A save game feature would also have been welcome.
Each time around, though, Tesshi-e's designs are getting better and better. This one features three different ways to escape and four different endings (at least that I found). Perhaps it's not the best or most complicated escape game out there, but it can be a quick, easy, entertaining diversion in the middle of the week. Escape from the Underground Space is a fun way to kill some time, be it on a coffee break or just taking 10-15 minutes away from whatever you're doing. Take a break, and enjoy the escape!
Play Escape From The Underground Space
[Note: Though Escape From The Underground Space is not completely translated, but it is playable without any knowledge of the language. While item descriptions and most messages are in Japanese, the puzzles are in English.]
Walkthrough Guide
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Escape from the Underground Space Walkthrough
General Information
There are three different ways to get out of the space. A "quickie" ending, a "middle" ending, and a "long" ending that has two options, with or without the "lucky coin".
My terms for the three different endings are my own, as I don't read Japanese.
Remember that objects, once they are brought up on the screen for close ups, can be turned or manipulated by clicking on them.
That large silver object in the room is not a staircase, it is an inclined roller conveyor, that is why you get up to a certain point and start sliding backwards.
Good luck!
Quickie Escape
Turn left twice.
Click on the pipes (or the plant) for a close up.
Click on the roller conveyor.
Once you are facing the roller conveyor you need to click four or five times in rapid succession. If you hit the right spots you can get to the top of the roller conveyor and out.
Congratulations, you are out!
Medium Escape
You start the game facing a door in a concrete pillar. Click on the door for a close up.
Just to the left of the door is a piece of paper on the ground. Pick it up.
Back up.
Click on the plant with an "I" to the left of the door for a close up.
Pick up the spool of string from behind the plant. Notice the number of leaves.
Back up.
Turn right and click on the wall display for a close up.
Take the basket in the middle right alcove.
While the basket is in a close up click on the top of it to turn it over. Take the scissors from inside.
Turn left twice. You should now be facing the side of the concrete pillar with the door.
Click behind the pillar, between the pillar and the back wall.
There are two objects behind the pillar, a cylinder and a mess of rope. Take both items.
Back up.
Turn left. You should now be facing a plant with an "L" on it. Click on the red machine with the handle for a close up.
There is a small airplane on the ground to the left of the machine. Pick it up.
Back up.
Click on the pipe going up the wall for a close up. Notice that there is something stuck in a bracket too high for you to reach. Also note the number of leaves on the plant.
Click on the roller conveyor.
Now that you are facing the roller conveyor click it two or three times quickly, until you see the key sitting on the left side. Click on the key fast before you slide backwards.
Back up twice and turn left.
You should now be facing the wall underneath the roller conveyor.
Click on the plants for a close up and count the leaves. Back up.
Now click twice on the number pad on the wall for a close up. Note it says "Sky Music Time".
Think back to the objects in the wall nooks. Which ones deal with the sky, music, or time?
The hourglass, the violin, the piano, and the airplane are the clues that deal with sky, music, and time. You need to click the buttons on the pad that correspond with the cubicles the objects are in.
Top row: Click the center and right buttons. Bottom row: Click the left and center buttons. Now click the larger button to the right and the keypad will open.
Take the key that is revealed. Notice the button that will not stay depressed. Back up.
Turn right twice until you are facing the side of the concrete pillar. There is a gold box on the pillar, click on it for a close up.
Use the first key you found on the box and take the glue.
Back up and turn right.
Click on the ladder to the right of the pillar for a close up.
Use the second key on the lock to take the ladder.
Back up and turn left twice.
Click on the pipes going up the wall for a close up.
Place the ladder on the wall next to the pipe and retrieve the mysterious object caught in the bracket. You now have a pair of broken wings.
"So take these broken wings, and learn to fly again, learn to live so free..."
Sorry, my mind drifted. Click on the broken wings while they are in close up to remove the damaged paper.
Close down the wings and back up until you are looking at the pipe wall. Time to assemble!
First pull up the paper from your inventory and use the scissors on it. You now have new paper for the wings. Close them back into your inventory.
Pull up the basket from your inventory. Make sure that it is upright and use the scissors on it. You now have some wing-shaped sticks.
Apply the glue to the sticks.
Apply the broken wings to the sticks.
Apply the paper and you have a new set of wings! Close down the wings and bring up the airplane.
Attach the wings to the airplane. Add the string to the airplane and you are done. Assembling, that is.
Close down the airplane and click on the top of the scene to look up. There's the catwalk.
Throw the plane over the catwalk (click on the plane in your inventory then click on the catwalk.
Open the rope bundle from your inventory. Once it is in close up click on it and it becomes a rope ladder.
Close the close up of the rope ladder and then apply it to the string. You can now get up to the catwalk.
Click on the rope ladder to climb up.
You are now facing a door with a keypad on the left. Behind you is a gate, but it is padlocked.
Click on the keypad next to the door for a close up.
The keypad says "Mild". Hope you paid attention to the plants.
The code is the number of leaves on each plant. M = 5, I = 8, L = 5, and D = 7.
Enter the code 5 - 8 - 5 - 7 and push the button labled "push".
Back up and the door is open.
Enter the door. Turn left and take the sledgehammer. Turn right again to face the ladder.
Click on the bottom rung of the ladder to look down and then go down the ladder.
At the bottom turn left and notice the red box on the wall. Click on the box for a close up.
Pull the switch.
Back up, turn right and go back up the ladder.
Back up twice until you are back on the catwalk.
Click on the rope ladder to look down. Go down the rope ladder back into the underground room.
Back up until you are facing the wall with the pipes. Click on the red machine for a close up.
Hit the lever on the red machine with the sledgehammer. The room will begin to fill with water.
Float to the top and go out at the top of the roller conveyor.
Congratulations, you are out!
Long Escape
Follow the Medium Escape instructions until you climb back down into the underground space carrying the sledgehammer. (right before you flood the room to get out.)
Back up and turn left until you are facing the wall underneath the roller conveyor. Notice the green light in the open keypad area. Click on the keypad area twice for a close up.
Push the button at the bottom of the keypad area, it will now stay depressed. Back up.
Notice a grate has opened up underneath the keypad area. Take the plug sitting in the grate. Back up.
Turn right and face the pipe wall again.
Pull up the mysterious silver cylinder from your inventory.
Once the cylinder is in close up, click on the right end of the cylinder to turn it around. You will notice that there is an area at the end for a plug.
Insert the plug into the cylinder end. It should now say "ground".
Click on the arrow beneath the cylinder to turn it back around. Notice there is now a four digit code lock on the cylinder.
Close the cylinder back into your inventory and click on the red machine for a close up.
Hit the lever on the red machine with the hammer. Water will come into the room, but the open grate will prevent it from completely flooding.
Back up and go up the rope ladder to the catwalk.
Click on the rope ladder to look back down into the room.
You'll notice with the water in the room a number appears on the raised floor: 3 - 1 - 7 - 3.
Pull up the cylinder from your inventory and enter the code 3 - 1 - 7 - 3.
Congratulations, you have a key with a heart shape on the end!
At this point you can use the heart-shaped key on the gate and leave. This is the "Long" Escape without the lucky coin.
Or, go back down the rope ladder to the underground space.
Back up and turn left until you are facing the grate. Click on the grate for a close up.
There's a small yellow object floating in front of the gate. Pick it up.
You've found the lucky coin!
Back up and turn right.
Go back up the rope ladder and turn around to face the locked gate.
Use the heart-shaped key on the gate and leave.
Congratulations, you've found the lucky coin escape!
Posted by: grinnyp | August 19, 2009 7:05 AM