[BenjaminBunny]

I`m traveling right now, and can not play through with you all, but I wish I could! I love this game, so it`s nice reading anyways.

[Fien]

Fellow players, we have till Sunday to finish the second CD.
Brace yourself, we're going to Vienna!
Cath will have to act... he has several options. Most of them will end the game prematurely, but not all endings are "bad".

PS: BenjaminBunny, even if you can't join us, you can still post your comments. Come on, you lurkers out there!

[Vel]

Hey, I happen to be replaying the game too, and just chanced upon this thread!
As it is my most favourite game ever, it still holds its charm yet again, perhaps I'll write some more about it when I finish it tomorrow.

[Kurufinwe]

Before getting to the next section, a few interesting details from the previous one (many of which are actually very important for the rest of the game):

1) Obviously, some men are more equal than others: when the police came, the conductors convinced them not to bother Kronos. Because Kronos and Kahina would be completely incapable of killing anyone. Right... They also mentioned that they convinced the police not to visit the harem, if they valued their lives.

2) Later on, the conductors have a conversation about the war. One of them is eager to get revenge on the Germans for the defeat of 1870. The other defends Jean Jaur̬s' ideas, namely that that war is just a game for the dominant classes, and that it's the workers who will get massacred, for no good reason (history proved him right on all counts). The conductor mentions Jaur̬s' ideas that all the workers in France, Germany, Austria should unite to refuse the war. This conversation reflects the strong divide that existed among the French left at the time, between those who advocated a union of the workers against the war (Jaur̬s) and those in favour of national unity against Germany (Guesde). Jaur̬s was assassinated at the end of July 1914, and with him removed, war was declared a few days later. Anyone in France with some minimal education knows all that by heart, by I found it a pleasant surprise that it appeared in the game Рit contributes to giving it texture.

3) Lots of new drawings (of characters) in the conductor's sketchbook!

4) After the commotion in the count's cabin, you can hear Anna tell Tatiana that she feels her cabin is not safe, and entrusting something to her. This is, obviously, tremendously important, and I like that the game made sure that you couldn't really miss that conversation.

5) The conductor had a key that opened the doors to all the cabins, but he's lost it during the night. Hmm...

6) After the conversation with Kronos, you can hear him talk to Kahina. He believes that Anna has the Firebird, and tells Kahina to get it. He says he'll manage to get both Anna and the dog away for some time. Once again, this is tremendously important, and the game makes sure you can't miss it.

7) In Kronos' cabin, after the conversation, you can find a book with a story about a mysterious egg. This is also important, and I advise that everyone should read it.

And now, off to Vienna! I agree that this is the hardest section of the game (probably excessively hard). Let's go...

[colpet]

Thanks for the summary, Kurufinwe. It really helps. Seems I didn't miss as much as I thought.

[DanAlt]

Originally Posted by Eye-Z

man how do i even get ahold of the TLE these days

It's on GameTap, which is a pretty inexpensive subscription, and they've already done all the "make it work with modern OS" drudge work.

[colpet]

I won't be able to resume play until Sunday. I'll contribute then.
Jo

[MoriartyL]

Abbott is fantastic! Wow. Great characterization, great voice acting. The conversation with him is priceless. I only wish it could have been more interactive- I'd really like to talk to this guy myself!

[MoriartyL]

There's so much good dialogue here, totally realistic but fun. I liked the part where Tatiana thinks Alexei's messing up the chess game, and he's all confident. Very plausible and recognizable characters, there.

[Squinky]

I was away when this playthrough got started, but I just started reading people's impressions and am intrigued as a result. I tried playing TLE on GameTap two years ago, but didn't finish, mainly because I stopped using my GameTap account. Now, I'm getting my hands on a real copy of the game as we speak and will perhaps attempt to join in at some point, if I get it in the mail on time. I may have to get through it with a walkthrough, Mory-style, because I do recall being confused last time I played as well.

[MoriartyL]

You can see the dog in his cage! More than that, you can actually

Spoiler:

let him out,

though I don't know why Cath could possibly think that was worth doing.

[MoriartyL]

I'm unclear on the relationship between Sophie and Rebecca- is it homosexual, or are they just good friends?

[MoriartyL]

Wow, I'm glad I have this walkthrough. I would not in a million playthroughs have realized that thing was hidden in Anna's room.

Edit: What? I'm supposed to break in there, too? I mean, sure, it makes sense. But still- this so doesn't seem like the time for that. Wow.

Edit Edit: What the heck? I'm supposed to do that?!

For the story it works. But did they stop and think how anyone would ever be able to play this?!

[MoriartyL]

There's a glaring omission in this game- you can't look out the window and see what you're passing. What's a train ride without scenery?

[MoriartyL]

It strains belief a bit that I'm wandering in and out of other people's rooms with lots of people standing nearby.

[MoriartyL]

Hey, tell me, because I can't figure it out: Where is Rebecca going when she abruptly leaves her conversation with Sophie? I tried following her, but she literally disappeared. She's not back in her room, either. Afterwards she comes back and says she spoke with Madame Boutarel, but I didn't hear the two of them ever talking.

[MoriartyL]

What a lovely concert. And to think, the writers expected me to leave it so I could wander around for their silly little plot! I'll have to rewind and do it the "right" way now, so the game will be satisfied. Grr.

I'm quite sure I've heard this piece several times before. It's a famous piece, which makes sense since it had to be something both Kronos and Anna already knew. Come to think of it, this is late romantic stuff, so it shouldn't be more than a few decades old at the time of this game!

..I looked it up on Wikipedia. Sonata for Violin and Piano in A major by César Franck, 1886. So yeah, less than thirty years old.

[MoriartyL]

I was impressed that they'd put the whole composition in, but now I see that that's just to give enough time for the game to get all adventure-y and silly. Blecch.

[MoriartyL]

None of this seems to make any sense.

Spoiler:

First Cath climbs out of the train and onto the roof, though he has no way of knowing there's anywhere to go from there. Then he sees a piece of glass covering Kronos' room, and smashes it (loudly) even though there's a concert right in the next room. And no one hears him. Sure, there's lots of background noise, but they're right next to it. Seriously. (Okay, maybe I'll buy that part if there was absolutely no other way in, and if the background noise was really loud.) Then he stumbles onto the gold, which he had no way of knowing was even in that room. And then he walks right through the concert, so that everyone on the train should know he was in Kronos' room. Is he actively trying to be noticed?! Then Kahina lets him go. Why? And then I'm supposed to go hide the egg. Well, that makes sense. Now that I've moronically blown my cover my bathroom isn't the safest place for it. But the dog cage? Really?! As soon as you let the dog out, the conductor brings him right back. (What else could Cath think is going to happen?) Which means Cath is leading the conductor right to the egg, which isn't even particularly hidden in there! What the heck!

[MoriartyL]

Spoiler:

Hey, I just realized they absolutely should have heard the glass. Didn't we hear Kronos and Kahina talking to each other quietly, from that exact same room? And isn't breaking glass just a teensy bit louder than that?

Spoiler:

And seriously, he couldn't just push the briefcase up to the roof somehow? Gotten something to stand on? From the roof, he might have gotten into his own window and thereby avoided anyone knowing for certain that he had the briefcase!