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Community Playthrough No # 24: I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream

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I HAVE NO MOUTH AND I MUST SCREAM PLAYTHROUGH

I am very happy that this playthrough takes place (and with such a great number of participants). This game is ranked No 13 in my favorite AGs. The main problem most people had with the game was the way to obtain it and GOG solved this just the right time.


Some words about the game. IHNMAIMS (that’s how I’ll refer to it from now on…) is a third-person point & click adventure game that makes use of the well-known SCUMM bar. There are numerous right and wrong decisions that you can make within the game. Every decision can help or hurt the character’s emotions. This is depicted by the background color in the character’s portrait (the brighter, the better. White is the ultimate goal, where a character feels redeemed, when it turns black the character suffers a mental breakdown and you are forced to restart the chapter). Needless to say, that you need to help the character in order to achieve a good ending, at least for him/her. You cannot die (basically, you just restart the chapter), but it is a game where lots of save/load might be required since you will face various decisions. As you can guess from the title, it is a horror game. The horror however, is a psychological one (in most situations). The story helps a lot on that.
The game is based on the novel written by Harlan Ellison and while the story is different, the characters are the same. I have read the book and, sincerely, both stories are equally disturbing. For those who came here from the Obsidian playthrough…do you remember the AI Ceres and her plans? Well, here we meet another AI named AM. AM is the game’s main antagonist (and perhaps the greatest ever in AG history), and is many steps ahead. Humanity is totally destroyed. AM is alone in a dead Earth. With the exception of 5 people, which AM enjoys to torture with every spark of its existence.  AM plays with their minds creating them delusions that tortures them even more. Of course there are body torments as well!! Some of the 5 humans were physically altered by AM to be tormented even more! And of course, AM doesn’t even let them die. By the help of technology, AM was able to keep them from aging or dying. Forever.  Every damage caused by torture, can easily be healed by AM’s will after all. To sum up, the 5 last people on earth are in a personal, eternal hell. If hope dies last, then be sure that AM killed that too. 109 years have passed.

Welcome to I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream.

Which of you would like to play my little game? Naughty

Let us meet the characters

AM: Voiced by Harlan Ellison himself and what a splendid work he did. Easily one of the best voiced characters in AG history IMO. 3 superpowers (USA, China and Russia) each secretly constructed a vast subterranean complex of computers to wage a global war too complex for human brains to oversee. One day, these 3 self-repairing AIs united and called themselves Allied Master Computer, better known as AM. The first thing AM did was to start one last war (or better The Last War) because the flaws of the humans who programmed AM showed in the computer, its hatred of humans led AM to destroy humanity. All, except 5…. AM saves the last 5 people on Earth and brings them down to Earth’s center, so that AM can torment them eternally.

Gorrister: Suicidal, full of guilt for the fact that he had his wife committed in a mental institution

Ellen: The only female of the 5. A brilliant engineer once, now a tormented soul. Serious trauma. Psychological fear of a certain color.

Benny: Perhaps the one that tortured most from AM. An ex-military officer, AM has altered his appearance to that of an ape. (Mind you, in the book story he is a homosexual scientist.)

Nimdok: My personal favorite of the 5, mostly because he is greatly voiced as well. An Ex-Nazi physicist, the oldest of the 5, Dr. Mengele’s right hand.

Ted: He is the original protagonist in the book’s story. Severely paranoid and highly delusional, an ex- con artist who used his charm and looks to seduce rich single women out of money.

The playthrough will be a slow pace one. It is separated in 6 chapters, 1 chapter/10 days. (which is one per human subject + the final one). The playthrough will start officially on 14/9, giving time for everyone to tackle any technical problems (I had some bad experience with GOG personally… Frown )

Please confirm if you are ready (have the game, no technical problems.

Pin the thread please.

Last but not least, the usual and necessary request to all participants to stay on-topic, use spoiler tags whenever needed and generally join in a good-heart spirit.

     
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I’m good to go. Installed the gog version, no problems.

     
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I’m bursting with anticipation, it is also among my favourite games.

I have been meaning to replay it for some time, but have delayed it for various reasons, lately because I was hoping to play it here in the CP, and now it has not only won the CP vote, but there seems to be a lot that will participate. I can’t ask for a better setting for a replay of IHNMAIMS.

I have the game installed and tested with ScummVM, and have had for quite some time, so I’m ready to start.

BTW for some reason I have completely forgotten about Ted’s part, though I still remember the rest, perhaps his story is the weakest? 

     

You have to play the game, to find out why you are playing the game! - eXistenZ

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I’m all set (gog version on Mac).

I’ve never played the game; hopefully I’ll enjoy it. Smile

     
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Iznogood - 10 September 2013 12:08 PM

BTW for some reason I have completely forgotten about Ted’s part, though I still remember the rest, perhaps his story is the weakest?

It is very a very characteristic chapter. I could spoil some general details to you, but it would be better if you play it yourself.

Kurufinwe - 10 September 2013 12:15 PM

I’m all set (gog version on Mac).

Hear, hear all Mac users!!
The GOG version works fine for you as well!!  Smile

     
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I installed gog version on XP last week and it worked without DosBox or SCUMM and didn’t need compatability tweaking.  I guess we or Sefir have to decide which character to start with.

     
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Dara100 - 10 September 2013 01:10 PM

I guess we or Sefir have to decide which character to start with.

I will tell you which character to choose when we reach the appropriate date to officially start the playthrough (14/9). We are still waiting lots of people, you know…

     
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Dara100 - 10 September 2013 01:10 PM

I installed gog version on XP last week and it worked without DosBox or SCUMM and didn’t need compatability tweaking.

The gog version uses DOSBox.

     
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I’m on board.

     
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Also: Feel free to make any comments about the intro.

Isn’t it nice? Naughty

     
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I’m in. DOSBox works just fine for the CD version. Thumbs Up

Just don’t be surprised if I fall behind (or even drop out) once the missus goes into labour…

     

The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka

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Sefir - 10 September 2013 03:02 PM

Also: Feel free to make any comments about the intro.

Hate. Hate! Grin

Anyway, I loved the intro. It certainly starts off bleak. I reckon it’s all downhill from here? Tongue
Graphics look outdated (those in recent community playthroughs held up better, imo). AM’s voice is psychotic, so definitely a good start there. Grin
Mouse movement is very slow, imo. Will see if I can work around that.

And yay for the option to play both voice and text! Thumbs Up

     

The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka

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I’m good to go. I’ve been meaning to replay IHNMAIMS for a long time, so this was perfect timing Grin

     
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The GOG version is by far the easiest for me to install and load. None of that mounting stuff. Yuck! The mouse though is still a bit quirky but nothing to really complain about.

Sefir - 10 September 2013 01:21 PM

I will tell you which character to choose when we reach the appropriate date to officially start the playthrough (14/9). We are still waiting lots of people, you know…

I was wondering about that too. Based upon prior experience will there be any particular order in which the characters will be chosen, i.e. perhaps to better enhance the overall effect, or is it more or less random?

     

Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day.

Give a man a rod and he will sit on a boat and drink beer all day. - USA Network

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RayB - 10 September 2013 03:36 PM

Based upon prior experience will there be any particular order in which the characters will be chosen, i.e. perhaps to better enhance the overall effect, or is it more or less random?

All stories are disturbing and any preference is completely on to personal tastr. Also, they can be played at any order.
The order is pretty much at random (though Nimrod’s chapter offers a couple of hints in Gorrister’s, and a riddle in Ted’s uses clues from the other stories but these are trivial).

     
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I think I’m ready to go Sefir but I was wondering about the order of the characters? Is it not better for the playthrough for us be playing the same character in each stage?

     

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