Countdown (Walkthrough)
COUNTDOWN
1 General, Sanctuary
2 Mason, McBain, Lisa, Rachel, Fontaine, HQ, Carlos, Golden Desire, Buzz
3 Scorpio, Lisa, Jack, Colosseum, Orient Express, Gina, Endgame
COUNTDOWN: Part 1
GENERAL
In COUNTDOWN, you are a secret agent working for the CIA, one of the good guys. Unfortunately, that's about all you know when the game begins. You see, you're in this prison/hospital known as the "Sanctuary." You've been hit hard on the head, and although not much damage has been done, you are suffering from amnesia. Worse yet, you've been scheduled for a lobotomy in the morning. Your job...well, okay, _our_ job is to escape from the Sanctuary, regain your identity, and get even with the person who struck you. (Be prepared to take on something much bigger and more sinister.)
Mostly, the puzzles in this game involve searching a series of rooms. You will be MOVEing, OPENing, and GETting various items, as well as USEing them. The game does not give clues to indicate which items need to be manipulated. You must be very thorough and persistent to win. This walkthru, therefore, consists mainly of all the actions that need to be accomplished, but very little explanation.
A lot of the important objects in COUNTDOWN are depicted with so little detail that it's often difficult to recognize them for what they are. In this walkthru, I'll try to describe the onscreen locations of the objects. If you have difficulty finding an item to MOVE or OPEN, try moving the cursor around likely places until you find it.
TALKing to the various characters can be a real pain. Several of them will not answer your questions or will even kill you if you do not APPROACH them in just the right way. The walkthru will provide the right conversation sequences whenever necessary. If such a sequence is not given, then you are safe to use either the HELP or PLEASANT approach. After the correct approach has been made, be sure to ASK ABOUT everything available on the list. This is not only necessary to solve the game, but it is vital in understanding the story.
And what a story! This game has an excellent plot. When I was playing the game, I had more fun watching the story unfold than solving the puzzles. In the walkthru, I will intentionally leave out most of the plot. I want you to get the help you need with the puzzles and still be able to unravel for yourself the engaging story contained in this game.
SANCTUARY
You are locked in your room in the Sanctuary. The first order of business is to get out of the room and explore the rest of the territory. LOOK CHART. Wow! What a great animated sequence. This is one of several flashback sequences in the game. It's a clever way to show how your memory is returning, Hollywood style. GET CUP and GET KEY (a glint under the bed). USE CUP on BUG (flying around on the right near the window). TALK to GUARD who appears outside your door periodically. You can try HELP and PLEASANT, and ASK ABOUT everything listed. OFFER BUG to the guard. LEAVE the conversation. Wait until the food arrives. GET KNIFE (to the right of the food tray). Use the mouse or the arrow key to walk your character close to the window. USE KNIFE on WINDOW to cut open the security screen. GO TO WINDOW.
You are out on the ledge just outside your window. You will have to find something fast to take your place in the room so that the guard will not get suspicious. MOVE and OPEN the second WINDOW to the right. GO TO WINDOW. You are in an empty room. From this point on, each time you are ready to leave a room, be sure to save your game. There are guards patrolling throughout the Sanctuary. If they see you, you'll be recaptured, and that's the end of the game.
They are very punctual in their rounds. Each time you leave a room, note the time as indicated at the top right of the screen. If you should run into a guard, restore the game, and this time, wait a few extra seconds before leaving, or move in the opposite direction, and you should be able to avoid capture. It can be quite frustrating, but unfortunately, it's part of the game.
Okay, let's pick up where we left off. You're still in the empty room. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. Once outside the room, go east to the intersection, then north to the end of the hallway. OPEN the DOOR to the north. GO TO DOOR. There is a CPR dummy here. GET CPR DUMMY. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. (Don't forget to save your game first. This is the last reminder.) Move east and south to the intersection. Go west and GO TO the first DOOR on the south. You're back in the empty room again. GO TO WINDOW to get back out on the ledge, move two windows to the left, and GO TO WINDOW. You're now back in your own room. USE CPR DUMMY on BED. Whew! Now, at least, you won't have to worry about the guard checking up on you.
Go out the window and return to that empty room again. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. Right across the hall from you is an open door. GO TO DOOR. This is a closet. GET SCISSORS (hanging on the side of a shelf above a mop). GET BLANKET (second shelf from the bottom to your left). GO TO DOOR.
Go east to the intersection. There's a door to the east. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. You find a naked man locked behind a viewing window. There's an intercom to the right of the window. TALK INTERCOM. You need to use three different sequences: PLEASANT PLEASANT; PLEASANT HELP PLEASANT; HELP PLEASANT PLEASANT. Then, OFFER BLANKET. ASK ABOUT everything. LEAVE the conversation. You get quite a bit of information and also a possible way of escape. Now, if you can just find this Barney guy that he told you about.
OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. Go north to the end of the hall, then go west. You see stairs going up and down, and a hallway leading south. Take the southern hallway until you see the third door to the west. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. Hm, the initials "B. S." are carved on the wall. This must be Barney's room. MOVE PILLOW, GET KEY (under pillow), MOVE PICTURE, and LOOK at WRITING (behind picture). Aha, a clue to the escape route! OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR.
Go north and take the stairs going up. Go south, then follow the hallway to the east. OPEN the first DOOR to the north. GO TO DOOR. Apparently, this is a changing room. There are several lockers here. USE KEY on LOCKER (the third one from the right) and GET BAG. You found a little money in the locker. MOVE TOWEL (the one on the bench) and GET KEY (under the towel). USE KEY on LOCKER (the fifth one from the right) and GET BOOTS. Before you go, LOOK at BLOOD (on the floor near the dumpster) to see another flashback. OPEN DOOR (the one to the north). GO TO DOOR.
Go west and follow the hallway going south. OPEN the first DOOR to the east. GO TO DOOR. This is a supply room and it is very dark in here. There's a magazine on the second shelf against the wall. OPEN MAGAZINE. You learn that this building was originally a monastery, and there is an underground catacomb. GET CROWBAR (sticking out of a drawer on the right side of the screen). USE CROWBAR on BOX (above the short file cabinet on the left side of the screen). GET HOOK. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR.
Go north and take the stairs going down. Go downstairs one more time. Follow the long hallway going south, then turn east, and go all the way to the southeast corner of the floor. Along the eastern wall there are four doors -- each leads to an operating room. OPEN the second DOOR from the south. GO TO DOOR. There is a box on the floor. OPEN BOX and GET FLASHLIGHT. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. Go north until you see the fourth door. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. There is a dart board on the wall with a scalpel. GET SCALPEL. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR.
Go west toward the stairs and take the south hallway just before the stairs. OPEN the first DOOR to the west. GO TO DOOR. This is the evil doctor's office, and he is sitting in his chair, taking a nap with a wine bottle in his hands. Nice guy! LOOK at NEWSPAPER (on the floor).
Learn about the upcoming presidential election and a terrorist group called Black December. I told you you'd be up against something very sinister, didn't I? OPEN DRAWER (the second drawer of the file cabinet to the left). LOOK at DRAWER to get some information about Jack Quinn. GET KEY RING (from the doctor's desk). MOVE PAINTING (in the middle of the screen). LOOK at WRITING (behind painting). A safe combination? So is there a safe around here? MOVE BOOKS (second shelf of the bookshelf). Aha, a safe! OPEN SAFE and GET MONEY.
Now, it's time to grill the doctor to get some vital information. Specifically, you must find out who was standing next to him in your first flashback; otherwise, you will not be able to leave the Sanctuary. USE SCALPEL on DOCTOR. PLEASANT PLEASANT HASSLE HASSLE. ASK ABOUT everything. LEAVE the conversation. You have done all you need to do in the Sanctuary. It's time to escape. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR.
Go north and take the stairs going down. This must be the basement of the Sanctuary. There's only a single door here and it's locked. It's a good thing that you found the key in Barney's room. USE KEY on DOOR. GO TO DOOR. You find yourself in another dark room where you can barely make out a furnace. LOOK carefully near the middle of the screen. There is a phone box here. OPEN PHONE BOX and USE SCISSORS on PHONE BOX. You have to cut the communication between the Sanctuary and the outside world; otherwise, you'll be recaptured once you escape.
MOVE COAL (near right center screen). GET PICK (it appears after you move the coal). LOOK at the hole just above the initials "B. S." Walk as close to the hole as possible. USE PICK on HOLE, then GO TO HOLE.
You're in a small maze, the underground catacomb mentioned in the magazine. The maze is not too complex but you may want to map it. Giving directions is very difficult, but here goes. Take the first possible east corridor. There's a short jog to the south, after which take the first east corridor again. You come across a pool of water, then the corridor turns south. Turn east again as soon as you can. Follow this trail, which will lead you to a casket. Go east from the casket until you reach an intersection. Turn south and go as far as you can, making no other turns. At the end of this, jog west, then south. Here you should see another passage leading south just to the right of you, with a heart-shaped pool in it. Take that passage and follow it all the way to the exit. GO TO DOORWAY.
You are now in a wine cellar and there's a dead body here. Could this be Barney? GET RAG (on the floor near the wine rack) and USE RAG on PLAQUE (to the right of the wine rack). So, there is a secret door here? Now, how do you know which four bottles to move? MOVE CRATE (on the floor to the left of the wine rack). A second plaque! LOOK at second PLAQUE. So, the monastery was founded in the year MCDXXXIII. That translates to 1433. That's the clue to the wine bottles. Always counting from the left, MOVE the first BOTTLE on the top shelf, MOVE the fourth BOTTLE on the second shelf, MOVE the third BOTTLE on the third shelf, and MOVE the third BOTTLE on the bottom shelf. Voila! A secret door appears on the right side of the screen! Just one more thing to do before we leave: USE CROWBAR on CRATE (the one in front of the dead body). GET WINE. GO TO DOORWAY (right of screen).
Boy, is it dark out here. You can hardly see anything. LOOK at WALL (center of screen and slightly above you). There are some notches on the wall. Walk as close to the wall as you can, and USE BOOTS on WALL. Move the cursor to the top of the screen above your character, and click it to make your character climb up the wall. Continue until you are near the top and can move no farther. USE HOOK on TOP. Okay, you have climbed the cliff and are now outside the Sanctuary. There are two cars here. How considerate of them to provide you with a getaway vehicle. LOOK at CAR (the one on the left) to experience another flashback. USE KEYS on CAR DOOR. Finally, the great escape is successful, and you're on your way!
COUNTDOWN: Part 2
MASON'S APARTMENT
From the destination menu, select Mason's apartment by train. LOOK at PHOTO (on the floor, center of screen). That's a nice picture of Lisa Loomis, a fellow CIA agent and your girl friend. LOOK at WORK (on the desk) to learn more about Black December and a new character, Stormbringer. GET BATTERY (on top of the television). MOVE the left PILLOW and GET KEY (under pillow). MOVE the FLOWER POT (on top of the ice box). GET CAD (Computer Access Device). GET CRACKER (on the kitchen table). USE KEY on CAGE DOOR (the bird cage in the kitchen, right side of screen).
As soon as the cage door is opened, the parrot flies out and starts to insult you. Getting upstaged by a bird...this is a new low for you. LOOK at BIRD. It's carrying a key! USE CRACKER on BIRD. You may not have noticed it, but the bird just dropped the key on the kitchen counter. GET KEY and USE KEY on DRAWER (top right drawer of the desk). LOOK at DRAWER and you see the word DOLPHIN. This is the password you need to use the CAD. USE CAD and type in the password
"Dolphin."
Choose Research and select everything on the list to get more of the story. When done, EXIT out of the CAD menu. You can also open the ice box for a point. Later, after you've found some explosives, you can come back and blow up the bird for 10 points more. Now, what does that tell you about COUNTDOWN's author? Oh well, different strokes, and all that. For now, OPEN DOOR, GO TO DOOR, and leave.
When you get back to the travel menu, you will be informed that you have E-mail waiting. Select USE CAD SYSTEM and READ the E-mail. When you are finished, select McBain's apartment as the destination.
MCBAIN'S APARTMENT
GET KEY (on the floor, near the window, next to the chair). LOOK at STATUE and MOVE SHIELD (on the statue). A keybox appears on the statue as soon as you move the shield. USE KEY on KEYBOX. The fireplace moves up and a fancy computer station is revealed. MOVE SWITCH (on the computer). LOOK at COMPUTER. Interesting. McBain had information about Black December's possible strike points and the code-name of the operation: Thunderbolt.
LOOK at EXPLOSIVES (right bottom shelf of the computer) and GET EXPLOSIVES. LOOK at the NOTEPAD (on the desk) and GET NOTEPAD. LOOK at BOX (second shelf on the bookshelf) and GET BOX. You get more money and a passport that will allow you to travel to other countries. MOVE SHELF (the entire bookshelf) and you find a safe! LOOK at SAFE. This is one elaborate safe that even Alexander Monday would have trouble opening. Well, we can always do it the hard way. USE EXPLOSIVE on SAFE. (Note: The explosives have a 10-second delay, so be patient.)
LOOK at BOX (in the safe). It contains a dossier on Iraqi agents in Israel. USE CAD on NOT, then ANALYZE NOTE. ENHANCE. I need to point out something very important here. Do _not_ use the mouse to click the CAD "+" button to enhance. Instead, tap the "+" key on your keyboard slowly until the hidden writing is clearly legible. Make sure you do it this way anytime you use the CAD to enhance anything.
Once the handwriting is clearly readable, read the message, and exit the CAD without changing the enhancement. The message is to Rachel Akure to set up a meeting. Perhaps it will be to your benefit to go pay her a visit. One last thing before we leave here: LOOK at WINDOW and get another flashback. (Isn't that great? I never tire of watching these nifty animations.) GO TO DOOR. Before we visit Rachel in Jerusalem, let's go see Lisa Loomis, who is nearby in
Istanbul.
LISA LOOMIS
Use any approach you like with her, then ASK ABOUT everything possible. This should move the story along nicely, and she's nice to look at, too, isn't she? LEAVE the conversation. Select USE CAD. Research on any new names that you picked up. EXIT CAD. Choose Rachel Akure as your next destination and go by plane.
RACHEL AKURE
Rachel is another pretty lady, but deadly. She does not seem to be very fond of you. OFFER the DOSSIER to get her to answer your questions. ASK ABOUT everything possible. OFFER her $500 to get a hypodermic dart filled with sodium thiopental (truth serum). That's about all you can do with Rachel. LEAVE the conversation. Your next destination is Cairo, Egypt. It's time to pay Fontaine a visit to find out why he asked the evil doctor to "take care of you." By all means, take a plane.
FONTAINE
Once you reach this location, OPEN DUMPSTER and GO TO DUMPSTER. If you don't, Fontaine will shoot you on sight! Stay in the dumpster and wait until the hitman stops right in front of it. Now, quickly, USE DART on HITMAN. TALK to HITMAN. Fontaine is under the influence of the truth serum and will answer all your questions. So, ASK ABOUT everything. When you ask him about Black December, he will give you the location of their headquarters. LEAVE the conversation and GO TO STREET (left edge of the screen). Your next destination is Black December's headquarters in Athens, Greece. Go ahead and splurge; take a plane.
HEADQUARTERS
Be sure to save the game first because this series of moves requires timing. Notice that the corridor on the right side of the screen leads back to a door. There is a disassembled catapult near the center of the screen. A guard comes out of the door regularly to make patrol rounds. You are safe as long as you stay near the catapult.
There is a big rock about halfway down that corridor. Get a fix on the location of the rock. Have you gotten all that? This is what we have to do. First, wait until the guard has made his round and is walking back towards the door. Move as quickly as you can to the rock. GET ROCK. You have to be right next to it to be able to get it. Now, make your way back to the catapult. GET CATAPULT ARM (left of screen). USE CATAPULT ARM on CATAPULT. MOVE LEVER (there is a black lever on the catapult, to the left). USE ROCK on CATAPULT. The catapult is now set to fire. Select MOVE, put the cursor on the black lever, and click once so that you only need to click the mouse one more time to activate it. Wait until the guard comes out of the door and walks to where the big rock used to be. Click the mouse to move the lever which flings the rock at the guard. That is one squashed guard! Satisfying, no? Save the game again.
OPEN DOOR. Note the time indicated at the top right of the screen. GO TO DOOR. There is another guard here. When you enter the door, you need to catch him walking to the right, with his back toward you. Use your saved game until you get the timing right. Once you are safely inside, move to the right, and enter the room where you see a hostage sitting, and hide behind the wall. The guard will move up beyond the top of the screen, then return, and start walking to the left. As soon as he makes his move to the left, dash up to the top the screen, and enter the room to the right where there is a safe.
Don't bother with the safe for now, just hide behind the wall. See that monitor near the center of the screen? Select USE EXPLOSIVES, move the cursor to the monitor, and click once. Wait until you see the guard again. As soon as he reappears, click one more time to activate the explosives. Ten seconds later, just as the guard is standing right next to it, the monitor blows up, and takes the guard with it. Neat! Now, you have plenty of time to do what you need to do.
Go back and TALK to the HOSTAGE. He is more than happy to answer your questions. ASK ABOUT THUNDERBOLT and learn about Jackal. ASK ABOUT BLACK DECEMBER and obtain a photo from the hostage. LEAVE the conversation. USE CAD to ANALYZE the PHOTO. Enhance it to the maximum size, and look at the tattoo on the arm of the man on the right side of the photo. Exit the ANALYZE option and RESEARCH JACKAL to get the name of his control agent: Carlos Ramirez. RESEARCH CARLOS. TRAVEL. Take a plane to visit Carlos in Barcelona, Spain.
CARLOS RAMIREZ
OFFER $300 to Carlos to get a lockpick. You will need it to open the safe in Black December's headquarters. You also need to get some information from Carlos. BLUFF BLUFF PLEASANT PLEASANT. OFFER WINE. ASK ABOUT everything, and, in particular, JACKAL and SCORPIO. Carlos will tell you about Scorpio's girl friend, Golden Desire. Be sure to ASK ABOUT GOLDEN DESIRE as well. LEAVE the conversation, and return to Black December's headquarters. We have a safe to open.
BLACK DECEMBER'S HEADQUARTERS (SECOND TIME)
This time there are no guards to hassle you. GO TO DOOR. Go right and up until you see the safe. USE LOCK PICK on SAFE and GET NOTE. USE CAD to ANALYZE NOTE and ENHANCE NOTE. This is the bomb disarming instruction which may just come in handy later in the game. Perhaps you should write it down. TRAVEL. Let's take a plane to pay a visit to Golden Desire in Venice, Italy.
GOLDEN DESIRE
TALK to BARTENDER. It's obvious what this guy wants. OFFER him $500, then ASK ABOUT SCORPIO and GOLDEN DESIRE. LEAVE the conversaton. GO TO DOORWAY on right side of screen. With the help of the bartender, you now see Golden Desire sitting there waiting to talk to you. TALK to WOMAN. ASK ABOUT SCORPIO and JACKAL. LEAVE the conversation.
There's a blackjack machine here. You can play if you want, although you have plenty of money to finish the game. Do keep track of the time if you really want to gamble. There is a doorway here leading to the dressing room of Golden Desire. There is also a big bodyguard standing right in front of it. Be patient. If you wait long enough, the bodyguard will leave. After the bodyguard leaves, make sure that Golden Desire is either dancing on stage or still sitting in the chair. GO TO DOORWAY.
You are now in her dressing room. OPEN BOX (on the floor). It is a make-up kit. GET BOX. LOOK at ASHTRAY (on the table). LOOK at JEWELRY BOX (left side of table). GET KEY (on top of the door on the left of the screen). USE KEY on JEWELRY BOX, GET KEY (from jewelry box), and USE KEY on right top DRAWER of the table. GET STATIONARY (in the drawer). USE CAD to ANALYZE STATIONARY. Here you learn that Scorpio is not dead, and he has a Russian friend named Buzz Brezhnev. RESEARCH BUZZ. EXIT CAD. OPEN DOOR (the left one). GO TO DOOR.
You are outside the dressing room again. GO TO DOORWAY to the left. TALK to BARTENDER and ASK ABOUT GOLDEN DESIRE and BUZZ BREZHNEV. The bartender knows where Buzz lives. LEAVE the conversation. You may return and ask Golden Desire about Buzz, but it's not necessary. TRAVEL. Go pay Buzz Brezhnev a visit.
BUZZ BREZHNEV
OFFER $300 to Buzz for three capsules containing ambobarbital, a knock-out drug. Then HASSLE HASSLE HELP. ASK ABOUT SCORPIO. Buzz tells you that Scorpio is right here in Venice. Good. Guess where you'll be going next?
COUNTDOWN: Part 3
SCORPIO
You finally get to meet Scorpio. At least he is very willing to answer all your questions. ASK ABOUT everything. He does have a lot to add to the story developed so far. LEAVE the conversation. You have E-mail waiting again. Select the CAD function and READ your E-mail. Travel to Rome to see Lisa Loomis.
LISA LOOMIS (SECOND TIME)
Lisa tells you that you must go get Hakeem Ababash, a CIA informant. But first, Jack Quinn wants to see you. LEAVE the conversation. Visit Jack Quinn.
JACK QUINN
Not a whole lot to do here except to ASK ABOUT everything. LEAVE the conversation. Travel to the Colosseum, the meeting place you and Hakeem had set up.
COLOSSEUM
Save the game here. It sure looks like a set-up, doesn't it? You were ambushed, you find yourself hanging above a hungry tiger, and the rope is getting burned through by a candle. Notice that the tiger cell is on the right side of the screen, and there are two doors separating the cell from the main pit area. There is also a lever on the wall. As soon as the candle burns through the rope and you fall to the ground, walk inside the tiger cell. MOVE LEVER to close the doors. You are safe from the tiger for the time being. You may want to save the game here again.
Move to the north end of the cell, and when the tiger is walking away from you, MOVE LEVER to open the doors. Stay inside the cell but close to the door and wait for the tiger. The tiger will enter the cell through the south door. As it is entering the door, move out of the cell through the northern door, and MOVE LEVER quickly to trap the tiger in the cell. GET ROPE, MOVE BONE (left side of screen), and GET HOOK (behind bone). Walk as close to the window as you can, then USE ROPE on WINDOW.
You are inside a torture room and poor Hakeem is hanging here, dead. GET BAG (near the window). MOVE SACK (middle of the floor), GET POSTCARD (behind sack), and LOOK at NEWSPAPER (on the table). Hm, the president of the United States is in Paris. You don't suppose the terrorists' plan has something to do with that, do you?
GET BLUEPRINT (on the table) and USE CAD to ANALYZE the POSTCARD. There is a microdot in the middle of the postcard. ENHANCE the postcard until you can decode the microdot. So, Jackal is on the Orient Express with a second device, and the first device is already installed? This whole operation is becoming very clear now. You must intercept Jackal, and find and disarm the device already installed. MOVE STONE (just to the left of the knee of the body) and a secret door appears. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. You have E-mail waiting again. Choose the CAD function and READ the E-mail. Good reliable Lisa, always with your interest and safety at heart. Select Belgrade train station, Yugoslavia by plane. You have a date with Jackal.
ORIENT EXPRESS
LOOK at NEWSPAPER. Move right until you see a telegram on the floor next to an ashtray, then LOOK at TELEGRAM. So, Jackal is disguised as a priest? GET TELEGRAM. Move right until you are at the end of the car. GO DOORWAY to enter the next car. Go to the fourth cabin. OPEN DOOR. GO TO DOOR. Jackal is here and he is eating a meal. Pretty obvious what you can do here, isn't it? But first, you must get him out of the room. TALK TO MAN. BLUFF HASSLE HELP. Good, he's gone now. USE KNOCKOUT CAPSULES on FOOD. GO TO DOORWAY.
Move right until you get to the end of the car. GO TO DOORWAY to enter the next car. This is the cargo area. Retrace your steps and return to Jackal's cabin. Obviously your capsules did their job. GET CLOTHES (the clothes Jackal is wearing). You are now disguised as a priest. OPEN ATTACHE (on the empty seat). It is full of money. GET ATTACHE. OPEN the left OVERHEAD COMPARTMENT. GET TOOL.
GO TO DOORWAY.
Move right to get to the cargo car. GO TO DOORWAY. Once in the cargo car, continue to go right until you see a flat crate on the floor. USE TOOL on CRATE. GET EXPLOSIVE. The game will automatically take you to the next scene.
GINA
She is the contact Jackal was supposed to meet. BLUFF BLUFF. OFFER ATTACHE to Gina. LEAVE the conversation. You are getting close. The only thing left to do is to get to the bomb and disarm it before time runs out.
ENDGAME
LOOK at SHAFT (near the center of the machine). There is a gear missing here. GO TO DOORWAY (left side of screen). Here is a channel where sewage flows through. If you can just close the big trapdoor and stop the flow, you should be able to cross the channel. There is also a gear sitting at the corner against the wall. GET GEAR. GO TO DOORWAY to return to the machine room. USE GEAR on SHAFT. MOVE SWITCH. Good, the machine is running again. GO DOORWAY. Just as planned, the machine shuts the trapdoor and cuts off the flow. GO TO CHANNEL. GO TO LADDER.
The ladder leads you to a room. There are two doors here. The one on the left leads to a corridor filled with guards who have been instructed to shoot first and ask questions later. The door on the right is nailed shut. That should not be a problem. USE EXPLOSIVES on DOOR (the one on the right). GO TO DOORWAY. In this room, there is a big elephant statue in the middle. MOVE ELEPHANT. MOVE STONE (the one that was originally behind the elephant). You have found the bomb! LOOK at BOMB. You are now looking at a closeup of the bomb. The bomb has a front panel fastened in place by four screws. USE SCREWDRIVER on SCREW until all four screws are removed, then save the game quickly.
Once the panel is removed, you see a 60-second timer counting down to zero. You also see three dials and three wires. Remember the disarm instructions? I told you they would come in handy. USE SCREWDRIVER on RED until the notch is at the 6 o'clock position. USE SCREWDRIVER on BLUE until it is at 3 o'clock. USE SCREWDRIVER on GREEN until it is at 9 o'clock. Now, all you have to do is cut the three wires in the right sequence. What sequence, you ask? Well, there are only three possible combinations. Find out for yourself! Okay, okay. USE WIRECUTTERS on GREEN WIRE. USE WIRECUTTERS on RED WIRE. USE WIRECUTTERS on BLUE WIRE. Be sure to accomplish all these things before the timer reaches zero.
Now sit back and enjoy one the longest conclusions I have seen in an adventure game. And that's a pretty good surprise at the ending, too, wouldn't you say?
COUNTDOWN is published and distributed by Access Software.
