Death Satellite
By Danny Van Kan
For Sega SC-3000
Solution by Garry Francis
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This is a minimal solution to a very hard game. There are virtually no in-game hints. You have to
solve it by trial and error and getting killed a lot. You must use DESCRIBE to refresh a room
description, but this doesn't show the objects in the room. You have to use LOOK to see these,
so get into the habit of typing LOOK every time you enter a new room.
There are no abbreviations. Directions must be entered in full, e.g. GO NORTH for N. Most objects
must also be entered in full, e.g. GET OXYGEN SUIT or OPEN AIR LOCK. Use INVENT to take an
inventory. All the verbs can be found in lines 40 to 225.
The game has several spelling errors and appears to be very buggy. You only need two objects to
finish the game, but I suspect that this is not what the author intended, so I have given the
minimal solution, followed by a maximal solution. The latter is just to show how most of the other
objects are used, even though they serve no purpose.
You will get killed a lot, so play it on an emulator that allows you to save the game state. When
you get killed, it will ask you if you want to play again. Type N, then RUN the game again, as the
replay does not reset some variables and you may get killed again almost straight away.
You have to finish the game within 20 minutes of real time. This is a real pain, as it doesn't
allow sufficient time for experimenting, note taking and map drawing. To remove the time limit,
delete or comment out line 2630.
Minimal solution
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PUSH PANEL (nothing appears to happen)
(LOOK) (you find an oxygen suit & a space suit appears in old room miles away)
GET OXYGEN SUIT
WEAR OXYGEN SUIT
OPEN AIR LOCK (you're transported to docking bay aboard death satellite)
GO EAST
GO EAST
GO EAST
GO SOUTH
GO EAST
GO SOUTH (it's dark, but not dark enough that you need a torch)
GO EAST (oxygen suit protects you from radiation)
GO EAST (oxygen suit again protects you from radiation)
(LOOK) (you find a radioactive pellet)
GET RADIOACTIVE PELLET
GO WEST
GO WEST
GO NORTH
GO WEST
GO NORTH
GO WEST
GO WEST
GO WEST
OPEN AIR LOCK (you're transported back to your ship)
DROP RADIOACTIVE PELLET
***THE END***
Maximal solution
----------------
PUSH PANEL (nothing appears to happen)
(LOOK) (you find an oxygen suit & space suit appears in old room miles away)
GET OXYGEN SUIT
WEAR OXYGEN SUIT
OPEN PANEL (nothing appears to happen)
(LOOK) (you find a laser gun)
GET LASER GUN
OPEN AIR LOCK (you're transported to docking bay aboard death satellite)
GO WEST
OPEN DESK (nothing appears to happen)
(LOOK) (you find a bunch of keys)
GET KEYS
GO WEST (if you PUSH BUTTON, you must enter two coordinates and you'll end up on a planet from
which there is no escape, try things for 8 moves then die)
GO NORTH
GO WEST (don't open the door or you'll die)
GO WEST
UNLOCK DOOR (with keys & you're transported to small room)
GO NORTH (don't PRESS BUTTON or you'll die)
DROP KEYS (as you can only carry one item up ventilator shaft)
GO UP
SHOOT DOOR (with laser gun & you're transported to old room)
(LOOK) (you find a space suit, but don't wear it or you'll die after a few moves)
DROP LASER GUN (you don't need it any more)
GO WEST
GO DOWN
GO SOUTH
GO EAST
GO EAST
GO EAST
GO SOUTH
GO EAST
GO EAST
GO UP (you must drop everything before going up)
GO EAST
(LOOK) (you find electronic key & communicator)
GET COMMUNICATOR
ON COMMUNICATOR (it doesn't work)
OPEN COMMUNICATOR (nothing appears to happen)
(LOOK) (you find some batteries)
DROP COMMUNICATOR
GO WEST
GO DOWN
(LOOK) (you find a torch)
GET TORCH
GO EAST (don't OPEN VALVE or you'll die)
GO EAST
(LOOK) (you find a bottle of pills, but don't EAT PILLS or you'll die)
GO EAST
(LOOK) (you find a book)
GET BOOK
READ BOOK (it's written in alien language, but allows you to translate signs)
GO WEST
GO SOUTH
(LOOK) (you find a Geiger counter & silver cannister, which serves no purpose)
GET GEIGER COUNTER
ON GEIGER COUNTER
GO EAST
(LOOK) (you find a bottle)
GET BOTTLE
READ BOTTLE (it contains a lethal virus, so don't DROP BOTTLE or you'll die)
GO EAST
GO SOUTH
READ SIGN ("Beware dangerous plants", so don't OPEN DOOR or you'll die)
ON TORCH
GO WEST
DRINK FLUID (lubricating fluid used on engines, surprisingly, you don't die)
GO EAST
GO EAST (oxygen suit protects you from radiation)
GO EAST (oxygen suit again protects you from radiation)
(LOOK) (you find a radioactive pellet)
GET RADIOACTIVE PELLET
GO WEST
GO WEST
GO NORTH
GO WEST
GO NORTH
GO WEST
GO WEST
GO WEST
OPEN AIR LOCK (you're transported back to your ship)
DROP RADIOACTIVE PELLET
***THE END***
