To begin with, Bird Escape is actually my own English title for this week's Weekday Escape. The title in Japanese is "orunisu", a phonetic spelling of "ornis", the ancient Greek word for bird (and yes, the root of the word ornithology). But let's move on to the important stuff! Twice now we've featured the unique and original escapes designed by Otousan (Rosetta Escape), and they were a breath of fresh air in the occasionally stale room escape genre. Now, much to our delight, Otousan is back and better than ever with Bird Escape, another new take on the classic room escape. Be prepared to face down lots and lots of birds. And grapes.
Once again Otousan has built a deceptively simple four-wall room escape around a central puzzle, and this one's a doozy in terms of color and spatial perception. You are trapped in the usual spare, cartoony room, this one heavily decorated in a bird motif. Your objective, if you should choose to accept it, is to poke around, examine everything, pick up anything not nailed down, and use any objects and your wits to get out of the room alive. Or, you know, just out.
The secondary puzzles are mere trifles, the usual use of found objects and simple codes. What is at the heart of Bird Escape is a wicked three part puzzle involving a dial, some odd controls, and a dazzling array of colored grapes. The first part is pretty simple. The second, well, a little trickier. Then you get to the third part. Not to give anything away, but it's that third part of the central puzzle that will cause minor (or major) head banging to figure it out. And, of course, to make it difficult for those who write walkthroughs, the solution to that central puzzle changes each time you play.
Navigating around the room is accomplished with the usual arrows at the sides and bottom of the screen, and Otousan has included an easy to use inventory control and the blessed relief of a changing cursor, leaving minor concussion as your only worry as you work your way out of the room of an obviously demented bird lover. It would have been nice, though, to have a save function if you wanted to give that central puzzle a rest and come back at it later, fresher and less bruised.
There's still room for improvement in Otousan's room escape designs. The other, side puzzles are almost a little too easy, as if all of the effort was put into the central puzzle. The graphics are still pretty basic as are the controls. However, this should not deter you from giving Bird Escape a spin. Try out something new, something that is not "just like every other room escape" and enjoy the surreal and unique experience that is Otousan's world. A world with a lot of birds. And grapes. And some amusing escaping as well.
Walkthrough Guide
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Bird Escape Walkthrough
General Information
The solutions to some of the puzzles change from game to game, so you won't always get a clear "solution" from the walkthrough. You'll get instructions on how to solve the puzzle instead.
As the solutions change from game to game directions for the colorblind are impossible.
Don't forget to examine everything you pick up, and maybe see what happens if you combine them.
Good luck!
Exploration
You begin facing a low cabinet with a picture on the wall above it. Click on the picture for a close up.
It's a picture of a bird holding a bunch of grapes in its beak. Note that three of the grapes are colored. That may be an important clue.
Back up.
Click on the cabinet for a close up. The left door is unlocked but there's nothing inside. The right door is locked with a purple lock.
Back up and turn right.
Now you are facing an odd red machine flanked by two large birds. If you click on the front of the machine you will see the screws holding the panel in place.
Back up and click on the top of the red machine. It appears to need a red key to open it.
Back up from the close up and turn right.
You are now facing another low cabinet, this one with doors on either side and a slot in the middle. The door on the left needs a three digit code and the door on the right needs a three letter code.
There are three objects on top of the cabinet. On the left, a bird statue. In the middle, a gray object that, upon closer examination is some sort of clock or dial, but it is missing pieces. Click on the dark gray object on the right of the low cabinet.
It's a penguin with a note in its beak! Click on the note and it will say 12:00.
Back up and turn right.
This is the doorway out, but it is locked, of course.
On the wall to the right of the door is what looks like a cuckoo clock, locked with a blue key.
Turn right to face the original low cabinet and picture.
Opening the Red Machine (Part 1)
Turn right to face the strange red machine with the flanking birds.
Notice that the bird on the left has an open beak and the bird on the right has a closed beak.
Click on the bird on the right for a close up, then click on its beak to open it up.
Take the screwdriver and back up.
Now click on the front of the red machine to see a close up of the panel.
Use the screwdriver on the screws. When they are gone, click on the panel to remove it.
Inside the panel you see some machinery and a small purple bird that is missing its wings. Take the bird.
Back up and turn right.
The Bird Dial (Part 1)
You should now be facing the low cabinet with the doors and the three objects on top. Click on the bird on the left of the cabinet for a close up.
Notice that the wings of the bird are the same color as the wingless bird you just picked up?
Click on the wings to take them and back up.
Pull up the wingless bird from your inventory, then use the wings on it to create a whole bird.
Now click on the light gray object in the center, the dial.
Look closely, it appears to be missing the dial hands. Use the bird on the center and it will become the "hands" of the dial.
There are only two functioning buttons on this dial at the moment, the circular orange button on the right and the "enter" button on the left.
Look closely at the bunches of grapes around the face of the dial. In each bunch the red grape is in a different position.
Perhaps you need to set the dial to a position with shows the red grape in the same position as in the picture?
The round orange button moves the beak of the bird 4 places each time you push it. The bird starts in the 12 o'clock position. Push the button and it will go to 4 o'clock, push it again and it will go to 8 o'clock. Once more and it is back to 12 o'clock.
If you need to, go back and look at the picture above the low cabinet to determine the placement of the red grape. NOTE: This changes every time you play.
Using the orange button move the bird dial until the beak is pointing at the correct grapes, then push the enter button. Notice that the grapes have now changed color, to green.
Again, using the orange button, move the bird dial until the beak is pointing at the correct grapes (the green grape should be in the same position as in the picture). Once you've got the dial pointed, click enter.
The grapes are now blue. Use the orange button again to put the dial on the correct grape cluster and click enter.
If you get the correct combination, a white ball will drop into the slot below the bird dial.
Take the white ball, then use the screwdriver to open it. This will get you the red key.
Take the red key, back up from the close up, and turn left.
Opening the Red Machine (Part 2)
You should now be facing the strange red machine. Click on the top of the machine for a close up.
Use the red key to unlock the top of the machine, then click on it to open it.
Note the on and off buttons. Click the on button and see what happens.
What you are seeing is another picture of a grape cluster, with the red, green, and blue grapes in different positions. This picture is rotating with a mirror above it.
Look closely, the bottom portion is the "real" picture, the upper portion is a reflection of it (you can see this in the reflections of the on/off buttons).
Make a note of the positions of the colored grapes. It helps to look at the stem of the grape cluster, there's a smaller portion of the stem going to the right and a larger portion going to the left. This will help you orient yourself to the picture.
Back up from the machine (do not turn it off) and click on the front panel for a close up.
Click on the panel to remove it and notice that the machinery is moving. Keep watching and a three digit code will eventually rotate into view (825).
Back up and turn right.
The Bird Dial (Part 2)
You should now be facing the long low cabinet with the bird dial. Click on the left cabinet door for a close up.
Use the three digit code you got from the red machine on the lock, then back up and click on the door to open it.
Inside the cabinet is an orange button. Take it.
Now click on the bird dial for a close up.
Place the orange button in the gray pentagonal space below the orange circular button. You now have two buttons to control the dial.
Now all you need to do is get the bird to point to the proper grape placements for the grape bunch that you saw in the red machine.
Imagine that the grape clusters are numbered like the face of a clock.
The circular orange button moves the dial forward 4 spaces each time it is pushed.
The new button will move the dial back half the spaces of the "number" of the clock the dial lands on. For instance, if you use the circular button to go forward to the 4 o'clock position, using the pentagonal button will move it back to the 2 o'clock position. If you move forward 4 places from there (to the 6 o'clock position), the pentagonal button will take you back halfway from 6, which is the 3 o'clock position.
NOTE: The pentagonal button will not work on an odd number. If you are on, say, the 5 o'clock position and push it it will not be able to move backwards. It can only go back half of an even numbered position.
Using the two buttons in tandem, enter the new positions of the colored grapes, using the enter button when you get to the correct position.
If you get it right, you will hear a chime and you will get another white ball from the slot.
Use the screwdriver on the ball to get a purple key.
Back up from the close up and turn left (or right) twice to face the first low cabinet, the one underneath the picture.
The Bird Dial (Part 3)
Click on the right door of the low cabinet for a close up.
Use the purple key on the lock.
Open the right side of the cabinet and you will see a chicken looking through a kaleidoscope. Take the kaleidoscope.
Now close the right door. Open the left door, then open the right door and you will see a letter code, EAH.
Back up and turn right (or left) twice to the bird dial.
Click on the right cabinet door for a close up and enter the three letter code you just got from the other cabinet.
Back up then open the right cabinet door.
In the right cabinet is a hexagonal button. Take it.
Click on the bird dial for a close up.
Place the hexagonal button on the dial (it goes on the left). Now it's time to solve the third part of the bird dial puzzle.
But where's the picture of the grapes?
Pull up the kaleidoscope from your inventory.
Click on the end closest to you (so you can look into it).
You will see an image broken into six parts, and an arrow in the upper right.
Click on the arrow and the kaleidoscope image will turn. You will have to use this image to determine the third set of colored grapes and their placement.
Watch for the stem to rotate around. There is a short side and a long side to the stem, that will help to orient you.
Once you've figured out the positions, close down the close up of the kaleidoscope and click on the bird dial for a close up.
You already know the functions of the circular and the pentagonal buttons. The new button, the hexagonal one, will double the number that you are positioned on. So if the dial is on the 3 o'clock position it will move it forward to the 6 o'clock position. If the dial is on 4, it will move it to 8, etc.
If you get the combination correct, once again you will get chimes and a white ball.
Use the screwdriver on the white ball to get a blue key.
Back up and turn right.
The Cuckoo Clock and Getting Out
You should now be facing the exit door. Click on the cuckoo clock to the right of the door for a close up.
Use the blue key on the doors underneath the clock face and then open them.
You will now have three buttons: On the left a button with a straight arrow, in the middle a button with a curving arrow, and a reset button on the right.
Hit the reset button.
This should position the hands so that they are forming a straight line.
The left button moves both hands as a unit, the middle button turns them around and makes them move towards each other.
The object is to get the clock at the time shown on the note in the penguin's beak, 12:00.
Use the reset button to get them in a straight line.
Use the left button until the red (shorter) hand is on the 3 and the other (blue, longer hand) is on the 9 o'clock position.
Now click the middle button and the face on the red hand will turn around.
Keep clicking the left button until the hands meet at 12:00.
If you get the clock correct a blue bird will pop out with a black key. Take the key.
Back up.
Use the key to unlock the door, then click on the door to escape.
Enjoy the geese!
Posted by: grinnyp
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February 23, 2011 3:08 AM