Following the opening introductory scenes, you are playing as Darrel, and find yourself and Victoria in the corridor outside your rooms. Take a moment to explore your environment. The LEFT mouse button is used to examine items. The RIGHT mouse button is used for actions - picking up objects, opening doors, climbing stairs, pulling levers, starting conversations, and also for getting a 'second opinion' about objects that you have examined with the left button.
| Throughout the game, as you enter a new area, look at everything. Be patient, and relax. The guys who made this game spent a lot of time writing and recording comments, some of which are banal, and some of which are informative, and some of which are hilarious. Get your money's worth, and don't rush through it. I am not going to outline every little detail, you are the investigator here. Trust me, by reaching beyond this walkthrough, you will improve the gaming experience by an amount proportional to your curiosity. |
Watchmaker is very non-linear. You are free to meander around and examine things and talk with people. Very few doors are locked, and the progress through the game can be estimated by observing the Time-Stamp that appears whenever you change locations. (This helpful function can be toggled on or off by pressing the 'D' key; I recommend you leave it turned on.) Each time you complete an essential segment, the clock will advance. I also strongly recommend that you choose to have the Subtitles switched on; there will be occasions when the audible portion of the voice-track does not function, and the subtitles will still be visible. I suspect the programmers missed a few items when the game was translated into English and the voice-overs were recorded. Not a big deal, but you will miss some information with the captions turned off.
Be Careful Saving and Loading Just a word of caution: Press F1 to see the Save/Load screen. If you have an existing saved game, and you click on it thinking you will be loading it, NOT! You will over-write your previous game, without warning. Don't get me wrong; I like the interface, but it has its pitfalls. In order to load a previously saved game, you must first click on 'Load' in the Menu-bar. Then select the one you want. If you have progressed, and want to go back to check something, be very cautious. You can cross your saved games and wind up very bewildered, because you 'should have' already done something, and now need to repeat the actions. |
There is an elevator (lift) behind you - it's the Service Lift (it's busy right now.) There is another lift (the Guest Lift) in the central cobblestone area ahead of you. Take that one down to the Lobby level (Floor 0) and exit the castle via the front entrance. Poke around. Straight ahead is the gate where you first came in. Let's call that way North. To the right (East) is a ramp down into the garage. You will get in there later. Go to the left (West) and stop to chat with Raul Hernandez. He's the Gardner - oops Landscape Artist. ALWAYS take the time to talk with characters, and use each subject until it is exhausted. Sometimes it gets repetitious, but often it triggers branches of conversation (frequently essential) that give you openings into other characters. Pay some attention to Who gets along with Whom, and what they think of each other. Understanding these relationships will help you figure out what to do, and why you are doing it.
If you stay on the stone path, it takes you to Henry, the Caretaker's front door. You can visit with him if you like - it's not necessary at this time, but I recommend it, because it will enrich your understanding. If you do visit him, take the Chisel from the shelf above his desk.
If you hang a left
and head South, you will pass in front of the Chapel which is
attached to the Castle, and see Raul's residence at the South end
of the path. Go left again (East) and soon you will approach the Greenhouse. As you do, it begins to tremble.
Victoria, Raul and Henry run out to see what is going on. The
greenhouse explodes! Examine the glass and the hole (use both the
right and left mouse buttons - get used to doing that) and make
your way back toward the Castle, having a look at the Aviary on
the way. Find the Well,
and examine it, and the cover. When you try to open the cover, Raul comes and warns you to stay away.
He throws his empty water bottle into the bin. Examine the bin. Use the
Close-Up (space) view, and the Shift/Up-arrow to lean forward and
see the bottle. Take it with the right mouse button.
While you are right there, re-enter the Castle via the French Doors at the Pool. Left click and you are 'not dressed.' Right click on the pool, and there is 'Something Glittering' at the bottom. Hmmm. We might need to retrieve that object somehow. Go to the Diving-end and talk with the Supervisor's wife, Jude Anderson.
Here's the non-linear part: For fullest gaming, as Darrel, ask her about everything. Then switch to Victoria (F8) and ask her about everything again. You get much insight into the people. The only essential question - as Victoria, ask her about Carla's private live. (Darrel was too shy to ask.) As either character, look at the old wooden door. Meet Greta - my, she's a toughie! For a slightly less polite encounter, have Darrel do it. Then, as Darrel, exit the white door at the other end of the room. Go through the Stained-Glass door into the Dining Room and explore it thoroughly. On the fireplace mantel is a clock. Stand in front of the clock, press <Space> to see close-up, and shift your view upwards (mouse forward or up-arrow) and take the Clock Key. Then go into the other section of the dining area and open the Cupboard. Use the close-up view again; this time press 'Z' to squat down, (press 'A' to stand back up if you need to) and find the Cutlery. Take a knife.
You ARE poking around and exploring everything, aren't you? That's half the fun of this game, and I am not going to keep reminding you. Now exit the Dining Room the same way you came in, go into the Pool Room (Natatorium) and straight ahead into the Guest Bathroom. The Service Lift is working now; take it down to the basement level. If you poke around, you find three doors. One is locked, one is the Wine Cellar, and the other is the Laundry. Go into the Cellar, and take a bottle of wine. Go back upstairs, and into the kitchen. As you look around the room, find the pegboard with the Hook hanging on it. Use the close-up view to discover the Keys. If you try to take them, the Cook says "Hands Off." Talk with the Cook. Ask him about himself, and about his past life as a sailor. Now the tricky part - press Tab to open your inventory. Click on Victoria's image to bring her into the kitchen with you. Use that bottle of wine with the Cook, and a cutscene ensues. While the Cook is reminiscing, Victoria will take the Keys. Here's the catch. Darrel has the empty bottle and the knife, items which you will be using in the lower level; and Victoria has the keys to the locked room down there. You have two choices: you can move both characters to the basement (one at a time by switching back and forth between them,) so Vic can unlock the door, and Dar can accomplish the tasks - or you can have Vic give Dar the keys. Here's how to do that: As Darrel, open your inventory (Tab) and left-click on any item. Then, at the top, left-click on Victoria's name, opening her inventory. Left click on the keys, transferring them to Darrel's inventory. Then re-select Darrel's inventory and click on "Close." Now you are still playing as Darrel, and have all the required items. Note that if you Close while Victoria's inventory is displayed, you are playing as her.
Either character can accomplish the following: Go to the Laundry Room and use the empty bottle on the Dispenser. Go to the Boiler Room and unlock it with the Cook's Keys. Turn off the swimming pool equipment with the Switch in the far corner. Use the Knife on either Filter to open it, and pour some Detergent into the filter. Close the filter and turn the pump on. The pool gets sudsy, and Jude calls Raul to help with the problem. Now the pool is empty, and you can right click on the Shiny Object to retrieve it. I suggest you use Victoria to pick up that bracelet, for she needs to give it to Carla and talk to her.