# Max Blaster and Doris DeLightning Hints

Note: Even reading the questions to these hints may reveal some spoilers. Don't say you weren't warned. Answers to questions are printed in white-on-white; select them to reveal their content. Where there is more than one level of hint, the first line of the answer will suggest a solution, and then later lines will get more explicit. (Woo woo.)

In many cases there are alternate solutions that are not mentioned here. These are left as an exercise to the player.

Hints that are specifically dependent on which character you are playing are color-coded: BLUE for Max, and RED for Doris.

- The Pirate Lizard's Ship
- The Evil Scientists' Lair
- The Director's Office
- Landed on Venus
- Imprisoned! [Doris]
- Imprisoned! [Max]
- Escaped! [Doris]
- Escaped! [Max]
- In the Data Center
- Xenoscience Dome
- The Museum
- The Laboratory
- Defeating the Final Weapon

## The Pirate Lizard's Ship

Help! I don't seem to be able to defeat the Earthling!

Fool! Don't you know no one defeats Max Blaster?

## The Evil Scientists' Lair

Help! I don't seem able to defeat Doris DeLightning!

She's new, but she's feisty.

You're out of luck here too. Sorry.

## The Director's Office

Help! I can't avoid being paired with this obnoxious partner!

Yeah, the Director seems pretty set on it. Perhaps you can get rid of him/her later.

I want the Director to upgrade my blaster.

Looks like the department budget's been cut. You'll just have to wait until later.

## Landed on Venus

I can't get the ship back in the air!

Nope, it's pretty seriously crashed.

[Max] How do I know which way it is to the Xavian headquarters?

It's pretty hard to see through this jungle. Maybe you need a better view.

There sure are a lot of trees around here.

Climb a tree.

[Doris] How do I know which way it is to the Xavian headquarters?

It's pretty hard to see through this jungle. Maybe you need a better view.

Hey, the WLPD didn't just assign you that rocket belt out of an interest in keeping you fashionable, you know.

Try UP or FLY.

[Doris] How do I cross this gorge?

You're still wearing the rocket belt, aren't you? (The Director would have a stroke if you lost such a valuable piece of equipment.)

FLY WEST.

[Max] How do I cross this gorge?

Hmm. For inexplicable reasons Doris wound up with the rocket pants (not that they don't look good on her). Perhaps you have something else that would help, though.

No, not the blaster.

That force generator takes on a number of interesting shapes.

Possibly the rod shape would be useful. And if you're really lucky, Doris won't even say anything rude.

TURN GENERATOR ON. SET DIAL TO ROD. PUT ROD ON GORGE. W.

[DORIS] Vine!

The problem is, you can't really get a grip on the snake. Maybe if you could just push it away at the right time...

The TK device can repel things.

But in order for this to be useful, the snake has to be in the right position to be killed.

Wait until the snake is about to eat you for lunch, then POINT TK AT SNAKE.

[Max] Snake!

Arr. Rookies. Oh well, maybe you have something that can resolve this situation.

Yup, blaster it is.

SHOOT SNAKE WITH BLASTER.

[Max] Eeagh! Quicksand!

Perhaps you have something you could use to get you out of here.

No, not the blaster.

You need something with a large surface area...

Such as, for instance, a disk of force.

TURN GENERATOR ON. SET DIAL TO DISK. DROP DISK. UP.

[DORIS] Yay! Max is trapped in quicksand!

Of course, you wouldn't be reading this if you didn't have a tiny soft spot for the guy. You want to save him. Admit it.

No? Okay, never mind.

All right, all right, sorry. You know the vine snake? If you don't have the vine snake under control, you'd better solve that problem first.

There, now: the thing about a snake that's just like a vine is, it's just like a vine, and, by extension, sort of similar to a rope. Maybe if you offered it to Max, he'd be able to climb out.

## Imprisoned! [Doris]

[Doris] I don't even have any stuff! How am I supposed to get out of here with no rocket belt?

What would really be convenient right about now would be a parachute. See anything very wide and flat-shaped around here?

Have you tried looking at the hole?

There's that leaf. If only you could get it off the twig.

You'll need something sharp with which to cut it free.

Have you tried checking out the contents of the debris pile? (Yeah, with any luck Max is having to do something even more sad than picking through Xavian garbage, but you can bet it's not going to appear in his press release.)

CUT LEAF WITH SHELL. JUMP.

[Doris] How do I book my vacation to Lesser Featherton?

Try waiting until the Director raises your salary to a reasonable amount.

## Imprisoned! [Max]

[Max] How do I leave the nest?

You could just climb out.

But the guard might interfere.

So it seems you need to distract the guard somehow.

If only you could make the guard think you were already out of the nest...

This Max Blaster Action Figure at least sounds like you (sort of).

Have you tried exploring the settings? Maybe there's one that will give the guard the wrong impression.

Open the zipper in back, then try flipping the switch. Now pull the cord a few times.

If you set the switch to make Max speak English, and set the dial to 5, the Max action figure will announce that he's escaped from a prison. Maybe that'll distract the guard.

[Max] How do I get my teeth to be even shinier?

Surely that's impossible.

[Max] The guard ignores my alter ego!

Hmm, as long as the voice is coming from inside the nest, the guard's going to ignore it. What if it were outside?

Apparently the doll isn't convincing with such a wimpy voice. (You do have a very resonant and manly sound, it's true.) Have you noticed anything that picks up and magnifies sound in the area?

How about the hole in the tree?

Try setting the action figure to say its line about escaping prison, then throw it into the hole. While the guard is distracted, you can get away.

From the top, then: TAKE ALL. OPEN ZIPPER. FLIP SWITCH. SET DIAL TO 4. THROW ACTION FIGURE AT HOLE. OUT. S.

## Escaped! [Doris]

[Doris] There are lasers in my way.

Yes, but perhaps you can turn them off.

There is a control box in view.

See that Temporary Laser Override button? Maybe you could hit that with something.

THROW NUT AT BUTTON.

[Doris] There's an interesting box here. I want some field rations.

Max would be proud to see you adjusting to alien customs and eating hearty of the strange native foodstuffs.

Okay, maybe not. Anyway, the problem seems to be that it's out of reach.

Fortunately, there's a stepladder in the north storeroom; with its help you should be able to get at the boxes.

Hmm, this doesn't get you all the way to the top. But there is a gap here...

...which you can't put your foot in. Maybe if you had something else you could wedge in there to help you up.

If you don't have anything you could use, try checking out the perch area...

Get the pipe.

Insert the pipe in the gap, then climb it.

Now from up here you can't open the top box, but maybe you can put it somewhere where you can open it.

From the top: N. TAKE LADDER. S. DROP LADDER. CLIMB LADDER. PUT PIPE IN GAP. CLIMB PIPE. X BOX. PUSH BOX. D. You may now help yourself to the spilled pills.

[Doris] There is a guard in my way.

Perhaps you could distract him with something.

Do you have any way to affect his immediate environment?

Have you noticed the vents around here? See how they're laid out?

There should be one just above his head.

Have you found the vent controls?

Perhaps you could control the airflow to cause something to fly out and hit him.

Such as for instance a food pill. (If you don't have a food pill, look around.

If you still can't find it, check out "There's an interesting box here...")

In order to make the food pill hit the guard, though, you'll need to be able to reach one of the vents.

The vent in the north room is lower than the vent in the south room.

If you stack things up, you should be able to reach it.

But you also need the vent in the south room to be closed so that the object in the vent will fly along and not fall out there...

And you need the vent above the guard to be open...

And you need the whole thing to happen slowly enough that you can place the pill in the vent, then get to the bend in the corridor in time to take advantage of the guard's distraction.

And you need the whole thing to happen slowly enough that you can place the pill in the vent, then get to the bend in the corridor in time to take advantage of the guard's distraction.

Leave the north vent open. Set the south vent to closed (PRESS SOUTH), and the exit vent to open (PRESS EXIT). Set the air speed (PRESS FLOW) to the lower of the two numbers. (The unit switch is a red herring). Climb the boxes and put the food pill in the vent, or throw it in there (this is randomized and may not work every time). Then go to the junction, and wait until the guard is disabled.

[Doris] It would be convenient if Max would show up with his blaster.

Agh! Where did that thought come from?

Get a grip on yourself. Next you'll be swooning and waiting for him to rescue you, just like all the alien women you've read about.

Oh, I see, that was a purely tactical consideration, was it?

## Escaped! [Max]

[Max] What the heck is a phrenological scan?

Something to do with examining the shape of a head.

Too bad your head is too handsomely shaped ever to be mistaken for a Xavian's.

Of course, there is that mask of the Xavian leader that you got from the nest.

PUT MASK IN HOLE.

[Max] How do I get past this guard?

Obviously strolling by casually and whistling a little tune isn't going to work. Not when your face is known all over the galaxy.

Maybe you can distract this guard with something else. Do you know what he might want?

Have you explored the rest of the area?

Have you been to the kitchen?

Hmm, there seem to be some Xavians nearby... maybe if you could hear what they were saying that would help.

The speaker might be revealing, if only you could figure out how to turn it on.

FLIP BLACK SWITCH, then listen for a while.

Sounds like that guard might be expecting his lunch pretty soon.

[Max] What do I do with the kitchen machinery?

If you're not sure what your goal is, explore more and, if necessary, read the preceding section.

Okay, corknut butter and jelly it is. How hard could this be?

The machine is constructed of a number of components, each of which will do something to a piece of bread as it moves along a conveyor belt. Your job is to get two pieces of bread along the belt, with the correct contents on them and without any incorrect contents (such as worms, chocolate sauce, etc.) You also need to avoid mangling the bread and destroying the structural integrity needed for a good sandwich. Some of these machines are on and some are off, controlled by the lever on the panel.

The silver button loads new bread onto the conveyor. Mm, bread.

The red button resets the machine to its initial state.

If you examine the appliances, you can work out which is controlled by which lever. You may want to note the correspondences.

[Max] I can't find the wedge of lime!

Have you tried searching the gin and tonic supply case?

No?

Stop reading the hints for problems you don't have, Max. There's no time to mess around like this! Xavia is about to invade!

[Max] There's no corknut butter in the lineup!

Nope, you'll have to get the tube from elsewhere.

And then you have to get it into the machine. If only there were a hole in the casing.

Which there is, after the blender activates.

In order to get the corknut butter out of the tube, you'll need it to be stomped by the pressor.

And you need to put it in the lineup immediately before the slice of bread, so that it will be squeezed onto said bread.

But if the pressor activates, a slice of bread will be damaged also.

But if you arrange it so one of the pieces got the frozen tofu worms dumped on it, then it'll be protected from the heat ray.

So, for the complete walkthrough:

SET LEVER TO 1. PUSH SILVER. Z. Z. Z. Z. PUSH RED. PUSH SILVER. SET LEVER TO 3. Z. SET LEVER TO 2. PUT TUBE IN BLENDER. SET LEVER TO 1. Z. SET LEVER TO 4. SET LEVER TO 2. SET LEVER TO 1. SET LEVER TO 3. Z. Thank goodness for modern labor-saving devices, or that might have been really time-consuming.

[Max] I wish Doris weren't so stand-off-ish.

Maybe you should try being nice to her. Get her a gift or something. Women love that stuff.

Of course, maybe you should be concentrating on saving the Earth, instead.

## In the Data Center

How do I avoid being attacked by the cleaning robot?

That should be easy, since there isn't one.

This space intentionally left blank.

And this one.

[Doris] I don't know the password to this computer system.

Well, it's not going to work to just guess, obviously.

Maybe there's a hardware solution.

Have you searched the wiring of the computer?

The security module seems to be interfering with your attempts to get in.

BREAK SECURITY MODULE, then type any password you like.

[Max] I don't know the password to this computer system.

That's okay, you're Max Blaster. You always guess these right.

Seriously, just TYPE (whatever word comes to mind) ON KEYBOARD. Doris is going to love this.

Okay, so she didn't love it. She's kind of hard to soften up.

[Max] All right, it looks like I need to get over to that other building.

There's a cable that runs over there. Wonder what it's for?

There seems to be some kind of intra-dome delivery system. If only you could control it, maybe you could ride the package to the other dome.

Try checking out the list of programs on the computer.

[Max] I don't understand this computer.

No, but Doris does.

Perhaps you should ask her for help.

DORIS, RUN DELIVERY.

[Max] Okay, the stuff with the computer's done... what do I do with this package?

Hold onto it (and Doris) and ride to freedom.

GET PACKAGE. GET DORIS. OUT.

## Xenoscience Dome

What are these brown knobby objects?

You could try one and see.

I can't find our stuff in the Earth Artifact Cultural Research Center.

Maybe the account book will tell you where things are stored.

Have you tried looking behind or searching the counter?

[Max] There's this perch I want to get onto.

You could jump...

...but you don't quite make it. You're definitely going to need a lift.

Funny, Doris doesn't want to carry you. Must be all those protein-rich space dinners that have increased your musculature so impressively. Maybe you should lift her, instead.

[Doris] There's this perch I want to get onto.

There's always Max. He should be able to lift you.

[Max] Doris is gone and I'm stuck at the bottom of a Vertical Junction.

You need something to help you up.

You could climb your force rod.

SET DIAL TO ROD. PUT GENERATOR ON PERCH. CLIMB ROD.

Unfortunately, that only gets you half-way.

But there are also some objects -- like the sign on the wall -- that provide a good handle for an experienced adventurer like yourself.

## Museum

What am I trying to do here?

Somewhere around here is the bomb you brought from Earth, which you need to destroy the Xavians' secret weapon. The only problem is, they were a little too impressed with its disguise, and they put it away somewhere here.

The museum door is locked.

Maybe they left a key somewhere nearby.

Try looking in the booth.

ENTER BOOTH. TAKE CARDKEY. OUT. PUT CARDKEY IN SLOT.

I can't find the bomb.

Have you checked out the Mars room?

Note that there's a door to a back area, to the east.

Yes, it's locked, but you can unlock it with the card key again.

There's a barrier when I want to go north.

But there's also a gap underneath it.

No, you can't wriggle beneath. You'd need to shed a few pounds before that would really work, not to mention that pesky internal skeleton.

You might be able to use the gap to get some leverage, though.

Now where have you seen a potential lever around here?

There's always the straight stick from the Past Xavian History exhibit.

I don't think the lacquer is going to help matters.

Maybe somewhere around here there's a way to remove it.

[Doris] Argh, I'm trapped in the giant eggshell.

Too bad you don't have a primitive tooth at the front of your head, to chip your way out, just like a baby Xavian.

Maybe you could grow one.

Have you got the teething corknut?

This could prove problematic...

...since there is no giant eggshell trap.

[Max] I'm having trouble with the combination of water and lacquer.

Maybe you can protect the bomb from getting wet somehow.

For instance, if you could protect it with a force field or something.

There's always the sphere setting on your force generator.

In order to get it inside, you'll have to start out with the generator in some other configuration, though.

TURN ON GENERATOR. SET DIAL TO DISC. PUT BOMB ON DISC. SET DIAL TO SPHERE. There: handy protective bubble!

[Doris] I'm having trouble with the combination of water and lacquer.

Maybe you can turn off the rain.

Have you checked out the area of the light jungle?

There seems to be a switch.

But, naturally, you can't reach it from here.

Time for the TK device.

I keep being chased by the animatronic Xenosaur.

That is a problem.

These are the things that ate all the mammal life on Venus, you know.

Except for the squirrels.

Aw, cute fuzzy squirrel...

Maybe you could observe the squirrel's behavior very closely and emulate it when in the presence of the Xenosaurbots.

You're going to need to know just what aspects of the squirrel's behavior are critical.

Have you found the zoologist's study notebook?

Have you been into the University wing yet?

If not, try reading the hints on the University wing.

Okay? Good. Now, note down the squirrel's behavior patterns in the notebook.

With the Uranian Squid-Ink fountain pen, naturally.

SHAKE PEN. UNCAP PEN. LICK NIB. OPEN NOTEBOOK. SKETCH SQUIRREL. G. G. G. G. G. G. G. CAP PEN. SW. EMULATE SQUIRREL BEHAVIOR ON PAGE THREE. WAIT. EMULATE SQUIRREL BEHAVIOR ON PAGE EIGHT. DUCK. OPEN HATCH. TAKE BATTERY FROM XENOSAUR.

[Doris] I hate squirrels.

So it's in your way -- maybe you could lure it into moving. Have you seen anything nearby that a squirrel might like?

But if you just hold up the acorn, the squirrel can't see it. So maybe you need a way to make it appear larger.

Put the acorn in the image projector, then turn the projector on.

Now that I've pulverized the Hope Diamond with the giant nutcracker, what am I supposed to do with the diamond dust?

Diamond dust has many applications in industry.

For instance, it is used for polishing things, or so you've heard.

But this is all kind of irrelevant.

Since you have not, in fact, pulverized the Hope Diamond.

How do I get out of this Museum?

There's an opening above the stack of stuff.

Maybe you could reach if you climbed up on the pile.

## Laboratory

What am I trying to do here?

Your mission is to break into the Xavian research lab, and try to find some way to overcome the screen that protects the secret weapon, so that the two of you can get in and destroy it. Oh, yeah, and it would be nice if you could provide yourselves with some means of getting off-planet when you're done. Unless you really want to take that vacation to Lesser Featherton, after all.

[Doris] There is a laser camera thing trying to shoot me.

Have you examined how it's put together?

The whole thing seems dependent on a really rather tenuous cable connection.

If only you could get at that and affect it before the cannon had a chance to shoot you. Too bad you don't have longer arms.

There's always your TK device, of course.

POINT TK DEVICE AT CABLE.

[Max] There is a laser camera thing trying to shoot me.

As you once told a fan, in any gunfight the important thing is to be the one who shoots first.

Actually, maybe it was your agent who said that. But it sounds good.

SHOOT CANNON.

[Max] I can't reach the doorway.

No -- and the wall is pretty sheer, too.

Looks like you'll have to blast your way in.

Unfortunately, the wall is pretty dense in spots -- though with a little investigation, maybe you could find a place where it isn't.

HIT EAST WALL. SHOOT REGION.

Okay, so how do I disrupt the outer screen?

Have you checked out the note in the coopicles area?

It sounds as though they're still having trouble with the screen. Perhaps you could find out more in the Screen Theory room.

How can I read the microdot?

The writing is too small. You need to make it larger.

If you're Doris, you can use the image projector. Otherwise, you can put the microdot into the viewmaster from the Earth Artifacts Cultural Center.

PUT MICRODOT IN VIEWMASTER. LOOK IN VIEWMASTER. READ WRITING.

How can I control the prototyping machine?

It seems to require a data cube of some sort.

There's a cube in it now, but that might not have everything you want on it.

There's always the silver cube from the coopicles area.

Of course, some of these items aren't very useful.

[Max] This gaussrifle barrel doesn't fit on my blaster!

Right, because your blaster isn't a gaussrifle. Go figure.

Don't worry about it. Not everything the Xavians do is useful to Earthmen.

Those granola nut things are pretty good, though.

My spaceship is too tiny to be useful!

Yeah, I get that spam all the time too.

Fortunately, there is a control for a full-sized model around somewhere.

Check out the Flight Laboratory.

Have you looked at the wire?

There seems to be a remote control that will call the full-sized one.

That's all you need for now. You can summon it when you have to.

My waveform generator just makes a hissing noise.

You need to also tell the prototyping machine what waveform it's supposed to generate. (Very fussy, this Xavian technology.)

If you don't know what waveform you want it to use, you'd better figure that out first.

What do you want the waveform for, anyway?

Try reading the sections on the Screen Theory Lab and the Botany Lab.

Once you've got the right waveform on the recordable data chip, you can use that with the prototyper to get the right waveform on the waveform generator.

What can I do in the Screen Theory Lab?

This looks like a good place to test out their protective screen, doesn't it?

Have you read the note on the auxiliary control panel?

It seems that the screen is less reliable on squares 4 through 6 for some reason.

Of course, those squares are nearest to the Botany Lab. Maybe something there is interfering.

Try experimenting with the plants in the Botany Lab. (See the next section for more details.)

What's up with the Paleo-Ornithology Lab?

Have you been there?

Don't read on until you find it.

No, really, I mean it.

So you're saying you've really gotten inside?

Liar.

What's going on in the Botany Lab?

They seem to be doing some work with artificially-stimulated seeds over here.

They make noises when they grow -- waveforms, one might say.

Something they're doing over here makes a noise that interferes with the experimental Screen in the Screen Theory Room. If you could duplicate that noise, you'd be able to shut down the main screen around the weapon.

Too bad you can't see the screen from the Botany lab.

Unless you could somehow get one to appear in there.

Have you examined the lever on the screen projector?

It seems that it could be set to higher numbers than 6-- that is to say, the grid extends into the territory of the Botany Lab. Try setting it to 7, instead.

Having problems with the Safety Override? Go away and read the microdot.

So if the Override is turned off and the screen is projected at square 7, you can see it in the Botany Lab while you experiment with the noises made by growing plants. (Don't laugh. In this job, next week you could be doing dentistry on a Neptunian slugworm.)

Now you just need a way to collect the waveform that's made.

The recordable datachip might be able to pick this up, used in combination with the slot in the pot.

If you don't know what to do with the datachip, try acquainting yourself with the Prototyper.

Why does the potato keep flickering out of existence?

It's a Venusian teleporting potato.

Yes, really.

## Defeating the Final Weapon

[Doris] How do I get the bomb up to the level of the weapon?

You could just let your partner solve the problem.

But depending on your feelings, that may not be entirely satisfactory.

It would be nice if you could get the bomb up there without a person attached.

Possibly the rocket pants would work for unaided flight.

Have Doris remove the rocket pants (or remove the rocket belt yourself, if you are she), and then put the bomb in them.

[Max] How do I get the bomb up to the level of the weapon?

You could just let your partner solve the problem.

But depending on your feelings, that may not be entirely satisfactory.

It would be nice if you could get the bomb up there without a person attached.

Have you looked at Ch'awwwk's dome?

It seems there's a window in the side.

Perhaps you could throw the bomb in through the window.