The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy


                     BUG
         VERSION   1 2 3 4
        47/840914  Y Y Y Y
        56/841221  N N N Y
        58/851002  N N N N
        59/851108  N N N N
       *31/871119  N N N N (Solid Gold)

          1. In Version 47, you can block the robot panel with almost anything (even the panel itself!) including unmovable items, by using the command BLOCK PANEL WITH [noun]. The only item this doesn't work with is "no tea." You can block the panel with Ford Prefect, the door, the display case, the switch, the keyboard, the fish dispenser, even the atomic vector plotter. This last will remove the plotter from the case, letting you obtain it without having to solve the babel fish puzzle!
          If you block the panel with an untakable item, there will be no way to move it again, which will make the game unwinnable if you haven't gotten the fish and plotter yet. Pseudo-items like the underwear, the mattress, and the cups will not work, of course.
          In later versions, you have to be carrying something before you can block the panel with it. -- Chris D. Lang



          2. THE FLYING BODY PARTS BUG: In Version 47 (only), it is possible to detach parts of your own body, by placing them on top of the satchel in the Vogon Hold. For example, you can PUT HEAD ON SATCHEL (or eyes, ears, or hand), and you will see the part lying there.
          If you push the button, the body part will fly through the air, and be carried away by the cleaning robot, never to be seen again (assuming that the other parts of the puzzle are taken care of). You can lose your head this way, but still have your eyes and ears.
          Once removed, body parts are not takable. You can get them off the satchel, only by taking the satchel, in which case you will see them lying on the floor. Examining your head (or eyes or ears) while they are on the floor gives the same message as if they were attached (i.e. "That would involve quite a contortion"). The only way to move them after removing them is by pushing the button, picking up the satchel, or using the BLOCK PANEL WITH... bug. You can also MOVE EARS away from the panel, without picking them up.
          If you lose any body parts this way, you will, of course, be unable to interact with them for the rest of the game (for example, you won't be able to cover your ears during the Vogon Poetry reading if you have lost them). Otherwise, losing your head is no big loss.
          Later versions of the game tell you that you have gone insane if you even think about putting any body parts on the satchel. -- Linards Ticmanis



          3. In Version 47, trying to SEARCH BED before GETting UP (at the beginning of the game) will cause the game to return no output at all, and go on to the next turn. In later versions it says "It's empty (not counting you)." -- Steven Marsh



          4. In versions 47 and 56, you get 25 points each time you open the plotter case in the Vogon Hold. As there is time to open it twice before being put into the airlock, you can finish the game with 425 points out of a possible 400. In versions 58, 59, and 31, you only get the 25 points the first time you open the case. -- Matthew Russotto



Click here to return to the Infocom Bugs List Table of Contents

Click here to return to Graeme Cree's "Bob & Ray Overstocked Surplus Warehouse" Home Page.