Part 8: Search and Rescue

Update 07: Search and Rescue



Welcome back, folks. Technically I'm still good on my 'one update per two days' personal goal...

Returning to the Clubhouse after managing to save three relationships in our last locale, something appears to be different... Snoozer has relocated behind the couch, which can only mean one thing.



The game wants to have a cutscene without him in shot. Oh, and it seems Seamore has found a letter.



...Though something tells me it might not be good news.



I went for a quick swim, and when I got back, Barrette was gone! She vanished! All I found was this...



What's this?

Oh boy... This should be interesting.


.....

...Please tell me we don't really have to meet a bro-ham.



What an astute observation, Boss.



What kind of name is that anyway? Aww! What should I do?



Do I detect a hint of jealousy, perhaps...?



You should head to Sandy Bay and see what's up. That's a good idea, no?







So, yeah... Looks like we just found our next objective, doesn't it?





Seamore isn't in much of a mood to talk to us, so let's try chatting with Boss instead.



It all began when... and then... blah... blah... only now... but he...



...Thanks for the entirely extraneous recap. Hamtaro and Bijou were only across the room when this all happened.





Guess it's time for another search, this time on a nice sunny beach.



That's the end of the conversation, but before we go running off to find out what's happened with Barrette... It seems that one of the rooms that was under construction is now open to us!



Wahooo!!! Wahooo!!!

Uh... Hello there.



In fact, we teach the rubrub gemology class!



What a silly question!





...Well, looks like this is no longer a family-friendly LP.



Stop saying things!



.....

So, anyway... Welcome to the Rubrub room.





Slightly suspect dialogue aside, this is where we get to polish all those rocks we've gathered until we find the precious gems and other things hidden inside. As for what those are used for... Well, we'll get to that later.



The problem with trying to polish rocks at the moment is that they come in different grades, and our Rubrub technique is rather weak right now. If the rock turns blue after its first polish, we have to move on and try it again later.







On the plus side, we did manage to make a few one-star discoveries for our collection.



That's all we can do at the Clubhouse for now... Well, except for checking in with Harmony, but you know... It's Harmony.



Not to mention it would have been entirely pointless, because look who's hanging around the area's entrance! (No, I don't know what Spat's 'Oh yeah!!' is about.)



Hamtaro and Bijou have all the peripheral vision of your average guard though, so we get to poke around on the beach for a bit. Let's go south first.



Okay, what have we here?





What's your deal, dude?



Either of you interested in playing?

Oh... You're one of those surprisingly passionate coaches! Fair enough.

Sure, we'll pl-



...Rude!





(This is apparently the creepy dialogue update.)



Wait, that's it!! If you two still want to play, your first job is to find us a ball!!
Huh? What kind of team doesn't have a ball?





Okay then... Let's talk about something else, perhaps.





For this section, we can use Lookie whenever we're near someone to ask them if they've seen Barrette around. Sadly, not all of the responses we get are useful.



The soccer players themselves don't have much to say, but there is a jar to Digdig up before we continue onward.



There's another on the screen west of the soccer pitch, along with two weirdos... and a hidden treasure! Can you guess where it is...?





Yep, in the darkened crawlspace. And for our efforts, we get a shiny new marble!



A marble that's 'a blue of all blues'? Hmmm...



Anyway, let's just put that in our inventory and get to gabbing with this pair.



Uh... Sorry to interrupt, but...





So quit gabbin' and get on it!



Wait, so you're trying to teach him to swim, but only by having seen humans doing it? As opposed to having learnt how yourself?

And what makes you think this is a good idea?





Yeah, I'd say Greenie has a reason to be worried.







...My thoughts exactly.



Now that you've got an audience, how about going for a test swim? Huh?



Why would having an audience help, exactly?

Oh, whatever.











Hmmmm... My money's on 'no'.



Just seconds later...



Drowning, I'd say.







Poor ol' Greenie... It's hard when you have to deal with having a terrible teacher.





I'm the boss, right?!? Well, the boss always orders others around!





No...

Alright. Back to work! You need to practice!!

...

I can't hear you!



...Poor guy.

Let's go! From the top!



Well, guess Hamtaro and Bijou won't be going swimming any time soon. Especially not with these two incompetent hamsters as the lifeguards.



Anyway, I believe we managed to get terribly sidetracked there. Back onto the task at hand!





...Well, this was a big waste of time. Let's move on, shall we?



Moving north now, we're on the screen just west of the entrance, near some strange musical carvings and a sunbather.





Sadly, this one's not much use to us either. Wonder what her story is though...





No autographs? I imagined you were more adoring fans. I've been simply mobbed by hamsters as of late. It's so tiring. If only I had my own private beach. How sweet that would be...

Oh, she must be rich and famous, dahling. She does have something that FC Pineapple might like, though...



After all, you obviously need a pineapple to play Pineapple Soccer. A pineapple that is somehow smaller than a hamster, at that.



If you're able to make me happy, I might let you have it... This pineapple.♪



Ah, that dialogue actually unlocked some new options for us! I think this is the first time that's happened.

We only have Bestest to work with, so let's try that.



Oh, please! Do NOT call me bestest! It's so... so... yesterday.
Maybe you aren't educated in how to address a hamster of my stature. The proper term is Dazzlie!



Ah, thank you ma'am. We'll remember that.



Tsk1 That's the Ham-Chat I taught you!! You MUST know something else.

Didn't think it would be that easy... Guess we're going to have to discover another word before we can get that pineapple.



Time for a little more exploration before we finish up for the day; this is two screens west of our starting point, what looks like an umbrella rental shack.



.....



Thank you so much for your help. Maybe a normal conversation will be more productive?



I saw what you did! Grabbin' that jar! That means you want to solve the riddle! Heh he hehhh... I might be catchin' rays, but I sure ain't on vacation. Heh he heh...



...Suuuuure you are. This guy will actually be helpful, but only if we Tack-Q him at this point. (I suspect Snoozer might nudge you toward doing this, if there's any hint at all.)



You got it! All the qualities of world-class treasure hunters! Hmmm... yep, I'll do it! Listen up, I'll tell ya a secret only I know... Somewhere close, an old tunnel leads to the treasure island. The only clues I've found are a jar and a riddle. Yep! Bizzaroo.



Bizzaroo indeed... Also, I believe Locke taught us the same lesson about needing to beat people up sometimes to be a 'treasure hunter'.





Just one more hamster to talk to, then we can end this wordy exploration update. What's on your mind, lady?





Oh... Yeah, that's one of the big mistakes.



Ahhh... Where could he have gone? Sorry to do this, but... If you happen to Lookie my husband, would you let me know?

Sure thing, hun. We'll keep an eye out, since we're already looking for someone.



And with that, we've almost finished looking around Sandy Bay. Let's just take a peek on the screen south of here...



...Ah, there we go. That looks like a likely candidate to investigate next time.

Bonus video:

Can't pull a Blanko about this.