Part 6: Blackwell Legacy - Update 5 (Part 1)

Update 5

This one is going to be fairly long, but once it's finished the plot dumps will all be out of the way, and the purpose of the game (and subsequence games in the series) will finally be revealed to us. So let's get started!

Hello Joey

LAST TIME



Why do they always do that?

Opening Menu

So now Rosa is unconcious on the floor, with a ghost apparently floating around in her apartment.

At this point I'm wondering if Rosa decided to bypass the over-the-counter medication for some home-grown shit.



Long time no see. How's tricks?

The ghost floats around the apartment, checking out Rosa's meagre possessions.

... Right. Thought as much.

Soon enough, he settles back down over Rosa.



Always sleeping. You're always sleeping and I'm always watching.

That's.... pretty fucking creepy.



At this point, Rosa finally starts to stir.

Mrg.
It's about time. Hey, naptime nellie! Wake up!
What...
*ahem* Shall we try this again?



Rosa stands up, hears the ghost's voice, and turns around to find him floating there.

Now that's not very polite.
Go away!



Believe me, I've tried.
NO! You don't exist!
Oh, yes I do. Look at me.

The ghost gets pretty frustrated when Rosa start to deny his existence, but Rosa doesn't want to hear it.

This is not happening. This is not happening.
Oh brother.
I am NOT going insane. There is nothing there.
Could you-
No!



By this point, Rosa is having a full blown panic attack, and for once I can't even blame her.

Listen-
Get out of my head! There's nothing there. There's nothing there. There's nothing there...
Could you-
Shut up! Shut up. Shut up. Shut up!

Finally, the ghost has had enough of this.

No, YOU shut up.



I've been watching you all day, sweetheart. You know who I am.
No...

Presumably he's been watching since Rosa scattered the ashes, judging by the similar swirl of energy.

YES. I'm not going away. So there'd be no point in beating around the bush. Now say my name.
No...
Damn you. You KNOW my name. Now say it.

He's pretty damn intimidating during this sequence, floating right up behind her and raising his voice while Rosa cowers.

You're...
Yes?



Good girl. You got it in one. Now turn around and look at me.

And there it is confirmed. The famous Joey, whose voice falls back to controlled here.

I...
Don't worry. I won't bite. Couldn't even if I wanted to.



Rosa finally summons up the courage to face Joey, who immediately flashes her a charming/seedy grin.

She can react in one of three ways - accepting:

You really exist?
Oh yes. Live and in person. Although I'm not really alive. And I'm not sure if I can still call myself a "person" anymore.

Unaccepting:

You...can't be real. You're just a... stress induced hallucination.
Yeah, sure. Think about your aunt and grandmother and say that again.

And confrontational:

Who are you, and what the hell do you want with me?
Hah! You don't waste any time. You're a Blackwell, all right.

Whichever you choose, Rosa then follows up with another pertinent question:

So who ARE you?
I'm Joey Mallone, and I'm the family spirit guide.



Joey's smooth smirk falls onto Rosa's blank stare. Finally, she speaks up again.

What?
Think of me as the Blackwell legacy, darling. I'm passed down from one generation to the next, like a family heirloom. First your grandmother got stuck with me, then your aunt, and now you.

Well, that confirms that theory. Joey "passes down" from one member of the family to the next when they die. Recall that in Jack's letter, he first noticed Lauren becoming distant shortly after Patricia died.

So you're a ghost.
Yep.
You're a GHOST.



The true gravity of this situation finally dawns on Rosa.

Hey, you're sharp. Took your aunt and grandmother ages to work that out.
So I'm not... going crazy?
Nope. Ain't that grand?
Where did you come from?
That's a long long story, Dollface. And we've got more important things to do.

It's a bit difficult to convey Joey's tone here without voice acting (which, it must be said, is excellent). He's menacing, but not altogether nasty or cold. At the risk of sounding cliched, he's fairly mysterious here.

At this point, Rosa finally gets around to asking the million dollar question.

Why have you been haunting my family?
"Haunting?" Is that what I'm doing? That's a real ugly word.

He actually sounds a bit hurt here.

Answer me. Why are you here?
You got me, sweetheart. I've been wondering "Why me?" and "Why your family?" since this whole gig started. Must be some kind of gift your family has.
A gift?
You're a medium. A medium with a direct connection with the spirit world. And I, my dear, have the unique pleasure of being that connection.
I don't...



Oh you will, babe. You will. It took your aunt a while, but she got the hang of it. Your grandmother never really caught on.



By contrast, Joey is at his most chilling here.

But that's something we can talk about later. You felt something today, didn't you?
Felt something?
Yeah. You felt sick to your stomach. I saw you.
I've been feeling sick all day.
And where did it START?
...

Rosa can guess at the various places she's visited today. Let's retrace her steps backwards.

That NYU dorm?
No, no. That's tied in, maybe. But think further back.
Nishanthi? It has something to do with Nishanthi?
The old lady? No. Think harder.
The hospital?
Hell, I hope not. I don't want to go back THERE in a hurry. Think harder.

This is an interesting comment - if Joey was haunting Lauren before she died, and Lauren spent 25 years in a medically-induced coma, presumably Joey has just been chilling around for those 25 years as well, which would explain why he hates the idea of going back to the hospital again so much.

You mean... the dog run?
Yeah. That's where we've got to go.
What, right now?
Yep. The sooner the better.
But it's the middle of the night!
So? You've just had a nice nap. You should be ready for action.

Rosa is so adorably whiny here



Well, that's where you're wrong. If there's any reason behind this medium business, it's to take care of problems like your dog park. And we have to take care of them SOON.

Rosa has various responses:

Fine. We'll do it in the morning.
No can do. We gotta go now.
This is all too much. I've got to sleep on this.
Sorry, kiddo. We gotta go now.
We've got to go right now?
Yes.
What's the hurry?
Let me put it another way. Do you want to end up like your aunt and grandmother?



Wait..... what exactly is Joey implying with that last sentence?

Was that... because of you? Did YOU do that?
Not me, kid. Not me. I didn't make em that way, and I don't know what did. But do you really want to sit around here and find out?
...

Joey actually comes across as genuine here.

I can't believe this is happening.
Believe it.
Maybe I AM going crazy. Maybe I'd PREFER going crazy.
Sorry, sugar. You're totally sane. Deal with it.
Fine. Let's go.
That's the spirit!



Joey is altogether too happy about this little arrangement. With not much choice other than to follow, Rosa heads off to Washington Square Park.



Everybody just ignored you. Am I the only one who can see you?
Yep. And hear me. So keep your voice low.

There's an eerie windy noise in the background here. It's one that will be heard many times throughout this series.



This is the spot. Can you see it?
I don't see anything. Can we go?
This way.

Joey starts floating off towards the entrance to the dog run.

Hey, wait!



Goes against the rules, whatever they are. Now look inside there. And look CLOSE.
What am I supposed to see?
Just wait. It'll come.

Washington Square Night



Who is that?
That's what we're here to find out. I'll talk to the spook. You can stay here.
Okay.

With that, Joey heads inside the dog run to speak with the ghost.



Why so down, beautiful?

Despite Joey's endless charm, the ghost completely ignores him.

Ah. I'm a bit out of practice. How should I handle this...

Now it's Joey who has a few different choices. He can be firm:

I want you to listen to me, girlie. Your tears won't win any sympathy from me. So tell me what the story is, so we can both get out of here.

Be glib:

Hey, buck up. It's only death. The worst part's over.

Or be charming:

Hey, don't be like that. If it's one thing I hate, it's seeing a pretty girl cry.

All three of which make him look like a bit of an asshole, but a charismatic asshole nonetheless. The ghost doesn't respond, but does seem to notice Joey, quickly turning and floating away from him.

Next up, Joey can let her be:

It's all right. Take your time.

Stay firm:

Hey, I'm talking to ya.

Or work the Joey charm:

Leaving so soon? I thought we were getting along.

Finally, the ghost responds.

They all run. So hard to hold on. It's me. They won't stop!

Her voice sounds distant and echoey, not to mention panicked. Joey again chooses from three options.

He can explain his business:

We're here to help you.
Help?
Yeah. That's us. We're helpers.

He can try to calm her down:

Shhh. Relax. Slow down and tell me everything. I'm here to help.

Or he can try to make sense of her words:

Who won't stop, kid? Try and concentrate. Explain everything so we can help you.

The ghost responds, but doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

Help. Help. He wants me to help him. But I want to help THEM. Don't they know that?
Help who?
Can't. Can't. They run away.
We won't run away.
No.



Suddenly, she gets angry and starts yelling.

Got into our head and poisoned us!
Whatever happened, darling, it's over. You do know that, don't you?
No! I'm poison! Stay away, or I'll poison you!



Run away, like all the others!

There's only one solution for this kind of hysteria - the Joey charm! He can choose to stand his grand:

Not a chance. I'm staying right here.
You're... You're HIM! He's the only one who won't go away!

He can give it right back to her:

Yeah. Keep talking like that, sister, and YOU'LL be doing the running. Now why don't you shut your yap and calm the hell down.
YOU!
Yeah?
I know it's you!

Or he can try out his hilarious smooth talking:

You're beautiful when you're angry, has anyone told you?
NO! You won't trap me again!
Again?
He made everyone go away. There is nobody else.

Joey tries to ask the ghost who "HIM" is:

Who?
You're HIM!
Now look. Darling. Sweetheart.
Leave me!
Hey-
LEAVE!

Finally, Joey just gives up.

All right.



Look, just... sit tight. We'll figure this out. And we'll be back.

With that, Joey floats on out of the dog run, a beaten man. Ghost. Whatever.



Hahaha, I love this.

Can't get a straightforward answer out of any of em.
What just happened?
What just happened is we've got an unstable spirit on our hands. Haunting that dog park over there. You wondered why the mutts don't like it here? That's the reason.

Joey kind of snaps this answer back, presumably still pissed off at his unsuccessful attempt at smooth talking the ghost.

Rosa, however, barely even notices.

There's a ghost haunting the dog park.
That's what I said.
A ghost.
Sure.



I told you-
No. I should go to bed. I really should go to bed.

Finally, Rosa has had enough, and just dazedly walks off muttering to herself.



Joey, who has already established that he can't ever be far from her side, has no choice but to angrily follow her back home.



With Rosa collapsing asleep in bed, night turns to day. Legacy is actually only two days long, so we're around half way through this first game already! The second day has somewhat less text and more puzzles, but first we go through the final plot dump.

(Continued next post...)