Last Half of Darkness
A Modest History ...
In 1989, Last Half of Darkness was a DOS shareware title, sporting graphics that were just good enough to move the story forward. In 2000, LHOD reappeared as a CD, tricked out with lush photographic images and a mix of just good enough jump cuts, video and scary noises to pleasantly startle unwary gamers.
What Are We Doing Here?
There are, in order, three goals in LHOD:
Usual Disclaimer
The following walkthrough lists only those actions absolutely necessary to complete the game. If you follow this walkthrough, there are more than half a dozen places in the game you'll never see. These unseen areas contain clues that would guide you if you were playing without any assistance. For those who are curious, the places and clues are listed at the end of the walkthrough.
Game Mechanics
LHOD is, for the most part, a collection of still images. How you move through those images and what you can do within those images is controlled by the four cursor settings: Move, Examine, Take and Operate.
There is also an inventory area where things you pick up are stored. Usually an item selected from inventory will Operate on whatever it is applied to. Apply the correct key on a locked door and the door will open and so on.
Walkthrough Mechanics
Since the cursor is set to Move most of the time, only the appropriate direction (enter library, go upstairs, etc.) will be listed in the walkthrough.
The Last Half of Darkness Walkthrough
You begin in front of the house.
Set the cursor on Move and go up to the house.
Squeeze through the rusted gates.
Go inside.
Go to north hall.
Enter library.
Set cursor to Take and pick up the magnifying glass.
Set cursor to Move and enter garden room.
Set cursor to Take and pick up the vase (right side of screen).
Set cursor to Move and return to library.
Enter parlor.
Set cursor to Operate and open the cabinet (right side of screen).
Set cursor to Take and remove the hammer from the cabinet.
Set cursor to Move and go into library.
Go back to hallway.
Walk into kitchen.
Set cursor to Operate and open the drawer in the table.
Set cursor to Examine and examine the drawer.
Set cursor to Take and remove the match from the drawer.
Set cursor to Operate and open the door to the pantry.
Set cursor to Move and enter pantry.
Set cursor to Take and remove the knife.
Set cursor to Move and exit pantry.
Go back to hallway.
Return to entranceway.
Go upstairs.
Enter room. (This would be the middle room of the three.)
Select the knife from the inventory and operate the knife on the panel to the left of the bed. A secret door will open.
Set cursor to Move and enter secret room.
Set cursor to Operate and remove the cloth covering the painting.
Select the magnifying glass from the inventory and Operate it on the painting.
Set the cursor to Move. Clicking on the painting will bring up "Stop Magnifying Painting." Clicking on this will move you back into the second bedroom.
Exit room.
Walk to end of hallway.
Enter room.
Set cursor to Examine and look at the painting over the head of the bed on the left side of the screen.
Message: The painting contains scratch marks around the side.
Set cursor to Operate and move the painting, revealing the elixir.
Set cursor to Take and take the elixir.
Set cursor to Move and exit bedroom.
Walk into west corridor.
Walk forward into darkness.
Go upstairs.
Set cursor to Take and pick up the lantern.
Set cursor to Move and go back downstairs.
Return to hallway.
Go back.
Go back into long hall.
Go downstairs.
Exit house.
Go outside gate.
Go back into swamp.
Go east into the swamp.
Travel east.
Follow path to graveyard.
Follow path to crypt.
Set cursor to Operate and remove the match from inventory. Click the match to light it. Open the inventory and click the match to the lantern. The lantern should light up.
Set cursor to Move and enter the dark crypt.
Set cursor to Take and take shovel.
Set cursor to Move and enter passage.
Move ahead north into darkness.
Turn east into darkness.
Turn south into darkness.
Turn east into darkness.
Turn north into darkness.
Move ahead north into darkness.
Turn east into darkness.
Move ahead east into darkness.
Turn north into darkness.
Turn north into darkness.
Message: Dead end facing west there is strange skull floating in the room.
Select elixir from inventory and Operate it on the floating skull.
Message: The skull disappears.
Set cursor to Move and move backwards east.
Move backwards west.
Move backwards west.
Move backwards west.
Move backwards south.
Move backwards south.
Move backwards west.
Move backwards north.
Move backwards west.
Move backwards south.
Move backwards south.
Exit crypt.
Walk east to graveyard.
Select the shovel from inventory and Operate it on the earth below the far right gravestone. (This is tricky. Just keep trying until you get the message: You have opened the grave. There is something inside.)
Set cursor to Examine the open grave.
Message: Amidst the rotting bones of a dog ... there is a key.
Set cursor to Take and remove garden house key.
Set cursor to Move and go back to swamp.
East through swamp.
Go west through swamp.
Go up to the house.
Squeeze through rusted gate.
Go east side of house.
Follow path to backyard.
Follow path to backyard.
Select hammer from the inventory.
Operate hammer on board on door of caretaker's house.
Return the hammer to inventory.
Set cursor to Operate and open the door.
Cutscene of creepy doll. Doll wants gi-gi flower.
Set cursor to Move and follow path back to house.
Go back to side of house.
Go to front of house.
Go outside gate.
Follow dark path to the east.
Follow path to garden house.
Remove vase from inventory and Operate the vase on the pool in front of the garden house. The vase is now full of water.
Remove key from inventory and Operate key on garden house door.
Set cursor to Move and enter garden house.
Remove vase from inventory and Operate on dried out gi-gi plant (left side of screen).
Set cursor to Move and exit garden house.
Go back into the swamp. (This is a timed puzzle. Give the dried-out gi-gi about ten seconds or so to rehydrate before returning to the garden house.)
Walk towards garden house.
Enter garden house.
Set cursor to Take newly sprouted gi-gi flower.
Set cursor to Move and exit garden house.
Follow dark path to the west.
Follow path to the house.
Squeeze through rusted gate.
Go east side of house.
Follow path to backyard.
Follow path to backyard.
Set cursor on Operate to open door. You'll hear the doll say, "good!"
Message: The flower mysteriously vanishes from your inventory.
Set cursor to Move and walk into the darkness (of the open door to the caretaker's house).
Set cursor to Operate on closet on right of screen.
Set cursor to Take and remove brush.
Set cursor to Move and exit room.
Follow path back to house.
Follow path to backyard.
Go back to side of house.
Go to front of house.
Go inside.
Go upstairs.
Walk to end of hall.
Walk into west corridor.
Enter room.
Set cursor to Operate and click on clock.
Set clock to either 5:43 or 8:22. Holding down left mouse button moves time rapidly backward, right mouse button moves time rapidly forward. Once time is set, move cursor off image, and clock will bleed.
Select brush from inventory and Operate brush on blood on clock.
Set cursor to Move and exit room.
Go back.
Go back into long hall.
Enter the second room on the long hall.
Enter secret room.
Select magnifying glass from inventory and Operate it on painting.
Select brush with blood from inventory and Operate it on the left eye (left as you look at the painting).
Enjoy the last cutscene.
Stuff You Missed Using this Walkthrough
You can open the piano bench in the music room, find and play some sheet music and trigger a cutscene that reveals the evil lurking in the crypt.
In the desk in the first bedroom you'll find a poem that, when Operated on a mirror, reveals the three clock spider puzzle. Solving this puzzle provides the numbers that cause the clock to bleed in the fifth bedroom.
There's a bathroom in the first bedroom (you can turn the cold water on and off) and a journal that describes Mira's love of music.
You'll also find, in the dresser in the first bedroom, an unusual box with a flame design that will, when it is tossed into the fireplace in the billiards room, melt to reveal a key that will open a drawer in the third bedroom. In that third bedroom drawer is a map of the crypt.
(Note: The map of the crypt only works when you are in the crypt. And all it does is keep track of where you have been. You Move, open your inventory, open the map, see where you are, close the map, close the inventory, Move, open your inventory, open the map, see where you are, close the map, close the inventory, etc. ...)
You'll also miss, in the third bedroom, a journal that describes the value of the elixir.
There is nothing you can do in the bathroom at the end of the hall other than be spooked by a trio of rotting skeletons.
There is also a group of statues stashed one screen right of the graveyard that are just there for atmosphere
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