ET the Extraterrestrial Phone Home Adventure Walkthrough

A minor tragedy is the best way
to describe this game. What could have been an interesting, maybe even poignant,
adventure game tie-in with the classic film quickly deteriorated into a
humble adventure with arcade-like puzzle sequences. The graphics are well-drawn
and adequate to display the story but can not in any way be described as
breathtaking. The acting is reasonably well done but obviously catering
to a younger generation, perhaps the age group that might be interested
in Barbie or Disney products. This I consider a little strange, given that
the movie came out twenty years ago, and a demographic more likely to be
interested in the adventure game tie-in would be young adults. Who can ever
figure out UbiSoft’s marketing plans? The game revolves around a "dumbed-down"
version of the events of the film: ET must find items that can be used as
parts of a transmitter to contact his mother ship. All but a drop of drama
has been removed from the film in this sanitized version of the story. The
interface is easy to use and items are readily found through the smart cursor.
What isn’t so easy to find is the exits from rooms. The smart cursor doesn’t
change to show that clicking will make ET leave the room. I found myself
"stuck" briefly until I realized this. The puzzles are either
tried and true puzzles we’ve seen in the 7th Guest and numerous others since
then, or arcade sequences incorporated merely to lengthen the game. This
is an interesting point: the game is grossly overrated at the full retail
price of PC games (as I bought it) as it offers only a handful of hours
of play. If you can get it from a bargain bin, you may still have the same
sentiment when you complete it. Obviously, I was not taken with this game
and numerous times I almost gave up at the tedium. The overall impression
is not good. I wonder increasingly how these game companies fund these incompetent
pseudo-adventure games when there are truly great adventure games begging
for publishers that continually get overlooked.

Introduction

As occurred in the film, ET is
stranded when his spaceship leaves suddenly. He is discovered by Elliot,
a young boy, who coaxes ET inside his house. Click to make ET go in the
house and into Elliot’s room.

Elliot’s Room

After christening the alien ET,
Elliot goes to bed. The next morning, he introduces ET to his older sister
and brother. ET, of course, just wants to phone home. Elliot gives ET a
bag to carry any items he finds that he can use to build his transmitter.
Take the colored candy from the shelves and place it in the bag. Try to
open the cupboard-it’s locked and needs a key. Look at the globe, plane,
and lamp. Exit left to Gertie’s toy cupboard.

Toy Cupboard

Gertie asks you to help her flowers.
Grab the coathanger and look at the astronaut. Examine the dead flowers.
You must play an arcade puzzle. As the petals fall, hover the cursor over
any petals of one type. Then hover the cursor over the appropriate flower.
The petals will magically float to the flower. The best way is to concentrate
on one flower at a time. When complete, Gertie gives ET "flower money"-some
cogs. Go back to Elliot’s room and exit to the bottom of the screen to the
hallway.

Hallway

Click on Elliot’s older brother,
Michael, to speak with him. He tells you the door to the attic is locked.
Exit downstairs.

Bottom of the Stairs

Examine the pumpkin. Go over
to the piano. "Play" it and it will sound strange. Get the key.
Exit right.

Rear of the House

Gertie wants you to show you
can write. Click on her "Speak and Spell". You must type the words
she says in a limited time. When you’ve completed them all, she gives you
the "Speak and Spell". Click on the train, cupboard, and hatrack.
Go outside.

Doghouse

Try to get the umbrella. Give
the dog the candy. Another game puzzle: you must play a simple game of "Mastermind".
The dog paws the ground when the correct candy is in the correct place.
He shakes his head when the candy is in the incorrect place. If it is the
wrong candy, he breaks it. When you’ve given him the candy, you can take
the umbrella. Go back in the house.

Rear of the House

Exit right.

Den

Touch the TV, door, and cupboard.
Take the key off the bookshelf. The books fall down and must be replaced
in the correct order. The solution is as follows:

• first set:
  • bottom shelf: 2 of one
    color, 1 of the color at the top
  • middle shelf: 1 of one
    color, 1 of the color at the top
  • top shelf: all the color
    at the top
• second set:
  • bottom shelf: 1 purple,
    3 of the color at the top, 1 green, 2 of the color at the top
  • middle shelf: 1 purple,
    2 of the color at the top, 1 green, 2 of the color at the top
  • top shelf: 1 purple, 1
    of the color at the top, 1 green, 2 of the color at the top

When done, exit right.

Bottom of the Stairs

Try to go through the door at
left-you don’t have all the parts yet. Return to Elliot’s room.

Elliot’s Room

Use the key to unlock the cupboard.
To get the items in the cupboard you must move the junk to allow enough
space to recover the item. Free the left side for the first item free the
middle for the second, and the right side for the final item. Pick up the
record player, remote control, and fan. Go back to the hallway at the top
of the stairs.

Hallway

Use the key to unlock the attic.
Go in.

Attic

Make ET move the boxes onto their
respective spaces (indicated by the number) to make the stairs. Repeat until
ET is able to recover the wire, nails, and cogs. Resetting the puzzle (by
clicking on the broom) at any time may be helpful and does not affect what
items you’ve recovered already. Exit back to the hallway.

Hallway

Go downstairs.

Bottom of the Stairs

Exit through the door at left.
A cutscene shows Elliot and ET going into the woods.

Woods

ET builds his transmitter. Despite
having the know-how to build the transmitter, he doesn’t have the nous to
tune it (go figure!). Three parts must be set correctly:

• Umbrella part: move the steel
  balls to the holes to fill all of them. Be careful not to knockout those
  you’ve already done.
• Coathanger: this is random.
  You must make each letter/word using the record player and coathanger.
  The first answer just uses the line with the screw. The second uses 2
  lines. The last uses 4 lines.
• Cogs: Place the cogs to connect
  all parts of the machine. This is random but trial and error will solve
  it quickly.

When complete, the message is
sent to the mothership but the authorities arrive and capture Elliot and
ET.

Complex

Michael arrives to save ET and
Elliot. Elliot must guide Michael (with ET on a gurney) through the series
of corridors. Elliot must get the attention of any guards and draw them
into rooms off the path to freedom. This is very repetitive and mundane,
requiring almost no thought. On a couple of occasions, Michael has to use
his card to open doors. Finally, they escape.

Escape

Similar to the last arcade puzzle,
you must guide ET, Elliot and Michael along the roads to the flashing lights,
avoiding the authorities. Use the cars and lights to stop (or trap) the
authorities. There are a plethora of possibilities to solving this and trial
and error should get you through to the mothership.

Mothership

The area is too small for the
ship to land. ET is acutely unwell, so the mothership sends energy down
to help ET’s recovery. Move the bike back and forth to catch 10 energy balls.
Be careful to avoid (or jump over) the logs. When done, ET makes the bicycle
rise into the air after the mothership. Continue to catch energy balls to
ensure ET can maintain the pace to follow the mothership. Finally, they
arrive at a clearing where the mothership lands. A cutscene illustrates
ET leaving without any of the drama of the movie. A very unfeeling ending,
but fair given the lack of character development, I suppose.

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