Guttersnipe: St. Hesper's Asylum for the Criminally Mischievous will probably be pretty intuitive even for people new to interactive fiction, but there might be a few stumbling points. Most of the verbs you need throughout the game will automatically appear in the tab to the right. There are a few exceptions. For example, at a few points in the game, you might need to ask a character questions ("ASK [X] ABOUT [Y]"), give an object to a character ("GIVE [X] TO [Y]"), or use different objects together (There are several different ways that you could do this depending on context, but "USE [X] WITH [Y]" is generally a safe default in any situation.
If you're stumped, your pet rat Percy will often have clues or hints if you ask the right questions. Type "Ask Percy about [X]" to ask him about various topics.
Guttersnipe: St. Hesper's Asylum for the Criminally Mischievous is not a totally linear game, so it's possible to perform some of these actions out of order. I organized this walkthrough more as a list of questions you might encounter as you play through the game rather than a straight walkthrough, so hopefully that's more helpful. But if you encounter any other questions or problems, please feel free to contact me by email ( thenewmeat@hotmail.com ), on Twitter (@thenewmeat) or just on the IF Comp forums (I'm Bitterkarella there!)
Thanks for playing!
Bitter Karella
How do I get rid of the cat?
Schroedinger the cat only wants live prey and, if you examine her cage in the kennel, you'll find that she has a special liking for chicken. You can find a cold roast chicken in the icebox in the staff lounge, but it's not going to appeal to her much in its present form. But if you put attach it to the machine in the electroconvulsive therapy room and turn the ship's wheel, you'll shock that chicken into a semblence of life. Schroedinger should have more interest now!
How do I get the clock off the wall?
You'll need to stand on something to give you a leg up. Try using Virginia's footstool.
How do I get Virginia's footstool?
She wants something to occupy her time. The sweat magazine that you find in the staff lounge looks like it might be something good to trade.
How do I get past the matron into the control room?
The matron won't let you past as long as she's there, so you need to get rid of her. Try dropping some of Grandma Applecheeks' onion brine into her postum; that should get her moving fast. Remember, if you've read the posters around the asylum, it DOES cause summer complaint, after all.
How do I get some of Grandma Applecheeks' Onion Brine?
You've seen a lot of ads for this brine all over the asylum, so you reckon it might be useful! Naturally, the pharmacist is the man to ask... but he won't hand anything over without a prescription. You'll need to talk to Dr. Deckchair and fake your way into a diagnosis! If you've read the posters and the pamphlets, you'll probably already have a good idea for a likely illness to fake... seems that Grandma's brine is a good remedy for the intangible squirms. Look up the intangible squirms in the massive medical textbook in the library to find out the symtoms that you'll need to tell Dr. Deckchair you have.
How do I pull the switch in the control room?
You'll need to protect yourself from the current. Try wearing the stocking that you find in Eustace's cell.
How do I get the stocking from Eustace's cell?
Eustace won't let you have it while he's awake, but give him some dog biscuits (from the kennel) and some milk (collected from the wire mom in Tobias' cell) and he'll be out like a light.
How do I get milk from the wire mom?
Collect the milk using the teapot that you get from Jeremiah & Violet's cell.
How do I find my discharge papers in the pile?
You'll need some high energy to search through this pile, so some caffeine would help. Take the canned coffee from the staff fridge, empty the postum machine of postum, and fill it with coffee. Drink the coffee and you'll have enough energy to find your own discharge papers.
How do I get Rigatoni's pocketwatch?
After you allow Rigatoni to hypnotize you, you might notice him pull out a pocketwatch. Returning to his room, he won't let you take his watch but he will agree to a trade. Trade him the clock for the watch.
How do I get into the panopticon?
After pulling the switch in the control room, the fire in the furnace will go out. You'll find a charred hand in there; use it with any fingerprint-o-matic to gain access to the bridges leading to the panopticon.
How do I get Dr. Caligazzi to sign my discharge papers?
She won't sign your papers while she's lucid, so use Rigatoni's pocketwatch to hypnotize her, then give her the discharge papers.
How do I fix the broken elevator button?
Use the trephine you find in the surgery theater to fix the call button.
How do I get the elevator operator to take me out of here?
Give him the signed discharge papers and he'll be happy to take you down to the ground floor.