Three Clues - Who Am I?

[notbobsmith]

I'm not sure what. A non-"Quest" game that takes place in the "present". In addition to the ones I've eliminated, that leaves out Gold Rush, Laura Bow, Manhunter, Codename Iceman, and Freddy Pharkas. All of the other Dynamix games take place in the past or future. and that includes the flight sims (except for the A-10 Tank Killer games)

Are you in Torin's Passage? It's not clear when that takes place since it is not on Earth.

[Rath Darkblade]

Hmm ... no.

Would you like a clue?

[notbobsmith]

I think I need one at this point.

[Rath Darkblade]

I'm found in one of the games you listed above. I thought I was set in the present, and I believe one of the games above was set in "the present" - at least, "the present" when the game was made.

Maybe I was wrong? If so, please feel free to enlighten me when you find out which game I'm in.

[notbobsmith]

Are you in Codename: Iceman? It's meant to take place in "the near future". I fact if you ask a woman in Tahiti for a date, she will give you the current date +20 years.

[Rath Darkblade]

Aye, I am in Codename: Iceman.

(I never played it, but it was made in the 80s, and features submarine warfare and a what feels like a very Cold War-ish atmosphere, from what I understand).

[notbobsmith]

Aye, I am in Codename: Iceman.

(I never played it, but it was made in the 80s, and features submarine warfare and a what feels like a very Cold War-ish atmosphere, from what I understand).

The plot does revolve around Soviet-backed terrorists. They probably assumed that the Cold War would still be going on. It begs the question if we are in Cold War II with Russia. It doesn't feel quite the same, but then again “History doesn’t repeat itself but it often rhymes.”

Are you found during the submarine sequence? Either inside or outside of the sub.

[Rath Darkblade]

Aye, I am in Codename: Iceman.

(I never played it, but it was made in the 80s, and features submarine warfare and a what feels like a very Cold War-ish atmosphere, from what I understand).

The plot does revolve around Soviet-backed terrorists. They probably assumed that the Cold War would still be going on. It begs the question if we are in Cold War II with Russia. It doesn't feel quite the same, but then again “History doesn’t repeat itself but it often rhymes.”

Sigh. Since I studied Russian history and culture for a very long time, I had a long, long answer here about this. But before I could press "Submit", the forum logged me out.

To start with, there are many people in Russia who are nostalgic for the Soviet Union - not because it was so wonderful, but because people miss the old guaranteed jobs, low prices, and safety net. Many feel sad that Russia lost its place as a top world superpower, and they remember a stronger sense of community and connection between neighbor countries. But only a tiny group of people like of hard-liners and ultra-nationalists want to bring back the exact old communist system, and no-one sane supports a literal resurrection of the old USSR. (Thank god for that). Putin and his puppets in countries like Belarus use Soviet pride and power symbols for support, but they run capitalist states, not Soviet ones.

Some ultra-nationalists and hardline political figures, as well as a small fraction of the pro-war public in Russia are actively advocating for a "hot war" with the West. But both independent and Russian state data show this is a distinct minority. No-one in their right mind would start a "hot war" when both sides are so heavily armed with nukes.

Putin is (relatively) a realist, and doesn't want to resurrect the old Soviet Union either. he wants to replace Zelenskyy with a Kremlin-friendly puppet of his own, like he did in Belarus and Chechnya, and like he's trying to do in Georgia and Armenia (in the Caucus region).

Having said that, I can see to a degree why Russians are so suspicious of outsiders. Russia is a relatively flat country with few mountains protecting it, so it's been invaded many times in its history (e.g. by the Mongols, the Lithuanians (several times), the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Swedes, the French, the Germans etc). As a result, Russia wants a "buffer state" or two (or several) between itself and "the enemy" (whoever it may be - in this case, NATO). On the other hand, again ... only a madman would invade a country with so much manpower and so many nuclear bombs. It's just not credible.

So the fear of a physical invasion has been replaced by a fear of a cultural invasion, and this is what we saw during the Cold War and afterwards. Because of the lack of an external "enemy", the Soviet Party had to "manufacture" internal enemies, in order to repress any kind of dissent and maintain its rule. It became infamously corrupt, paranoid and suspicious, to the extent that any minorities that demanded more independence, or were even suspected of collaboration with outsiders (even without proof), were viewed as traitors and punished as such. Kangaroo trials were common. Even cultural displays were heavily controlled - any literature, music, art etc. that was not viewed as "Soviet enough" could result in the artist being arrested, expelled to Siberia, or even shot. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn is just the most famous of them (in the West, anyway), but hundreds of authors, poets, and musicians were censored or murdered because of Stalin's paranoia. Doctors, too.

After Stalin, mass executions of dissidents (or simply anyone the Soviets didn't like) became rarer, and was replaced by expulsion to remote regions like Siberia, expulsion to work camps, or simply labelling independent creators as "mentally ill" and locking them up in "psychiatric hospitals" for enforced "treatment". It's a wonder anyone survived.

Russia's suspicion of foreigners and an a "cultural invasion" meant that it treated its own minorities - Kipchaks, Cumans, Armenians, Georgians, Azeris, Jews etc. - with extreme harshness and racism. The Russian government (both Soviet and today) uses this racism to crush any non-conformists by labelling them as "dissidents" or "terrorists", and force non-Russians to obey Moscow's will. It's also easier for the Kremlin to neglect infrastructure and job creation in non-ethnically-Russian areas like Siberia and the Caucus countries, thus creating unemployment there, and then recruit more soldiers from those areas by offering them financial incentives. Thus, they avoid having to recruit from the big cities like Moscow or St. Petersburg, which prevents domestic unrest, middle-class discontent, or direct challenges to the regime. (So, the Kremlin viewpoint runs: who cares if Siberians or Chechnyans are killed in Ukraine? After all, they're not "real" Russians).

Anyway, sorry for the long post. I hope it wasn't boring.

Are you found during the submarine sequence? Either inside or outside of the sub.

Sorry, I'm not!

[notbobsmith]

I am not nearly as well versed in Russian history. I did read an amusing comment somewhere that each chapter in a book on Russian history starts with "And then things got worse." I do miss the '90s when things at least seemed hopeful.

Anyway:

Are you found in Tunisia?

[Rath Darkblade]

I am not nearly as well versed in Russian history. I did read an amusing comment somewhere that each chapter in a book on Russian history starts with "And then things got worse."

I haven't heard that one before, but I like it. Black humour is prevalent in Russia, for obvious reasons. Here's another Russian joke:

An old woman waited for two hours to get in a bus. Bus after bus came full and she couldn't squeeze herself in. When she finally managed to crawl in, she wiped her forehead, and said, "Finally, glory to God!"

The driver said, "Mother, you must not say that. You must say 'Glory to comrade Stalin.'"

"Excuse me, comrade," the woman said. "I'm just a backward old woman. I'll say from now on as you told me."

After a while, she said, "Excuse me, comrade, I am old and stupid. What shall I say if, God forbid, Comrade Stalin dies?"

"Oh, mother, then you shall say, "'Glory to God!"

I do miss the '90s when things at least seemed hopeful.

The more things change.

Anyway:

Are you found in Tunisia?

Oops! I just double-checked, and no - I'm not in Tunisia, but ...

Are you found during the submarine sequence? Either inside or outside of the sub.

Yes. (Sorry).

[Tawmis]

Aye, I am in Codename: Iceman.

... I go away for awhile.... and ... Rath uses Codename: Iceman?

What in the Hades has happened here?

[Tawmis]

Are you seen during a time that the main character is controlling the sub?
(As opposed to freely walking around)

[notbobsmith]

Aye, I am in Codename: Iceman.

... I go away for awhile.... and ... Rath uses Codename: Iceman?

What in the Hades has happened here?

And welcome back!

Are you found in the sub itself?

[Rath Darkblade]

Aye, I am in Codename: Iceman.

... I go away for awhile.... and ... Rath uses Codename: Iceman?

What in the Hades has happened here?

It's Upside-Down Time! Welcome back.

Are you seen during a time that the main character is controlling the sub?
(As opposed to freely walking around)

I am not sure, but I'm pretty sure I'm not.

Are you found in the sub itself?

Um ... yes.

[notbobsmith]

Are you found in a cabin (either yours or the captain's)?