The Problems Compound release 2 notes
by Andrew Schultz
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This is the second release of The Problems Compound. The first release was for IFComp 2015, on September 28, and this is on March 31, 2016. It's the result of several transcripts, several reviews, 78+ official bug fixes, and 150 code commits to GitHub. While I expect there to be a maintenance release, the major story elements are in place, and any bugs I find are livable.

MAJOR CHANGES:
--The big change is that there is now a good ending and a very good ending. You can save Idiot Village from...well, something. I won't spoil it. Although the new Trizbort map will.
----this is a small puzzle in the Service Community, a new location, but you need to solve another puzzle that seemed extraneous in release 1.
----there's also a small end puzzle based on the game gimmick, and it's different for the good and bad ending.
--you now need to do something to get the Bad Guy's attention in Freak Control beyond just talking. Nothing major, and it's signposted pretty clearly. In fact, there are two ways, both identical.
--There are now two "bad" foods in addition to the Cutter Cookie. They are in Meal Square, and the foods are separated into Tray B and Tray A. You can guess which one is the bad one.
--You now have verbs to jump through the game. They kick you to Pressure Pier, the Jerk Circle (jerks still there) and the Jerk Circle (jerks and brothers gone). These magic commands are all in the source file, but the game also remembers them with VERBS.
--EXPLAIN now explains the figures of speech for various objects or ideas. It is shortened by XP. No argument tells the meaning of the current room.
--solving the Terminal now gets you to *two* hint items in the Note Crib below. They are mutually exclusive, but one hints the main game and one hints the side puzzle. I won't spoil them here.

In addition, there's a lot of renaming of rooms, scenery and items.
--Sinister Bar -> Soda Club
--Crazy Drive -> Walker Street
--Interest Compound -> Discussion Block
--book crack -> book bank
--purposes cross -> Basher Bible, which is on a Spoon Table
--song swan -> song torch
--a long tag -> Reasoning Circular, with a long tag

I also did a full source code vet which shook out bugs, typos, stylistics, etc. It was a good thing to do, and I tried to do, say, one screenful of text at a time. I recommend it if you want to do a rigorous post-comp release, but it's not necessary. I had a lot of "why'd I do it -this- way?" or "what does this narrative -mean-?" moments.

Story:
--the ending now has Alec have a small revelation.
--some people now refer to the bad guy by initials.
--"you just have to get to know him" about the bad guy is a refrain
--minor explanation of puzzles and solving them in Round Lounge.

Robustness:
--there's now a command to abridge conversation
--VERBS now says what verbs you can use, and it's divided further into...
  --META, which tells meta-verbs including the unlocked "jump" verbs.
  --THINK now reminds you what you should be doing.
  --TECH is a meta-verb that tells you some of the implements I used.
--the jerks puzzle was extremely buggy and awkward. I managed to make it a lot less of a scratch paper fest, I think. The WHO and SHORT commands, along with GLIB, now streamline the puzzles with the jerks at the end, and combined with THINK, there's less need for scratch paper.

And there's a lot of extra silliness, too.
--Up Gum is now a food on Tray A. It is not good for you, even if it feels good.
--PLAY a game at the start is now truly random
--PUT WAX ON (anything)
--the Variety Garden is now guarded by three types of brush (and fourth if you go up,) because VARIETY!
--lots and lots of scenery in Freak Control!
--the Insanity Terminal now offers (sort of) hints, which you can turn off if you're hardcore. It also lets you X 6 (for line #6) and allows alternate answers based on if #7 is right
--The bad guy snarks insufferably on how many hints you used, even if you didn't.
--the Business Show is the name of the display on the Fright Stage.
--added several rooms to view from Window Bay in the Director's Cut area
--"deaths" are more organized with new location A Beer Pound for sins in the Soda Club
--the game cuts you down differently for swearing
--With the above two modifications, 64 total rooms now all fit on the new Trizbort/PDF "full" maps. The regular game only added 3 rooms: Service Community and the rooms for the two separate endings
--the 7 jerks now have 14 different "secret sins" chosen randomly at game's start
--the Basher Bible has lots of tips (28) to be like the bad guy but recognizes ordinary boring people only follow one or two
--the "bad guy beyond" is no longer Spike Price. He has a new name, based on if you want profanity. I like the meaner one better
--ending lists tweak
  --expanded "for your amusement" post-game section
  --let you see all the jerks' "sins"
  --expanded profanity-difference post-game section
  --implemented "what act goes to which death room" section
  --let you see all the sleep narratives at game's end without having to look at the source code
  --lets you see "also-good" guesses for the Insanity Terminal