XXAAGREUS

PRESENTING THE MYSTERY QUESTIONS & OPPORTUNITIES The Palace: Pillared chambers. Masked courtiers. A
shadowy king upon a blood-red throne. This level requires
In the summer of 1985, five teenagers went missing from Deep Lake: Question: Who is Ataphoi85, and why are they doing this?
you to solve a complex rhythm game, all while avoiding the
Hutch Langley, Dieter Hoskins, Finn Carlson, Rachel Urieta, and (Complexity: 4)
knives of the court.
Monique Jeffries. Opportunity: Remove them as a Danger in this mystery by unmasking
Paint the Screen: Something about this level makes you think
them, and then either convincing them to let this situation go, or
Prior to their disappearance, the teens frequented the Galaxia the game is aware of you. What is it?
otherwise neutralizing the threat they pose.
Arcade, playing games from opening until close. One day they Prize: The cabinet shows a prophecy of a fellow Latchkey’s
Question: How do you access Xxaagreus’s secret levels? (Complexity: 2) demise. In a future scene, when another Latchkey is getting
stopped, and when school started back up they were noticeably
Opportunity: Unlock the new move, Press Start. ready to take an action that will require a die roll, you can warn
somber—even morose—all possessing a newfound obsession with
death. The last picture taken of them before they vanished was Question: What is the awful truth of the Xxaagreus disappearances? them that Xxaagreus predicted their death if they take this
(Complexity: 6; locked until the Latchkeys complete the secret levels action. If they go through with the action anyway, you both mark
featured in the school’s yearbook; it showed the five teens sitting
using Press Start) XP. On the die roll, the miss result is replaced with, “You are
along the edge of the highway wearing t-shirts that had “The Styx
Opportunity: Resolve the mystery by posting your findings online. killed; the Keeper will describe how.”
Society” badly silkscreened on them.
When all the boxes have been marked, the Latchkeys unlock the final
To this day, no one knows what happened to them, and their Press Start level. When the players intend to use Press Start again, inform them
families have long since left the desert behind in search of a fresh When you play a game of Xxaagreus in an attempt to beat a secret that they do not need to make a roll. Instead, read the following:
start. level, roll with Composure or Reason, your choice, minus the number dev/null: As you go to select the final level, the cabinet
Three years ago, the game discussion forum Vector Void exploded of boxes marked below. On a hit, mark the first unmarked box below suddenly shuts off. After a moment of silence, the game comes
with activity over a thread titled “Does anyone remember and collect that level’s prize. On a 10+, you also find a Clue. On back to life with the thrumming pulse of malevolent circuitry.
Xxaagreus?” The original poster asked about an arcade game they a miss, do not mark a box: you use up all your lives and take the The screen explodes into a multichromatic, glitchy strobe
vaguely remembered hearing of in the ‘80s, but had not been able Condition: Obsessed with Death. If you are already Obsessed with accompanied by shrill 8-bit tones. The Xxaagreus cabinet
to find anything about. Several users responded, each claiming to Death, turn a Key. screams before shutting off. For good.
know details of this mysteriously niche game. Nothing was concrete, Once a secret level is beaten, it’s beaten for any Latchkey who Prize: The locked Question is unlocked. Game Over.
however, until a user called Sinkerly308 posted that Xxaagreus was uses this move (in other words, the boxes below are shared by all THE KEY OF THE PALACE
developed by a company called Vertex Electronica, which closed in Latchkeys and do not get unmarked). Each Latchkey narrates a dream they once had of the Occluded
1999. The user claimed to have interned there while the game was The Descent: Pastoral fields. A dark cave. Friendly NPCs. King, sitting upon a blood-red throne, wearing a bramble crown,
in development, though hadn’t worked on it themself. Additionally, This level requires you to solve a series of simple adventure reigning over the realm of the dead.
they said the game has “secret levels” that can only be accessed game puzzles to enter the underworld.
via “unusual methods,” though they did not indicate what those Paint the Screen: What do you see that makes you think the MOMENTS
methods are. When other users connected the location of Vertex pixelated characters are in distress? > For a moment, the world looks 8-bit.
Prize: A new level appears on the select screen. > The sound of ambient electricity: the hum of CRT monitors, the buzz
Electronica’s old office—Deep Lake, New Mexico—with stories of
The River: A black river with white pixel waves. Souls of the of flickering fluorescents, the whir of a rusty desk fan.
the Styx Society and their disappearance, an urban legend about a
drowning damned, screaming in 8-bit tones. Just a buggy rip-off of > A Side Character stares off in a deep, forlorn reverie.
cursed arcade cabinet was born: you play the game, you disappear.
Frogger. This level requires you to complete a navigational challenge > The ground steadily vibrates for several minutes, as if stirred by
Direct the following to a Latchkey of your choice: You’re still to cross. underground movement or machinery.
active on the Vector Void forum. Lately, a user named Ataphoi85 Paint the Screen: A pixelated object in the river makes you think > You wake up in bed to a flash coming from outside your window.
has been posting cryptic and hostile responses on any threads still of a deceased loved one? What is it? Someone just took your picture.
discussing Xxaagreus. What harrowing message have you received Prize: You are visited by the specter of a deceased character in > A nearby phone rings; an unknown caller. If answered, a kid’s voice
from Ataphoi85 suggesting they aren’t just some troll and may your dreams the next time you fall asleep. Describe them. You meekly says, “Don’t play it.” The line goes dead.
actually be a threat to your safety? may ask them three questions; the Keeper will answer truthfully,
A Xxaagreus cabinet was found one week ago. Ephraim Goldman, though not necessarily completely. XXAAGREUS
FOOLISH MORTAL, DARE YE FACE THE STYGIAN PERILS OF... XXAAGREUS!
the owner of the Galaxia Arcade, discovered it in a lot auction at the The Garden: Green hedge-rows and carnivorous plants.
Xxaagreus is an arcade game about a minor god attempting to escape
Me+My Self Storage facility on the outskirts of town. Immediately Half-birthed, shambling monsters. Bright red pomegranate
collectibles. This level requires you to find a variety of hidden the underworld. But that is not the real game. There exists an entirely
recognizing the popularity of its surrounding legend, he had it different game hidden beneath the basic coding. In these secret levels,
installed at the shop and advertised its existence on Vector Void. items and assemble a key to the palace.
Paint the Screen: Something in this level reminds you of Deep the player takes on the role of a featureless protagonist that descends
Enthusiasts have started traveling from all over the country to play it.
Lake. What is it? into a Stygian nightmare for an unknown purpose. As the legend
What the hell, maybe you can see if it’s worth the hype?
Prize: An item you lost in your childhood miraculously turns goes, those who play this hidden game become obsessed with death
Keeper Note: At a time of your choosing, Angelica Hoskins will up the next day. Describe how it is more disturbing than you before ultimately disappearing. This is what the cabinet wants. It is
approach the Latchkeys and ask them for help in finding a possible remember and then add it to Your Corner of the House. wholly evil, but in an alien and otherworldly way. In reality, the game is
connection between Xxaagreus and her vanished brother, Dieter. actually playing you. And you don’t start with many lives.

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 XXAAGREUS
If the Latchkeys ignore the game... LOCATIONS SIDE CHARACTERS
After two Night phases, Ataphoi85 murders Ephraim and steals Galaxia Arcade Ephraim “Eff-Gee” Goldman, a small business owner
Xxaagreus from the arcade. Read the following to the players at A line out the door. Pervasive smell of dust, old sweat, and cheap pizza. Old and wiry. Jaundiced eyes. Four-barrel coin changer on his belt.
the end of the Night phase when this would trigger: The stuttering grind of underperforming AC units. Ephraim is the owner of the Galaxia Arcade, and has been since it
Ephraim Goldman is closing up shop at the arcade, sweeping Paint the Scene: This was the place to be for any tween or teen in late first opened in the ‘70s. While he’s aware of the rumors surrounding the
after-hours and shutting down the various games. After he walks 1980s Deep Lake. What is your favorite memory from the Galaxia Arcade, Xxaagreus cabinet, he has no idea of the danger it actually poses to his
into his office to count the day’s earnings, the Xxaagreus cabinet and what still persists into the present day that reminds you of it? customers, and just wants to breathe life back into his business.
inexplicably turns back on, pulsing audibly with a steady thrum. Me+My Self Storage Quote: “I couldn’t believe my luck! Been almost twenty years since we
Investigating the noise, Ephraim returns to see the cabinet turn A dimly-lit labyrinth, prone to outages. Peeling, off-white paint and featured it, and we’ve got lines out the door. Of course, back then kids
itself off, and walks over for a closer look. He raps on the monitor rusty roll-up doors. The occasional knocking of old pipes. barely wanted to play the thing, even before all that unpleasantness in ‘85.
with a bony knuckle. Nothing. A figure steps behind him, hidden Paint the Scene: As you walk down corridors filled with shuttered But now that it’s aged into one of those urban legends? It’s gangbusters!
beneath dark clothes and a mask. When Ephraim turns around, doors, what do you imagine to be stored behind them? How does it Oh, one moment... Hey folks, are we having a good time? If you need
they drive a switchblade into his heart. He collapses to the floor, make you feel? some quarters, here—a few games on me, your ol’ pal Eff-Gee!”
gasping in horror, as dark blood pools around him. The figure The offices of Vertex Electronica Angela Hoskins, a determined sister
steps over Ephraim to the cabinet, and stares deep into the Disconcertingly damp gray carpeting, dusted with asbestos. Black Shoulder-length hair, splitting at the ends. Red leather jacket and
reflective void of its dormant screen. mold growing in the corners. A mess of leftover materials: desks with black jeans. Dark circles under her eyes. A barista from Ohio,
Tell the Latchkeys that the Press Start move is no longer broken computers, piles of graph paper, and scattered notes. Angela was six-years-old when her brother Dieter went missing.
available, but they have access to a new Question: Paint the Scene: This office looks like it was never cleaned out. What do Her family moved away after the tragedy, but she has recently
Question: Where is Ataphoi85 hiding the Xxaagreus cabinet? you see that suggests the place was abandoned in a hurry? returned to Deep Lake in search of answers. She’ll help the
(Complexity: 2) Vertex Electronica break room Latchkeys however she can, even if it puts her life in danger.
Opportunity: Track it down and regain access to the cabinet Round, formica-top table with steel tube chairs. Vending machine with Quote: “It was hardest on my parents at the time, I was too young
and the Press Start move. snacks you’ve never heard of: Razzamatazz, Crisp-o’s, ChipsPLUS, to really understand. I’m pretty sure I would’ve forgotten his face,
Sneakers bars, Twinx, and Powdered Dunettes. A TV mounted from the but the night before he went missing he woke me up and just said,
DANGERS
ceiling has a VCR duct-taped to the underside of it. ‘When I’m gone, I’ll be waiting for you.’ He looked so sad. I didn’t
Ataphoi85 Paint the Scene: What about this space makes you think it was not understand and just started crying. Then he hugged me, and left. I’ve
Black hoodie and baggy jeans. Uncanny cartoon bull mask.
just a break room, but a rare place of refuge for the employees of uh... I’ve never told anyone that before. Sorry, do you got a light?”
Modulated voice. Ataphoi85 is more than a troll on some
Vertex Electronica?
internet forum; they are a real and present threat to the Tim Kralie, the storage manager
Special Rule: If you watch an Odyssey tape here, the last scene is a
Latchkeys and anyone else who goes prying into the truth of Brown canvas jacket. Nicotine stained teeth and fingers. Greasy
Vertex employee inputting a sequence of commands on a Xxaagreus
Xxaagreus. Though they prefer to stalk the Latchkeys from afar hair and tired eyes. Tim has an interesting history in Degoya County,
and send threats, Ataphoi85 will utilize whatever weapons are
cabinet: Down, Up, Down, Up, Right, Left, Right, Left, A, B, Start. If
the Latchkeys then input that command on the Xxaagreus cabinet, a having suffered some kind of strange incident in his childhood that
best suited to the task if the situation calls for violence. Their
super-secret level is unlocked and available after The Palace level: not even he remembers, though rumors certainly persist. As the
identity and motivations for doing all this may be discovered
during the course of play (see Questions). The Labyrinth: A masticating maze of gnashing teeth. current manager of the Me+My Self Storage, Tim is responsible for
Quote: “You never should have gone looking.” Countless traps and dead-ends. An unkillable beast hunting the lot auction where the Xxaagreus cabinet was discovered, though
you. This level requires you to find the center under a harsh he knows next to nothing about it.
The tunnels beneath Deep Lake
Against all logic and good sense, there is a network of utility time limit. Quote: “Lots of weird shit you can find in here, if that’s your thing. No
tunnels beneath Deep Lake. Their existence suggests an Paint the Screen: Something about this level reminds you of the one knows what they’re getting at an auction here. I don’t even know.”
Vertex Electronica offices. What is it?
apparent purpose—after all, why would there be steam tunnels
Prize: The next time the Latchkeys are facing grave harm, you Charlie, a homeless guide
if the town did not have use for them—but closer inspection
can avoid it by narrating how a previously nonexistent door Thick, bushy beard with streaks of gray. A shopping cart full of
reveals that the wiring, pipelines, and drainage do not connect
appears nearby. assorted collections. A band shirt for Karen and the Psychopomps.
to any works of public infrastructure in Deep Lake. They simply
exist; an underworld labyrinth that connects the whole town in http://www.vectorvoid.com/forum Charlie is a common sight in Deep Lake, a vagrant that most
strange ways. Perfectly preserved web aesthetics of the late 90s. A nest of advertisements people can remember seeing for as long as they’ve lived in town.
Paint the Scene: The tunnels are covered with graffiti. Which and solicitous pop-ups. Active and often heated discussion threads. He is wise beyond his years, and in his explorations of the town has
image are you drawn to most? What about it frightens or Paint the Scene: The forum requires an account to view and post topics. What grown to be familiar with many secret places, especially the utility
amuses you? username and avatar have you chosen for yourself? tunnels.
Special Rule: The first time a Latchkey finds a Clue in a Special Rule: The first time a Latchkey discovers a Clue on the forum they Quote: “Hey man, you got a quarter? I’m happy to point you in the
Location from this mystery, they also find an entrance to the take the following Condition: Marked by Ataphoi85. This Condition cannot be direction you’re lookin’ for. Maybe even the direction you ain’t lookin’
tunnels. cleared until the mystery is resolved, or Ataphoi85 is dealt with (see Questions). for, but a way to where you’re goin’ all the same.”

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 XXAAGREUS
SIDE CHARACTERS (continued) CLUES GAMES BY VERTEX ELECTRONICA
Sam (Sinkerly308) Dawson, a forum-user
Arcade tokens in an unusual place. x Snack-Man (1981)
Galaga profile picture. Location listed: San Bernardino, CA.
Claw marks and chipped fingernails left behind in an unusual place. x Mrs. Snack-Man (1982)
Member since 1994. Sam is working at an independent game
Evidence that the cabinet was built with wood salvaged from
studio in California, and is completely unaware of current events x Mouse Puncher (1983)
(pick one: a 19th century whaling ship/a sacred desert tree/a
in Deep Lake. He prefers to communicate through the Vector x
burned-down school/something else). The Astral Void (1984; never published, but
Void forum, but can be convinced to speak over the phone. would become the foundation of Xxaagreus)
Rumors of people in black robes setting up the Xxaagreus cabinet.
Quote: “I interned at Vertex back in the summer of ‘82. Harsh
place. Long hours without breaks, incoherent meetings from the Manufacturer blueprints showing the inner-workings of the x Xxaagreus (1985)
Xxaagreus cabinet, its circuitry forming occult symbols.
senior dev team, and just a real creepy vibe. I was glad when they x Mouse Puncher 2: The Return of King Rat (1987)
let me go, but for months afterward I had the same dream every Dreams of being trapped in a dark pit filled with screaming (pick
one: people/animals/dead gods/something else). x Serpents & Sepulchers: The Arcade Game (1988)
night, that I was still working at the office and programming for
their games.” A key, tagged with the name of a Side Character. x GamesPLUS (1990)
An article on the three types of restless dead in Greek x Warriors of History (1993)
Bart Kincaid, an enthusiast
mythology: the ataphoi (unburied dead), aoroi (premature
Coke bottle glasses. “All your base are belong to us” t-shirt. x Warriors of History 2: Warriors of the Future (1994)
deaths), and the biaiothanatoi (violent deaths).
Legend of Zelda lanyard. Bart traveled all the way from Billings, x
The obituaries section of a newspaper with notes written in the Cybertrax: Racing in the Far Future (1997)
Montana to play Xxaagreus. He is a major fan of the legend,
margins. x Crazy Tuk-tuk (1999)
personally attributing it to aliens instead of supernatural forces.
A battered 1980s McKids Sears shoebox; it contains a well-
Quote: “First contact, baby! It makes perfect sense that an
preserved heart.
advanced civilization would choose our most sophisticated form
A photograph of the Galaxia Arcade from 1985; a ghostly figure
of art to establish a connection with the chosen few.”
is barely visible next to the Xxaagreus cabinet. NOTES
REWARDS Crumpled-up flier for a missing person, dated 1992. The details
An arcade token; add it to Your Corner of the House. If you are are scribbled out, and a skull is drawn over the face.
ever forced to mark The Pure-White Signal, you may instead Repeated drawings of a labyrinth; each one is different from the last.
use this item to “continue” as long as it isn’t already marked. Notes detailing ideas for a game descend into rambling
Afterwards, remove the item from Your Corner of the House. nonsense and feverish scrawlings.
A unit at the Me+My Self Storage; add it to Your Corner of the A bloody knife.
House. You can take the time to access your storage unit and Hutch Langley’s Walkman; the cassette only plays a staticky
place a reasonable item from You Corner of the House inside it recording of chanting voices.
to prevent the Keeper from removing it as a reaction. You must
Monique Jeffries’ sketchbook; several pages depict the
take the time to retrieve the item if you wish to have it again.
Xxaagreus cabinet and an unidentified figure.
Ataphoi85’s bull mask; add it to Your Corner of the House. Finn Carlson’s battered camcorder; distorted footage of dark
The utility tunnels become a recurring Location; you get 1 extra tunnels.
Clue on the Meddling Move when you explore the tunnels for Rachel Urieta’s journal; she writes about unstoppable forces of
hidden access points. entropy in the universe.
A memento from the investigation; ask another Latchkey what it Dieter Hoskins’s map of Deep Lake; several “x” marks have
is and then add it to Your Corner of the House. been placed at seemingly random spots.

PUBLIC ACCESS