Running An Orb

The contents of this page were written in response to a set of questions sent in by a new user of the Urthgame Orbs. While not exactly slick and polished, we do believe they capture the heart of the matter. Hopefully they will be of help to use as well.

"I don't know what to expect with this game.

I seem to hit a dead end and have gone everywhere but it doesn't tell me I'm done.

Am I supposed to go outside and roam the town?

I did that and it didn't seem to be important.

What is my goal?"

1) Expect the unexpected, explore, and have fun.

2) Correct, the game does not tell you when you're done. This is because there are many different goals being addressed and the game is not the judge of when you are done. And, truly, done is relative. However, there is an end point to the game (more about that below).

3) Yes, after exploring the shop going outside is good.

4) The town is both important and un-important. As you explore it you may encounter flashes of memory from your previous sojourns. In terms of the game, the town is a path to the labyrinth to the West.

5) What is your goal? That is a good question, and a question for you to answer. So I will answer a different question. "What goals can one have in this game?"

What goals can one have in this game?

In the Prosperity Orb there are many different goals that one could have. I will give a few of these many.

  • a) The game goal might be to find the labyrinth and then explore it until you reach the end.
  • b) Collecting "charge ups" -- these are things such as +50 to mojo, love power, etc.
  • c) Exercise/develop your voyaging skills.
  • d) Burn Karma -- I should have put this one first since it is ubiquitous throughout the Orbs.
  • e) Discover hidden areas and explore them.
  • f) Experience the labyrinth with different characters (flying pig, dragon, warrior, etc)
  • g) Increase your Prosperity.
  • h) Ponder what the heck is Prosperity anyway and what does it mean to increase it. :) Are we talking about simple economics or something deeper.
  • i) Discover and expand the list of additional goals.

The last goal is kind of a cheat. But as I mentioned above, there are many different goals possible.

Following this is a brief description of some of the gaming aspects. Let me know if you have any questions. I hope this is somewhat clear.

Gaming Aspects

When you spawn into the game (Prosperity) you will be in a shop like environment.

Running straight ahead will take you behind the beaded curtain into a back area.

In this back area you can meet a goddess figure that will help you enter into soul view mode.

You can then select a body to travel with.

And you can also pick up many "charge-ups".

When you pick up such an item there will be a text message giving you some idea of what it is.

After you have visited these side rooms you can exit the shop onto the street.

When you exit the shop you will be in a small town.

Feel free to explore the town.

However, eventually you should head to the right (relative to the direction you are facing when you exit the shop.This is also West by the compass in the top right. On my computer the red arrow does not change. But, the green words will change depending upon the direction you are facing.

Going to the entrance in the West will bring you into a labyrinth.

Wandering around in this labyrinth you can collect luck, mojo, magic find, love power, karma burn, and many different things.

You collect these attributes by bumping into them. Sometimes you might have to jump up (using the tab key) to bump the trigger. I should mention that if you jump behind some of the characters, it is possible (but not likely) to get stuck in a corner behind the character.

As you proceed you will find your way blocked by locked doors. These doors can be unlocked by bumping into guides in the halls and pressing triggers. This sounds a little more difficult than it is.

While you travel the labyrinth you will inevitably unlock personal prosperity levels.

There is up to 6 levels to unlock.

Throughout all of this, if you ever wish to get a little help figuring out where you are, you can use the f2 key on the keyboard to turn on the map in the upper right corner.

When you get to the end of the game it will quit and open your browser.

However, you can exit any time you wish.

The game is cumulative.

While you are in the game, whether lost or not, you are burning karma.

Each item you pickup and each attribute you acquire is a gain in itself. This is not an all or nothing deal.