Normality

Normality is a first-person 3D point & click adventure game about a grungy Generation X loser called Kent Knutson and his rebellious adventures in the fictional totalitarian city-state of Neutropolis.

This game has quite a bit of cut content, so most of it is split off into separate subpages. A lot of things also changed during development, which is reflected in both prerelease information and content from the early prototypes.

Sub-Pages#

Prototype Info Prerelease Info Notes Bugs Unused TexturesTextures that fell by the wayside. Unused TextUnused dialogue, item descriptions, alternate takes, and a bunch of unintelligible stuff. There's a LOT. Regional DifferencesWhen you release a game in America, you need to make it 100% more American.

Debug Functions#

Press V to display the version and build date. Each build has its own unique string.

Type wendy during gameplay to activate the following debugging features:

• F1 - Level select: jump to any location. The game will also automatically give you useful inventory items depending on the location.
• G - Watch any cutscene.
• S - Save .TGA screenshot. (Doesn't work in cutscenes.)

When jumping to the Plush-Rest Factory via the level select, you actually get the cut Can of Food item added to your inventory.

Command-Line Switches#

The main executable file also has the following command-line switches:

The demo version had a bunch more.

Level Select Oddities#

Some unused content can be seen by abusing the level select code mentioned above.

Blue 'N Fluffy Unused Dialogue#

There are three links to Heather's rebel base: 3 = Den, 4 = Docks, 8 = Heather Den. Picking the first one has Heather and Saul in a state where their dialogue is broken and just shows "JUNK" as subtitles, and having speech turned on at this point will softlock the game. However, the dialogue options seem to be references to the cut Blue 'N Fluffy quest:

The "Skimmer" noted in the dialogue was originally going to be a small aircraft launched from the Ordinary Outpost each day that spreads a chemical formula keeping the population stupefied. "Ingredient Z" is one of the ingredients for making the Blue 'N Fluffy needed to combat it, which was actually going to be the Z from the road sign in the base.

None of the actual dialogue is preserved, with all options just leading to more "JUNK" subtitles. This whole segment was probably cut early, as it was already removed as of the earliest released demo.

Raft in the Rebel Base#

To destroy the Ordinary Outpost, Kent collects a bunch of stuff and then brings it over to Heather's den by raft. After successfully shipping over the items, the game will automatically show the missile cutscene and then bring you over to the Stadium, after which you can't go back.

However, using the level select cheat to go back to the den, we can see that the raft is actually there and can be interacted with:

Interestingly, even though Heather originally says she needs a detonator for the missile, it's actually optional to collect the firecracker from the M.I.N.T. Mall. It's possible that this was once mandatory, necessitating a state where the raft is already moored at the docks while Kent still needs to return to deliver the firecracker.

Hallway in Heather's Den#

When traveling to the Den via level select 8, you'll end up in the version of the Den from before you're allowed to freely roam around. You always immediately speak to Heather while you're here and normally you're teleported right back to the Factory after the conversation ends, but when using the level select cheat you don't get teleported. You can look around the level, but there's very little to do (nothing is interactive except for Heather). Interestingly, the hallway looks different in this version of the level and is sealed off. Presumably it's an older version.

Den hallway, early in the game	Den hallway, later in the game

Blue Sky Everywhere#

After firing the rocket at the Ordinary Outpost, the sky turns blue again and the sun comes out. The only place where we normally see the blue sky is one single scene at the Factory after the missile was launched, and then at the Stadium. From the Stadium you can no longer go back to any of the previous locations.

However, using the level select cheat to go back to the outside of the Factory immediately (level select 6 = Plush-Rest Reception; or you can use save file editing below) after you end up at the stadium will allow you to move back without "resetting" the levels back to their green skies state, as the level select cheat normally does. This only seems to work if you've actually fired the missile and seen the cutscene at the Factory.

As it turns out, nearly all levels actually have the ability to display the blue sky:

It's possible that the game might have originally allowed you to go back to these locations. The only maps that don't have a blue sky in their textures list are the ones that you'd certainly never be able to return to after that point in the game (the Ordinary Outpost, the Cells, Dai's Cradle, and the TV Shop Loft). You also can't see a blue sky in Street and M.I.N.T. Mall in their early game versions before they're blown up.

In save files, the variable that controls whether the sky is blue or green is located 294 bytes from the end, and should be 0x06 for green and 0x08 for blue. (This value does get occasionally set to a different value as the storyline progresses.)

Stadium Map Option#

Speaking of the Stadium, the map actually has an entry for traveling to it, which is also activated when doing the above. Normally it's not possible to see, since you enter the Stadium automatically and you can't leave it once you're there.

It's in the top right part of the map:

It's fully functional, but once you arrive at the Stadium you can't leave anymore, just like normal.

Unused Items#

To do: There's massive overlap between this and the demo version. Which of these things is still present in the final version and which are only present in the demo? Anything that doesn't appear in the final game in any form should have its contents removed from this page, anything that's still present in the final game should have its contents removed from the demo instead.

There are a number of unused items in the game. For some of them it's not immediately obvious what they were supposed to be for, but others seem tied to specific locations at least. Some still have voice lines present in the game's audio.

Kent's Apartment#

This location was featured in the demos, so we have a little more information on it.

Three items in Kent's apartment were removed in the final version: a Can of Food in the fridge, a Toolbox near the washing machine, and a Can of Yellow Paint on a nearby shelf. (The pool of spilled paint dripping down under the bucket remains, however.) Also, in the demos, the Little Box appears high on top of the microwave, instead of down on the hob.

These two items are still present in the later demo, but get removed from the room after that.

Kent's Toolbox, on the other hand, exists only in the earliest demo and nowhere else.

All three of these items still remain in the game's code even in retail, however.

Other Locations#

The sewer was going to contain a puzzle where you need to free a chained up alligator by picking a padlock. The alligator itself remains in the retail version, but the puzzle has been removed. However, the demo still contains the Chain item and text lines related to it.

Also related to the sewer section is a set of Wellies that protect your feet from the cold water.

Somewhat more vaguely, the text section for the Ordinary Outpost Processing Floor references "Nystalux Nibbles", which are supposedly very tasty and hard to source. The in-game item is named Cookies.

Unused Character Graphics#

2D Brian Deluge#

There's an unused sprite of a 2D cartoon version of Brian Deluge holding a CD.

2D Brian Deluge (unused)	3D Brian Deluge (final)

Curiously, it uses black outlines which is a noticeably different style from all other 2D art in the game. Only one sprite in this style can be found in the game.

Bernard#

There's an unused sprite of a temporary character (actually named "temporary fat bastard" in the code). His name is apparently Bernard, per the CD in Brian's music store with his face on it named "Bernard Eats".

When the "Bad Influence" TV show featured Normality, we were able to get a glimpse of his use as placeholder during development.

M.I.N.T. Mall Background Characters#

When the M.I.N.T. Mall explodes, there are several people in the background drawn in the same style as Bernard. These are possibly from an earlier iteration, before the switch to fully 3D animated characters were made, and then used in this cutscene as a time saving measure. No other scene in the game has this style of characters.

Unused Audio#

Unused Music#

There are several unused music tracks.

EDITSCRN.HMP: NORMUSIC.HMP: XSAUL.HMP:

NORMUSIC and XSAUL are only present in the prototype, but they're fully usable in the release engine. The EDITSCRN ("Edit Screen") name implies that it was used for development purposes, or possibly for the menu. Stylistically it sounds similar to the music of Fatal Racing, which was in development before and during Normality by the same composer.

XSAUL was presumably meant for Saul. The "X" in the filename is probably not significant, as many other tracks also have an X (e.g. XFACTORY, XOUTPOST).

NORMUSIC might have been meant for the demo's promo video, which is around the same length. The demo promo video has its own audio in all versions, utilizing the main theme of the game.

"Normality Today" Jingle#

A generic TV News-style jingle, with a male announcer speaking: "Welcome to Normality Today. My name's John Spender, and I'll be with you for the next hour."

Internally file is named TEST3 and has the description "TV announcer".

There's also two alternate versions of this jingle: one without announcer voice, internally named TV and described as "TV noise"...

...and another that's just the jingle, named JINGLE2 and described as "hosp jingle".

The description "hosp jingle" indicates it was possibly meant to be heard in the Hospitality Niche at the Plush-Rest Factory.

TV Station Hosts#

The TV station has a set with two hosts who are being broadcasted live. They're the ones who introduce Brian's video. You can look at the set from a distance, but you're too far away to interact with them and there's no way to get in.

If you do get yourself onto the set, which can be done with memory editing, it turns out they're actually interactive and even have voice lines. The male host tells you to beat it, but the female host has no reaction when you try to talk to her.

The unused text page has more information including the voice lines.

Here you can also see a black and white skyline photo, called "dodgy scene" in the code, which is completely obscured from any of the regular viewing angles.

Rebels' Fridge#

In the Rebels' Hideout, there is a mysterious padlocked fridge, set into the wall. It is possible to open this fridge – you will need a hammer from the wall near Heather, and a blue box that you can find by investigating the flashing traffic bollard out in the hideout's docking area – but it's useless to do so. Kent refuses to take any of the items inside, and the game carries on whether you open it or not.

However, it seems the contents of this fridge – in particular the Walnut Whip (or Walnut Cone as the game calls it) – played a more crucial role in early iterations of the game's design.

Also, unused textures indicate this was once a full-sized, freestanding fridge, complete with graffiti and bullet hole:

Placeholder keypad artwork#

Among the game's files is GFX/KEYPADSC.MGL, which contains a placeholder version of the keypad background for the Ordinary Outpost elevator. You can see it in-game by renaming the file to the final artwork's filename, GFX/KEYPADS.MGL. All background images have a low resolution variant (320x200), but this one does not.

Placeholder artwork	Final artwork

While the placeholder background is functional in-game, it behaves as though the final artwork is there with regard to where the keys are and how the buttons look when pressed down.