Line #16 VideoGame/TheManhole


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/manhole_game_green.png]]
2	''The Manhole'' is a 1988 computer game by Rand and Robyn Miller of Creator/{{Cyan}} Inc., better known as the creators of ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}''. In it, the player discovers a manhole, and after opening it, release a giant beanstalk they can climb up or down to visit fantastic worlds. It presents a whimsical universe for children to explore at their own leisure, with the exploration as its own reward. The authors had started with plans for an interactive but linear storybook, but found that building a storybook ''universe'' was much more fun.
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4	In 1989, it earned the distinction of being the first game ever published as a CD-ROM. In the 1990s, the original Platform/AppleMacintosh MediaNotes/HyperCard version started receiving ports to other platforms, including [[Platform/IBMPersonalComputer MS-DOS, Windows]], and most recently, the [[Platform/{{IOS}} iPhone]].
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6	''The Manhole'' was followed by a SpiritualSuccessor [[RecycledINSPACE IN SPACE]], ''VideoGame/CosmicOsmo''.
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8	!! This game provides examples of:
9	* AdaptationExpansion: The "New and Enhanced" version added a new underwater cavern area that let out underneath the elephant's boat. Unfortunately, the "Masterpiece" edition was only based on the original, and didn't include this area.
10	* ArtShiftedSequel: The art style of the characters in "Masterpiece Edition" seems intended to give it the look of being inside in a vintage storybook.
11	* CantTakeCriticism: Hamlet Pig will get irritated and refuse to let you pass if you say you don't like his (non-sequitur, randomly generated) poem. The rhinoceros lady he's guarding (presumably his superior) will tell you to just humour him whenever you speak to him because "his brain is very small".
12	* ChessMotifs: The flamingo's domain.
13	* EdutainmentGame: Very mild educational elements, such as a book of the alphabet and a few lines of dialogue written in both French and English.
14	* ElevatorGag: The "New and Enhanced" edition added some on the floors between the sunken ship and the walrus's island.
15	* FeaturelessProtagonist: The player character is implied to be a kid, and that's pretty much the only thing you know about them.
16	** In fact they seem to be just one of many, if the walrus's complaint letter to the rabbit is anything to go by.
17	* TheGuardsMustBeCrazy: In "Masterpiece Edition" the stairs to the top of the tower are guarded by a pig knight. Whether you can go past depends on whether you praise his terrible poetry or not.
18	* MacroZone: And Macro Zones ''within'' Macro Zones. You can sail a tiny boat around the teacup of a rabbit who lives inside a fire hydrant.
19	* MythologyGag: In the Masterpiece Edition, the rhinoceros at the top of the tower tells you she was a flamingo in a previous life, since you met a flamingo there in the original version of the game.
20	* NonSequiturEnvironment: By climbing a beanstalk, you can find a forest above the clouds or a tropical island under the eponymous manhole; a tower sitting in the middle of the forest turns out to be a rook in a giant chess set bobbing in an underground canal, but only when you reach the top; a perfectly ordinary elevator can open in a sunken ship; a wrong turn in one of the canals can take you through the teacup of a rabbit living in a fire hydrant across from the manhole...
21	* NoPlotNoProblem: The game has no plot or storyline to speak of, just wandering around a bizarre world to see what there is to see.
22	* OurDragonsAreDifferent: This dragon is a laid-back dude in CoolShades.
23	* PortalPicture: There's a picture of a dragon that will take the player to Mr. Dragon's lair...uh, crib. Also in the ship is a picture of a boat, where, [[NiceJobBreakingItHero after making it sink]], you can teleport to the base of the beanstalk.
24	* ProductPlacement:
25	** Mr. Rabbit keeps a collection of books the player's encouraged to read in real life, including ''Literature/AlicesAdventuresInWonderland'', ''Literature/TheWindInTheWillows'', ''Literature/TheLionTheWitchAndTheWardrobe'', and ''Literature/WinnieThePooh''.
26	** One of the pig's random poetry lines in "Masterpiece Edition" is a sales plug for Pirelli Tires.
27	* ShoutOut: The whooshes of a passing spaceship form the five-note motif from ''Film/CloseEncountersOfTheThirdKind''.
28	** In the CD-ROM version, clicking on the TV in the house plays you a trailer for ''Myst''.
29	* SuperNotDrowningSkills: The bottom of the game map is underwater. You can stay down there as long as you want.
30	* TakeThat: On a shelf of children's books with pop-up descriptions of what they're about is a textbook called "Metaphors of Intercultural Philosophy". [[note]] For the record, that doesn't appear to be a real book. [[/note]]
31	-->''"This book isn't about anything."''
32	* UpdatedRerelease: The "New and Enhanced" edition, the "Masterpiece" edition...
33	* WarpWhistle: Mr. Dragon's TV set. You warp to a different place through it depending on what channel you pick, even back to the title screen.
34	* WelcomeToCorneria: Most of the characters have only a couple of lines of dialogue (some only have one) and they'll just repeat themselves if you try to talk to them further.
35	* WideOpenSandbox: One designed for kids, in that there's no enemies to fight or treasure to hoard. Just looking around poking in every nook and cranny to see if something fun happens.
36	* WorldOfChaos: There's no rhyme or reason between how the game's areas connect ''at all''. But then, that's part of the fun.
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Context VideoGame / TheManhole