Sam & Max: "The Penal Zone" Walkthrough

Caution: This is a complete solution for "The Penal Zone", the first episode of Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse. As such, it contains moderate to severe plot spoilers.

Act I

Our story opens with Sam & Max, the stars of this particular intergalactic drama, caged in the clutches of General Skun-ka'pe—the power-mad Space Gorilla, also known as Skunkape—while he gleefully unleashes destruction and havoc on the hapless citizens and light aircraft below in his bizarre spacecraft.

With the narrator's words already rapidly fading from your short-term memory, you might have missed him mentioning Max—that naked, hyperkinetic rabbity thing—being in possession of newfound psychic powers. Let's employ these abilities to acquire the proper tools for escape. Sam—he's the clothed, six-foot-tall canine shamus—needs his trusty (but currently unreachable) gun, as well as the cell phone that Stinky—Skun-ka'pe's apparent "shaven queen"— is using, but he's confined to the physical space behind the cell's bars. You can control Max by selecting the icon on the screen that bears his frightening visage. Do that now.

Once inside Max's mind, you'll find that "control" is a term used loosely when it comes to this particular lagomorph. You can't really move Max around in this mode, but you can select one of his psychic abilities from the colorful array at the bottom of the screen. At this moment, the only ability available is the one resembling a toy rotary phone, so go ahead and select it. It turns out that this plaything represents the Teleportation ability, and it allows Max (and also Sam) to travel to the location of any phone whose number he has memorized. Select "Stinky's Cell" by choosing her face on the rotary dial. This will transport Sam and Max outside of the cell, and Sam will grab his gun and fire it at the General, which achieves very little.

Sam & Max won't be able to contend with Skun-ka'pe without the right tools. Fortunately, there's a homing beacon in Sam's inventory that will help solve this problem. Examine at Sam's inventory by selecting the box icon on the screen. Then select the Homing Beacon, and choose the "take out Homing Beacon" option. Use the homing beacon on Skun-ka'pe, and you'll find that Sam can't quite get the device on the General without being seen.

From above, a disembodied Alien Brain chides them (telepathically), but then offers some help, in the form of a new psychic power toy. Examine the display case using Sam, which will unlock a new ability, Rhinoplasty (taking the form of a putty-like substance shaped like a nose). Enter "Max Mode" again by selecting the Max icon on the screen, and select the Rhinoplasty toy. This ability allows Max to take the shape of inanimate objects, so look around for a suitable disguise. Use Rhinoplasty with the "fine art" displayed on the wall, and then choose the wad of putty Max is holding in his hand. Max will take the form of a potted plant; switch back to controlling Sam by selecting the badge icon with his face on it. He can now walk closer to Skun-ka'pe without being detected, thanks to his newfound leafy cover. Use the Homing Beacon on the ape—open your inventory, select the beacon, and choose the "take" option—and then use the Remote Control in your inventory (open inventory, select the remote control, and then choose the "activate" option). This will open a portal to the Penal Zone, but alas, Skun-ka'pe won't be bested quite so easily, and he clutches tightly to the ship's bridge railing.

The Alien Brain suggests consulting with another prisoner on the ship, Harry Moleman—a mole man—who was devising an escape plan of his own. Walk to his cell and select him. Unfortunately, Sam is unable to communicate through the glass, and the Moleman appears semi-conscious at best. Fortunately, there's another display case nearby which contains a new toy for Max: Mind Reading. Walk over to it and select it. Appearing like a simple deck of cards, this ability will allow Max to reach into the minds of unsuspecting non-player characters and extract vital information.

Enter Max mode once again, and select the deck of cards. Use mind reading on Harry; this doesn't provide much in the way of useful information, but it does give the Freelance Police something to work with: a new phone number. While in Max mode, select teleportation, and choose "Harry's Cell" on the rotary dial. This will take you to where Harry's personal effects are stored on the upper level. Sam needs something that will loosen Skun-ka'pe's grip; that weapons display along the wall should do the trick. Enter Max mode and choose Rhinoplasty, and then use it on the weapons display screen, and then select the wad of putty to transform Max into the bazooka. As Sam, pick up Bazooka Max to fire the critical shot at the General, and then enter a rather stylish opening credits sequence...

Act II

After witnessing the end, the Freelance Police find themselves back at the beginning again. Max discovers the Future Vision toy—the 3D View Master—in an alley on Straight St., and predicts the General Skun-ka'pe's arrival less than a half-hour before his ship drops down to Earth, and lands on top of Sybil Pandemik's office. Fortunately, she's still on an extended honeymoon with the sentient disembodied head of the Lincoln Memorial statue—it's a long story. Max is still the president of the United States, inexplicably, so it's little surprise to see former Secret Service agent-turned-cabinet member Superball on duty. At any rate, they've got to get on board that ship!

Walk over to where Superball and Skun-ka'pe are standing, and initiate a dialogue with this newly-arrived extraterrestrial by selecting either him or Superball. Skun-ka'pe insists that he's come to Earth for a peaceful exchange of technology, and that he's in search of an artifact on Earth, but Max's vision seems to indicate that he has other motives. Exhaust all the dialogue options by selecting and listening to each one; you'll find out more about the General, why Superball is there, what the artifact is (it sounds remarkably similar to that View Master Max found moments ago), and other details. Once all the options are grayed out, exit the dialogue, and then enter the spacecraft by selecting it.

When Sam & Max board the ship, they'll go to the upper level, only to find that the Alien Brain they'd been getting help from appears to be dead. To find out how to revive him, enter Max Mode and use future vision with Sam. The vision reveals that Sam will need Stinky's Demon Broth and Momma Bosco's futuristic power core, whatever those are, to bring the brain back to consciousness.

Exit Max Mode and explore the upper deck a bit more. Open the "ominous door" on the left side of the deck by selecting it. Before Sam and Max can open the door, a mole man will appear and shove them aside to get in before they do. Apparently whatever is on the other side doesn't hold up to his expectations, as his muted screams emerge from behind the sealed door. His personal effects appear in the compartment next to the door shortly afterward; press the button to open the hatch, and then take them by selecting the hatch. You'll get a sturdy mining helmet and an off-world vacation ticket; apparently this mole man thought he was going on the holiday of a lifetime. Walk over to the door on the other side of the deck to get down to the lower deck, and then use the exit to get back to the street.

Enter Stinky's Diner, which is to the right of the ship. Grandpa Stinky and (Girl) Stinky are inside, and neither seems too happy with the other. The old man flips on the radio to a sea-shanty-exclusive radio station, which annoys the younger Stinky visibly. Flint Paper—a private eye who works out of the neighboring office to Sam and Max— is seated in one of the booths, clearly on his latest stakeout. Talk to each Stinky; you won't find much out apart from Grandpa Stinky being rightfully suspicious of Girl Stinky and grumpy about everything in general (excepting his fondness for General Skun-ka'pe's style of leadership), and Girl Stinky seeming very suspicious in her answers. Grandpa won't give up his demon broth, in any case.

Perhaps it's better to use Max's powers to get some real information. Enter Max Mode and use Future Vision on the people (and things!) in the diner. First, look at Grandpa Stinky's future: he appears to be overjoyed about something, indicating that his money troubles are over. Next, look at the radio with Future Vision: The huge lottery prize is awarded to one Harry Moleman. Next, examine what Girl Stinky's future holds: She has a very interesting phone conversation with an unknown caller, saying that the detectives have left, and then exits the diner herself. Finally, examine Flint Paper's future: he takes an axe to the back of the head, and passes out in his spaghetti! Sam and Max will have to stop that from happening to their friend, somehow.

Exit Max Mode and go talk to Flint. He seems determined to eat his meal before discussing anything further, especially about the power core; go ahead and use that hard hat in your inventory on Mr. Paper. He reluctantly agrees to wear it, and then discovers that there are peanuts in the pasta; being allergic to said legumes, he takes issue with Stinky's preparation of the meal, and gets up to argue about it just as an axe flies by, missing him. Surviving this attack, he is now willing to talk to the Freelance Police: Ask him about Stinky or the Power Core, and he'll reveal that he's on a big case. Ask him about the Big Case. It sounds like Stinky's in cahoots with Skun-ka'pe, based on Flint's evidence—a mysterious note. This note will also give you Stinky's phone number, which will be useful later (and earlier) in the game. Exit the conversation, and then walk out of the diner.

Once they're back on the street, head over to the left past Bosco's to find Sam and Max's car, their trusty DeSoto, parked in front of the office building. Select the car to check it out; apparently the members of the Computer Obsolescence Prevention Society (COPS) have integrated themselves into the vehicle and will be providing some rudimentary assistance on the case. Go through the dialogue choices with the COPS: It turns out they are not fans of Skun-ka'pe or his so-called advanced technology. Be sure to ask about the Crime-Tron program they're setting up. The COPS will be able to analyze pieces of evidence to triangulate and unlock new locations to explore, but they're in need of more members before this becomes available. Once you're done talking to the machines, exit the dialogue.

While still in the overhead view of the car, pick up the jumper cables in the back seat. Select the phone ("Bob") to make a call; it's time to give Stinky some misdirection. Choose "Stinky's Cell Phone" from the options. Stinky will request a meeting in person, as she assumes this is the mysterious "S" character she was talking to before. Pick "Let's Meet" from the response choices, and Sam will deliver a convincing request to rendezvous at an unknown location. Stinky will leave the diner, and it is Sam and Max's turn to exit, as well. Select the steering wheel (or the map in the glove compartment) to drive to a new location. For now, there's only one place available on the map besides Straight & Narrow: Momma Bosco's Lab. Select the lab on the map.

The car will pull up outside a nondescript building. Use the entrance to get into Bosco-Tech labs. Sam and Max will enter the spooky dwelling and laboratory of Momma Bosco, a ghostly scientist who seems to have much unfinished work, and has not left the terrestrial plane. However, they first run into Harry Moleman, who fancies himself as some sort of assistant/medium for the spirit-mom. After she shoos him away, you're free to roam around the lab. Walk onto the levitating platform to get down to the lower floor of the lab, and talk to Harry. Select the "Vacation Ticket" option from the dialogue choices, and then select the "Lottery" option. Exit the dialogue, pull the vacation ticket out of Sam's inventory, and present it to Harry. In exchange for the ticket, Harry will trade you his soon-to-be-winning lottery ticket. Once he leaves, exit Bosco-Tech Labs. Outside, get in the DeSoto and return to Straight & Narrow by choosing it from the map.

Return to Stinky's Diner, and give the lottery ticket to Grandpa Stinky. He'll be overjoyed at this windfall and will leave the diner. The demon broth will now be available, so take it! Now that the place is empty, walk behind the counter and push the secret-but-so-enticing button below the cash register. This will open up a secret passage underneath one of the booths in the diner, leading down to the previously inaccessible side of the Sewer/Train Station underneath Straight Street. Enter it now.

After traveling through the tunnel, investigate the Intriguing Pile O' Junk. Sam will pick up the old all-in-one-scanner (named "Carol"); below that is Momma Bosco's power core, which Sam will collect as well. That's all you need down here, exit through the tunnel, and then exit the Diner above to return to the street.

When Sam and Max are back on the street, enter Skun-ka'pe's flagship. Go through the door on the right to get to the upper deck. To revive the Alien Brain, open the inventory and use the demon broth with the Brain. Next, use the power core with the brain. Finally, hook it all together by using the jumper cables with the Alien Brain. Once he's awake again, though, the ship's alarms will sound stating that toys are detected nearby. The Alien Brain is apparently under the influence of Skun-ka'pe's mind, but fortunately doesn't reveal the location of the Toys of Power to the General.

When the ape leaves, the Brain will uncover the Teleportation toy on the lower deck. After the short cutscene, the ominous door to the left that was previously closed off becomes accessible. Talk to the Alien Brain again to get some more info on Skun-ka'pe's potential weaknesses.

Act III

Before doing anything else, let's get Max his new power. Go to the lower deck, where you'll run into Superball, who debriefs the duo on Skun-ka'pe's motives. The ape escaped from The Penal Zone and is a wanted fugitive, and needs to be reunited with his Prisoner's Badge, a homing beacon that is used to track his movements. He also says that Momma Bosco was working on a trans-dimensional gateway that would return prisoners to The Penal Zone when opened. Once you're done talking to Superball, collect the Teleportation power from the display case on the right side of the ship. Enter Max Mode and choose the Teleportation Power. Then, use it to travel to Stinky's Cell.

After a mildly disturbing trip, Sam and Max arrive at an anonymous street corner where Stinky has abandoned her phone. Sam will pick up the phone, but there isn't all that much left to do here. To get back to Straight Street, enter Max Mode, select Teleportation, and choose "Sybil's" from the dial. Sybil's phone is stashed in one of the cardboard boxes in front of Bosco's store, so that makes for a handy shortcut.

Enter Skun-ka'pe's ship again, and head for the upper deck. There, use the ominous door to see the secret horrors that only Mole Men have endured before. The room beyond quickly turns into a slippery, sweaty, hot hell-hole, and the Freelance Police must escape! The only thing to do now is to use Max's Teleportation power once again, and choose Stinky's Diner—any place will do, but this will speed things along, since you need to go there next anyway. However, you'll be temporarily without all your neat junk in your inventory.

At the Diner, Grandpa Stinky has returned, sporting a new (and familiar-looking) badge, signifying his entrance into the ranks of Skun-ka'pe's army. Talk to him, and be sure to pick the "We Love Skun-ka'pe" option at some point. Old man Stinky is incredulous about their ability to serve in the General's army, which causes Max to attack him. While they continue to struggle, enter Max mode and teleport to Stinky's Cell phone, which has been stowed in the Personal Effects compartment on Skun-ka'pe's ship.

Sam, Max, and Grandpa Stinky will all transport to the Mole Processing room, which will remove the homing device from the elder Stinky's person. The old man will abort the processing sequence and open the sealed door, but seems fed up with Skun-ka'pe's operation. Press the button next to the Ominous Door to open the Personal Effects compartment. Use that drawer to get all the items back in your inventory, plus the homing device and a collectible Meesta Pizza Shot Glass—a potential clue! After getting your items back, teleport to Bosco-Tech Labs by selecting Momma Bosco from the Teleportation dial in Max Mode.

Upon arriving, Sam is promptly tossed out on the street by one of Skun-Ka'pe's goons, while Max is left behind to be worked over by another space ape. They'll have to clear out these creatures from the lab before they can get anything useful from this visit. Walk over to the left side of the Bosco-Tech building and use the fire escape. This will get Sam up onto the roof, where a bird with something shiny in its beak sits at the edge of a flagpole. Sam can walk out onto the flagpole, which is directly above the ape guarding the door. Do that, and then try to grab the pigeon. The bird flies away and drops the object—a ring—onto the sidewalk below. While Sam's still standing on the flagpole, enter Max Mode and teleport to Stinky's Cell (which Sam is still carrying). This will cause Max and the ape "research assistant" to reappear in midair next to the flagpole. Sam snatches Max in time, and the goon falls on top of the door guard, taking them both out of the picture.

Teleport to the interior of Bosco-Tech Labs, and Sam will immediately notice a torn receipt from an unknown toy store. Another potential clue, but it's too hard to determine the significance of the item by itself. Exit Bosco-Tech and pick up the "shiny thing" on the sidewalk. It's an engagement ring, most likely purchased by Skun-ka'pe. It's time to make some more sense of these seemingly random objects.

Teleport to the C.O.P.S., and look inside the DeSoto again by selecting it. Open your inventory and use the scanner with Bob (the phone). They will welcome the new addition to the society, and Sam will now be able to analyze objects from his inventory in pairs. To start, select the Crime-Tron scanner in the back seat. To start, take the cell phone out of Sam's inventory and place it in the scanner. If Stinky went some place to meet Skun-ka'pe, she probably has the number on speed dial. It seems clear that the General visited a Meesta Pizza location based on the shot glass, so drop that into the scanner next. This will unlock the correct Meesta Pizza on the map; select that location while in map view and drive there.

Max confirms that Skun-ka'pe was there not very long ago; it's time to look for some more clues! There is likely some evidence in the trash cans behind the restaurant, but there are too many to sort through. Plus, those pigeons probably carried off a lot of it to their nests, anyway. Why not pay them a visit? Drop Stinky's cell phone in the trash can. Indeed, not long after doing this, a pigeon comes along and swallows the phone whole, flying up to the roof afterward. Enter Max mode and Teleport to Stinky's recently-swallowed phone to get up there. On the roof, Sam finds a vintage postcard in one of the bird's nests. Appearing to belong to a collector of rare toys and family heirlooms, the postcard is yet another baffling clue, so Sam will need to use the Crime-Tron again. Sam grabs the phone, rather hesitantly, and they head back down to the street level. Select the DeSoto, and then select the scanner. From Sam's inventory, drop in the postcard, and then drop in the engagement ring. Success! This will unlock a new location across town: the Pawn Shop. Select it on the map and drive there now.

At the Pawn Shop, there's another guard standing outside the store. Sam can't get in until the guard is dealt with, but maybe there's something useful in those trash cans over to the left. Investigate them; Sam won't know what to look for, and isn't willing to dig around for ages trying to find something that may or may not be useful. To solve this, enter Max mode and use Future Vision on the cans. Max's vision points to a banana peel being the tool used to extract the guard from his post, so examine the trash cans again to acquire it. Next, use the manhole in the middle of the street. Sam will take the lid off, creating an appropriately hazardous situation for the guard to find himself in. Use the banana peel on the manhole cover; the guard is upset with Sam's littering, and is distracted long enough for Max to ambush him and toss him down to the sewers. Use the pawn shop entrance to find some more clues. Sam will emerge with a paddle ball toy, which Skun-ka'pe seems to have rejected after it was deemed less than magical. Head over to the DeSoto to start another Crime-Tron analysis. Select the scanner in the back seat of the DeSoto; add the new paddle ball toy, and then the receipt Sam found earlier to unlock the Toy Store location. Drive there now by choosing it on the map.

Arriving at "Bob's Toys!s", the Freelance Police have a brief exchange with Harry Moleman, who reveals that Skun-ka'pe is harvesting Mole Man sweat for some sinister purpose. The General must be nearby, but how will they draw him out? Enter Max Mode and use Future Vision on Sam. Max predicts Skun-ka'pe's arrival, and the capture of the Future Vision toy, which is soon repeated in real time. Yikes! Sam and Max are knocked out cold and taken to the flagship.

Act IV

Things start to seem fairly familiar once we arrive in this act. Sam & Max are behind bars on Skun-ka'pe's spacecraft, and all they have to do is get everything back to the way it was in the opening scene, right? For starters, Stinky should be seated on the throne, not behind bars. Perhaps if she warmed up to the General, she'd be released. Talk to her, choosing the "Stinky" option, followed by "Skun-ka'pe's not so bad". Then when she asks you to name one of his good points, select the "Spaceship" option. She agrees, finally, and beckons to Skun-ka'pe to be let out.

With Stinky back on the throne, all that's left to do is teleport to her phone. Use the Teleportation toy in Max Mode, and select "Stinky's Cell". Once they're out of the cell, however, things seem to be following a different track since the opening act. Skun-ka'pe possesses all of the toys used in the opening act (apart from Teleportation), and used Future Vision to see how Sam and Max were planning to defeat him. Since Sam still has the homing beacon, Skun-ka'pe is able to open up a portal to the Penal Zone and hurtle the duo into another dimension! What's more, Skun-ka'pe strapped an antimatter bomb to Max's back while they were knocked out. Fortunately, Max is able to shake it off, and still possesses the ability to Teleport. It doesn't matter where you pick, just get them out of there!

No matter which option you choose, they'll be picked up by Momma Bosco and returned to her lab, where she and Superball are waiting for them. Find out more information by going through the dialogue choices; it sounds like the best way to trap Skun-ka'pe again is to create another Penal Zone (since the original one was destroyed by that bomb). Momma Bosco has been working on a Rift Generator, which actually creates a new dimension. Exit the dialogue once all the options have been exhausted, and take the Rift Generator from the table in the middle of the lab, and then teleport to Stinky's Cell to return to the flagship.

Once there, the General is busy gloating about his victory, long enough for Sam and Max to sneak to the upper level and converse with the Alien Brain; he seems a little worse for wear, being forced to power the higher functions of the ship and all. Exit the dialogue, and return to the lower level. Since the Rift Generator also works through the use of the Homing Beacon to draw in the target, use the beacon on Skun-ka'pe's. Eventually, the badge makes it onto the General's back, but the Alien Brain appears to have expired in the process. Teleport to Sybil's to get back to Straight Street.

Once there, walk to the right; Skun-ka'pe will spot you from his ship, and begin to shoot his disintegrator eye beams at your location. Watch out! To get out of this situation, stand next to the pile of Sybil's boxes and wait for the General to fire. The boxes will be dropped down into a gaping pit, which leads to the Train Station level. Use teleportation, and select Sybil's phone to get down to the tunnel. Once down there, enter the mysterious tunnel.

Sam and Max will stumble upon a strange Mole Man cult, whose beliefs revolve around a mysterious Toy Box. The Freelance Polices arrival appears to have been foretold in their various odd tablets and scrolls, but talking to the mole men doesn't provide all that much useful information at this point. They are unaware of Skun-ka'pe or the Rift Generator, but are convinced that Max is a sure sign of the coming apocalypse—Lucky guess. Pick up the cable to the left of the cultists, and plug it into the Toy Box. Next, plug the rift generator into the outlet next to the boiler, and turn it on by selecting it once it's on the ground and plugged in. Skun-ka'pe will be pulled toward the new dimensional rift, but again stops himself by grabbing onto a protruding piece of metal. Use the dial on the boiler to turn the heat up, causing the cultists to sweat profusely, creating a disgusting and slippery pool close to the General. Next, use the Paddle Ball toy with Skun-ka'pe. He loosens his grip to snatch the toy away, and is sucked into the rift!

You win! That brings us to the end of the first chapter, and all that's left to view is a chilling image to hold you over until the next episode. See you next time!