The Raven - point list (and some additional comments)

[leisureX]

Unfortunately, I can't post this as an actual guide since I didn't buy the game through Steam (stupid rule, if you ask me, because why would one have to own the game through Steam in order to contribute to the community?), so I decided to put it in Discussions instead.

Don't know if this is still useful to anyone, but here it is anyway, since I wrote it already:

A complete (?) point list for The Raven

(Long) Introduction

This guide should help players achieve what is believed to be the maximum score in each chapter of The Raven - 19500, 12000 and 8500 points respectively. I say "believed", since official maximum scores were never revealed by the developer in any way. One way to know for sure what are the maximum scores is if someone with the right knowledge will take a look at the game's code and verify that, however, since there doesn't seem to be any documentation anywhere of higher scores than written above, I think it's safe to assume these are indeed the maximum scores (in addition, the Master Detective achievements should unlock for each chapter if reaching these scores, but I don't think this is something that can be 100% relied on for concluding that these are the maximum scores).

The point-awarding actions in this guide are divided to "sub-chapters" for each chapter. The titles of the "sub-chapters" were taken from the saved games menu. Note that in chapter 2 and 3 there is only one points-awarding action in each "sub-chapter", which is very different from the situation in chapter 1.

Important - don't highlight hot spots or use any hints since points are reduced when those actions are done.

Note that this point list was based on the retail DVD release of the game (as that's the version that I played), but it should completely match the current release available through Steam and other channels.


A note about Secrets - in addition to the score, the "results screen" of each chapter also shows how many Secrets were "discovered". In chapters 2 and 3, there's an obvious correlation between the score and Secrets - in my playthrough, the amount of point-awarding actions and the amount of Secrets "discovered" were the same in each chapter - 6 and 5 respectively - so apparently each point-awarding action contributes to one "discovered" Secret (which makes me wonder why they used the word "Secrets", as I would assume Secrets necessarily mean non-mandatory actions, yet some of the point-awarding actions are mandatory). In chapter 1, however, the situation is completely different - I performed 12 point-awarding actions but had 16 Secrets in the "results screen", so there are at least four actions that don't award points but do raise the number of Secrets. In addition, it's possible to finish chapter 1 with 19500 points but with only 11 Secrets, as is shown in this Steam Community screenshot, so apparently in chapter 1 there's at least one points-awarding action that doesn't add a Secret, which means that there's no correlation at all between the score and the Secrets (more examples - 19500 points and 14 Secrets and 19500 points and 16 Secrets, which is what I got).

Since the number of Secrets appears only after the chapter has ended, it's impossible to know which actions contribute to the number of Secrets without someone with the right knowledge taking a look at the game's code (maybe in chapters 2 and 3 it's just a coincidence and the situation there is actually like chapter 1, who knows :) ).

Note that there doesn't seem to be any documentation anywhere of higher numbers of Secrets than the numbers I've reached (which are 16, 6 and 5 respectively), so it's likely that these are the maximum (like with score, official maximum Secrets were never revealed by the developer in any way, and unlocking the Master Detective achievements cannot be counted on in this case as well). Also note that the situation in chapter 1 might be a result of the score bug of the initial release, and\or the fix to that bug, rather than something that was deliberately done by the developers. See below for more information about this bug and the score situation of the initial release of chapter 1.


A note about the Extras - as you progress through "sub-chapters" in the game, and when finishing each chapter, Extras will unlock. I don't know what triggers the unlocking of Extras (it seems that it's not enough just to finish the game to unlock all of them), but in my playthrough (on which this score guide is based) I unlocked all of them. See Appendix A for a breakdown of unlocked Extras per chapter.


A note about the initial buggy release of chapter 1 - before chapter 1 was patched, its score system was completely different than it is today. First, as result of a bug, only four actions awarded points (all of them in "sub-chapter" 1.1), so the maximum score was much lower than it should have been (8000), but much more interesting than that, three of these actions didn't award points anymore after the game was patched, so the point list was completely different! See Appendix B for more information. Incidentally, it's very plausible that the score bug in the initial release, and\or the fix that the patch introduced (which changed the point list completely), have contributed to the current situation of the Secrets in chapter 1 (see above). Note that I don't know what was the exact situation of the Secrets before the patch.
Note: the initial release of chapter 2 also had a score-related bug, but in this case it was much more simple - one action that was supposed to award points simply didn't award them (resulting in a maximum score of 9500 instead of 12000). This bug and its fix didn't seem to have any effect on the number of Secrets in chapter 2.

[leisureX]

Chapter 1:

1.1 - A train in the Alps (Note: the point list of this "sub-chapter" was completely different in the initial buggy release of chapter 1 - see Appendix B)
Begin chapter (1000)
Unlock the toolbox outside the train [phone])
Open violin case [phone])
Use graphite powder on window to reveal fingerprints [phone])
Report to Legrand about unlocking Lucien's compartment [phone])

1.2 - Trapped in stone
Uncouple the train [phone])

1.3 - Fire, steel and steam
Find Matt by looking under the table [phone])
Use axe to release coupling [phone])

1.4 - Ah, Venice!
Enter cargo hold [phone])

1.5 - A suspicious trunk
Open cargo hold door [phone])
Find the stowaway (go outside) [phone])

1.6 - Murder on the Mediterranean
Use slingshot on bottle of water (enter cargo hold) [phone])
Finish the chapter [phone])

Chapter 2:

2.1 - Madness
Begin chapter (1000)
Use syringe on doctor [phone])

2.2 - The eye of the Sphinx
Open the gate to treasure chamber [phone])

2.3 - Into the dark
Open secret door in basement [phone]) (Note: these points were not awarded in the initial buggy release of chapter 2)

2.4 - Zurich, main station
Talk to the conductor (board the train) [phone])

2.5 - The train robbery
Open the second screw on the train [phone])

2.6 - The stowaway
Get out of chest [phone])

Chapter 3:

3.1 - A thief and a murder
Begin chapter (1000)
Talk to Adil after solving the baroness safe puzzle (say "riddle solved") [phone])

3.2 - Under pressure
Exit through grate [phone])

3.3 - Ghost of the past
Find the doctor and finish all dialogs +500 (4000)

3.4 - A simple plan
Solve triangle puzzle and open secret door [phone])

3.5 - A nasty surprise
Use post on glass with diamond and gum [phone])

[leisureX]

Appendix A: breakdown of Extras unlocking by chapter

I don't know what triggers the unlocking of Extras (it seems that it's not enough just to finish the game to unlock all of them), but this little list might be of some use:

Concept Art gallery - 7 unlock in chapter 1; 6 unlock in chapter 2; 6 unlock in chapter 3 (19 total).
Artwork gallery - 3 unlock in chapter 1; 3 unlock in chapter 2; 3 unlock in chapter 3 (9 total).
3D models gallery - 4 unlock in chapter 1; 1 unlocks in chapter 3 (5 total).
The Raven in Concert - unlocks in chapter 1.
Soundtrack - 5 unlock in chapter 1; 4 unlock in chapter 2; 4 unlock in chapter 3 (13 total).

Appendix B: point list for the initial buggy release of chapter 1

1.1 - A train in the Alps
Begin chapter (1000)
Give butterscotches to Matt [phone])
Unlock bar drawer with hairpin [phone])
Unlock the toolbox outside the train [phone])
Unlock Lucien's door with the pliers [phone])

No points were awarded for any actions in the other "sub-chapters" of that initial release.

Theoretically, if the above actions were performed before updating the game, then after updating the game the three "new" point-awarding actions ("Open violin case"; "Use graphite powder on window to reveal fingerprints"; "Report to Legrand about unlocking Lucien's compartment") would've been performed, the maximum score of chapter 1 would've been 24000 in that case. However, I'm almost sure that the three "new" point-awarding actions would not have awarded points after updating if the game wouldn't have been started from scratch, which makes sense as otherwise there would probably have been some documentation of players reaching scores higher than 19500. In any case, it's too late to test this now :)

[SmittenPie]

______________________________________________________________________

[SmittenPie]

Thank you! This helped me to pin-Point why I missed some Point-Based Achievements!
And I really appreciate that you took the time to write this and post it here for everyone!
I & many others(I think) would like to see this, in the Guide section!
And if I can be of Assistance to transfer this information as a Game Guide ( with 100% credit to you of course)…please send me a Friend invite!
Thanks again!

[leisureX]

Sorry for the belated reply, SmittenPie, but sure - you can add it to the Guides section.

Please note the following:
1. Start copying from "A complete (?) point list for The Raven", as anything above it is unnecessary in the Guides section.
2. Retain the structure and the content as they're written here. If you have problems retaining the hypertext elements (e.g., bold and italic text, texts with hyperlinks), let me know and I'll send you the source somehow...
3. As for my credit - at the top of the guide page, add a "Written by leisureX - see original posting <here>" with a link to this comment page.
4. If you want to edit something for any reason, let me know.

That's it, and thanks for doing that :)

[SmittenPie]

Great! Will get to work on it then! I will keep the Guide private until you approved of it of course...
Did send you an invite! (Sorry that I ignored your request this morning, it’s been a while)

[leisureX]

:)