Curious Cabinet: Cipher School, a Radio Code Game

About Curious Cabinet: Cipher School

Cabinet FM broadcasts from the 33rd floor of a tower in the middle of the city, and tonight a thunderstorm is rolling over the rooftops. The late show has a tradition: every segment the DJ teaches the listeners one way of hiding letters, and then the request line lights up with dedications written in it. You are on the desk.

A show is three segments. Each opens with a lesson card: the rule, and a short word worked through it letter by letter, so you can see exactly what it does. Then the first caller is on the line. Every letter of the dedication glows in pink neon as it was sent; tap one and set its true letter with the desk pads, or simply type it. Each true letter is used once, and nothing says right or wrong until the dedication reads true, or until you press Check, which drops the wrong letters as slips. Read it and the second caller comes through.

Read both dedications without a hint and the segment is won: lightning strikes the station mast, the ON AIR sign blazes and the windows of the whole skyline blink to the beat. With a hint the segment is passed and opens a later show again. Seven segments wait, from Channel Two and the Flip Side to call-sign keys and a line of pure static with no rule at all. There is no clock. A show takes about five to eight minutes, and your progress stays on this device.

How to play

Read the lesson card: it gives the segment’s rule and works a short word through it, letter by letter.
On the request line, every letter is shown as it was sent. Tap one (or move with the arrow keys) and set its true letter with a desk pad, or type it.
Each true letter is used once: setting it again moves it. The cue card stays up while you work; put it away with its button.
Check drops any wrong letters and counts each as a slip. A hint sets one letter for good, but the segment is then only passed.
Read both callers of a segment with no hint to win it and go on air. A show is three segments; those not won come back first.
Press Escape or Start to pause. There is no clock.

Controls

Tap a sent letter, then a desk pad — set its true letter (or type it)
Arrow keys or D-pad — move; Space or Ⓐ — next empty letter; Backspace or Ⓑ — clear
Enter, 2 or Ⓡ — check; 1 or Ⓧ — hint (the segment is passed, not won)
3 or Ⓨ — cue card
Escape or Start — pause

Frequently asked questions

What does winning a segment mean?

Reading both of its dedications without a hint. Slips from Check cost a few points but never stop you winning it. A segment passed with a hint opens a later show again.

Do I have to guess the rules?

No. Every segment teaches its rule first, with a worked example. Find the Channel sets one letter for you to count from, and Pure Static starts with its commonest letters set.

Why can I use each true letter only once?

Each sent letter stands for exactly one true letter and the other way round, so setting a true letter again moves it to the new place.

Is there a clock?

No. Take your time; pausing, switching tabs or opening Settings never costs anything. Today’s show, the daily challenge, is the same for every listener.