Tricky Test 2 Level 78

Overview

• Difficulty: Hard
• Estimated moves: 1

The screen presents a mystery: "Peter was with 6 friends before he's murdered. He left a message 'qazsedc' on the PC screen. Who's the most likely suspect?" Six buttons list the suspects: Hana, Peter, Tom, Fiona, Fred, and Ivan. The string "qazsedc" is typed on a QWERTY keyboard, and the clue must be decoded from the keyboard layout rather than from the letters themselves.

Step-by-Step Solution

1. Imagine a standard QWERTY keyboard layout:

Q W E R T Y U I O P
A S D F G H J K L
Z X C V B N M

1. Map out the keys the victim typed: Q, A, Z (the far-left column), S (the second column), E, D, C (the third column).
2. Notice that all the typed keys are left-hand keys clustered in the left portion of the keyboard.
3. Deduce that the keyboard pattern the victim left points to the suspect Ivan.
4. Tap the Ivan button (bottom-right). The level confirms Ivan is the culprit.

Strategy & Reasoning

The victim typed the message with only his left hand on the left side of the keyboard. The cluster of keys q-a-z-s-e-d-c traces a left-hand pattern on the QWERTY layout, and decoding that pattern against the six names points to Ivan as the most likely suspect. The other suspects (Hana, Peter, Tom, Fiona, Fred) do not match the left-hand keyboard footprint as well. The game's on-screen keyboard at the end highlights the typed keys Q, A, Z, S, D, C and confirms Ivan. Because the message is on a "PC screen," a QWERTY layout is the right frame of reference, not a phone keypad.

The six suspect buttons are arranged in two columns: Hana and Peter on the top row, Tom and Fiona in the middle, Fred and Ivan on the bottom. The message "qazsedc" uses only keys typed by the left pinky, ring, and middle fingers on the far-left columns. This left-hand cluster is the clue the victim left before dying. After you tap Ivan, the game shows an on-screen keyboard with the typed keys lit up and the name Ivan displayed, confirming the accusation. The other names are plausible-sounding friends but do not match the keyboard pattern.

The victim typed while dying, so he reached only for the keys closest to his left hand: Q, A, Z in the far column, then S, E, D, C in the next two columns. Mapping this left-hand footprint to the suspects points to Ivan. The game's end screen displays a QWERTY keyboard with those keys highlighted and the name Ivan. There is no further cipher to decode; the keyboard layout itself is the message. Tap Ivan to solve.

Tips & Common Mistakes

• Treating "qazsedc" as an anagram. Rearranging the letters does not spell a name; you must use the keyboard layout.
• Using a phone T9 keypad. The clue explicitly says "PC screen," so QWERTY.
• Picking a random suspect. The answer is Ivan, not one of the other five names.
• Over-thinking the cipher. The pattern is a left-hand keyboard footprint; tap Ivan to solve.

Note: solution steps are based on visible frames only.