Part 17

Unravel the mysteries of Fez Part 17. Learn about the enigmatic Black Monolith puzzle, audio spectrogram secrets, and maximum game completion percentages.

This section of the guide addresses lingering questions and complex puzzles in Fez, including the Black Monolith and audio spectrograms, as well as details on game completion percentages and sales figures.

Q5: I recall a certain room having a mystery, but all of a sudden it was golden plated. Is this a glitch or what?

A5: Some rooms, such as throne rooms, the owl room near the industrial zone, or the monocle/painting room in Gomez' hometown, have alternate solutions involving QR codes. If you decoded and used these QR codes, those rooms automatically turn golden.

Q6: What's the maximum percentage one can get on the leaderboards?

A6: Legitimately, 209.4% is the current maximum. Some players have obtained a glitched 33rd Anti-cube from the monocle/painting room in Gomez' hometown, reaching 212.5%, but this can interfere with the official ending. Other unusual percentages are due to exploiting glitches. The true maximum might be higher, possibly 300%, as there are unsolved puzzles.

Q7: How many units did FEZ sell?

A7: As of April 13th, 2013, FEZ had sold over 200,000 copies on XBLA. The PC version is expected to significantly increase sales, potentially doubling the total over time.

Q8: Is it possible to finish a first playthrough of FEZ with 32 Anti-cubes and zero regular cubes?

A8: Yes, this is possible. A player achieved this and informed Polytron, who apologized for not implementing a special ending for this scenario, stating the ending remains the same.

The Black Monolith

The Black Monolith puzzle is the most enigmatic in Fez. While summoning it might be figured out by examining your burnt treasure map, its solution and comprehension are not publicly known. Theories vary, with some being more promising than others. The puzzle draws inspiration from Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, particularly the scene where the main character transcends space and time, which influenced Fez's ending. The name Kubrick also phonetically breaks down into "Cube" and "Brick." The puzzle's solution is confirmed to be unrelated to the spectrogram pictures found in the soundtrack.

Audio Spectrogram Secrets

Fez's official soundtrack includes hidden images encoded within soundscapes. The exact purpose of these images is unknown, but they are likely semantic references rather than puzzle solutions. For example, a photograph of Buzz Aldrin's lunar footprint references humanity's "great step," similar to how Fez explores new dimensions in gaming. An image of Locke from Lost refers to the philosopher John Locke and his theories on sense data. More information will be added in future updates.

The (Fez) Universe

This section will be updated in the future to reflect on some of the philosophical themes present in Fez.