“Oh, that's a PSI Challenge Marker. The staff scattered these all over camp to test the students. Every one of these you find advances you a whole rank!”
–- Ford Cruller
PSI Challenge Markers are items that can increase Razputin's PSI Cadet Rank by one rank. They are an amalgam of nine PSI Cards and a PSI Core. They can be found outside the mental world or created by combining nine PSI Cards and a PSI Core together.
Description[]
The Challenge Markers are large, golden eye balls that have nine PSI Cards flying around them. They float in the air and the eyes blink and stare at Razputin. In Psychonauts, the markers are scattered around the camp, in areas that require skill or a new move in order to reach. PSI Cores are only available at the camp store and must be bought; they cannot be found. PSI Cards are scattered around the camp and even at the Asylum. They may be out in the open, but most of them require searching and new powers to find. PSI Challenge Markers will return in Psychonauts 2.
Psychonauts[]
“Combine a PSI Core with nine collected PSI Cards to make a PSI Challenge Marker. Then drop by Ford Cruller’s Sanctuary and redeem the whole lot for a PSI Cadet Rank increase.”
–Psychonauts Official Manual Guide
Locations:[]
Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp [Total of PSI Challenge Markers 6]
- Kids' Cabins: Use the trampoline next to the second bunk to reach the roof of it. Climb onto the tightrope, and turn right to see a trapeze. Use the trapeze to reach the next trampoline. Jump onto the ladder, and climb it to the top. The challenge marker lies up here around the corner of the tree.[1]
- Main Campgrounds/Main Lodge: Go around the main lodge until you see a couple picnic tables. Near them is a pole you can climb. At the top is a tightrope leading to another tower. From this second tower, jump onto the roof of the lodge, where you will find the challenge marker in the middle.
- GPC and Wilderness #1: From the entrance from the lodge, go straight through the large log ahead. Hang a left after you go through and there is a large rock formation. Climb to the top and turn to see a nearby cabin. Double jump to the cabin and through the hole in the roof to reach this challenge marker.
- GPC and Wilderness #2: Behind the central dome is a tree with vines going up it. Use the vines to reach a branch, which you need to follow. Use another branch to swing across the gap and climb the vines on the next tree. Jump across to reach another tree with vines and follow this to the top, where the challenge marker is waiting.
- Boathouse and Beach: Go to the bottom of the path leading from the main campgrounds. Hug the nearby wall and climb up the ledge. Turn to see a large rock near the beach, with the challenge marker on top of it. Levitate over to reach this one.
- Reception Area: Find the large tree and look away from Cruller's location. Off to the left just a little bit away, there is an alcove leading to a sealed off mine. The challenge marker is at the entrance to this mine.
Thorney Towers Home for the Disturbed [Total of PSI Challenge Markers 3]
- Asylum Grounds: Levitate up to a ledge to the left of the asylum gates to find this challenge marker.
- Asylum Lower Floors: In Edgar's art room, use a levitate jump to reach the rafters. The challenge marker is on them in the center of the room.
- Asylum Upper Floors: Near the very top of this area, you will notice the challenge marker floating in the air. Jump and psi float over to it, and make sure to land on a nearby platform or else you'll be scaling the area again.
Psychonauts 2[]
“Let’s combine that PSI Core with your Cards so you can RANK UP.”
–Otto Mentallis description from the Otto-Matic.
The Motherlobe: Psychonauts Headquarters [Total of PSI Challenge Markers 8]
- Motherlobe Lobby/Atrium: It requires the thought tuner to unlock a set of stray thoughts that leads to the floating platform that has the challenge marker. Or just head to the agents' offices ramp and while on top of it, try using the super jump by compressing the levitation ball to gain enough height to psi float towards the platform.
- Noodle Bowl: Inside it, above one of the light fixtures, the closest to the bathroom to be specific. It can be reached by climbing the vines/leafs from the wall.
- Astral Lanes Bowling Alley: Inside the bowling alley, reach the counter where Ford is spraying some shoes and use levitation or do a double jump to reach the ring-shaped platform, above it the challenge marker remains stationary.
- The Mailroom #1: Past the small area where Ford Cruller or Lori remain (depending on what point of the game It’s taking place), in the center of the room where the mail boxes are sent, there are multiple conveyor belts which features two psi cards and a challenge marker.
- The Mailroom #2: Near a fast moving fan, there’s a door with a slot in it. This psi challenge marker can only be obtained in the post-game since it requires mental projection to bust open the door.
- Sasha's office: Right after entering the lab, head to the office and the item can be found lying on top of a shelf.
- Classroom: Literally, beneath the stairs that leads into the classroom’s entrance, the challenge marker can be spot.
- Office of the Grand Head: This area can only be enter once diving into Ford’s mind for the first time and checking for all of his facets, Raz must head to Truman Zanotto so he can give him full access of the entire motherlobe. The item can be seen laying on the large table.
The Quarry [Total of PSI Challenge Markers 5]
- Lili's Garden: At the left side of the Quarry, past multiple rock formations; there’s this large rock platform near a wooden structure with a trampoline in it, where the thought tuner must be used to create a set of thoughts that leads to the upper back side of the Quarry with a small wooden platform.
- K.L.O.B. HQ: Near the Treehouse where Morris Martinez and Gisu Nerumen can be spotted, at the rocky platform near the dock, the thought tuner once again must be used to spawn a set of stray thoughts that leads to a distant platform with a challenge marker on the top.
- Mux Turbine: Behind the big waterfall, the challenge marker is inside a small fence. To get in there, Raz must climb a generator and to do that he must turn it off by pulling out the levers in this order: blue, orange and purple. Though, using levitation can ignore the effects of the electricity, with the only requirement being the super jump performed by compressing the ball.
- Psychoisolation Chamber: Use the super jump with levitation to reach a high platform that leads to a grindable pipe and a trapeze propelled by a large fan. While using it, jump at the correct time to gain enough height and then, use the psi float to be pushed into the roof of the chamber.
- Otto-Matic Workshop: In the outside of the area near the edges and two old-model cars, for the third time the thought tuner is requested to summon a set of stray thoughts that leads to a hidden upper area located at the back of the building.
The Questionable Area [Total of PSI Challenge Markers 7]
- Lumberstack Diner: Use the car’s bonnet (hood) as a trampoline to reach the roof of the building and then make the large lumberjack statue rotate (by shooting the mechanism in his back) and face the opposite side of where he was looking, use the super jump to reach his arm and then use the axe to get on top of some vent pipes to reach the sign of the place where the challenge marker remains.
- Aquatodome #1: Climb the large tree with the help of some vines/leafs to reach a high wooden platform with a flower-like spring at the end that sends Raz into one of the platforms maintaining still the tent. On these platforms Raz must tightrope his way to the very top of the tent.
- Aquatodome #2: Inside the tent, Raz must put into practice all his acrobatic skills to make it to the big top of the tent where the challenge marker awaits the young psychic. Simply trapeze, bounce on trampolines and climb your way into the top.
- Crocodile Courtyard: At the edges where the wooden fences are seen (facing the entrance of the "campfire?"), though tuner must be used to generate a route of thoughts that leads to a lone wooden platform in a tree.
- Campground/Campsite: Ignite (with pyrokinesis) the campfire from the center to psi float to a platform that has a springy flower, which is needed to reach a wooden walkway with another springy flower; which also leads to another walkway but with a trampoline at the end. Lastly after using the trampoline reach the handler to descend into the platform where the last hideout of Queepie is located (the challenge marker is only given if completing his side mission).
- Cave of the Sassclops: At the depths of the cave, past the skull of a dinosaur which can be trapeze; reach the banner of "Sassclops vs Nessie" and burn it to enter into a secret room of props. The challenge marker is at the right corner of the room.
- Fierro’s Funicular/Questionable Gifts?: After fixing and riding the funicular, at the top of the area there’s a 'blown to bits' gift shop where the item can be seen lying around the roof near a crow.
Green Needle Gulch: Original Colony of the Psychonauts! [Total of PSI Challenge Markers 4]
- Cassie's hive: Around the entrance of this area; there’s an outhouse with a slot in it which requires the use of mental projection to open it.
- Ford’s Office and Helmut’s Stage: Use the pole near Helmut’s stage to get on a circular platform, then jump as high as possible and psi float to the inside of the office or the roof of it (in case of getting inside the office use the set of vines/leafs from the tree to climb and get on the roof). Somewhere of the roof, thought tuner must be used to spawn a set of stray thoughts that heads to a higher area with the challenge marker in question.
- Bob's greenhouse: Once passing the two exploding bulbs of the entrance, besides Compton’s Menagerie, a psychoisolation chamber can be seen. The item is inside, and to get it Raz must pull each lever in this correct order: pink, orange and blue.
- Lucrecia’s Old House/Nona’s River House: At the rippled docks near the house, use the thought tuner one last time to create a set of thoughts that leads to a big sunken trunk with the psi challenge marker.
Quotes:[]
Raz lines after collecting a Challenge Marker[]
- "Hello, PSI Challenge Marker!"
- "Come with me, PSI Challenge Marker!"
- "I love these things."
- "PSI Challenge Markers are like a hobby of mine."
- "That’s one rank up for me, one new home for you, PSI Challenge Marker."
- "This is too pretty to leave out here."
- "Better grab this before it hurts somebody."
- "What’s that? You wanna give me a new rank? Okay, PSI Challenge Marker."
Trivia[]
- The PSI-challenge markers will stop moving once the player has moved sufficiently away from them.
- Lair of the Lungfish and Lady Luctopus Casino are the only areas from the real world in both games to not present any PSI Challenge Markers as well as PSI Cards.
- This is the case since both segments cannot be revisited after their completion.
Gallery[]
Psychonauts[]
Textures[]
PSI card texture.
PSI card shine.
PSI Core texture sheet.
Screenshots[]
Raz standing in front of a PSI Challenge Marker.
Psychonauts 2[]
Screenshots[]
A PSI Challenge Marker.
References/Notes[]
- ↑ All information used comes from: https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/ps2/924711-psychonauts/faqs/46602