Puff Piece

Puff Piece
"I just need to survive rush hour. This job is such a drag..."
Level No.	2-3
BPM	127
Patient(s)	Nicole Ting
Pager
Pre-clear	The barista at the hospital cafe is experiencing SVT-type symptoms. May be tied to frustration. Administer treatment during rush hour.
Post-clear	Treatment successful. Keep an eye on patient's tobacco use and stress levels.
Ranks
S	cooked, served, delicious!
A (6)	employee of the year
B (13)	employee of the month
C (27)	part-timer
D (40)	might want to start job-hunting
F	fired
Act 2
← 2-2 Supraventricular Tachycardia 2-4 Song of the Sea → 2-3N Bomb-Sniffing Pomeranian
"Well, I survived!"

Puff Piece (2-3) is a level in Rhythm Doctor. The Night Shift version is Bomb-Sniffing Pomeranian.

It introduces Nicole and swung Oneshots.

Synopsis

The player treats Nicole as she works through the rush hour of the hospital's cafe. At the start of the level, Nicole smokes a cigarette to help cope with the oncoming rush hour. After the level, Paige offers help toward Nicole on quitting her smoking addiction. Nicole expresses her gratitude toward Paige and the player as she talks on length about her experiences with the people in the hospital, briefly remarking that Cole is "pretty chill." Nicole apologizes for her rambling and express gratitude once again, telling Paige that she is free to come to the cafe whenever she wants to.

Transcript

	Our next patient is exhibiting a new type of SVT beat.
	Interestingly enough, SVT beats can "swing."
	Listen to the nurse's cues to get a feel for how the swung rhythm is different than the classic one.
	Alright, you're up. Lights, camera, action!
	(Why does it feel jazzier in here?)

If half the beats are missed:

	Let's try that again. Try repeating the "Get, Set" phrase in your head to the music.
	(It'll start up...just give it a second.)

If half the beats are missed for the second time in a row:

	Let's try that again. I know you can do it!
	("Lights, camera, action"...that's so cheesy...)

When eight consecutive beats are hit after having failed twice before:

Practice makes perfect, eh?

If half the beats are hit:

	Alright, awesome! You're getting the hang of it.
	Time for Phase Two.

If all the beats are hit:

	Well, it seems like you're an expert on this whole concept already.
	That's convenient! I'm still gonna read out the full explanation, because the boss told me to!

	Phase Two will have you alternate between normal and swung SVT rhythms on the fly.
	Get ready!
	Good luck, sheriff...

If half the beats are missed:

	Hmm...you got a few misses. You might want to retry this tutorial later.
	Or, you might get the hang of it once you hear it in the actual operation.

If half or more of the beats are hit:

You've got it down.

	Our next patient is Nicole, she works as a barista in the hospital's cafe.
	Her heart is exhibiting this swung variation of SVT rhythms. Good luck!

	Thanks for the save back there.
	I noticed that-
	I know, I know, the smoking...I promised I would stop.
	(Is that even legal to do in here?)
	It's the only thing that gets me through these absolute hell shifts. It calms me down.
	Are you interested in quitting? I can help you, if you want.
	I've tried before, but if you have any tips...that'd be great.
	I understand completely. I can help, we can work on it together.
	Oh, by the way...this is our new intern. The one behind the screen.
	They'll be able to help you with any chest pains or irregularities you feel.
	Thanks, that's good to know. You two might be the only cool people around here.
	That Ian guy always has his nose in his laptop.
	Those high schoolers just whisper and giggle to each other.
	And that other doctor dude scares me.
	Well...at least the guy in the red hoodie is pretty chill. He actually talks to me.
	Something to look forward to every day.
	...sorry, I'm rambling. Thanks for the save, doc.
	Come back if you ever need a coffee, or just want to hang.

	We've got a cafe in the building. Have you checked it out?
	Rush hour must be a real pain, that girl running the joint always has a sour look on her face.
	I only see her lighten up when that hoodie dude comes around.

2P Changes

• Cole is added to the level for Player 2, with his respective additional heartbeat row. Cole has the exact same heartbeat as Nicole, with Player 1 taking control of the latter. He stands in the spot where his solid-color outline would normally appear in the 1P version of this level.

Trivia

• Several customers, represented by dark-colored, transparent outlines, can be seen entering and exiting the cafe in still poses as the level progresses. One of these outlines can be seen standing near the counter, where Nicole is working. The outline is wearing a hat, a hoodie and long pants. This person stays behind the longest out of any customer. Due to the aforementioned factors, it can be assumed that this outline is representing Cole. This figure is standing in a position which makes it easy to talk to Nicole, supporting her dialogue encountered upon clearing the level, where she mentions that someone wearing a red hoodie is the only person who talks to her regularly. Later on during One Slip Too Late, a close-up of Cole's phone can be seen, and for a few frames he's shown to have taken a picture of Nicole sleeping on the cafe counter. The picture appears near-identical to what one would see if standing in the outline's position. Additionally, in this level's 2P mode, Cole is added, taking the place of this outline. This serves as near direct confirmation that the outline in question is indeed Cole.

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• The flavor text of "cooked, served, delicious!" for achieving S-rank on this level may be a reference to the indie game Cook, Serve, Delicious!, known for its stress-inducing rush hours; a fitting parallel to the rush hour Nicole deals with.