Episode 10 Ludus

Hi, I'm Ludus, the coolest bad guy...

No, that's too far. Back, back, back, back, back.

I'm the bad guy, and here's why.

I've turned the friends and family of three Earth twerps into holograms.

Horror show!

The Earth twerps are flying to the levels of Ludus to play my games

and rescue their loved ones.

Want to play too? Then download my free app from the CBBC website.

Time to take on, once more, the levels of Ludus.

Welcome on board the Herculean.

I'm the ship's computer and your guide through the levels of Ludus.

My data processing is detecting the presence of three gamers

from the Earth location of Rhondda.

Gamer number one - Ethan. Ten Earth years.

A technical wizard who's handy with a hard drive.

Gamer number two - Caitlin. 12 Earth years.

A hip-hop dancer who loves the theatre.

Gamer number three - Grace.

11 Earth years. Loves skiing and can tackle any mountain.

Gamers, you have been in hyper sleep

and are now flying through deep space.

We don't have much time before your mission begins.

Prepare for your briefing.

Your mission is to rescue your friends and family

who have been turned into holograms by the dastardly Ludus.

To rescue them, you must visit six levels,

each with a different game to play.

Win, and you will save your friend in a holobox to download on Earth.

Lose, and they'll be uploaded into Ludus's game for all time.

Time to find out who you're playing to save. Ethan.

My mam and my friend, Jordan.

-Caitlin.

-My sister, Olivia, and my dad.

-Grace.

-My mam and my sister, Ruby.

Are you ready to take on the levels of Ludus?

-ALL:

-Yes!

Then, Pilot, let's fly to level one.

THEY ALL SCREAM

It's nearly time for level one.

Download my app and play along.

Download the app now. Game begins shortly.

We are now docking at level one.

This is a multiplayer game. Prepare to disembark.

Collecting data.

Team comprises of one male and two females.

Determination - 80%.

Fear of Ludus - 65%.

Status - ready.

Hunka-diddly-doo, look what we have here.

Three unsuspecting Earth twerps just waiting to lose.

So...tell me, Earth nuggets,

-are you scared? ALL:

-No!

-Cos you look a little scared.

-We're not!

So, let's get this show on the rocket launcher.

Here's level one.

In this game, you need to fire and defend.

You must fire your ticks into the six targets.

Easy-squeezy, right? Wrong!

Because my bugs are going to kick your ticks back out.

Defend your ticks by firing at the bugs.

You need six ticks in place at the end of 60 seconds.

If you win, you'll save one of your precious Earth twerps.

Lose, and they'll be uploaded into my game...

for...ever.

So, who are you going to play for first?

Will it be Ethan's mum or his friend, Jordan?

Caitlin's dad or her sister, Olivia?

Or Grace's mum, or sister Ruby?

-Shall we choose your mum first?

-Yeah.

-OK.

We're choosing my mum first.

OK, take your place at the table.

Gamers, you have 60 seconds to win back Grace's mum.

Are you ready at home? The game begins in three, two, one, GO!

So, they've got two ticks loaded in. Four more to go.

Well, that's four locked and loaded.

They've still got to get two more in there.

And they're struggling because my bug is doing such a good job.

Well done, bug. That's Madonna defending at the back there.

Madonna, say hello to everybody at home. I'm not sure "Madonna" is

her real name. She's busy, she's busy working, that's fair enough.

They got another tick in there, though.

Oh, one more to go, and they can't seem to do it. Hah, sneaky, huh?

Oh, no, that's all six ticks loaded.

OK, but here come my bugs.

Let's see if they can mess things up a little bit. Come on, Dion!

Oh, perfect work!

And I've don't know if they've noticed,

but there's Madonna's twin sister sneaking in from the bottom.

-Seven, six...

-Three ticks still to go! There's no time! Can they do it?

It's so close! Argh! No-hoh!

-Gamers, you have won.

-Yes!

-This is incredible. You won.

-Ha-ha!

-I'm glad anyway, because your mum's annoying, Grace.

-She's annoying?!

You can now collect your holobox and return to the Herculean.

Congratulations, gamers.

You've won back Grace's mum.

Place your mum into the holoport to download later.

Pilot, let's fly to level two.

Following their win, the girls have embraced girl power

and are celebrating with what appears to be "dance moves"...

Earth-style.

Ethan does not compute and is less than enthusiastic.

Approaching level two. Selecting gamer with epic girl power.

Caitlin selected. Stand by.

Caitlin's dad once tried to shock her by dressing up as an alien,

but she wasn't scared, so facing Ludus should be easy-peasy.

So...Caitlin, you're the first to go solo.

-Is it your lovely T-shirt that's making you feel so confident?

-Yeah.

-Doesn't my star quality intimidate you?

-I don't think you're a star.

How mean! I like it.

Well, here's your game.

You will see a series of eight bugs.

You have to memorise them, then pick them

out of the crowd in just 60 seconds.

Make a wrong choice, and the bugs will scramble.

Win, and you'll save one of your precious Earth twerps.

Lose, and they'll be uploaded into my game...

for...ever.

So, who are you going to play for this time?

Ethan's mum, or his friend, Jordan?

Your daddy, or your sister, Olivia?

Or Grace's sister, Ruby?

I think I'm going to play for my sister, Olivia.

Gamer, take your place at the table.

Gamer, you have 60 seconds to win back your sister.

Are you ready at home? The game begins in three, two, one, GO!

So, Caitlin needs to try and make her teeny-tiny Earth brain

remember all eight of these beautiful bugs.

Look at these guys. They've made a real effort for this game.

Can she do it? We are about to find out.

Well, that's one bug found. Well, that's OK. Yeah, two bugs.

Flying start here from Caitlin.

Ah, she's starting to get them wrong now.

Hee-hee!

Ooh, three bugs found. OK, she needs five more to win.

-40 seconds.

-Yes!

Four bugs found.

Caitlin, I've got to say, I underestimated you.

I did, I did not think you had it in you. Turns out you did.

-30 seconds.

-How are you doing at home, guys? Huh?

Oh, and the sixth bug.

She only needs to find two more.

Can she do it?

20 seconds.

She's getting a few wrong here, though. Sloppy work, Caitlin.

That's the seventh bug. She only needs to find one more.

-Ten...

-But it's the final countdown!

Oh, only one more bug, but I've got a feeling she's hitting random bugs.

This is incredible to watch. The pressure's on!

Two seconds! Oh!

-YES!

-Gamer, you have lost.

-No!

I told you this would happen.

Your gameplay was lame. You've lost. Your sister, she's stuck in the game.

Oh, no, you lost the game!

Commiserations, gamers, all is not lost.

You still have four of your friends and family to win back.

Pilot, let's fly to level three.

Following a loss on level two, the gamers appear to be practising

their hand-eye co-ordination with an Earth ball game known as "catch".

They seem to have changed the rules and are catching Ethan instead.

Approaching level three. Stand by.

Team have played two games.

They have won one and lost one.

Will their newly honed co-ordination technique secure another win?

Wow!

So, you Earth twerps are actually back for more.

Who'd have thought it?

You know, I really thought you'd fail after level one!

So, are you ready for another game?

-ALL:

-Yes!

Good, because this one I am particularly proud of.

In this game, you need to watch and memorise the sequence of lights,

then tap out the sequence on the screen.

You need to get four sequences right by the end of 60 seconds.

But if you lose, I'll upload your precious Earth twerps

into my game for...ever.

So, who are you going to play for this time?

Ethan's mum, or his friend, Jordan?

Caitlin's dad? Or Grace's sister, Ruby?

-I think we should go with Ethan.

-Oh, go on, then, Jordan.

-Jordan.

-Who's it going to be?

-Jordan.

OK, gamers, take your place at the table.

Gamers, you have 60 seconds to win back Ethan's friend, Jordan.

And are you ready at home? The game begins in three, two, one, go.

-Blue, green, orange...

-Gamers here proving that they know

all their colours. Yes, pretty impressive, guys.

But can they remember them in the right order?

OK, so they did, yeah, hmm. That's pretty annoying.

But they need to get three more if they're going to win,

and this one's more complicated.

Boy, but look at Ethan - he's whizzing through on that, isn't he?

Good stuff.

They need two more. Hmm, try your hands at that one kids. Ha-ha-ha!

30 seconds.

You're doing pretty well.

Oh, hard cheese!

You got it one wrong. Have another go.

Blue, blue, yellow, red, blue. Can they do it? Let's find out.

How are you doing at home? This one is pretty tricksy, isn't it?

It's actually one of my favourite games for that very reason, yeah.

It's the final countdown. Can they do it? I can't watch. I can't watch!

OK, I'm watching. Looking good!

Ha-ha-ha-haaa!

Gamers, you have lost.

Hooray, congratulations. OK, folks at home, that's how not to do it.

Fantastic.

I told you this would happen. Your gameplay was lame.

You've lost. Your friend is stuck in the game.

Commiserations, gamers,

all is not lost.

You still have three of your friends and family to win back.

Pilot, let's fly to level four.

# Download my app, whoo-whoo-whoo!

# Download my app!

Go to the CBBC website and download my app!

You can play along if you can just obey my song, and...

# Download my app, everybody... #

The next level is a single-player game.

Ethan selected.

Docking at level four.

Ethan eats chips with almost every meal.

Let's hope he doesn't make a meal of level four.

Welcome, Ethan.

-Are you ready to take on the might of Ludus?

-Yes!

-And are you ready to lose?

-No.

-Oh, I thought I'd catch you out there!

Anyway, it's time for level four.

Here comes the science.

To win this game, you need to collect 50 gold ticks

by dragging them into the target.

Avoid the red ticks - these subtract a point from your total.

Watch out - any tick can turn silver, hiding it's original colour.

Your total will be revealed at the end of 60 seconds,

but if you lose, your precious Earth twerp will be uploaded into my game

for...ever.

So, who you going to play for this time? Your mum? Caitlin's dad?

-Or Grace's sister, Ruby?

-My mother.

Gamer, take your place at the table.

Gamer, you have 60 seconds to win back your mum.

And are you ready at home? The game begins in three, two, one, go.

Ethan's steadily starting to drag some ticks into the target,

but already I'm pretty sure I've seen a couple of red ticks go in there.

Ha-ha! That's pretty good news.

He's picked up the speed here, dragging more

and more gold ticks into there.

Ethan's like a dog digging a hole.

Remember, he needs to get a total of 50 gold ticks at the end

of 60 seconds, and that's after we've deducted all of the red ticks.

Well, it's getting close to the magic number - 50.

Yeah, in fact, that is 50. Ah, we'll see how many of those are gold, huh?

Whoa, he's really starting to speed up, dragging them in quickly.

How are you doing at home?

This game gives you friction burns on your fingers, doesn't it?

-Yeah, have a little warm down after this, ha-ha!

-..Nine, eight...

It's the final countdown. He's really going for it.

Ooh, he's got a grand old total there. He's in the 80s.

Is it going to be enough? Have my bugs put him off?

Whoa, he's run out of time. It's time to deduct the red.

Keep going down. Oh, 73?!

-Gamer, you have won.

-Yes!

-How did you do that?

-Easy.

-Ah, well, I think you were cheating.

-No!

-I think you cheated!

-No, I didn't.

Gamer, collect your holobox and return to the Herculean.

Congratulations, gamers.

Ethan, you can now load your mum into the holoport to download later.

Pilot, let's fly to level five.

Gamers, you still have two people left to save.

So far, I can confirm you have saved Grace's mum and Ethan's mum.

Unfortunately, Caitlin's sister, Olivia,

and Ethan's friend, Jordan, are stuck in Ludus's game.

Level five is a two-player game. Selecting Caitlin and Grace.

Hi, Grace. Hi, Miss America.

-How are you guys doing?

-Good.

-Fine.

So, I just had Ethan visit me on level four.

-Do you know, I think he's a bad guy like me.

-No, he's really good.

-Are you sure about that?

-Yeah.

I agree - borderline, huh?

-OK, are you ready for my game? BOTH:

-Yes!

OK, concentrate your puny brains, level-fivers.

These are the rules.

In this game, you must work as a team and use your bats

to stop your precious tick from hitting the spiky walls.

"Super-easy!" I hear you cry.

Well, that's why my cat-walking bugs will be strutting around too.

You have 60 seconds.

If you hit the spikes more than five times, you will lose,

and your precious Earth twerp will be uploaded into my game

for...ever.

So, who are you going to play for this time? Will it be Caitlin's dad?

-Or Grace's sister, Ruby?

-My sister, Ruby.

OK, take your place at the table.

Gamers, you have 60 seconds to win back Grace's sister.

And are you ready at home? The game begins in three, two, one, go!

OK, bugs, these guys have been pretty good so far,

so you really need to step it up now and get some spikes.

Spike, ha-ha! OK, that's one spike.

Remember, they can't get any more than five if they want to win.

-40 seconds.

-Oh - spike! Yeah, that's two spikes!

These girls seem to be settling into a bit of a rhythm now, though.

OK, bugs, come on. Let's see if we can put them off here, huh?

Whoa, yeah, that's their third spike, ha-ha!

We've got 20 seconds to get more spikes in there. Come on, bugs!

You'll recognise Madonna and her twin sister.

Both looking really great up here, guys, doing a good job.

But you know who else is doing a good job?

These girls. We've got to stop 'em. Come on!

It's the final countdown. I don't think we can do much now.

You're useless bugs! I don't know why I'm so good to you. Oh, nooo!

-Gamers, you have won.

-BOTH:

-Yes!

You can now collect your holobox and return to the Herculean.

-Congratulations, gamers.

-Yes!

Grace, place your sister into the holoport to download later.

You still have one of your family members to win back.

Let's fly to level six.

The next level is a single-player game.

Grace selected and warming up.

Grace can play the tenor horn, but can she blow her own trumpet here?

Hi, Grace!

-Are you ready to lose?

-No.

Let's run the rules!

In this game, you must push the tick and land it on the round target.

To steer the tick, use the paddles.

Push it too hard and you'll hit the laser beam.

But beware, my bugs will be getting in your way.

You need to land two ticks on the target in 60 seconds,

but if you lose,

your precious Earth twerp will be uploaded into my game

for...ever.

There's only one person left to play for, and that's Caitlin's dad.

-Now, will you let me have Caitlin's dad for the game?

-No.

-Oh, great, so you'll keep us all happy and lose?

-No.

-This is wonderful, we're all agreed.

-I'm going to save Caitlin's dad.

Thank you so much. Great doing business with you.

Gamer, take your place at the table.

Gamer, you have 60 seconds to win back Caitlin's dad.

And are you ready at home?

The game begins in three, two, one, GO!

Grace needs to concentrate on this game - on her aim

and the pressure that she pushes the tick.

Oh, that's close. Oh, just a little bit too hard. Ha-ha!

That looks a little bit slow to me, huh?

Yeah, it's the slowest travelling tick in the world, Grace!

-See how she does now.

-40 seconds.

Bugs! Ha-ha! Well done, bugs.

Great defence there! That was Eric just then.

-Eric loves defe... He's a great defensive bug.

-30 seconds.

Grace is rolling out another slow-moving tick.

I've got to say though, she's doing a good job of guiding it

with her paddles there.

This is actually very impressive stuff.

Ooh, that was close from Eric!

Oh, that's on target.

She needs one more, but there's not long left. It's the final countdown.

Can she do it in the last ten seconds? Huge defensive play.

Don't panic, Gracie. She's starting to lose it!

If she could... Oh, she's lost! Ha-ha-ha!

Gamer, you have lost.

I told you this would happen. Your gameplay was lame. You've lost.

Caitlin's dad is stuck in the game.

Commiserations, gamers.

-How do you feel, Caitlin?

-Angry and mad and sad.

You have played six levels and won back three holoboxes.

Unfortunately, Caitlin's sister, Olivia, Ethan's friend, Jordan,

and Caitlin's dad have been uploaded to Ludus's game for all time.

But now you must face Ludus one more time to win your own tickets home.

Pilot, fly at warp speed to the final level.

THEY ALL SCREAM

Gamers, hold tight.

We are now docking at the final level. Ludus is waiting for you.

Team status for final game... Confidence - 76%.

Fear - 48%.

Status - ready.

Three serious faces.

It's almost as if it's the really important final game.

Oh, yeah, it is!

Here's how it's going to go down.

One of these ticks is your return ticket home. Who knew?!

All you have to do is keep an eye on it.

If you pick the right tick, you'll win a return ticket home

and go back to Earth.

Hooray! But if you pick my bug, you will be stranded here

in the levels of Ludus for ever, and you'll have to work for me.

And trust me, you won't like it. Got it?

Ethan, see if you can catch your ticket.

Can you keep your eye on the ticket? It's time to mix the ticks.

Do you know which one it is?

Oh, no!

Disaster for Ethan!

Welcome to Ludus Enterprises.

You shall be one of my top cleaners.

Now, tell me, are you disappointed?

Really mad and disappointed.

Fantastic!

Caitlin, let's see what you're made of.

It's time to mix the ticks.

Do you know which one it is?

-I think.

-Oh, you're quite confident.

-Yeah.

-No, it was the one on the right! Did you know that one, Grace?

-Yeah.

And you didn't help her, Grace. You are such a bad guy!

Grace, do your finest.

And play along at home. It's time to mix the ticks.

-Do you know which one it is?

-No!

She's completely baffled and confused.

This is great! Which one's it going to be, Grace?

I guess Grace knew all along.

Ha, Ludus, I'm going home!

Well, good, I can't wait to get rid of you.

Grace, you may have won a ticket home,

but in my eyes,

you'll always be...a loser!

And now scram!

Bye! Have fun mopping the floor!

And don't go telling everybody you won, OK?

Winning gamers must board the Herculean immediately.

Caitlin and Ethan, you messed up.

So, by the powers invested in me, blah-di-blah-di-blah-di-blah,

you must stay on the levels of Ludus for all eternity, and mop.

Any last words?

I hate cleaning and mopping and I hate you.

Congratulations. You are a champion gamer.

You have rescued three of your friends and family.

The Herculean will now take you and your loved ones to planet Earth.

Wa-how! That was as exciting as a frog on an ice rink.

Have you seen that? They're not natural skaters. It's a lot of fun.

Whoa, well, why don't you watch next time,

when three more puny Earth twerps will face Ludus?

That's me, by the way!

OK, until then, goodbye!

Ha-ha, Ludus, you didn't get me!

Well, did you play along at home?

How did you do?

Better than those guys, huh?

Why not download my free app from the CBBC website

and play along next time?

Give Ethan the smaller mop.

OK, little bit harder, guys. Harder mopping, yeah.