POTENTIAL MAN is a little adventure game in which you can find a weird story, exploration, battles, and some unusual encounters. You start the game at the Great Tree and then travel through places like the forest and hill, meeting characters such as Murphy and Kyle along the way.
Most of the story is straightforward, but the game has some interesting things that are easy to miss. Some achievements can be unlocked by making a specific choice, while others require you to inspect something, revisit an area, or perform something different during a battle.
So, if you want to get 100% of the POTENTIAL MAN achievements, this guide is going to help you.
POTENTIAL MAN Story Achievements
BEGIN
Achievement: Start your journey for the first time.
This trophy is very easy to get, and you can earn it at the start of the game. Just go through the Great Tree’s dialogue and accept your mission.
I SIMPLY REFUSE
Achievement: Refuse to listen to the Great Tree.
When the Great Tree asks if you accept your mission, then you should choose to refuse.
Keep refusing the choices until the achievement unlocks. You can also enable Fast Dialogue in the settings to make this quicker.
VANQUISH ROCK
Achievement: Eliminate the big rock.
When you complete the tutorial session and listen to the song, you will encounter your first enemy, a rock.
You have to keep attacking the rock until you defeat it. I forgot the exact number of attacks required to defeat the rock, but I know you can manage it since it is your first enemy and easy to defeat.
A LIVELY CONVERSATION
Achievement: Speak to the rock across the whole battle.
When you are fighting with the rock, you’ll get options to talk with it. Choose the option to keep talking to it.
Continue using the dialogue option until the conversation runs out and starts repeating.
INSPECTOR
Achievement: Fully inspect the remains of the rock.
After defeating the rock, make sure you inspect its remains.
You’ll also get some choices to talk with the remains. Keep choosing the inspection option until you have exhausted the available dialogue. The achievement will unlock when you finish examining it.
A MAVERICK’S VICTORY
Achievement: Fight through Murphy’s week.
Now keep playing the story, and at some point you’ll meet Murphy.
Follow the events of his week and defeat Murphy to unlock this achievement.
MISFIRE
Achievement: Unleash Piercing Blow and miss.
During Murphy’s week or in Murphy’s computer battle.net, your available attacks will be random. To unlock this achievement, get the Piercing Blow, use it on Murphy, and make sure your attack misses the target.
Since the attacks are random, I recommend that you make a save before the battle, as it can save you some time if you don’t get the required result.
A TRIO OF TWIGS
Achievement: Inspect 3 branches in the forest.
Go to the forest area where you can see paths leading toward the cabin and the hill.
This area can spawn Twigs. I don’t know how to trigger them; I think they are random. For this achievement, you have to inspect three Twigs.
The third twig will not appear immediately. If you don’t see it, leave the area and enter it again. Keep doing this until the third twig spawns.
POTENTIAL MAN Secret Achievements
COLLECTED
Hidden Achievement: Die to the squirrel.
When you reach the hill for the first time, you will also encounter a squirrel.
When the squirrel attacks you, you do the same instead of trying to avoid the fight. Let the squirrel kill you to unlock the achievement.
THE SAVIOR
Hidden Achievement: Reach the end of Murphy’s eagle encounter.
When you see Murphy’s flashback with the eagle and his brother, open your inventory.
You can find three rocks available. Make sure you use all 3 rocks during the encounter to reach the end of the sequence and unlock the achievement.
IT NEARLY HAPPENED
Hidden Achievement: Start your journey for the first time.
Despite the description, this achievement is related to Murphy’s eagle flashback.
When you face the eagle, choose to Guard or Run Away instead of using the three rocks.
RUN AWAY, LITTLE HEDGEHOG
Hidden Achievement: Fight Kyle and scare him away.
After your first interaction with Murphy, return to the forest.
From the hill, go down and head left. You will find a shadow belonging to Kyle.
Go near the shadow to start the battle, and then attack Kyle. The achievement will unlock if you scare him away.
A MAN IN THE WOODS
Hidden Achievement: Revisit and ponder the man’s cabin.
First, reach the forest and take the right path until you find the cabin.
Afterward, return to the hill and continue Murphy’s encounter until he leaves. Then go back to the cabin.
This revisit will trigger the achievement.
CRUSH IT
Hidden Achievement: Destroy another acorn.
You can find an acorn on the ground in the same forest area where the twigs appear.
When you enter the area for the first time, look for the acorn and interact with it using Z. A short cutscene will play, and the achievement will unlock.
COGNITIVE DISSONANCE
Hidden Achievement: Argue with your own mind.
After your first encounter with Murphy, you will be asked whether you want to follow him.
Choose not to follow Murphy.
Then try to go to the top of the hill. This will trigger the required event for the achievement.
A FOOL’S SCHOLAR
Hidden Achievement: Answer all of Murphy’s questions correctly.
During Murphy’s quiz section, you need to answer all 12 questions correctly.
Use these answers in order:
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| 1 | To find acorns |
| 2 | Greenish-Yellow |
| 3 | 14 |
| 4 | Medicine |
| 5 | Corporations |
| 6 | Cubie |
| 7 | “ARG” rogue-like / rogue-lite |
| 8 | Skunk |
| 9 | Caleb |
| 10 | Anonymity |
| 11 | Cashew |
| 12 | Me |
ANNOYED
Hidden Achievement: Annoy Murphy during his battle segment.
When you are fighting Murphy’s, repeatedly choose the option to Run.
Keep trying to run instead of fighting until the achievement unlocks.
TURN AROUND
Hidden Achievement
First, defeat the rock and then return to the Great Tree.
Later, after following Murphy, return to the Great Tree again. A second cutscene will play, which unlocks the TURN AROUND achievement.
ANOTHER WORLD
Hidden Achievement: Unlock and visit Murphy’s computer.
First, finish the game. After reaching the end, return to the Main Menu and open Extras. From there, select Murphy’s Computer.
You can find a sticky note inside that contains the password to open the computer. Enter the password and visit Murphy’s computer to unlock the achievement.
END
Hidden Achievement: Reach the end of the story.
This achievement will unlock naturally when you complete the story.
