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How long are you stuck on something before looking it up?
- Thread starter Piston
- Start date
if i feel it's bullshit-y design i'll look it up fast.
this weekend there were like two missions on Division 2 that were total bullshit (blow up unmarked thing in a game where virtually anything of slight importance is marked). i was like "nope, not having this today"
this weekend there were like two missions on Division 2 that were total bullshit (blow up unmarked thing in a game where virtually anything of slight importance is marked). i was like "nope, not having this today"
OP
OP
I hadn't thought of it in the way a lot of you are putting it, it definitely depends on how I feel about getting stuck. If I feel like it is bad game design rather than me being stupid, I am much faster to do it. I ran into a few puzzles in the Uncharted series last year that actually had graphical glitches that stopped me from being able to read my journal and solve the puzzles... I looked those up.
Ill never look something up, to me it's cheating. Ill just put the game down and try again at some point. Last game I did this was ICO on the PS2, I got stuck at a part halfway through the game and dropped it. Picked it back up when it released on PS3 at some point and got past it.
Last time I looked something up was for Syberia (adventure game), once I looked up the solution to a puzzle, I lost all desire to continue with the game.
Last time I looked something up was for Syberia (adventure game), once I looked up the solution to a puzzle, I lost all desire to continue with the game.
Depends on the game. Recently, there were a few points that I wanted to look up things for Thimbleweed Park, but I was glad that I figured it all out on my own.
In Baba Is You I was originally giving it a fair few minutes, even till like 20 minutes at times when needed.
Now having gotten pretty far into it and getting stuck becoming a regularity rather than an inconvinience, I just give in within a minute if I'm not very clearly making progress.
Now having gotten pretty far into it and getting stuck becoming a regularity rather than an inconvinience, I just give in within a minute if I'm not very clearly making progress.
10-15 mins.
As a younger man I had a pride thing about not getting help but as an adult with limited time fuck that. There are too many good games I want to play to waste hours when the solution is like 3 clicks away.
As a younger man I had a pride thing about not getting help but as an adult with limited time fuck that. There are too many good games I want to play to waste hours when the solution is like 3 clicks away.
In the jungle zone/area of Breath of the Wild, there's the Kah Yah shrine, you have to find fragments for it, then you gotta kneel on one side of the shrine. Well I crawled across it / kneeled for a sec than ran off cause nothing happened. Well apparently you have to kneel for like 2-3 secs before it triggers. I combed the entire area and the ocean for like 5-6 hours before giving in and looking it up. I was very upset to learn it was literally the first thing I tried, I just didn't wait long enough...
Before kids I took pride in the fact that I never once used a guide with the exception of FFX's silly temple puzzles.
After kids, I don't have time to waste figuring out things since my gaming time is so limited. Looked up Divinity II's Gargoyle Maze and all safe combinations in RE2 recently.
After kids, I don't have time to waste figuring out things since my gaming time is so limited. Looked up Divinity II's Gargoyle Maze and all safe combinations in RE2 recently.
Depends what I'm stuck on and how stuck I am. If it's a boss fight or something, I'll usually go look stuff up once I feel like I'm not progressing anymore. When I hit the point where I'm doing everything I can think of and nothing is working, I go to google. Meanwhile something like Pokemon Shuffle(which is my current mobile addiction) I'm quick to look something up because of the Heart system in that game and how many of the harder levels basically require you to use items. So I want to know "is this level even realistically beatable with my current setup w/o items" before I waste a day or two trying it. For more "normal" times when I'm stuck I'm pretty quick to look stuff up. I don't mind wandering around trying to find something but I don't like wasting a lot of time aimlessly walking around when I don't have a ton of time to play games these days. Probably 10 or so minutes of aimless confusion before I break and go look up a guide.
Younger me tried my best. Now since game time is limited it's pretty rare that I let myself stay stuck for long.
When FFXII first game out I was in the great crystal for the longest time. I replayed it and had a crystal walkthrough ready before I even got to that bullshit.
When FFXII first game out I was in the great crystal for the longest time. I replayed it and had a crystal walkthrough ready before I even got to that bullshit.
Not very long honestly and some games I have a guide pulled up. I just don't have the time to waste hours on stuff like that
I definitely try not to but yeah, Baba is You is testing the hell out of me.
The Witness eventually broke me on that front and I wish I hadn't. Ended up ruining the whole experience for myself.
The Witness eventually broke me on that front and I wish I hadn't. Ended up ruining the whole experience for myself.
Not long. I don't have the time or patience to spend hours on something poorly designed in a video game. I also don't want to be frustrated by a video game.
You shouldn't fail something so many times to the point it gets frustrating and have to go look it up. That's shitty game design.
You shouldn't fail something so many times to the point it gets frustrating and have to go look it up. That's shitty game design.
The second the challenge is no longer "fun".
I'll enjoy having a go at a puzzle but as soon as the feeling is transitioning to frustration I'll jump on a guide. I still want to enjoy everything else about the game without this specific puzzle being some sort of final roadblock.
Massively took this approach with Broken Age (Part 2 particularly) and Resident Evil HD Remaster
I'll enjoy having a go at a puzzle but as soon as the feeling is transitioning to frustration I'll jump on a guide. I still want to enjoy everything else about the game without this specific puzzle being some sort of final roadblock.
Massively took this approach with Broken Age (Part 2 particularly) and Resident Evil HD Remaster
For puzzle games like Baba Is You or puzzle-focused genres like point-and-click adventures, I don't look things up. I am totally comfortable with the idea of dropping the game outright if I hit a wall. If I want to see all the content, I have to earn it. Looking up the answers defeats the purpose of playing the game at all.
(I'm fairly deep into Baba Is You, totally blind, and can't imagine conceding after ten or twenty minutes. Some of these puzzles should take an hour or more to click if you don't have the right mindset for them, and if you don't understand the concepts well enough to put them together on your own, you're only setting yourself up for more failure in later stages, perpetuating a cycle of surrender and shame.)
Collectibles are a different story. I rarely have the patience for the endgame sweep from 95% to 100% if I need to run around checking every possible corner of the map, and for catalogues like enemy galleries or the Spirits list in SSBU, I'll look up what I'm missing so I can make a concerted effort to fill it in instead of stumbling about blindly. I rely on in-game resources for this whenever possible: completion percentages on zone maps and inventory screens, or secret-hunting items like the ones in DKCTF and Yoshi's Woolly World (for mopping up the last few missing puzzle pieces or stamps, respectively). If 100% doesn't look that interesting to complete, I don't bother.
And even so, I take a long time to break. In BotW I think I looked up a total of two shrine locations, as I thought I had swept the map pretty thoroughly by that point and had no idea where to check, and I honestly wish I hadn't. I'm still missing three side quests on my file, I think, and it's only now at the two-year mark that I'm seriously thinking about consulting a list just to clean them up.
It depends on how much you trust the designer, of course.
The ideal sensation you want to get from looking something up is: "Okay, I would never have figured that out myself." Until I'm very confident that will be my precise reaction, I'd rather not risk the disappointment of spoiling something totally within my reach.
(I'm fairly deep into Baba Is You, totally blind, and can't imagine conceding after ten or twenty minutes. Some of these puzzles should take an hour or more to click if you don't have the right mindset for them, and if you don't understand the concepts well enough to put them together on your own, you're only setting yourself up for more failure in later stages, perpetuating a cycle of surrender and shame.)
Collectibles are a different story. I rarely have the patience for the endgame sweep from 95% to 100% if I need to run around checking every possible corner of the map, and for catalogues like enemy galleries or the Spirits list in SSBU, I'll look up what I'm missing so I can make a concerted effort to fill it in instead of stumbling about blindly. I rely on in-game resources for this whenever possible: completion percentages on zone maps and inventory screens, or secret-hunting items like the ones in DKCTF and Yoshi's Woolly World (for mopping up the last few missing puzzle pieces or stamps, respectively). If 100% doesn't look that interesting to complete, I don't bother.
And even so, I take a long time to break. In BotW I think I looked up a total of two shrine locations, as I thought I had swept the map pretty thoroughly by that point and had no idea where to check, and I honestly wish I hadn't. I'm still missing three side quests on my file, I think, and it's only now at the two-year mark that I'm seriously thinking about consulting a list just to clean them up.
It depends on how much you trust the designer, of course.
The ideal sensation you want to get from looking something up is: "Okay, I would never have figured that out myself." Until I'm very confident that will be my precise reaction, I'd rather not risk the disappointment of spoiling something totally within my reach.
I used to almost never look anything up, because I didn't want to cheat. Now, if I'm stuck for 10-20 minutes I will most of the time. I don't have to often though, which is nice.
OP
OP
I actually like the way Nintendo handles this in some games with the assist feature, where you get an option to use an assist if you die a set amount of times trying to complete a level. I have never used it, but I know people who have.
I know that trying to solve a puzzle is different, maybe after a few failed solutions?
5-10 minutes tops.
I'm not that big into puzzles. They're generally not my idea of fun and with kids and family commitments, every minute I have is valuable.
I'm not that big into puzzles. They're generally not my idea of fun and with kids and family commitments, every minute I have is valuable.
It depends on the puzzle and whether failing is fun.
If it's a puzzle where you die on failure, then I'll keep trying so long as I think I'm getting closer to succeeding.
If it's a puzzle that's going to involve a lot of tedious backtracking and loadscreens to get an item or talk to someone that might solve it - then I'll usually look up the answer immediately or after the first failed attempt.
For pure puzzle games, I'll generally abandon the game if I find I have to regularly look up the answers.
If it's a puzzle where you die on failure, then I'll keep trying so long as I think I'm getting closer to succeeding.
If it's a puzzle that's going to involve a lot of tedious backtracking and loadscreens to get an item or talk to someone that might solve it - then I'll usually look up the answer immediately or after the first failed attempt.
For pure puzzle games, I'll generally abandon the game if I find I have to regularly look up the answers.
Baba is you puzzle - 10 mins of trying
Sekiro - 1 hour of doing a boss (So far only did it once)
Sekiro - 1 hour of doing a boss (So far only did it once)
Generally I'll try to work it out myself, but it really depends on the game. Sometimes if it's something I really want to give a fair shake I'll come back to it with a fresh pair of eyes the following day and try to solve it without looking up the solution. So maybe a couple of hours in total. But if it's something that I'm not really enjoying or I just want to finish it then I might just look up how to do it online. Some examples for this would be more combat-oriented games and defeating bosses, like some of the fights in Nioh, for a fairly recent example.
Takes me more than 30 mins and then a second try and i'm done. God of war 1 and 2 recently really pissed me off, what was jaffe trying to do get us to break our controllers?
I am still playing the witness since it was free on PS plus and I never looked up a puzzle. All done with my own head and my partner. I like the mental exercise and even if it takes an hour so be it. Because I have fun in the meantime theorising crazy ideas and pitching them to each other.
Used to be never. As an adult with far more limited play time? Usually 5 minutes. Whatever Joy and sense of achievement I would have had from accomplishing the task myself is vastly outstripped by the loss of entertainment value per hour the longer I'm stuck on something, esp. when it's usually the case that I only have an hour to begin with.
This is in regards to puzzles or me missing something that might've been obvious to others about how to proceed. So like, not even necessarily a pizzle but something dumb like "you can't proceed and kick off the next chapter until you talk to that one npc". I get stuck on shit like that in all types of games ALL THE TIME and it drives me nuts.
Bosses and difficult battle challenges? I'll go for much longer on my own. If it's several attempts and I seem to be making no discernible progress whatsoever and can't identify what I'm doing wrong, then I might check with a friend or look it up.
This is in regards to puzzles or me missing something that might've been obvious to others about how to proceed. So like, not even necessarily a pizzle but something dumb like "you can't proceed and kick off the next chapter until you talk to that one npc". I get stuck on shit like that in all types of games ALL THE TIME and it drives me nuts.
Bosses and difficult battle challenges? I'll go for much longer on my own. If it's several attempts and I seem to be making no discernible progress whatsoever and can't identify what I'm doing wrong, then I might check with a friend or look it up.
Depends on the game. Some things aren't meant to be solved alone. Destiny 2 puzzles, for example.
That said I'll usually spend a reasonable amount of time on things and scour everything I can see. It usually turns out that things I can't find are in places I would have never in a year of playing gone or looked at.
If I can get by with watching just enough of a guide to point me in the right direction rather than revealing the full answer, that's what I do.
That said I'll usually spend a reasonable amount of time on things and scour everything I can see. It usually turns out that things I can't find are in places I would have never in a year of playing gone or looked at.
If I can get by with watching just enough of a guide to point me in the right direction rather than revealing the full answer, that's what I do.
If it's a test of gameplay skill, be it management of resources or timing or pattern learning, I never look up a guide. At least, I can't think of a time I've ever done so. I just keep trying.
If it's a puzzle or some sort of necessary information or item I simply don't know how to get, I try and exhaust all possible avenues of clues, really think on it, take a break, then consider it all again. If after all that I still can't progress, and I'm blocked from progressing in the story, I'll look up the answer. How long that takes will vary depending on the game though.
If it's a puzzle or some sort of necessary information or item I simply don't know how to get, I try and exhaust all possible avenues of clues, really think on it, take a break, then consider it all again. If after all that I still can't progress, and I'm blocked from progressing in the story, I'll look up the answer. How long that takes will vary depending on the game though.
Basically when fun turns to frustration.
Usually my rational is that I will eventually find the solution but I don't want to waste time doing so.
Usually my rational is that I will eventually find the solution but I don't want to waste time doing so.