Thinkathon Stream

22 thoughts on “Thinkathon Stream”

1. In a shocking twist I will not be able to watch this one because I will be on an airplane.

   (Also don’t want to spoil myself on Lost Memories!)

2. Matt, I was only doing this for you! I told everyone on the Thinky Games team, “look, my buddy Matt, he misses my streams all the time”. We all agreed, as a group, to make this the Mattathon, but someone said Thinkathon sounded better.

3. So now that I have Lost Memories I am enjoying it, but I am also finding a lot of, er, edge cases with surprising behavior, Adversity-style. Did you have this experience? I should probably let Corey and Alan know on Steam but I haven’t had the energy to video them yet.

4. I solved about 25 levels so far. There is one particular mechanic that I find difficult to understand the rationale for. Abridged is the perfect example to demonstrate.

   Bar obk ba gbc bs nabgure obk nccneragyl jba’g tb vagb fcnpr jura na neebj uvgf vg, sevpgvba npgvat yvxr tenivgl.

5. Wait really. I haven’t experienced that. Unless you mean…

   gung n obk ba gbc bs nabgure obk, jvgu n fcnpr va orgjrra vg naq gur neebj, jba’g tb vagb fcnpr jura gur neebj uvgf vg. Gung’f pbafvfgrag jvgu gur bevtvany tnzr gubhtu, vs gur obk vfa’g nyernql arkg gb gur neebj gura gur neebj whfg tbrf vagb vg naq guhaxf gurer.

   The difference I think I’ve experienced is…

   vs lbh ner ubyqvat n obk bire n obk gung vf evtug ba gur neebj jura lbh gevttre vg, vg jba’g tb vagb fcnpr. Gubhtu V’z abg fher V rire rkcrevraprq guvf rknpg pbasvthengvba va gur bevtvany tnzr, nf bccbfrq gb fgnaqvat ba n obk. Znlor guvf unccraf va Obqlthneq naq vg jbexf gur fnzr?

   Anyway, some of the stuff I’m experiencing is decidedly Obviously Not Intended, like when I turn downward from here I get this.

   I’ve done 19 so far, I’ve also skipped a few, a couple due to getting confounded by that kind of behavior and a couple due to “whaaa? this is impossible!”

6. Also, hmm, even if that did what I think it should do, it wouldn’t solve the puzzle, would it?

   Vs V pbhyq yrnir gur ubevmbagny pengr cyhf orybatvatf obk va gur fybg, V pbhyq chfu vg snegure va jvgu gur iregvpny pengr, ohg gung jbhyq fgvyy yrnir gur orybatvatf qnatyvat nobir gur cler.

   Much to think about.

7. I’m up to 37 at the moment and I’ve reach the final platform, although I still have plenty left to solve. I found exactly the same weird bug on Loch Ness! (The level remains unsolved.) I think I got one somewhere else as well, I don’t recall exactly the level. Same issue though – turning while carrying a lot of crates.

   Once I’ve adapted to the behaviours of the vertical arrow, I’m okay, but I just want to go back to this point: Gur vqrn gung n erpgnathyne obk jvyy sver vagb fcnpr hayrff cneg bs vg erfgf ba nabgure obk znxrf ab culfvpny frafr. Sevpgvba qbrf abg jbex yvxr gung. Gurer’f ab qvssrerapr orgjrra erfgvat ba gur tebhaq be erfgvat ba n obk.

8. I solved Loch Ness shortly after posting that–extremely nonspecific spoiler follows:

   Jura V ernyvmrq gung jung V jnf gelvat jbhyqa’g uryc, vg sbyybjrq gung V arrqrq gb qb fbzrguvat gung jbhyq uryc, juvpu zrnag gung gur guvat gung jbhyq uryc zhfg or cbffvoyr. Naq V svtherq bhg ubj gb qb vg.

   Also cleaned up two more stumpers, which were pretty clearly of a pair with each other. And ditched Tripwire, where I found so many bugs that I really can’t tell what I’m supposed to do. Not just crates flying off in opposite directions when they hit an obstacle, but sometimes crates winding up embedded in a wall. etc.

   Then I found the side area with Rescue Mission etc. and noped right on out of it. Currently at 25 and just hit the levels with water and spikes.

   About the physics:

   V qba’g guvax gur vffhr vf erfgvat ba gur tebhaq if. erfgvat ba n obk (be orvat uryq), vg’f gur qvfgnapr orgjrra gur obk naq gur neebj. Sevpgvba vfa’g qbvat gur jbex urer, vg’f… nve erfvfgnapr znlor? Vs gur neebj geniryf guebhtu gur nve orsber fgevxvat gur obk vg qbrfa’g unir rabhtu zbzraghz gb zbir gur obk.

   Gubhtu gura vg’f jrveq gung vs gur neebj vf cebcryyvat n obk, geniryf guebhtu nve, naq uvgf nabgure obk, vg pbagvahrf gb cebcry gung bar nf jryy. Uzzz, znlor bapr n obk vf nggnpurq gurer vfa’g nf zhpu nve erfvfgnapr orpnhfr gur jubyr guvat vf urnivre naq unf zber zbzraghz?

9. Oh, I think you might be right.

   Vs n obk vf fvggvat ba n genc nf vg’f fcehat, vg jvyy syl npebff gur znc. Ohg vs n zbivat neebj cyhatrf vagb vg, gura vg jba’g. V guvax gur “vqrn” vf gung gur fcevat zrpunavfz vf cbjreshy. Vg’f n yvggyr pbashfrq. Ng yrnfg V pna abj haqrefgnaq gur zrpunavp orggre.

   V thrff gurer’f na vffhr urer gung Obqlthneq jnf bar bs gur yriryf gung naablrq zr n ybg orpnhfr vg unccrarq fb snfg – jung unccrarq fb snfg? V qba’g xabj. Orpnhfr vg unccrarq fb snfg. V qba’g guvax V cebcreyl vagreanyvmrq gur neebj ehyrf.

10. derot13ing, ha ha nothing happened fast for me with Bodyguard, that level took me forever. Definitely had some thoughts like this about Chain Reaction though.

    Some of the wackier interactions I’ve had with Tripwire make me worry that it’s like Rube Goldberg, where the solution depended on some edge interactions that were hard to anticipate in advance. But in Rube Goldberg the number of things you could try was very small. Entirely likely that I am overlooking the sensible thing to do in Tripwire.

11. well that’s that level sorted all I need to do is not walk across the pressure plate that is sitting out in the open with blank space all around it

    *thonk*

12. It’s the Bonfire Peaks tradition

13. OK, this bit of friction is kind of annoying.

    V pna whfgvsl jul lbh qba’g trg fubg vagb fcnpr jura lbh ubyq n obk bire bar gung’f ba gbc bs n svevat neebj–lbh ner fgenvavat gb xrrc vg va cynpr be fbzrguvat–naq gung’f pevgvpny sbe n ohapu bs chmmyrf. Ohg gurer vf ab *rneguyl* rkcynangvba sbe jul gur fgernz pna pneel njnl n pengr gung’f nyfb erfgvat ba n pengr gung’f ba gur tebhaq, ohg vg pna’g pneel njnl n pengr gung’f nyfb erfgvat ba n pengr gung lbh’er ubyqvat.

14. All I can say Matt is that I still haven’t solved Undock yet.

15. Finally got Undock and… phew. This was the first puzzle you see when you get to a new area?

16. There are quite a few tough puzzles up here, Matt. I’ve sorted a few but Sushi Belt, Lonely at the Top, Hurdles and Over the Hill continue to evade my smarts.

17. Yes–though I’ve solved all those except Sushi Belt. (Sushi Belt seems like it’ll be pretty annoying, like it’s a matter of Building The Right Shapes and building is a cumbersome process before you try it out.) The other ones I have left I think are Tripwire, Sculpture, Drop Box, and Raised Altar, plus I solved Spiky Tower through an egregious bug exploit and would like to figure out the real solution. Drop Box in particular I cannot make head nor tail of, even though I think I’ve figured out a thing (gur checbfr bs gur fcvxrf gung ner ragveryl erzbgr sebz gur znva cneg bs gur yriry vf gung lbh pna fgber n obk gurer jvgubhg oernxvat na neebj, naq lbh pna ergevrir vg naq fgber vg onpx va gur neebj fybg nsgre pyrnevat gur bgure obkrf bss gur gevttre. Ohg jung qbrf guvf nppbzcyvfu?)

    But what I’m thinking about here is (ta-da!) the level selection in the overworld. However I have to restart my computer so this will have to wait.

18. There is a particular trick to Drop Box but even once I figured out the trick, it’s an incredibly delicate solution. I also know exactly how to solve Sushi Belt (I took a closer look and realised it was simpler than I thought) but the level does not seem to allow me to make this solution :S

19. The thing I figured out about Drop Box is right, though, right? right? also it looks like you are dropping a hint with the italicized words, I presume meaning that the trick is one used in the ice levels of the main game, where the musical theme is named “Delicate.”

    (OK I don’t presume that)

20. On Drop Box I also managed to qebc n pengr jvgu na neebj fgvpxvat bhg bs vg vagb gur pehzoyvat obk nggnpurq gb gur jnyy, teno gur pengr, naq fjvat gur pehzoyvat obk njnl naq pnibeg jvgu vg nyy bire gur svryq

    …but I am guessing that is not helpful.

21. I wasn’t trying to hint anything, Matt. Be reassured.

22. Well I proved that the thing I figured out how to do is in no way necessary and now I’m back to complete and utter “there is no way for the parts of this level to go together.”