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What do you guys do when you’re stuck?
Hello everybody,
Stuck in a game, feeling frustrated. Should I take a cheeky glance at a walkthrough or is that considered cheating?
What about in-game hints? Is that legit?
Thanks,
Abhi
It’s just you in a single player game. You can’t hurt anyone else with it, so it’s not cheating. Nothing wrong with consulting a walkthrough when stuck. Or watching a YouTube playthrough.
To not spoil the experience, it’s useful to check if UHS has the game in their database because they will nudge you in the right direction instead of outright giving the solution.
But some games have puzzles that are so out there that you shouldn’t feel guilty about using a walkthrough.
Better to look for the solution to a puzzle you’re stuck at, than to never finish the game because you’re stuck. Especially if you also have adulting to do and don’t have unlimited time to go over every screen ad nauseum and to “try everything on everything”.
The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka
Better to look for the solution to a puzzle you’re stuck at, than to never finish the game because you’re stuck. Especially if you also have adulting to do and don’t have unlimited time to go over every screen ad nauseum and to “try everything on everything”.
I’ve watched playthroughs on twitch of games I’ve already played. Some people start guessing and randlomly using everything on everything when they run out of ideas or things to do. I used to offer them a hint in chat, but more often than not they’d rather be frustrated and bruteforce a solution. Taking a hint equals defeat and trying everything on everything means you’ve done it all by yourself, even if you don’t understand why a particular solution is correct. Something like that. Personally I’d prefer a hint.
Butter my buns and call me a biscuit! - Agent A
Better to look for the solution to a puzzle you’re stuck at, than to never finish the game because you’re stuck.
I think some evidence is called for here. Does anyone not finish a game because they’re stuck? Ever?
Considering adventure games have been around for only ~40 years, I don’t think we can say. What if I get stuck, let the game sit on my shelf and then suddenly, when I’m 95, I think “aha!” and it suddenly occurs to me to close that door inside that room to find that hidden note pinned to the other side of the door that lets me unlock that combination padlock that’s had me stumped for so long.
How satisfying would that be? Compared to checking the walkthrough?
AKA Charo
Well, having internet nowadays, if you don’t finish a game because you are stuck it is because you want.
It wasn’t the same 30 years ago: I remember playing Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis or Monkey 2 and being stuck, and everyday asking at University if someone had found the solution lol. Now that I think about it, we were kind of playing a CPT back then haha!
Currently translating Strangeland into Spanish. Wish me luck, or send me money to my Paypal haha
Great now I feel like a fuckwit for asking this question.
I think I am being hyper-scrupulous and a bit silly, you guys are right.
I think some evidence is called for here. Does anyone not finish a game because they’re stuck? Ever?
Pre-internet, this happened a lot. 
Now? Fuck it, I’ll check a walkthrough when stuck. 
The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka
Hello everybody,
Stuck in a game, feeling frustrated. Should I take a cheeky glance at a walkthrough or is that considered cheating?
What about in-game hints? Is that legit?
Thanks,
Abhi
i played black dahlia,a game that has a good length and story but is frustratingly difficult at timess.the game has a codeword skip for puzzles though they’re not freely given and are more a dev tool than a hint function.the gemstone puzzle is a build it with runes puzzle that has 2 solutions but 1 accepted,and a ludicrous random chance probability.the puzzle is so hard most walkthroughs say to just codeword it.i liked the game but if i had to legitamatly solve some of the tougther puzzles i’d doubt i’d finnish it.the only thing i’d say is unless you really like interactive movies then you should save and attempt most puzzles,but it doesn’t hurt to peek at walkthroughs,hell himts and solutions are built into some games.the main thing to remember is games are meant to be fun,i use trainers on campaign modes sometimes just to do stupid stuff,the key being never to spoil others fun by hacking multiplayer(though consoles blocking cosmetic mods sucks).
Better to look for the solution to a puzzle you’re stuck at, than to never finish the game because you’re stuck.
I think some evidence is called for here. Does anyone not finish a game because they’re stuck? Ever?
Considering adventure games have been around for only ~40 years, I don’t think we can say. What if I get stuck, let the game sit on my shelf and then suddenly, when I’m 95, I think “aha!” and it suddenly occurs to me to close that door inside that room to find that hidden note pinned to the other side of the door that lets me unlock that combination padlock that’s had me stumped for so long.
How satisfying would that be? Compared to checking the walkthrough?
id say its subjective.its never a solo reason,but if your emmersion into the game suffers then other factors become more apparent.for me BASS(original) stumped me as a kid and i took a break,Myst on the otherhand took me into adulthood to come back to.i’ve never not finnished a game because i was stuck,but i have because it made a game i was partially into feel like a slog.
It is something you have to ask yourself if it bothers you. For me, its an absolute last resort.. and it has to be a case where im going to stop playing the game unless i look up a solution. And thats because discovering solutions is a key part of the fun for me. What i do when stuck: put the puzzle in the context of other puzzles for that game. Designers always follow certain patterns and logic that can be seen through the whole game. Then ask yourself: what am i likely supposed to be doing, and am i wrong? Am i misinterpreting what the goal is right now? Think about why youre stuck. Does it feel like youre missing an item, or maybe you dont have the right plot hook to tell you what your goal is. Right now im playing unforseen incidents, and as of right now (just started chapter 4) i havent had to look anything up, but there have been several times where i felt very stuck. Getting through everything on my own feels great. But you have to decide for yourself if its time. Because sometimes devs just botch puzzles.
When I’m stuck I just do something altogether else for a while (take a walk, weed a garden, ride a bike, pat a cat). Sometimes it takes a while, but in the end I almost always reach a solution to a puzzle.
I use this procedure ONLY if I like the game and would like to solve it on my own. If a game is crappy (in my opinion) I waste no time and look at an UHS hint, (written) walkthrough (preferably by MaGtRo) or use any other help at hand to get past the obstacle.
I’m not a genius and I had to use some kind of help in almost all the adventure games I had played.
I dare anyone to go through the likes of Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth, Schizm: Mysterious Journey, Discworld, The Space Bar, Callahan’s Crosstime Saloon, Yoomurjak’s Ring, or Goetia completely on his/her/its own.
Everybody wants to be Cary Grant.
Even Me.
-Cary Grant
I’m pretty sure I got through Callahan’s on my own, and don’t remember it being terribly difficult.
Yoomurjak’s Ring I was definitely tempted to get a hint in some places, and can’t recall if I caved in or not.
I haven’t played all the rest, but most I doubt I’m smart enough to complete any of them without hints.
I would also add Maupiti Island to the list.
Someone should really do a “Hardest Adventure Games” thread.
AKA Charo
I’m a bit OCD when it comes to adventure gaming and as a starting point I feel that I haven’t really played (or at least won) a game if I’ve had to resort to a walkthrough to get through it. That’s because the exploration and problem solving is such an integral part of most adventure games. Failing to overcome the challenge the developer has thrown at me takes away some of my satisfaction of finishing the game. Silly perhaps, but there you are.
But of course it happens that I use walkthroughs (and I too try to find one by the magnificent MaGtRo when I really need one). Whether or not I use one and how fast I reach for it depends on how much I enjoy the game how much I trust the developer’s ability to create good (and fair) puzzles. The better the game and the better the puzzles generally are, the more time and effort I’m willing to put in to get through it without any outside help.
Someone should really do a “Hardest Adventure Games” thread.
I think no one would mind if you resurrect the old thread:
https://adventuregamers.com/forums/viewthread/811
Anyway, there’s no issue in “cheating” with adventure games.
The oldest of adventure games were designed to be played like that, with hint books, hint phonelines and everything.
The worst thing?
You feel very stupid if the solution is obvious, or if it’s the only item you didn’t try to use on other items when bruteforcing.
The bigger issue is if you are trying to play some very obscure titles, get stuck, get frustrated, and then decide to check a walkthrough… only to find out that no walkthroughs exist!
That’s really the worst case scenario.
It has happened to me once or twice, and then it has become a challenge to finish the game anyway. It’s doable, kind of rewarding, not necessarily fun.
In cases like that, I have sometimes ended up writing that walkthrough myself in the end! 
I think some evidence is called for here. Does anyone not finish a game because they’re stuck? Ever?
I haven’t finished many games because I was stuck, The Case of the Golden Idol is the most recent example 
I also have Talos Principle, Candle, Black Dahlia lying on my hard drive for months. I don’t feel very good about using walkthroughs, even when playing a shitty game — I’d rather stop playing at all and then return in 5-10-20 years than run through it with a solution and never return because this will make me feel like someone else did all the work for me and I just wasted my time and money for nothing, and every time I’ll think about the game, an inner voice will remind me how I failed to solve it and cheated. I feel the same about using solutions or cheat codes in FPS, RPG, platformers. But, of course, I still look up a puzzle solution now and then, it’s too tempting and I’m not the smartest or most patient person anyway.
PC means personal computer
Hello there,
Thanks to everyone who responded - I appreciate you guys taking the time
Thanks again,
Abhi
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