If Braid is causing you some trouble this week, let us direct to you designer Jonathan Blow's official walkthrough for the newly-minted Xbox Live Arcade title. Sort of. Let us explain... No, there is too much. Let us sum up. In a nutshell, Blow's advice is to "deal with it."
According to the guide, "Some of the puzzles will be hard. But when you manage to solve those hard puzzles, you will feel very good about it. [emphasis theirs] The game will feel very rewarding. Don't rob yourself of that feeling by reading a walkthrough!" While we agree with the sentiment, for irony's sake, our fingers are crossed that Braid will hit Top 10 Wanted FAQs on GameFAQs.













(Page 1) Reader Comments
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It's creative and rewarding enough that I'll stay away from the walkthroughs, but I'm still not sure if I'm "doing it right." Should I be able to get all the puzzle pieces when I find them? Or do I have to leave some, get items from other levels, and come back to get them later?
I find the story the most intriguing part of the entire game, and it could take me weeks to analyze exactly what's going on. You could look at it so many ways, but once you complete it, you could look at it a bunch MORE ways. Sounds crazy, but it's true.
This thread was extremely helpful and allowed me to complete the game, the bit about rotating the puzzle pieces to solve the world let me finish the entire game... the ending is woah... seriously... it is crazy... twisted... it is like the only game i have ever played and then ran through the ending like 5 times... when you beat it watch what is happens... it makes everything different...
I think there needs to be a thread discussing the ending... or what was actually happening in the game...
oh and in relation to this topic... faq atm would be bad... pretty much i'd was trying to get it just to try and complete one puzzle piece, however it was likely after getting that puzzle piece i wouldn't try as hard to get the other puzzles on my own... like why would you keep bashing your head on it after like 5 tries if you know in the back of your mind i can just check the faq...
i like this game as much if not more then portal after the ending...
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The guy designed a puzzle game, and a very intelligent one at that. If I designed a puzzle game, I think I would prefer it if people took the time to solve my puzzles rather than just looked up a solution.
And, it's worth the $15 if you enjoy this style of game in the slightest. If it ends up being 5 hours long, I would feel like my money was well spent (even it if was shorter, I'd still feel that way).
I'm sure it's a response to the overwhelming cries of "Can you give a walkthrough?" towards Jonathan Blow.
Besides, you don't think all developers receive all kinds of crap and requests from people? When people ask for a sequel to a game and it's not in the works, the developer doesn't post up a big fake homepage for the sequel and on it say, "Sorry, guys, not happenin'!"
Those were the days back in the 80's...where a 900 number and your parents ire over the phone bill stood between you and the nintendo tip line. Made you work a little harder in my opinion.
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That being said...I'm so glad that I was able to post almost the same thing twice because I thought that my first comment had not gone through. Such is life.
Back in the day, a 900 number and your parents ire over the phone bill stood between you and the Nintendo tip line. Forced you to work a little harder at your games.
But that's just an crotchety old man's opinion...now if you'll excuse me I can't get past this puzzle on Braid and I need to find the solution on gamefaqs.
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+1
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Like for example, it doesn't tell you you need to pass up sections and come back later, and it doesn't tell you how you move the puzzle pieces around effect the real world, those both made world 2 more difficult for me than they necessarily should have been.
Overall though, I really enjoyed my time with the game, and look forward to picking it up this weekend when I get paid.
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The game is a reminder of the original SMB and Zelda games, where you're given a world and nothing else. It's not right for every game, but it suits this one perfectly.
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On games like, say, Final Fantasy, a walkthrough is needed to get the best use of the game. The only way I got my stupid golden chocobo was through word of mouth and an extensive breeding guide.
God damn chocobos.
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But a game where it isn't essentially puzzling...a "second time around walkthrough" might help you get the most bang for your buck allowing you to find all the nooks and crannies.
This game isn't a "second time around" game. It's a absolutely joyous, beautiful, smart game that you won't return to. Do it right and straight the first time for yourself.
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What makes a game intense is the quick problem solving needed to complete it. What makes a great puzzle game is the extent of the problem solving. Portal was good game with an amazing concept (that was taken from an indy game btw)...but the puzzles were mostly meh. Braid (similiar to lolo and fire & ice to name a couple) is a masters puzzle game. You need to play these games like you play a game of chess...and you need to learn how to enjoy the absense of over stimulus just like two people enjoy a game of chess or a game of cards. It's refreshing.
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I know it sounds silly to say it's "ground-breaking" or "a work of art" or whatever, but this game lives up to the hype for people who love puzzlers. If you don't then I can't recommend it. Now...back to more brain building (frying) puzzle solving.
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Now, don't get me wrong I try really hard doing things on my own, but don't expect me to spend hours stuck on a puzzle.
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PS: Using FAQ's on this game kills the whole point of it. If you are the type of person that can't wait to figure something out and looks for a FAQ, you should not buy this game.
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:P
we'll see...
Since you haven't purchased the game, where did you find out how long the game was? I'm also having internal debates on whether to purchase Braid or not. I do get your feelings on the lack of replay value for this type of game. At least there are speed runs, for those interested in that type of thing
(might it be an indicator for puzzles having multiple solutions?)
Would be interesting to know how fast Jonathan himself can speed run through the entire game -- a good indicator for the absolute minimum expected playtime.
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Why? I played the demo last night and could not get a certain puzzle piece before going to bed. I intended to tackle the demo again tonight, but reading the comments here, I've found the answer (even though the commenter was being vague). It definitely is a downer to be spoiled for a game like this.
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