Blow considers rewinding time, removing Braid bugs

by Justin McElroy { Aug 13th 2008 at 2:40PM }

Whether or not we think Braid is brilliant (and we do) no game is too angelic to escape our probing eye. We dig deep to find the real dirt that the big boys don't want you to know about, like bugs. We've used our investigative skills to find out about two from a secret source who ... oh, who are we kidding? They came from Jonathan Blow, the guy who created the game.

The bugs are a bit too specific to fully explain here, suffice it to say that if they hit you it's going to mean a fair amount of backtracking. They don't seem to be especially common, but they're serious for those who've been afflicted. The good news? While Jonathan Blow is spilling the beans he's also working with Microsoft on solutions.

Update: Blow's posted a few temporary fixes for one of the bugs.

Tags: braid, bugs, jonathan-blow, microsoft, xbla

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

tmacairjordan87 @ Aug 13th 2008 2:49PM

Ah the daily more useless-than-useful article on Braid. I was beginning to think you guys forgot to add one today.

copa @ Aug 13th 2008 3:00PM

Hey, it's tmacairjordan87! Where's Saria, Anticrawl, and the rest of the Braid-Hataz brigade?

Some quick notes:

First, Braid is ridiculously awesome. It did not get insanely high review scores because of some secret elite conspiracy. It got good scores because people enjoyed the game, and it brings something new to the table in terms of themes and execution.

Second, Jonathan Blow is a grown man who decided to go into debt and live without income for three years because he really wanted to make this game his way, not the way a publisher wanted him to make it. Driving yourself into debt for three years may not seem like a big deal if you're in college, but trust me, it's a really big deal.

When he frankly discusses the financial risks and rewards, and the numbers associated with Braid sales, he is not whining. He is being honest and interesting.
If you think he's making you feel guilty, don't read his blog. I don't feel remotely guilty.

Jonathan Blow has made a name for himself. At this point, there are several top-tier companies that will offer him generous salaries and bonuses to work in a lead designer role. He would prefer to remain independent, but as an adult he has to make an honest assessment of whether he can do so profitably. There is nothing wrong with that.

Tom18230 @ Aug 13th 2008 3:03PM

I dislike braid because I found it very boring and not very original.

In before "art style is teh different!"... the art style, whilst cool, doesn't make this game good.

I have no idea why people are enjoying this game, but if they are, good for them - I won't tell people NOT to like the game. So don't act surprised when people don't like it.

tmacairjordan87 @ Aug 13th 2008 3:07PM

Just because I refuse to pay $15 for ANY regular xbla doesn't mean I hate Braid. It just means I refuse to bend over and let Microsoft have their way with me and my wallet. I would gladly buy it for $10.

Second, I said what I said because when Joystiq falls in love with something they feel the need to write 10,000 articles on it. Stuff like "Blow got idea of Braid from booger he picked out of his nose" which is hardly worth an article.

After reading most of what you said, I'm not even gonna bother with the rest because I've said nothing, good or bad, about Blow or the actual game. To be honest, I have no idea what the hell you're talking about. Who said anything about Blow whining about sales or whatever you were talking about? Who said anything about sales here? I'm completely lost.

copa @ Aug 13th 2008 3:07PM

Ah, as an addendum he has a new blog entry up estimating current sales at 55,000. Looks like some people actually played the game instead of complaining about it on Joystiq:

Blow: "As a result, it looks like I will be able to make the next game, without needing to get a job that would interfere with that... Thank you, once again, for making that possible."

What an egotistical whiner!

copa @ Aug 13th 2008 3:11PM

"Who said anything about Blow whining about sales or whatever you were talking about? Who said anything about sales here?"

Sorry, I should have been more explicit. I was responding to a general flood of anti-Braid posts there, and not to you specifically.

But I am addressing you for being in the group of people who refuse to play the game, but still manage to make plenty of negative posts on it.

Jacksons @ Aug 13th 2008 3:14PM

@copa

So did you have that all written up in a word document or something? Because none of it was really relevant to what tmac said...

tmacairjordan87 @ Aug 13th 2008 3:16PM

The only "negativity" I have with Braid is the price, and it's only out of principle. I won't spend $15 on any xbla game no matter how great it is, simply because I feel like that's too much for traditional xbla game.

I played the demo, liked it overall, and I will either wait for it to hit $10 on xbla or wait for it to come out on PSN where it'll likely be $10 since Sony doesn't usually force developers to do things as much as Microsoft does.

Haggard @ Aug 13th 2008 3:37PM

Just because you download it doesn't mean it has to be a fraction of the price (which it still is, I might add). You all gladly cough up $60 for the latest craptacular release of a franchise, or a game overhyped because of some suppose original element.

But an original game comes along on PSN or XBLA for a quarter the price of a full game and suddenly FIFTEEN BUCKS IS A LOT OF MONEY!!!1!

You all hold so many double standards I'm suprised you have any arms left to play games with.

Saria the Cat @ Aug 13th 2008 4:28PM

Here I am! Now onto why Braid is overpriced and overhyped and Blow is blowhardy...Wait a second, if you haven't gotten it after the 5th iteration, I don't think you'll ever agree/understand. As much as I enjoy the debates on here, Braid has grown to be tiresome flame fodder.

Brad Lee @ Aug 13th 2008 6:33PM

So, tmac, your "principle" constitutes refusing to pay an extra $5 simply because Microsoft is greedy?

Let me break down how silly and stupid a reason that is to refuse purchasing.

Five bucks is completely irrelevent to Microsoft. Fifteen bucks is completely irrelevent. Refusing to purchase this game is not going to hurt MS one bit. All you're doing is hurting Jonathan Blow and indie development.

That money I just mentioned that MS can piss away thousands of times without blinking is a HUGE deal to Blow.

Furthermore, you're not necessarily telling MS "too much money!" by not purchasing the game, you're more than likely telling them "Sorry, I don't want this game."

If ya'll want nothing more than shitty retro titles and shooter clones, go ahead and whine about a $5 price difference and refuse to buy. But I'm willing to spend the extra money to send a message to MS that I'm willing to spend my money on risky, innovative, creative titles.

I'd rather see more unique titles like Braid, rather than Poker Smash Extreme, Generic Shooter 7, and Frogger/Joust/etc. But maybe that's just me.

Mr Awesomer @ Aug 13th 2008 2:50PM

Blow blew his nose. Details at 11.

Marty @ Aug 13th 2008 6:23PM

Why is there suddenly so much hate for this game and its designer?

It's a good game.
It's gotten excellent reviews almost exclusively.
It shows that indie devs have a shot at something big as well.
And of course, the game is a work of art.

It deserves to be written about. There's a simple remedy for jealousy over an indie developer's success - don't read the article, and don't waste your time and ours making a stupid comment.

Misfit Toy @ Aug 14th 2008 12:09AM

...and...its a slow news week. It's the middle of August. Hard to get awesome nuggets in the dry season.

j.howlett @ Aug 13th 2008 2:50PM

are those letters on fire? is that why the name trying to burn into my brain?

deaftly @ Aug 13th 2008 2:50PM

Braid.... Nope never heard of it.

baby sea tuna @ Aug 13th 2008 2:52PM

So...when are you changing the name of this site to Braidstiq? Or, is it Blowstiq?

Bloo @ Aug 13th 2008 3:22PM

I think Blowstiq works. I bought the game and finished it. I generally enjoy puzzle games, platformers, and puzzle platformers - but for me?... Braid was just OK. I greatly preferred other XBLA titles like Puzzle Quest, Pac-Man CE, CLoning Clyde, Poker Smash, Marble Blast, etc. I don't regret spending the $15 but I don't think it was worth it. To each their own...

Misfit Toy @ Aug 14th 2008 12:10AM

Blowstiq would get more traffic.

MC Double Def DP @ Aug 13th 2008 2:53PM

The bugs in the game symbolize Tim's inability to create world peace.

MC Double Def DP @ Aug 13th 2008 2:54PM

The bugs in the game symbolize Tim's inability to create world peace.

MC Double Def DP @ Aug 13th 2008 2:58PM

This double post symbolizes joystiq's crappy comment system.

Tom18230 @ Aug 13th 2008 2:56PM

Finally joystiq are getting some coverage on braid...

JJ Rooster @ Aug 13th 2008 3:20PM

It's like Joystiq saw the guy's name on a directory and took it literally.

Blow, Jonathan

They sure are.

arhain @ Aug 13th 2008 3:00PM

the care cup is empty...
...a long time ago.

Arnie @ Aug 13th 2008 3:07PM

A bug which happened to me pretty early on in World 2 was some of the puzzle pieces stuck together even though they were not lined up correctly causing me to abandon the game and start a new one. The weirdest part of the bug was that one piece was way away from the other 3 but it still acted as part of the whole puzzle thus making it impossible to join it to the main puzzle. Still the game is beautiful and the puzzles are nice.

rTwelve [xbl:chilblane] @ Aug 13th 2008 3:19PM

iPhone : Engadget :: Braid : Joystiq

yay analogies!

rv @ Aug 13th 2008 3:51PM

Ya, this is crazy. What is next? Joystiqs analysis of Joystiq's analysis of braid?

"Fucking typo!"

Obie @ Aug 13th 2008 5:06PM

Kotaku: Gamecakes ;)

343 Guilty Fart @ Aug 13th 2008 3:22PM

I've tried for multiple days to get through the trial. I finally gave up and watched a youtube video and was really annoyed about the answer (how to get the last piece above and to the right of the puzzle board). That's not really a "puzzle" in my opinion, that's a cheap trick. I don't think I'll be picking up this game, I'd rather just stick with Professor Layton. At least that game requires logic.

Markusdragon @ Aug 13th 2008 3:35PM

I tried to crush a rabbit in a lift, but it just pushed it down to the platform below it. I demand more elevator-crushing-rabbit-action.

Bass Masterson @ Aug 13th 2008 3:35PM

Stop slobbering over Braid already! It's not 'brilliant', it's not 'ingenious', it's a completely rote Super Mario style platformer with a pointless time rewind option - and now it turns out to have crippling bugs.

Greyseal @ Aug 13th 2008 3:50PM

You're actually just wrong.

Ryura @ Aug 13th 2008 5:22PM

How in the world is it like Mario again? They share two elements: you jump, and you jump on enemies. Maybe if you play only the first level you think you're supposed to just get through the worlds. Too bad that's not it at all.

ScallionN @ Aug 13th 2008 3:36PM

I wish I could hold down the X button until we got back in time before Braid existed and turned Joystiq into Braidstiq.

Jody Anthony (gamertag and psn: JodyAnthony) @ Aug 13th 2008 3:36PM

I got caught in the Braid hype and bought the game yesterday. It's good, but it's not really great. Maybe it gets better as it goes on, I dunno. If I wouldn't have gotten those 1600 MS points cards on sale at target I would have been upset about wasting my spacebux.

Dracula Jones @ Aug 13th 2008 3:46PM

Yeah, I bought it, too, and feel the same way. I'm actually a little resentful of the game, having spent $15 on it after all the hype and it being just pretty good. Too much press can be a bad thing, although I suppose dude's got my money now so it doesn't matter.

As someone else pointed out above, Cloning Clyde was a better puzzle platformer with its own innovations, plus it was cheaper, and got relatively no press when it came out. So go play Cloning Clyde instead.

Ben! @ Aug 13th 2008 4:02PM

I love how everybody comes in and makes the same tired "Joystiq posts about Braid a lot" joke and still somehow gets voted up.

tmacairjordan87 @ Aug 13th 2008 4:21PM

Because posting 5 articles a day on Braid is tired?

Justin @ Aug 13th 2008 4:24PM

Wow, the Braid-hate here is strong. I suppose it has been overcovered, but it's still easily the most original XBLA game out there, so I don't mind the overcoverage. It wasn't until the third Joystiq post and a PA mention that I finally downloaded the demo and ten minutes later purchased it. Well worth the $15.