Chapter 2 was so frustrating that I don't feel like playing anymore. (spoilers for chapter 2)

[Riddley Walker]

I started the game by using my experience points on occult and medicine, which I guess was a bad mistake. The result is that during chapter 2: the docks, while trying to get into the warehouse:

I failed to open the floor gate to the tunnel (the lever broke).
I failed to pick the lock to get whiskey.
I failed to pick the lock to enter the warehouse.
I failed persuading anyone, of anything.
I failed reading the text on the desecrated statue, despite, as I mentioned, putting a few points into the occult.
Inside the warehouse, I failed all the psychology.

So despite wracking my brains for two hours, I ended up doing the default option of getting the young-hottie / fearsome-gangster to hold my hand and open the door for me, mocking me in the process.

So instead of getting the player to succeed or fail based on clues picked up, or his skills, the game decides on the outcome based on an obscure points system. This was so frustrating that I don't feel like continuing.

p.s. I playing this on XBox, but I assume it's the same on PC.

[Hemmis]

I don't really know what you are talking about, you can't spend experience on occultism or medicine they are both tied to objects you find in the game, I am kinda confused if they made the skill system completely different for xbox, that would make no sense.
If you don't have the skill there is always another option for solving the problems, in your case you didn't get to do it the way you wanted because you speced wrong, that's just bad luck.

[Riddley Walker]

You can spend your initial points on occultism or medicine. After that you can't anymore, that's right.

[Hemmis]

I found medicine to be pretty useless, so I would advise against spending the first points on that, occultism is pretty easily leveled up if you put something into spot hidden, that's pretty useful early on, I always max that quite quickly.
But yeah, it just sounds like you had bad luck with the skills you chose.

[Riddley Walker]

I just restarted the game and speed-ran the first 2 chapters again, and even though this time I put all the skill points into investigating (i.e lock-picking) I STILL didn't manage to open the damn lock to the warhouse, and still broke the lever.

So the SAME outcome. again. But this time I succedded the psychology tests despite not investing any points in it...

[Hemmis]

Originally posted by It's Squanchy!:

I just restarted the game and speed-ran the first 2 chapters again, and even though this time I put all the skill points into investigating (i.e lock-picking) I STILL didn't manage to open the damn lock to the warhouse, and still broke the lever.

So the SAME outcome. again. But this time I succedded the psychology tests despite not investing any points in it...

Did you just put the parts on at random then turn the lever? You need to assemble it in the right order for it to not break.

[Riddley Walker]

Originally posted by Hemmis:

Originally posted by It's Squanchy!:

I just restarted the game and speed-ran the first 2 chapters again, and even though this time I put all the skill points into investigating (i.e lock-picking) I STILL didn't manage to open the damn lock to the warhouse, and still broke the lever.

So the SAME outcome. again. But this time I succedded the psychology tests despite not investing any points in it...

Did you just put the parts on at random then turn the lever? You need to assemble it in the right order for it to not break.

No, I did not. That explains it. Thank you.

I've kept playing, I'm on chapter 4, and despite my rough start I must say I am enjoying the game. The atmosphere and voice acting are very good.

[trasci]

mind you, that every skill point you use raises your chance of succeding in the check, but it's still a check so you can have bad luck

[The two ton terror of Tel-Aviv]

I found it best to decide on 1 thing to max out quick, or get to level 4 quick, in my case I took investigation to 4 before anything else, then hidden item and psychology leveled at the same time. I found that I was able to lockpick everything that way and find all hidden items and finish most psychology tests.
But I then failed a few strength checks and I wasnt able to max out either occult nor medicine so there were things I would have liked to do but couldnt, becuase I dont think you can max occult or medicine without the initial points placed there. Pretty sure I found all books and things but still they were only at 4
Oh and the Eloquent stat seems to be the most useless, I had it at 3 and failed about 1 thing, then I never had the need / option to use it that often.

So in short you might fail a bunch of stuff at the first stages of the game with occult and medicine but later in the game those points will give you alot more choices

[Arucard]

Does more occult points allow you to lose sanity more slowly? I always feel like I should check everything since the game is investigation based, but tend to think I made a bad choice afterward when looking at things like the monster compendium. Needless to say I was completely psychotic by the end, but is that even avoidable?

[Hemmis]

Originally posted by Arucard:

Does more occult points allow you to lose sanity more slowly? I always feel like I should check everything since the game is investigation based, but tend to think I made a bad choice afterward when looking at things like the monster compendium. Needless to say I was completely psychotic by the end, but is that even avoidable?

No, the overall sanity you loose from mental traumas is sorely linked to encounters, some are unavoidable, like the nightmare in the beginning, others are choises you make, like if you read the Malleus Bestiarium books, speak R’lyehian or in chapter two decide to enter the warehouse through the underground cave and experience the hallucination. It is possible to still be sane at the end, but I don't know excatly how many mental traumas are the tipping point.

[嘻嘻哈哈]

What a bad luck

[Technobiology]

TLDR ; Dude cries about his bad luck because he doesn't understand skill checks, Continued playing enjoying(ed) the game.

[Lupin III]

By putting two points in medicine at the start of the game, you have better insight on what killed the orca at the Darkwater pier. There's also an investigation check that requires investigation to be at 95% midway though the game... I'm not sure it's possible to get it that high without spending points on it at the start. Dumping all points in occult at the beginning might unlock something later. I don't know that it really matters... it just gets you a little different dialogue here and there. I've wondered if putting all the points in occult will unlock something later, since it is otherwise impossible to raise it very high.

[Hemmis]

Originally posted by Lupin III:

By putting two points in medicine at the start of the game, you have better insight on what killed the orca at the Darkwater pier. There's also an investigation check that requires investigation to be at 95% midway though the game... I'm not sure it's possible to get it that high without spending points on it at the start. Dumping all points in occult at the beginning might unlock something later. I don't know that it really matters... it just gets you a little different dialogue here and there. I've wondered if putting all the points in occult will unlock something later, since it is otherwise impossible to raise it very high.

You can get the occult skill pretty high without spending all the point at the start. I don't think I have put more than 2-3 into occult at the begining and still get it up fairly high, like 80-90%, the 3 Malleus Bestiarum are worth 55% and there are 10 other occult items. You do need hidden spot to find some items, like the figurine in the bookstore, and investigation to unlock a chest in chapter 4. You can ofc just reload again and again for them to spawn but I prefer to keep playing if I fail, reloading all the time seems like mild cheating and also takes me out of the immersion.

[Lupin III]

Originally posted by Hemmis:

Originally posted by Lupin III:

By putting two points in medicine at the start of the game, you have better insight on what killed the orca at the Darkwater pier. There's also an investigation check that requires investigation to be at 95% midway though the game... I'm not sure it's possible to get it that high without spending points on it at the start. Dumping all points in occult at the beginning might unlock something later. I don't know that it really matters... it just gets you a little different dialogue here and there. I've wondered if putting all the points in occult will unlock something later, since it is otherwise impossible to raise it very high.

You can get the occult skill pretty high without spending all the point at the start. I don't think I have put more than 2-3 into occult at the begining and still get it up fairly high, like 80-90%, the 3 Malleus Bestiarum are worth 55% and there are 10 other occult items. You do need hidden spot to find some items, like the figurine in the bookstore, and investigation to unlock a chest in chapter 4. You can ofc just reload again and again for them to spawn but I prefer to keep playing if I fail, reloading all the time seems like mild cheating and also takes me out of the immersion.

You can get occult pretty high, but not maxed. Next time I play through I'm going to put all those starting points in occult, and then spend points on spot hidden and investigate. I'm hoping to get occult to 100% and see if it leads to anything... like remember picking up the old bible in cave and Pierce mentions that he can't read it? I dunno... there may not be any pay off at all to doing it, but that's okay, I still have a few endings to see, so experimenting is fine.

One funny thing I noticed is that if you don't put 2 points into Spot Hidden at the start (which the game really urges you to do), you get a different dialogue choice after examining the painting and Sarah's dad basically calls you out for being a poor investigator.