Finally getting frustrated

[Tricky Joe]

After more than 190 levels solved with no help, I've reached the point where only one level is available to me -- and I just can't get past it. I'm not naming it as I don't want help; I just wanted to share my frustration somewhere sympathetic!

I've been stuck before, but have always had other levels to tackle while mulling it over (I'm looking at you, Skull House). Now I've got just one thing I can work on, and I'm finding myself in a pattern of repeating the same few moves that I know don't lead to the solution. (I know it's not impossible as my son got bored waiting for me and YouTubed his way through the level on his save -- and I don't blame him for wanting to get on with the fun!)

So rather than asking for level-specific hints, what tips does anybody have for getting over that mental block -- to get out of the rut of fruitlessly trying the same thing over and over again? (I'm assuming that I'm missing a fundamental idea or trick on this level, rather than that I've been on the right lines but keep getting it slightly wrong, based on my experience so far.)

[wwylele]

I once solved a 20x level while I was jogging after getting stuck in front of the screen for hours.

[eradmis]

If you're stuck, try and think about mechanics that don't get used much, like stacking. There are mechanics that come up rarely enough to be a problem, because you forget you can do them.

[HelgiRalfarsson]

I was right where you're at at about the same levels amount of levels beaten when I hit a wall and couldn't go further without solving one level (I can probably even guess which level you're stuck on!). I was stuck on that level for almost an entire month. I eventually broke down and posted something similar to your post not wanting hints but just wanting encouragement to see it through to completion. Right after I posted that I tried something I never had and solved the level quickly shortly after. The rest of the game was beaten pretty quickly after that. I can honestly say that if you can beat the level you're on, you can make it to the finish line.

Don't give up! It's such an awesome feeling to beat the game on your own. You can do it! Just come back to it, try new things out and if you can't make progress take a break and come back. Keep doing that until you crack it and you will crack it.

@eradmis: He didn't want any hints. Please spoiler tag your response. I would have been pretty upset if I read that comment at where he's at in the game when I specifically asked for no hints.

[Tricky Joe]

Thanks all for the encouragement!

Inspiration-while-running has served me well before (actually it turned out not to be the solution I needed one time, but it did work on the sequel level). At the moment I can't conceive of what things I haven't tried, but there's got to be something so I'll let the brain rest for a bit.

Luckily for my no-hints request, I'd been thinking about the very technique that eradmis suggested (but I haven't found a way to do it here and I think it might end up not helping anyway). I think it might be worth me going through some older levels though, to see if I can rustle up some techniques I've forgotten about.

I'll post back when I eventually solve it. :-)

[MozarteanChaos]

good luck! i hope youre able to come up with something

[HelgiRalfarsson]

Originally posted by Tricky Joe:

I'll post back when I eventually solve it. :-)

That's the spririt! Really looking forward to reading your post after you get past your wall. Almost there...

[Tricky Joe]

I honestly expected to be making my next post in a matter of weeks, but here it is.

I bought a different game and distracted myself with it, then decided to give Baba one more try; I tried something which seemed only marginally different from what had gone before, but then realised that it actually was different and I'd cracked it! I'm pleased to report I've solved it, which means I now have multiple levels at my disposal again.

For anybody who was wondering, the level was Depths 3: Crushers. The annoying thing about my lack of progress is that I could see from the start that I'd need to get WEAK out of the way by pushing it up, and that the number of available blocks meant that I'd almost certainly need a machine to push it automatically, likely based on two shifting elements in a stack. I had that idea early, and then basically dismissed it as I couldn't see how to make it work.

The mental block, I think, was an assumption that I'd need to build (stacked) TEXT+BELT IS SHIFT, as well as getting text on a belt, and I could see that it just wasn't going to work. It wasn't until I tried moving the belt around a bit that it occurred to me I could stack BELT+BELT, but even then I didn't twig. The key insight was that it didn't matter that in doing so I was left without an actual belt to affect -- I just needed two pieces of stacked text, which of course is much simpler to build a moving machine from as only one noun is needed.

So I'm unblocked! I like to think I won't need to post for moral support again; I think this level was unique for me in that I'd reached it with another 20 levels still available, so it had been sitting in the background unsolved for weeks as I picked off all the others. By the time it was all that was left, I'd built it up as a big impossible thing that was nigh-on unassailable. Hopefully the new levels will yield to more rational judgement. :-)

Thanks again to all who gave encouragement. I realise that it's hard not to give out hints -- puzzle games are perhaps a unique genre in that getting unstuck it's the idea, not the skill, and a lot of the advice one might give elsewhere is often not wanted here.

Cheers everyone.

[Mitch Rocks]

Think through every combination of your words, even ones you cannot possibly make. And remember, You can be a heck of a lotta stuff.

[dragon]

Glad to hear you finally made progress! I think many people can relate with you getting stuck on that one. Be prepared to face even tougher challenges in the rest of the game :)

[Tricky Joe]

It's been more pleasant since then (including one level I'd already solved in the caverns, which was a welcome respite), and I'm now on Endless Corridor -- which I'm pretty sure is the last level I can reach, so I'm hoping for some automatic magic to open something new afterwards! But I am in fact looking forward to the tougher stuff to come. :-)

[Jmatt]

The level you are talking about that you had beat earlier in the game has been replaced with a new level. I recommend going back and trying it if you haven't yet. You'll already have the completion, but it's a neat level.

[Tricky Joe]

Thanks for that tip -- I've just been back to do it (and enjoyed it very much).

[Tricky Joe]

Originally posted by Tricky Joe:

So I'm unblocked! I like to think I won't need to post for moral support again; I think this level was unique for me in that I'd reached it with another 20 levels still available, so it had been sitting in the background unsolved for weeks as I picked off all the others. By the time it was all that was left, I'd built it up as a big impossible thing that was nigh-on unassailable. Hopefully the new levels will yield to more rational judgement. :-)

Things were smooth for a while but I'm stuck again. Last time I posted about being stuck, I solved it three days later -- so I'm hoping this is the magic incantation to getting unblocked again!

In this case I can see what the level-ending condition must be, and I'm pretty sure I know where that has to happen (there are two possibilities, but I think one is a red herring). I've got close but I'm one block short of making it happen. So again I'm either super close and just need to adjust something small to make it all work, or (more likely) there's a whole other technique I'm not seeing and I've been tricked into being clever in the wrong way...

I've also started a second play-through to remind myself of some older tricks. Funny how some levels can be re-solved instantly, and others are just as hard as the first time (there are a few already that I can't remember how to do). Plus there's Ghost Friend, which I apparently cheesed last time, and Ruined Orchard, which I've not seen before, so I still have plenty to get my teeth into before I have to face up to the dead end. :-)

[Nidair]

It doesn't help that the difficulty in the game jumps all over the place. The place that still has multiple levels for me to clear is the Flower Garden, including the aforementioned Ruined Orchard. They feel like they're much harder than anything in the later areas.

[Tricky Joe]

I remember Garden being one of the areas I made slowest progress in (although I'm pleased to say I've now solved Ruined Orchard). This tour of the early game is nice, but since I'm searching for quick gratification I keep skipping the ones I need to think about! Just waiting for that zen shower or running moment when the solution to my current obstacle suddenly pops into my head...