Telltale Games

jp-30 · 07/08/2009, 03:58 am

Almost without exception I thought the puzzles were absolutely top notch. The satisfaction on knocking the captain off the Narwhal, as well as finding the axle for the last spin-wheel thing were excellent!

My favourite puzzle though, possibly of all adventure games EVER, was the one in the lab when you are restrained. It wasn't particularly hard, probably took me 25 mins all up, it was just a great learning curve, and such satisfaction when you pull off what you realise needs to be done. The masochistic monkey just added to the delight!

My least favourite... starting the fight in Club 41. When I was turfed out I thought I had to do something else. Was quite surprised when I realised just getting in the door was the whole task. Just involved finding the (pretty obvious) pass and absolutely nothing more.

There was that great 'out of sight puzzle' in MI1 (or was it 2, it's been a while?) in a mansion which was a huge joke when the unbelievable options you would have picked appeared on screen, while you saw nothing of it. If this was trying to replicate that joke, it pretty much failed.

But generally the puzzles were pitched (to me) absolutely perfectly.

How far off is one month away, again? Aaaargh!

BShoyer · 07/08/2009, 04:01 am

completely agree with this.

adventureaddict · 07/08/2009, 04:06 am

Oh yes, the lab puzzle was magnificent.
Only to be beaten by the underwater idol puzzle in MI1, of course.

Guinea · 07/08/2009, 04:10 am

The knock-him-off-the-boat puzzle was amazing.
I kinda found it funny that the fire neither went out nor burnt down the pier...

And the part in DeSinge's lab was great too.
It took me ages to find out I could adjust the vertical orientation of the chair though.

Lucien21 · 07/08/2009, 04:12 am

I quite liked the "get the captain off the boat" puzzle.

My least favourite was the fact you had to do jungle maze puzzle at least twice and then run round the jungle again for the idols.

jp-30 · 07/08/2009, 04:14 am

It explained the controls when you were first restrained!

Found it odd you couldn't use mouse control for that puzzle, but it worked very well with the keys. Made me feel more 'restricted' too, which was probably the point.

jp-30 · 07/08/2009, 04:18 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guinea

The knock-him-off-the-boat puzzle was amazing.
I kinda found it funny that the fire neither went out nor burnt down the pier...

I thought the jeans were the object I needed to manipulate, as there was that cutscene of them passing under the underpants. Trying to break the stitches on the britches, remove a peg, put the bomb in the sock to make it drop into the jeans...*

Heh, designers were one step ahead, as any good adventure game puzzle designers should be!

Which reminds me, I should check out the Hints/Help forum (do we have one yet?), as that's always a good indicator of when puzzles may be slightly flawed.

* Also spent much time trying to figure out how to break the Captain's crank handle.

lu_ming · 07/08/2009, 04:20 am

The puzzle in De Singe's lab is my favourite too. But it's still far away from the underwater puzzle of MI 1!

I can't think of a least favourite one, I liked them all.

jp-30 · 07/08/2009, 04:27 am

It's funny, the underwater puzzle in MI1 was very clever, I will happily admit, but it took me under a minute to solve. There's not that many things to try down there.

Niterain · 07/08/2009, 04:33 am

I love the puzzles in adventure games when you are bound or limited in movement. You have to adopt a method of lateral thinking, and some of my favorite moments in adventure games use these.

MI2 has the spit puzzle in LeChuck's fortress, EFMI had the bound to the mast puzzle (not dissimilar to this one), and Psychonauts had the brain out of body puzzle.

Some of the more memorable moments in adventure games happen are when you're trapped in one area, with one goal to complete.

lu_ming · 07/08/2009, 04:34 am

Yes I know. But the fantastic thing in that puzzle is just that! The solution is so simple you actually overlook it. I remember when I was a kid I spent the best part of two minutes thinking what to do to grab one of the knives that where just spread on the ocean floor, two or three meters away from Guybrush. When you eventually find the solution to the puzzle you've got that sensation of "No! It can't be so simple!" that's fantastic to me.

And if you wait five minutes, there's the "throw the knife in the water" joke.

Sammichy · 07/08/2009, 04:34 am

Loved both the Captain and Lab puzzles. Getting the Ninja was another of my favourites.

Getting the glassbreaker would be my least favourite seeing as that was purely coincidental for me. I ran into a snag with the idols too, I didn't know how to see all the gods on the windvane. Kept clicking it and clicking it and it wasn't until I saw a hint on the forum that I realised what I should be doing... My own silly fault, never moused over the socket thing you see.

Overall I thought the puzzles were really good.

WDeranged · 07/08/2009, 04:37 am

Yeah the Club 41 bit was a little cheap, combined with the fact that you can't enter any of the cool looking buildings at the start of the game you feel a bit disconnected.

The lab scene makes up for it though, the puzzle and graphic quality was pure old school.

fwed1 · 07/08/2009, 04:45 am

My least favourite thing about the puzzles was the "hint system" which ruined the first couple of puzzles for me before I found out I could turn it off. I didn't find it very hinty more HERE IS THE ANSWER.

Favourite puzzle: Ninja Dave, because it was funny and cruel, I especially liked the olive on the sword, i mean katana.

Least Favourite: Club 41. Too easy, pick up a card and you have completed a 1/3 of the initial quest.

Chevluh · 07/08/2009, 04:53 am

My faves were the cheese wheel and the lab, because they let you figure them out and they're intuitive.

Both map puzzles were a big disappointment to me, because Guybrush spells the first one out for you ("Oh hey I'm gonna comment on how noisy the jungle is whenever looking at the map for no reason, I sure hope you didn't plan on figuring it out yourself even though you turned off all the hints") and there's also a lot of handholding for getting to read the second map (one guy shows you the exact tool to break the glass, the other gives you the exact tool to read the map), not to mention the little jingle for each screen you got "right". Is there no room left for the lateral thinking that went into the previous games' maps? There must be, since the cheese wheel's still got the flavor of the old puzzles.

jp-30 · 07/08/2009, 05:07 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sammichy

Getting the glassbreaker would be my least favourite seeing as that was purely coincidental for me.

When I first (randomly) shot the cannon, I thought it had hit the just-wounded Narwhal captain, and that was the joke. Thouht it was bloody funny too. But alas...

Took me a long time... LONG TIME (after putting the unbreakable bottle in the cannon and finding it not on the ship, but outside the glassblower's shop), ... to try it again and realise it was the unicorns I had smashed in the first place.

jp-30 · 07/08/2009, 05:08 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chevluh

My faves were the cheese wheel and the lab, because they let you figure them out and they're intuitive.

I spent quite some time trying to prise those carvings off the jail wall...

LewisKerr · 07/08/2009, 05:12 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by jp-30

I spent quite some time trying to prise those carvings off the jail wall...

Me too, I was just a few minutes away from a visit to the hints forum. Very glad I resisted though, so much more satisfying.

Astro Gnocci · 07/08/2009, 05:38 am

Quote:

Both map puzzles were a big disappointment to me, because Guybrush spells the first one out for you ("Oh hey I'm gonna comment on how noisy the jungle is whenever looking at the map for no reason, I sure hope you didn't plan on figuring it out yourself even though you turned off all the hints")

I agree, but on the other hand, i think it was cool to somehow point out that you have to listen... Probably not in that way, tho, but i dunno, it seems pretty easy to ignore those screams because you think they're just ambiance sounds.

Lola_Minnie · 07/08/2009, 05:41 am

I liked the puzzle with the bombs, only because I loved the really girly pose Guybrush did when he threw it.

I didn't like the first map puzzle, I don't know if I was doing it wrong, but I assume you were supposed to follow the animal noises, but that didn't seem to go right for me. I just used guess work in the end, and memorised what way to go.

07/08/2009, 03:58 am	#1
jp-30 Lint Miner Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: New Zealand. Posts: 2,735	[Spoilers ahoy] Favourite & Least favourite puzzle in "Narwhal" Almost without exception I thought the puzzles were absolutely top notch. The satisfaction on knocking the captain off the Narwhal, as well as finding the axle for the last spin-wheel thing were excellent! My favourite puzzle though, possibly of all adventure games EVER, was the one in the lab when you are restrained. It wasn't particularly hard, probably took me 25 mins all up, it was just a great learning curve, and such satisfaction when you pull off what you realise needs to be done. The masochistic monkey just added to the delight! My least favourite... starting the fight in Club 41. When I was turfed out I thought I had to do something else. Was quite surprised when I realised just getting in the door was the whole task. Just involved finding the (pretty obvious) pass and absolutely nothing more. There was that great 'out of sight puzzle' in MI1 (or was it 2, it's been a while?) in a mansion which was a huge joke when the unbelievable options you would have picked appeared on screen, while you saw nothing of it. If this was trying to replicate that joke, it pretty much failed. But generally the puzzles were pitched (to me) absolutely perfectly. How far off is one month away, again? Aaaargh! Last edited by jp-30; 07/08/2009 at 04:19 am.

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07/08/2009, 04:01 am	#2
BShoyer Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 24	completely agree with this.

07/08/2009, 04:06 am	#3
adventureaddict Pirate Spunk. Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Australia Posts: 655	Oh yes, the lab puzzle was magnificent. Only to be beaten by the underwater idol puzzle in MI1, of course.

07/08/2009, 04:10 am	#4
Guinea Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 436	The knock-him-off-the-boat puzzle was amazing. I kinda found it funny that the fire neither went out nor burnt down the pier... And the part in DeSinge's lab was great too. It took me ages to find out I could adjust the vertical orientation of the chair though.

07/08/2009, 04:12 am	#5
Lucien21 Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 62	I quite liked the "get the captain off the boat" puzzle. My least favourite was the fact you had to do jungle maze puzzle at least twice and then run round the jungle again for the idols.

07/08/2009, 04:14 am	#6
jp-30 Lint Miner Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: New Zealand. Posts: 2,735	It explained the controls when you were first restrained! Found it odd you couldn't use mouse control for that puzzle, but it worked very well with the keys. Made me feel more 'restricted' too, which was probably the point.

07/08/2009, 04:20 am	#8
lu_ming Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Bologna, Italy Posts: 110	The puzzle in De Singe's lab is my favourite too. But it's still far away from the underwater puzzle of MI 1! I can't think of a least favourite one, I liked them all.

07/08/2009, 04:27 am	#9
jp-30 Lint Miner Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: New Zealand. Posts: 2,735	It's funny, the underwater puzzle in MI1 was very clever, I will happily admit, but it took me under a minute to solve. There's not that many things to try down there.

07/08/2009, 04:33 am	#10
Niterain Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 50	I love the puzzles in adventure games when you are bound or limited in movement. You have to adopt a method of lateral thinking, and some of my favorite moments in adventure games use these. MI2 has the spit puzzle in LeChuck's fortress, EFMI had the bound to the mast puzzle (not dissimilar to this one), and Psychonauts had the brain out of body puzzle. Some of the more memorable moments in adventure games happen are when you're trapped in one area, with one goal to complete.

07/08/2009, 04:34 am	#11
lu_ming Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Bologna, Italy Posts: 110	Yes I know. But the fantastic thing in that puzzle is just that! The solution is so simple you actually overlook it. I remember when I was a kid I spent the best part of two minutes thinking what to do to grab one of the knives that where just spread on the ocean floor, two or three meters away from Guybrush. When you eventually find the solution to the puzzle you've got that sensation of "No! It can't be so simple!" that's fantastic to me. And if you wait five minutes, there's the "throw the knife in the water" joke.

07/08/2009, 04:34 am	#12
Sammichy Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 20	Loved both the Captain and Lab puzzles. Getting the Ninja was another of my favourites. Getting the glassbreaker would be my least favourite seeing as that was purely coincidental for me. I ran into a snag with the idols too, I didn't know how to see all the gods on the windvane. Kept clicking it and clicking it and it wasn't until I saw a hint on the forum that I realised what I should be doing... My own silly fault, never moused over the socket thing you see. Overall I thought the puzzles were really good.

07/08/2009, 04:37 am	#13
WDeranged Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 109	Yeah the Club 41 bit was a little cheap, combined with the fact that you can't enter any of the cool looking buildings at the start of the game you feel a bit disconnected. The lab scene makes up for it though, the puzzle and graphic quality was pure old school.

07/08/2009, 04:45 am	#14
fwed1 Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Milton Keynes, England Posts: 116	My least favourite thing about the puzzles was the "hint system" which ruined the first couple of puzzles for me before I found out I could turn it off. I didn't find it very hinty more HERE IS THE ANSWER. Favourite puzzle: Ninja Dave, because it was funny and cruel, I especially liked the olive on the sword, i mean katana. Least Favourite: Club 41. Too easy, pick up a card and you have completed a 1/3 of the initial quest.

07/08/2009, 04:53 am	#15
Chevluh Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 19	My faves were the cheese wheel and the lab, because they let you figure them out and they're intuitive. Both map puzzles were a big disappointment to me, because Guybrush spells the first one out for you ("Oh hey I'm gonna comment on how noisy the jungle is whenever looking at the map for no reason, I sure hope you didn't plan on figuring it out yourself even though you turned off all the hints") and there's also a lot of handholding for getting to read the second map (one guy shows you the exact tool to break the glass, the other gives you the exact tool to read the map), not to mention the little jingle for each screen you got "right". Is there no room left for the lateral thinking that went into the previous games' maps? There must be, since the cheese wheel's still got the flavor of the old puzzles.

07/08/2009, 05:41 am	#20
Lola_Minnie Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 47	I liked the puzzle with the bombs, only because I loved the really girly pose Guybrush did when he threw it. I didn't like the first map puzzle, I don't know if I was doing it wrong, but I assume you were supposed to follow the animal noises, but that didn't seem to go right for me. I just used guess work in the end, and memorised what way to go.