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Braid (XBLA/PC/PSN/Mac) |OT|

B

BenjaminBirdie

Banned
Gah! World 3 and your crazy last two puzzle pieces!

No spoilers, but these last two (I'm sure they're all EVERYONE'S last two in World 3) are all about speed and not puzzling, right?
 
B

BenjaminBirdie

Banned
OH and in the last one in that one puzzle with the underground tunnel, my only guess is that
one of the final puzzle pieces has a key in it
?
 
P

pj

Banned
BenjaminBirdie said:
Gah! World 3 and your crazy last two puzzle pieces!

No spoilers, but these last two (I'm sure they're all EVERYONE'S last two in World 3) are all about speed and not puzzling, right?
Click to expand...

my last one wasn't about speed at all, but maybe we're talking about different pieces
 
B

BenjaminBirdie

Banned
pj325is said:
my last one wasn't about speed at all, but maybe we're talking about different pieces
Click to expand...

It's the one level where right when you start, a wall is coming down in the middle of the level. You have to get a key from a monster and then get back before that wall shuts you off from the puzzle piece and I can never manage.

You might be thinking of the one on another World 3 level that has the underground bit.
 
A

Aeana

Member
Just finished the game. I really enjoyed it, and I did eventually warm up to world 4's mechanic, although I still don't like it that much. I don't think I'll go for the speedrun achievement... that wouldn't be fun for me. :\
World 1 was so weird! But I liked it a lot! :O

Great game, worth the price. This and LostWinds have been absolutely fantastic. I hope there are more downloadable games as good as these in the future.
 
B

BarrelMakingPenguin

Member
This game is making me feel like a complete dunce. Sure, I just played it for about a half hour but I would just sit there and think...how the hell am I supposed to get that puzzle piece? It will probably click later but right now I'm just gonna head to bed with my head hung in shame.
 
F

fernoca

Member
I'm kinda glad I bought this game, while ignoring many of the features...heck I only needed to see one picture of it, to just get it..didn't read any previews, watched any trailer, anything..

So all this stuff about rewind, pause, record..was more like a surprise to me, because it was something I really liked in Blinx..yet barely any other games use it.

The beautiful art..the amazing soundtrack..the way the story is told...reall yamazing experience overall.
 
P

pj

Banned
BenjaminBirdie said:
It's the one level where right when you start, a wall is coming down in the middle of the level. You have to get a key from a monster and then get back before that wall shuts you off from the puzzle piece and I can never manage.
Click to expand...

green key
 
G

GDJustin

stuck my tongue deep inside Atlus' cookies
Beat it - 60/60 pieces. EDIT: I did this with NO faqs or guides or help of ANY kind, and I'm far from an expert. I actually have trouble with puzzles in games, pretty frequently. So if I can do it, you can do it!

After going through the ending and Epilogue, I'm more confused than ever :( Anyone have any thoughts about what it all means?
 
R

rollingstart

Banned
GDJustin said:
Beat it - 60/60 pieces.

After going through the ending and Epilogue, I'm more confused than ever :( Anyone have any thoughts about what it all means?
Click to expand...

reposting this from earlier in the thread, but:

The way I understood it best is that the main character, Tim (aka You. aka psycho mental stalker freak.) is crazy and everything that took place from World 2 to World 6 is all in his head. In World 1, we see him at first believing that he is chasing to save the Princess from the evil man, running from the flames and fighting off enemies. You think that the Princess is helping you as you help her. Then you reach the end and realise what is actually going on. The final books shed light on who you really are, and what is actually happening.
 
A

Aeana

Member
Linkzg said:
reposting this from earlier in the thread, but:

The way I understood it best is that the main character, Tim (aka You. aka psycho mental stalker freak.) is crazy and everything that took place from World 2 to World 6 is all in his head. In World 1, we see him at first believing that he is chasing to save the Princess from the evil man, running from the flames and fighting off enemies. You think that the Princess is helping you as you help her. Then you reach the end and realise what is actually going on. The final books shed light on who you really are, and what is actually happening.
Click to expand...

Yeah, this is basically how I thought it was, too. Pretty weird.
 
P

Phatapata

Neo Member
Wow. What a killer game. It's beautiful, surreal, and captivatingly perplexing - yet its execution is so seamlessly transparent, it seems almost nonchalant towards its own twisted identity and inspirational heritage. What an enigmatic paradox this game is. Love it. :D

I've managed to get every puzzle piece from Worlds 2-5 on the first play-through and without succumbing to the spoilers -- save 1...

There's a nagging puzzle piece that has me stumped in World 5
i.e., the area where you shadow-guide the single "goomba" dude and use him as a springboard to nab three puzzles pieces strewn near the top of the screen. For the life of me, I can't seem to get the one on the far right of the screen. I just can't get quite enough "oomph" off his head to reach the platform - no matter how I position him, his shadow, Tim, Tim's shadow, or any damned combination thereof... -_-
. Fried brain is fried. :'(

Haven't tackled World 6 yet. Saving it for tomorrow night.


Totally worth the 1200 SpaceBucks, IMO.
 
P

Papercuts

fired zero bullets in the orphanage.
Phatapata said:
Wow. What a killer game. It's beautiful, surreal, and captivatingly perplexing - yet its execution is so seamlessly transparent, it seems almost nonchalant towards its own twisted identity and inspirational heritage. What an enigmatic paradox this game is. Love it. :D

I've managed to get every puzzle piece from Worlds 2-5 on the first play-through and without succumbing to the spoilers -- save 1...

There's a nagging puzzle piece that has me stumped in World 5
i.e., the area where you shadow-guide the single "goomba" dude and use him as a springboard to nab three puzzles pieces strewn near the top of the screen. For the life of me, I can't seem to get the one on the far right of the screen. I just can't get quite enough "oomph" off his head to reach the platform - no matter how I position him, his shadow, Tim, Tim's shadow, or any damned combination thereof... -_-
. Fried brain is fried. :'(

Haven't tackled World 6 yet. Saving it for tomorrow night.


Totally worth the 1200 SpaceBucks, IMO.
Click to expand...

If you want to know the solution:
You need the goomba thing to land on the doppleganger to give it a boost, then jump on it to reach the piece.

Really great game, glad I decided to get it. Beating it in 45 minutes would be insane though, I still don't know how I
beat the one level with the key in level 4 iirc, it kept leaving my hands and I had to use the enemy to move it, I had the basic idea but still was pretty confused when I managed to snag the piece up the two ladders.
 
G

GDJustin

stuck my tongue deep inside Atlus' cookies
Linkzg said:
reposting this from earlier in the thread, but:

The way I understood it best is that the main character, Tim (aka You. aka psycho mental stalker freak.) is crazy and everything that took place from World 2 to World 6 is all in his head). In World 1, we see him at first believing that he is chasing to save the Princess from the evil man, running from the flames and fighting off enemies. You think that the Princess is helping you as you help her. Then you reach the end and realise what is actually going on. The final books shed light on who you really are, and what is actually happening.
Click to expand...

ENDING DISCUSSION SPOILERS
Well, Right. I mean, that part I got :p (That Tim is basically making unwanted advances towards this woman, thinking he is "rescuing" her in his own head. He thinks he is rescuing a princess from her castle, but really it's just a woman in Manhattan.

Although I don't agree that the tory from worlds 2-6 are made up or in his head. Basically we spend the entire game reading bits about a failed relationship, and about people's sense of personal identity, and it seems like it's building to something, but then... the ending seems unrelated.

The puzzles you put together also seem to be showing little windows into the rise (and fall) of a relationship. I don't believe that all that was just in Tim's head.

Plus, towards the beginning, one of the storybooks talks about how Tim leaves the relationship he's in to begin the pursuit of the princess... I don't claim to have all (or any) of the answers, but at this point, I don't accept that the story in 2-6 is something all in his head.

Maybe I'm just not smart enough to "get it," because I still basically have no clue.

Unrelated Qs -

- What's up with the bathroom in the house? Any significance?
- Ditto the constellation outside his house? Any purpose?
 
R

Rlan

Member
Incidentily, how does the Time Attack work? Is it based on a complete play through from start to finish in one sitting or a combination of separate worlds?
 
K

Karish

Member
PEOPLE MUST TRY THIS GAME WHILE STONED. OMG AMAZING.

Also. Did the underground parts of world three remind anyone here of Yoshi's Island?
 
E

Eric WK

Member
Rlan said:
Incidentily, how does the Time Attack work? Is it based on a complete play through from start to finish in one sitting or a combination of separate worlds?
Click to expand...

Complete playthrough start to finish.
 
G

GhaleonEB

Member
Got all pieces on World 3 without looking at hints. The first two levels (intro and first two pieces) of World 4 have utterly screwed with my mind. What a brilliant, beautiful game.
 
T

TheDarkKnight774

Member
well i finished the game. Not sure exactly all that was going on with that epilogue, but i'm not thinking you're really supposed to. (although i have my theories)

Overall a very cool game. Great use of time tricks, excellent puzzles, cool music and graphic style all ontop of classic mario brothers.
 
T

TheDarkKnight774

Member
GDJustin said:
ENDING DISCUSSION SPOILERS
Well, Right. I mean, that part I got :p (That Tim is basically making unwanted advances towards this woman, thinking he is "rescuing" her in his own head. He thinks he is rescuing a princess from her castle, but really it's just a woman in Manhattan.

Although I don't agree that the tory from worlds 2-6 are made up or in his head. Basically we spend the entire game reading bits about a failed relationship, and about people's sense of personal identity, and it seems like it's building to something, but then... the ending seems unrelated.

The puzzles you put together also seem to be showing little windows into the rise (and fall) of a relationship. I don't believe that all that was just in Tim's head.

Plus, towards the beginning, one of the storybooks talks about how Tim leaves the relationship he's in to begin the pursuit of the princess... I don't claim to have all (or any) of the answers, but at this point, I don't accept that the story in 2-6 is something all in his head.

Maybe I'm just not smart enough to "get it," because I still basically have no clue.
Click to expand...


Here's my take
I don't think its all in his mind or made up. I'm wondering if he was in a relationship with a girl, his "princess" and then at some point Tim decends into madness, and essentially ups and ditchs her to find his fictitious princess. Then the Braid level shown, is Tim thinking he's helping but in fact she's fleeing from him and being rescued by someone else.
 
L

LCfiner

Member
Oh man, I played this for about an hour or so just now and my brain is hurting me. Some of these puzzles are really gonna mess me up.

I don't know how long I'll be able to go without looking at a hint guide. The level 4 mechanic is really screwing me up.

I knew I had to buy it after I downloaded the demo and the title screen came up. It was so beautiful. moving your silhouetted character against the city backdrop. This game is really something special.

The music, especially in World 2, is amazing. I must get these tracks.
 
T

TheGreatDave

Banned
Beat the game. I did World 6 all by myself, without any tips. It's probably the one that came most naturally to me, for some reason that mechanic was something I got my head around.

The ending sequence was pretty damn great.
 
N

nfreakct

Member
My only disappointment is that he didn't make more section speed runs. Only have 5 is a shame since some of the best puzzles aren't included.

The Jumpman speed run is driving me crazy, people have gotten 32 seconds in the thing but I'm stuck at 39.
 
J

Jack Scofield

Member
Are there abilities I can gain as I progress through the game, or does my character remain the same throughout? I only ask because I'm stuck right now, but I don't know if it's because I need a new ability or if it's because I'm doing it wrong. >_<

I'm just in the demo, by the way.
 
N

nfreakct

Member
Jack Scofield said:
Are there abilities I can gain as I progress through the game, or does my character remain the same throughout? I only ask because I'm stuck right now, but I don't know if it's because I need a new ability or if it's because I'm doing it wrong. >_<

I'm just in the demo, by the way.
Click to expand...

Each world has a different time mechanic. Otherwise you just run and jump.
 
G

GDJustin

stuck my tongue deep inside Atlus' cookies
For those wrapping up the game, wanting to dive a deeper into Braid's world, the artist has been running an absolutely fantastic series of blog posts on creating Braid's world:

http://www.davidhellman.net/blog/category/art-of-braid/

Not only does it provide lots of insights into the creative process (see below), but, perhaps more excitingly, it provides insights into just what the heck the game is supposed to mean:

Braid is a series of thought-experiments about how reality might be. Each world the player visits presents a different theory of nature, and time. As the philosophically-inclined Tim, it’s the player’s role to engage the new theory, test it, and discover its implications. Each new theory brings mystery and discovery, but also destabilizes Tim by deepening his uncertainty, cutting him loose from the grounding of a consistent world view. In Braid, like these paintings, reality is malleable. The forces of nature are powerful and sometimes daunting, but they transform with Tim’s evolving perspective.
Click to expand...

It's also neat to see insight into the iterative process:

shot_1_01.jpg


shot_1_11.jpg


shot_1_16.jpg


shot_1_18.jpg


shot_1_28.jpg


shot_1_final.jpg


Additionally, 1up ran a video preview that includes an interview with Blow, where he talks some more about the meaning behind the game (what each world represents, etc.):

http://braid-game.com/news/?p=184
 
I

Infinitemadness

Member
Okay...so the game saves automatically...but.....am I too drunk cuz I went back and I had no progress!! I just 100% the first 3 worlds and nothing is there! :(
 
F

FightyF

Banned
Very interesting GDJustin! I'll check er out after I'm done the game completely.

One thing I liked about the visuals are all the little touches and how polished it is. There's some interesting and very subtle parallax scrolling used on some objects, and little touches like that really make the game shine visually. I really like how the background zooms in and out when playing with time.
 
P

pj

Banned
Dammit

One puzzle piece left and I have no idea how to get it. I guess I'll give up for now, try tomorrow morning and get it in 5 seconds
 
G

GhaleonEB

Member
Jack Scofield said:
Can someone give me a hint how to reach the puzzle piece above the doorway in the demo? I'm totally stuck.
Click to expand...
The puzzle you are assembling has a table on it. It works as a ledge you can walk on. You can move it in the puzzle assembly screen, and that location will be where it appears when you back out of the puzzle screen.

The enemies can also walk on it.
 
P

Pelloki

Member
GDJustin said:
Ditto the constellation outside his house? Any purpose?
Click to expand...


Yes - there are hidden stars in the game. I have found four so far, but I'm not sure if anybody else has found them.

Proof: http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/5527/braidnf0.jpg


And regarding the end:

Each of the red books has two screens of text, one normal and one which can only be viewed when Tim's not in view (the voice will sound) AND facing away from the book. And yes, it may not seem like it but there really is alternate text for every red book.
 
J

Jack Scofield

Member
GhaleonEB said:
The puzzle you are assembling has a table on it. It works as a ledge you can walk on. You can move it in the puzzle assembly screen, and that location will be where it appears when you back out of the puzzle screen.

The enemies can also walk on it.
Click to expand...

Thanks a bunch! I would have never figured that out. This game is brilliant.
 
G

GhaleonEB

Member
Jack Scofield said:
Thanks a bunch! I would have never figured that out. This game is brilliant.
Click to expand...
I didn't figure it out myself either - had to read in here. :lol

I didn't have much trouble with world 3, but that one and two others in the second (first?) one stumped me.
 
S

Sectus

Member
Argh, game turned from a rather clever puzzler with a few frustrating platform elements, to a pure frustratiing platformer with a few clever puzzles in world 6.
 
T

TheDarkKnight774

Member
GhaleonEB said:
I didn't figure it out myself either - had to read in here. :lol

I didn't have much trouble with world 3, but that one and two others in the second (first?) one stumped me.
Click to expand...

i found it by dumb luck. I was messing with that part for at least an hour, and then i stumbled onto it and exclaimed "OH SHIT!". Overall a cool moment :D

World 4 was the one that gave me the most fits. That time mechanic was a hard one for me to get at first.
 
P

Pelloki

Member
UltimaPooh said:
Wait, there are hidden stars?
Click to expand...

Yes. And that, for me, is why it's one of the greatest games I have ever played. I've been searching every forum, where lots of people have completed it, and have yet to find another fellow
star hunter
.

That's the incredible thing with this game - you keep pulling back the layers and there's more underneath.
 
U

UltimaPooh

Member
Whre di you find the first star? That way I can get a grasp on how you can go about finding the others... Is it through spped runs?
 
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