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5 of the most frustratingly difficult puzzles in Nintendo games

Posted by Staff (12/21/2012 @ 2:38 pm)

To succeed in games which have a puzzle or brain teaser element, you need to be able to think logically and have a huge amount of patience.

However, there are some puzzles and brain teasers which can send even the most patient and practiced puzzler off the deep end, and many of these are found in Nintendo 3DS games. Let’s take a look at 5 of the most maddeningly difficult puzzles Nintendo has served up so far. And who knows what further challenges await us in the new Wii U games that have just made it to the market?

1. The ‘goat puzzle’ in Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars (Director’s Cut)

Ask anyone who has ever played this Broken Sword title about the ‘goat puzzle’ and they will shudder or at least flinch in recollection of its fiendish level of difficulty. It sounds easy enough – you have to trap a goat that’s trying to butt you. However, to get past the animal, you must play the game in a different way than in previous puzzles, and nothing in your inventory can help you.

2. The Beach Bowl Galaxy in Super Mario Galaxy

Once you’ve reached the waterfall planet in this Nintendo Wii game, you’ll soon encounter a world of watery problems. The waterfalls are far too high for Mario to reach, but it may be possible using an Ice Mario powerup located nearby. Sound easy? You’ll actually spend hours figuring Mario games like these out.

3. The Chocolate Code Puzzle in Professor Layton and the Curious Village

In this puzzle, you have a sheet of 30 chocolate squares, and you need to figure out the fewest number of times you’ll need to break the chocolate until all 30 squares are separated. This one is so difficult it will make your head hurt, but what else would you expect from the king of all puzzle games?

4. The Elusive World 4 in New Super Mario Bros

Somewhere within this adventure there is a way to unlock World 4, but it is possible to play the game time and time again without finding it. It’s maddening!

5. The Minecart Ride in Super Paper Mario

In this game, it’s all going swimmingly until Mario hops into a cart and begins to trundle along the track looking for the key. However, the key doesn’t seem to exist, and you’ll need to look at the problem in a whole new way in order to solve it.

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‘Walking Dead’ rules

Posted by Staff (10/25/2012 @ 5:17 pm)

“The Walking Dead” is off to quite a start in season 3. The storyline having the crew find a prison has resulted in a very fast-paced start to the season, with tons of zombies to clear out in the prison yard and in the cell blocks. I doubt fans will be complaining about too few zombies this year.

The show is blowing away the ratings as it continues to gain fans, and now we’re hearing that the advertising rates for the show are exceeding many network programs. This is great news for fans of graphic comics, and also for artists and authors as well. If you create something cool, whether it’s a graphic novel or a regular novel, there are many ways to monetize that success in the future. Of course, you should be doing these things for the art. If the money motivates you, you’re probably not going to find success, unless you end up on reality TV.

Also, in today’s world, with blogs, e-books, iPads that can feature graphic novels and other cool ways to display your content, it becomes much easier for artists to get their work out there even without convincing a publishing house. Even making hard copies is easier. Things like full color printing are much cheaper these days, and if people can save money with UPrinting brochures they can also save money by self-publishing a graphic novel.

The key is to get out there. If you have something you want to write or create, there are many avenues to get it seen.

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Gil Anderson’s, Going Fore It in golf and in life

Posted by Matty Matt (06/30/2011 @ 12:21 am)

In reading Mr. Anderson’s book, two things stood out: he’s a decent writer and has a severe golf fetish.   Regarding his approach to the craft of writing, in “Going Fore It“  Anderson marries descriptiveness with a merciful conciseness that leads the reader very smoothly through the book.   As for content, Anderson calls upon a lifetime of golfing experiences to paint the picture of the mental relationships between golfer, golfing, the golf course and course design itself through a light transcendentalist prism.  He then blends these relationships by connecting the proper mental approach of the game of golf to achieving peak performance in life.  His skillful crafting of such a weighty subject of spirituality was kept light and entertaining, culminating in a smooth read.  However, themes of eastern philosophy and transcendentalism along with the clear influence of Deepak Chopra were a bit overwhelming.  At times I found myself reaching for the granola and wanting to light some incense to enhance the experience.  While reading the book, though I had no reason to question the author’s handling of the English language and the game of golf, I did find myself wondering why I was reading it.  Though Anderson and I are both avid golfers and share a love and appreciation for the game, there seemed to be a major divide regarding the role the game plays in our lives.

I agree with the author on the idea that a clear mind off the golf course leads to better scores on the golf course.  Having distractions carried onto the course doesn’t lend itself to proper concentration and scoring on it.  If you have ever played a round of golf when skipping out of a work meeting and feel guilty while draining a thirty foot put, you know exactly what I mean. Mr. Anderson has a great description of a interesting concept called “mindful mindlessness” that addresses this scenario wonderfully.   The author explains the concentration concepts that many apply on the course and then also applies them off the course.  He caddies your brain through connecting you to how you were able to focus to score well, then deconstructs it to apply that mindset to life in general.  It is at this point where the divide between the author’s view on golf and life and my own personal view of its place threatened to morph into canyon-like status.  Anderson steeps himself so deep in a worshipful trance focused on the game of golf and the courses it is played on, that it becomes borderline bizarre.  Correction. It is bizarre. It is reminiscent of the character Ty Web from the movie Caddy Shack, but only if we were forced to take him seriously.  Anderson’s reverence for the sport squarely places him in a unique sort of yogi zen master positioned within his own brand of new eastern golf theology. In short, golf is both his mantra and his idol and he is not shy about it in the least.  Or he may just be a skilled writer, excellent golf instructor and a misguided spiritual adviser who is actively seeking to proselytize.

In the end if you enjoy a smooth read, are golf obsessed, and are not attached to any western religious dogma then this book is for you.  It is well written, entertaining and should not take you too long to get through.

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