![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
Site performance is very hit and miss across the players, it seems, from looking at bug reports every now and then.
It doesn't even seem to be linked directly to specific devices or internet browsers, some people just have constant terrible experience with one or more areas of the site for seemingly no reason.
It doesn't even seem to be linked directly to specific devices or internet browsers, some people just have constant terrible experience with one or more areas of the site for seemingly no reason.
heyo just a heads up because I know some FR players have a chickensmoothie account but apparently CS has been having security issues lately where player accounts have been getting hacked and putting people into C$ debt due to reversed trades
I'm sooo conflicted on how I feel about it. On one paw, I agree with having a select few achievements be particularly challenging, because they feel good to conquer. On the other paw, Shock Switch is such fucking bullshit. Personally, I've not experienced any ragequit-inducing bugs or glitches or hiccups with the game, which I'm thankful for, but getting 1 mil points is astronomically strenuous. I play with keyboard controls on the hardest difficulty. My highest score is 896k. That score took me 26 minutes. I have game over-d repeatedly at 26 minutes of playtime on ultra hard. By that point, my heart is pounding, I'm breathing fast, and my hands are stiff and aching. (I'm also grateful to not have arthritis or carpal tunnel or a heart condition, I can't imagine putting up with this otherwise.) In fact, I just finished another 26 minute run about 20 minutes ago and my heart is *still* racing. This shit is exhausting. Even while earning points as fast as possible, the achievement is a marathon that demands too much. And yes, I do pause the game when real life calls.
I hate the achievement. I despise it. ...But I don't know if I'd want to change it. Maybe it's my internalized "git gud" mentality making me want to cling to it. Maybe we just have to suck it up and assume this is exactly what the devs intended for us to go through. Maybe the devs weren't thinking at all when they made it. I don't know. My brain is fried. My spoons are drained. I hate Shock Switch
I hate the achievement. I despise it. ...But I don't know if I'd want to change it. Maybe it's my internalized "git gud" mentality making me want to cling to it. Maybe we just have to suck it up and assume this is exactly what the devs intended for us to go through. Maybe the devs weren't thinking at all when they made it. I don't know. My brain is fried. My spoons are drained. I hate Shock Switch
op
I'm currently hopping back and forth between Normal and Hard, Normal lets you make more chains but gets a bit boring. (Managed 500-600k after checking a guide on chaining.) I guess I should try easy and just lean on the scroll button.
And yeah, I haven't seen any glitches or errors either.
And all this is kind of my point: I like that I'm not good enough to get this achievement yet, that I have to strategize and optimize and practice and keep trying. All the others are either pretty easy to nab immediately, or are of 'just keep doing the easy thing over and over for many days' variety'.
(For Runestones, the method that works for me is start in a corner, click the four tiles in the bottom-left (first two in each of the first two columns) and remember them only. Then proceed up the column, clicking tiles and don't really bother paying attention unless they match one of your four (or you stumble across an easy match elsewhere). Basically click through the board chanting 'fire lightning truth clan, fire lightning truth clan' or whatever. When you find a match to one of those, go back and make it. Once you clear out two, memorize the next two up in the left column and start over (so now you're chanting 'fire truth metal plague' or etc). After a few rounds of this, you might internalize where some of the tiles you've clicked past several times now are, so if you find a match for one of those, you can quickly go back and grab it.)
I'm currently hopping back and forth between Normal and Hard, Normal lets you make more chains but gets a bit boring. (Managed 500-600k after checking a guide on chaining.) I guess I should try easy and just lean on the scroll button.
And yeah, I haven't seen any glitches or errors either.
And all this is kind of my point: I like that I'm not good enough to get this achievement yet, that I have to strategize and optimize and practice and keep trying. All the others are either pretty easy to nab immediately, or are of 'just keep doing the easy thing over and over for many days' variety'.
(For Runestones, the method that works for me is start in a corner, click the four tiles in the bottom-left (first two in each of the first two columns) and remember them only. Then proceed up the column, clicking tiles and don't really bother paying attention unless they match one of your four (or you stumble across an easy match elsewhere). Basically click through the board chanting 'fire lightning truth clan, fire lightning truth clan' or whatever. When you find a match to one of those, go back and make it. Once you clear out two, memorize the next two up in the left column and start over (so now you're chanting 'fire truth metal plague' or etc). After a few rounds of this, you might internalize where some of the tiles you've clicked past several times now are, so if you find a match for one of those, you can quickly go back and grab it.)
Shock Switch is a "Panel del Pon" like, and as someone who over-played variants of those games in my youth I found it easy to get the achievement (the precise versions being Pokemon Puzzle Challenge for the GBC and Puzzle League for the DS). Though, I don't have precise time on how I got the achievement because it was ready for me to claim on June 8th despite my not really played Shock Switch much since I was a newbie in 2016.
I tried playing it again after achievements were added, and, yes, I notice the jank. Naively, I would think that it would be easier to play the game with mouse and keyboard controls than a controller, but in Shock Switch I end up mis-clicking way too often. I think it is because, on the console games, the cursor is locked to the blocks you are about to swap until you move the Dpad to change it, and it remains there even if more blocks get pushed in from the bottom so there is no ambiguity over which blocks will get swapped when you click. This is much better than what SS has, with the cursor following the mouse exactly making it difficult to know what will happen when you click while the blocks are constantly moving. Things I end up doing in Shock Switch that never happened to me in Puzzle League: I click on some blocks I intend to swap, but I didn't move the mouse far enough so I ended up clicking the blocks next to them instead. Or, I try to make a move but the blocks behind me have "slipped" and I clicked on the blocks under them instead. This is not a good experience, and it's made worse by the time pressure. So, despite the fact that I got a high enough score at some point in the past that qualified for the achievement, even I, someone who has played these kinds of games for probably dozens or hundreds of hours, struggle a bit. I don't know the best solution for these problems with a mouse-based control scheme, but it's definitely a problem that staff should consider addressing if they're going to maintain the game long-term (though, question for FR players who have been around even longer than I have: have they EVER updated the code for an old Fairgrounds game? I don't just mean adding new puzzles to Jigsaw or Tidal Trouble, I mean updates that change how Fairgrounds games play at a code level).
One other thing I remember from the console PaneldelPon-likes I played in the past is that those games had a puzzle/training mode, where they encouraged the player to learn how to set up chains and combos in a more controlled situation (no time limit or new blocks coming in from the bottom). Furthermore, they also contained more modes, such as a "battle" mode in which you had to make lots of chains and combos to progress, not just outlast the timer (and were also way more fun, from what I recall). This tiny HTML5 clone of the game with only one mode is a mere shadow of the experience and I don't blame people for having a hard time with it.
TL;DR: Shock Switch is a bad clone of a good puzzle game, and is missing needed features in the controls as well as a puzzle/training mode.
As far as guides go, if you have a gamepad and are not opposed on principle, try emulating Pokemon Puzzle League or Pokemon Puzzle Challenge (Game Boy Color or Nintendo 64), or, if you don't want it to be Pokemon-themed, Puzzle League for the DS. All three of those are more complete games that play better than Shock Switch and can teach you how to execute chains and combos better for high scores.
I tried playing it again after achievements were added, and, yes, I notice the jank. Naively, I would think that it would be easier to play the game with mouse and keyboard controls than a controller, but in Shock Switch I end up mis-clicking way too often. I think it is because, on the console games, the cursor is locked to the blocks you are about to swap until you move the Dpad to change it, and it remains there even if more blocks get pushed in from the bottom so there is no ambiguity over which blocks will get swapped when you click. This is much better than what SS has, with the cursor following the mouse exactly making it difficult to know what will happen when you click while the blocks are constantly moving. Things I end up doing in Shock Switch that never happened to me in Puzzle League: I click on some blocks I intend to swap, but I didn't move the mouse far enough so I ended up clicking the blocks next to them instead. Or, I try to make a move but the blocks behind me have "slipped" and I clicked on the blocks under them instead. This is not a good experience, and it's made worse by the time pressure. So, despite the fact that I got a high enough score at some point in the past that qualified for the achievement, even I, someone who has played these kinds of games for probably dozens or hundreds of hours, struggle a bit. I don't know the best solution for these problems with a mouse-based control scheme, but it's definitely a problem that staff should consider addressing if they're going to maintain the game long-term (though, question for FR players who have been around even longer than I have: have they EVER updated the code for an old Fairgrounds game? I don't just mean adding new puzzles to Jigsaw or Tidal Trouble, I mean updates that change how Fairgrounds games play at a code level).
One other thing I remember from the console PaneldelPon-likes I played in the past is that those games had a puzzle/training mode, where they encouraged the player to learn how to set up chains and combos in a more controlled situation (no time limit or new blocks coming in from the bottom). Furthermore, they also contained more modes, such as a "battle" mode in which you had to make lots of chains and combos to progress, not just outlast the timer (and were also way more fun, from what I recall). This tiny HTML5 clone of the game with only one mode is a mere shadow of the experience and I don't blame people for having a hard time with it.
TL;DR: Shock Switch is a bad clone of a good puzzle game, and is missing needed features in the controls as well as a puzzle/training mode.
As far as guides go, if you have a gamepad and are not opposed on principle, try emulating Pokemon Puzzle League or Pokemon Puzzle Challenge (Game Boy Color or Nintendo 64), or, if you don't want it to be Pokemon-themed, Puzzle League for the DS. All three of those are more complete games that play better than Shock Switch and can teach you how to execute chains and combos better for high scores.
I actually still have my old hard copy of Puzzle League, I remember playing it for HOURS on end as a kid. Yet, shock switch feels so dull in comparison, maybe because there isn't a versus system in it.
SA : *puzzle challenge, I always get league and challenge confused bc they're so similar :U
I have been staying out of it, because I am also conflicted.
On the one hand, I see nothing wrong with achievements for games that require some skill/hard work to obtain. It can give a sense of accomplishment to be able to sit back and say 'finally' after getting them.
I do see how that wouldn't sit well with some people who want to be completionists and get every single achievement, but I honestly don't really think a game should be catered to that particular playstyle.
On the other hand, I do see how the games *need* to be optimized and any bugs there might be fixed, as well as adding pause buttons (that work as intended) to all games that are on a timer.
As you said, sometimes things cannot be made universally accessible. That doesn't mean that FR shouldn't do the best it can to try to make things more accessible. But I also think that some players also need to realize that sometimes things cannot always be perfectly 100% accessible, and that it is up to the players to determine whether or not it is worth the time to do it (things like shock switch, familiar bonding, daily pursuits that players can lock themselves out of and so on). Again, doesn't mean that FR shouldn't *try* to make the games *as* widely accessible as they can, just that sometimes a game/mechanic by its very nature will not be accessible to everyone. (as you said about shock switch being about quick reaction times and a timer.)
On the one hand, I see nothing wrong with achievements for games that require some skill/hard work to obtain. It can give a sense of accomplishment to be able to sit back and say 'finally' after getting them.
I do see how that wouldn't sit well with some people who want to be completionists and get every single achievement, but I honestly don't really think a game should be catered to that particular playstyle.
On the other hand, I do see how the games *need* to be optimized and any bugs there might be fixed, as well as adding pause buttons (that work as intended) to all games that are on a timer.
As you said, sometimes things cannot be made universally accessible. That doesn't mean that FR shouldn't do the best it can to try to make things more accessible. But I also think that some players also need to realize that sometimes things cannot always be perfectly 100% accessible, and that it is up to the players to determine whether or not it is worth the time to do it (things like shock switch, familiar bonding, daily pursuits that players can lock themselves out of and so on). Again, doesn't mean that FR shouldn't *try* to make the games *as* widely accessible as they can, just that sometimes a game/mechanic by its very nature will not be accessible to everyone. (as you said about shock switch being about quick reaction times and a timer.)
Oh man, I had Pokémon Puzzle League for the N64 and feel like nobody else ever played that game lmao. I loved it, it was definitely better made than Shock Switch!
They're a name I recognize as having bought characters from before, so I'm not sure if maybe I meant to send a CR or PM one day and accidentally hit block instead (seems unlikely, but not impossible in a sleep-fatigued state), or whether they've done some shady shit??
(Please note: I'm not saying they've done anything; it's entirely possible this is user error on my part! Please do not take this as an accusation of any sort! I'm literally trying to figure out if there was something I blocked them for or whether it was unintentional.)
(Please note: I'm not saying they've done anything; it's entirely possible this is user error on my part! Please do not take this as an accusation of any sort! I'm literally trying to figure out if there was something I blocked them for or whether it was unintentional.)
Probably because they're a cunt
https://anonrerising.dreamwidth.org/5172.html?thread=5179700#cmt5179700
https://anonrerising.dreamwidth.org/5172.html?thread=5179700#cmt5179700
I remember I downloaded it off the wii shop channel when I was a kid lmao. Felt so good destroying everyone with blocks 😤
Oooh, thank you, I remember now and that was exactly it. Thank you!
op again
Whew, got it. 1,040,160, took just under an hour in easy mode, thanks to the poster who suggested that. Definitely took some brain rewiring from more Bejeweled-ish games like Artifracture.
(One thing I wasn't sure about, and I'm still not sure if I was doing it optimally - whether to use the switch ASAP once powered up (pushing up the screen first of course) so you could get started charging it again, or save it for use as a panic button.)
Would also be interested to know what happens to the score of a game in progress if you have the connection issues many have mentioned. I pretty much stopped trying once I hit the benchmark because playing longer felt like risking that score not getting saved.
Whew, got it. 1,040,160, took just under an hour in easy mode, thanks to the poster who suggested that. Definitely took some brain rewiring from more Bejeweled-ish games like Artifracture.
(One thing I wasn't sure about, and I'm still not sure if I was doing it optimally - whether to use the switch ASAP once powered up (pushing up the screen first of course) so you could get started charging it again, or save it for use as a panic button.)
Would also be interested to know what happens to the score of a game in progress if you have the connection issues many have mentioned. I pretty much stopped trying once I hit the benchmark because playing longer felt like risking that score not getting saved.
sa
Aaand going to claim it, saw I got the 28-days-80-health one too. (I usually only feed up to 82% and occasionally whoops myself out of my bonus, so I was mildly tense about resetting the clock on that one. Glad to have it over with.)
Aaand going to claim it, saw I got the 28-days-80-health one too. (I usually only feed up to 82% and occasionally whoops myself out of my bonus, so I was mildly tense about resetting the clock on that one. Glad to have it over with.)
My 2 cents after skimming the thread are: Either the achievement needs to change, or the game needs to be fixed up. If the pause worked as intended and they sorted out the random dropped connection issues there would be literally no issues with the achievement.
Realistically, changing the achievement to cumulative is probably easier, but I'd still much rather them just fix the game.
Realistically, changing the achievement to cumulative is probably easier, but I'd still much rather them just fix the game.
I agree that the game does need to be fixed.
One thing with changing the achievement to cumulative is that if they do, I feel that it should really be increased so that it takes multiple days to obtain it.
From the looks of it, it is meant to be an achievement that is harder to obtain, so it shouldn't be something that people can get in a day or two (since a lot of people have said they can get to 700K or so before losing).
One thing with changing the achievement to cumulative is that if they do, I feel that it should really be increased so that it takes multiple days to obtain it.
From the looks of it, it is meant to be an achievement that is harder to obtain, so it shouldn't be something that people can get in a day or two (since a lot of people have said they can get to 700K or so before losing).
It sucks that the egg market has crashed. Like what happened?
ppl want $$ for the upcoming gem ancient
but also the regular egg market seems about usual, imo its just the noc egg market thats dog rn. but thats to be expected, people are starting to offload the hundreds of noc eggs that everyone told them to save and sell rn, so theres an imbalance in supply/demand. noc eggs will never consistently get to 300g/kt ever again imo
but also the regular egg market seems about usual, imo its just the noc egg market thats dog rn. but thats to be expected, people are starting to offload the hundreds of noc eggs that everyone told them to save and sell rn, so theres an imbalance in supply/demand. noc eggs will never consistently get to 300g/kt ever again imo
This.
Regular eggs actually had a little spike due to achievements.
Regular eggs actually had a little spike due to achievements.
da
For Runestones, I do the same but with only 2 runestones at a time, and it's somehow easier that way for me, I'm getting closer to the achievement now. I also give myself permission to re-check those 2 tiles as many times as needed, and that helps too.
For Runestones, I do the same but with only 2 runestones at a time, and it's somehow easier that way for me, I'm getting closer to the achievement now. I also give myself permission to re-check those 2 tiles as many times as needed, and that helps too.
I'm not really that active on FR these days, occasionally I'll browse through here just to see what's going on a bit. Jump-scared me seeing my old UN briefly mentioned in passing I gotta say considering I'm basically not present these days lmao. In particular with it being mentioned in the sort of "this person was annoying" context (which tbf I was a teenager back then so yeah fair). FR's been around for so long now that I'm kind of amazed people remember specific names from particularly old drama outside of especially big names. I don't think it's that atypical for sites to FR to have a frequently rotating cast of "annoying person of the day" sort of thing, so I genuinely don't think I could remember basically any of those.
Then again I also don't really play FR anymore so
Then again I also don't really play FR anymore so
Page 2 of 66