Insoluble
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1638
Registered: 09-04-2014
IP: Logged

This topic came up in chat and I find it rather interesting. People have different styles of play. When I begin a new level I usually start by exploring as much of it as I can and testing the water in different rooms. I might make a desultory attempt at a room here or there or test out a widget or two. I might solve a room or two along the way of exploring the level, or I might not. I also tend to bounce back and forth between rooms, especially when I get to rooms that are harder. If one room is giving me a lot of trouble and I haven't made any real progress in it I'll often move on to another one for a while.

Some of the people in chat are more linear in their approach. they tried to go one room at a time. Sometimes not exploring anything past the current room they were on. So what about you? How do you approach a new level? Feel free to ignore the poll thing and just write a bit about your style.

By the by, this came up as part of a discussion about progression-blocking green doors. I tend to very much dislike these since I love to explore the whole level if I can.

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Links to neat forum tools that I always have trouble finding:

Dischorran
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 3407
Registered: 09-10-2005
IP: Logged

Explore entire level, try a few rooms, bail in terror, then come back later and realize the rest aren't so bad.

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uncopy2002
Level: Smiter
Rank Points: 431
Registered: 07-28-2014
IP: Logged

Yes, I'm also among the "explore the whole level as much as possible before solving a room" league.

Sometimes when the level is just too hard, 100% exploration might be the best challenge you can ever get.

Dragon Fogel
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 2434
Registered: 06-21-2014
IP: Logged

Typically, if I enter a room and it looks doable, I'll start on it right there. Sometimes I might go poking into the adjacent rooms, but I don't usually take it further than that.

If it's an open level with a lot of hard rooms, I'll probably explore until I find a room I feel I have a chance with. Or all the rooms will look terrifying and then I'll pick one to struggle on until I get it.

Xindaris
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1531
Registered: 06-13-2015
IP: Logged

If I feel like whatever room I stumble upon first is doable, I tend to do that room. If not, I run off to other rooms until I find ones I feel are doable and do them. Once I've cleared all of the rooms I feel like I can do, I tend to poke at the rest of them for a bit, leave the game for a while in frustration, come back and try again, eventually consult H&S for the ones I just really do not get, and then finish those hard ones. At least, this is what happened to me with the official holds (and especially the worst of the "post-ending-becoming-available" levels of TSS)

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109th Skywatcher

Here are some links to Things!

Crimson Moon
Level: Master Delver

Rank Points: 108
Registered: 08-04-2014
IP: Logged

I just do whatever rooms seem most interesting and save the least interesting for last.