NintendoAge http://nintendoage.com/forum/ -Sqooner NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T16:02:53 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 Originally posted by: arnpoly

I think it would be neat to know the true inner workings of the Qix (so we could put up 1M+ scores!) My more refined guess is the attraction is dependent on cursor distance and current line length and the "erratic" movement has to do with rate of acceleration driven by current score. Or some mix and match of those ideas ... or nothing like that at all! But it's at least fun to throw some loose theories out there. Seriously, I think the "erratic" movement is just a cartoon.

It is totally meaningless, since the Qix don't really have momentum (i.e. they can change direction instantly).

The motion is just meant to distract your or lull you into thinking the Qix is moving away from you so you have time to draw.


]]> NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T15:59:26 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 ]]> NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T15:26:40 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 Originally posted by: arch_8ngel

Originally posted by: arnpoly

 

From what you had mentioned a few days earlier, in the later levels the Qix is drawn toward your cursor a lot more.  So in the earlier levels the Qix is not as attracted to your cursor which in turn makes it more difficult to lure into a trap.  Then perhaps later levels are harder because the Qix is more erratic, as well as that it is much harder to draw since it sticks around more. 
 

Yes, the higher the level, the stronger the apparent attraction, for sure.

My earlier comment in this whole chain (in reply to gutsman) was just to point out that the "erratic" behavior of the Qix is a red herring.

It doesn't matter what it looks like they are doing.
Their momentum can change instantly when you start drawing.

So the ONLY things to worry about are how far they are from you and the speed of the level.

Their erratic motion is just to distract you and trick you into thinking they will maintain momentum in a specific direction.





Yeah,I knew it wasn't completely random and the Qix often headed your way as you drew,but they were still erratic enough to be a pain. ]]> NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T14:12:37 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 Originally posted by: Vectrex280996

QIX - Final scores:

1- BriGuy82 - 465309 (+11 points)
2- arch_8ngel - 428491 (+10 points)
3- guillavoie - 240507 (+9 points)
4- Balloon_Kid - 228426 (+8 points)
5- Vectrex280996 - 193803 (+7 points)
6- arnpoly - 179236 (+6 points)
7- gutsman004 - 119431 (+5 points)
8- BilltownSparty - 111722 (+4 points)
9- jump_man95 - 109618 (+3 points)
10- cgfeelit - 78053 (+2 points)

PARTICIPATION POINTS (+1 point)

EgasKrad - 64219
pats1717 - 41488
Velinos - 35369
 

Thanks a bunch for the results!
]]> NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T14:08:39 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 Originally posted by: arnpoly

 

From what you had mentioned a few days earlier, in the later levels the Qix is drawn toward your cursor a lot more.  So in the earlier levels the Qix is not as attracted to your cursor which in turn makes it more difficult to lure into a trap.  Then perhaps later levels are harder because the Qix is more erratic, as well as that it is much harder to draw since it sticks around more. 
 
Yes, the higher the level, the stronger the apparent attraction, for sure.

My earlier comment in this whole chain (in reply to gutsman) was just to point out that the "erratic" behavior of the Qix is a red herring.

It doesn't matter what it looks like they are doing.
Their momentum can change instantly when you start drawing.

So the ONLY things to worry about are how far they are from you and the speed of the level.

Their erratic motion is just to distract you and trick you into thinking they will maintain momentum in a specific direction.


]]> NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T13:57:57 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 Originally posted by: arch_8ngel

Originally posted by: arnpoly

^^ I know I tried that a few times with mixed results. I remember two times where that worked just outstanding ... and about 5 or 6 times where the stupid Qix flat out ignored me. Now that was probably a function of doing that in the first two levels so the Qix was less likely to come charging over.

My specific technique was to trace along the bottom of my trap back and forth while tapping the D-Pad to move slightly just to keep the fuse away.

I don't think the game cares what you did in a previous level, unless it was to amplify non-drawing attraction based on score. (i.e. why if I was doing really well, Level 9 was murderous, but if I had missed some big combos I could reach Level 11 or 12)

But the attraction to an actively drawing cursor seemed comparable, either way.
From what you had mentioned a few days earlier, in the later levels the Qix is drawn toward your cursor a lot more.  So in the earlier levels the Qix is not as attracted to your cursor which in turn makes it more difficult to lure into a trap.  Then perhaps later levels are harder because the Qix is more erratic, as well as that it is much harder to draw since it sticks around more.  I think the amount of attraction is very likely driven at least partially by score.  I say that not having had a really large score so I could be wrong!

All that aside, I know I struggled a lot and only got the score I did because I got lucky once.  I slammed the door on Levels 1 and 5. 

]]> NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T13:36:21 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T13:20:39 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 Originally posted by: arnpoly

^^ I know I tried that a few times with mixed results. I remember two times where that worked just outstanding ... and about 5 or 6 times where the stupid Qix flat out ignored me. Now that was probably a function of doing that in the first two levels so the Qix was less likely to come charging over.

My specific technique was to trace along the bottom of my trap back and forth while tapping the D-Pad to move slightly just to keep the fuse away.
I don't think the game cares what you did in a previous level, unless it was to amplify non-drawing attraction based on score. (i.e. why if I was doing really well, Level 9 was murderous, but if I had missed some big combos I could reach Level 11 or 12)

But the attraction to an actively drawing cursor seemed comparable, either way.



But yeah, the "trace from behind the wall" and just barely nudging the fuse along was a sound strategy.


The main takeaway from all of it was, while it does not necessarily produce consistently good games to do the "minimum draw" technique, that IS how you slam the big scores (realizing that for every big game you've played 10 really quick ones that didn't pan out)

]]> NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T13:11:41 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74
My specific technique was to trace along the bottom of my trap back and forth while tapping the D-Pad to move slightly just to keep the fuse away. ]]> NintendoAge 2014 Weekly Contest Presents: Qix http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=31&threadid=127783 2014-06-02T09:51:57 -05.00 bimmy_lee 74 Originally posted by: gutsman004

 The Qix can be hella annoying with their propensity for not doing what you hope or expect them to.


I think BriGuy and I both put in enough time to figure out exactly what the Qix will do.
(I suspect the majority of our deaths came from playing too aggressively and "missing" a segment that should have reconnected in time, or accidently letting a sprite/spark hit us while we were focused on Qix behavior)

I won't say they're fully controllable, but they can definitely be manipulated.

And while their motion SEEMED erratic, the main thing is that you just have to pay attention to their apparent max speed and their total distance from your cursor.

Once you start drawing they are magnetized to your cursor, at varying levels of intensity, based on your in-game level.


Exploiting that is one of the methods for trapping them in tiny spaces.
Basically, you draw a tiny space with a "ledge".
Then you draw a partial line, hidden behind the ledge, and just sit there, with an uncompleted line, as long as possible (without the fuse hitting you, of course).
The longer the partially drawn line sits there, the stronger the attraction from the Qix becomes, until it gets sucked into the small space.
You finish your line while they're on the way into the trap, and then close out the trap quickly to finish the level.


That mechanic is why the larger the line you try to draw at once, the more quickly the Qix seem to come thwart your plans.

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