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After hundreds of deaths/failures, you mute the game and pass in one try

This ever happen to any of you?

I don't know how many times I've hit a particularly difficult wall in a game; dying over and over and over. Mission fail. Try again. Game over. (the latest being Crash 1 N.Sane stages).

Suddenly I'll mute the game. Maybe it will help me focus or something. No music, no sound, nothing. Suddenly I'll pass the section in one or two tries. It's like magic. The utter silence and only visuals seemingly clear my mind and relieve pressure and I can waltz through the stage with ease as if it wasn't kicking my ass before.

Anyone else try or experience this?
 

Giolon

Member
Not with muting the game, but going to bed and coming back to it the next day. Just getting my head out of that space of repeated failure by taking an extended break can work wonders too.
 

TheXbox

Member
No. That usually only happens after I put the game down for a day.

Muting it definitely helps if you hit a tough checkpoint right before some grating dialogue, though.
 

PSqueak

Banned
...

what?

No.

I never mute games unless, i dunno, i have people over and it's late at night and they're asleep.
 
Pokemon Blue. I couldn't beat the Elite Four as a kid. I finally realized it was the music psyching my out. Took them down immediately after muting it.
 

Hexa

Member
Something similar that happens for me is that I'll be losing again and again and again, but then I'll go take a break and come back and beat it in one try. Maybe for both it's just a shift in mentality. Like maybe after trying so many times, the bad way of doing it becomes ingrained, but by doing a mental test by changing how you're playing or taking a break, you take it on fresh.
 
If I keep having to replay an area I tend to put something on in the background while I do it, and then I do it and end up pausing what I just put on.
 

Ri'Orius

Member
Kind of the opposite: in college a friend was playing Devil May Cry 3 in the lounge while there was a movie being shown, so he had it on mute. He could not beat a particular boss (vampire lady IIRC). Movie ended, he got to turn the sound on... and facepalmed when he found that said boss had very distinctive audio telegraphs to her attacks. Beat her immediately once the sound was on.
 

13ruce

Banned
Not muting but fuckin Sephiroth in Kingdom Hearts 2. I died 100+ times for sure there it was insane lol. But after all those tries i wanted to try it one more time i did turn down the volume abit tho and luckily i did everything perfectly and beat him.

Now i kinda wish he is back in KH3 lol.
 

kami_sama

Member
Not with muting the game, but going to bed and coming back to it the next day. Just getting my head out of that space of repeated failure by taking an extended break can work wonders too.

Yeah, this has happened to me too many times to count.
You get so frustrated and in the end you take one or two tries the next day.
 
Not muting the game but I would be stuck on a boss in Nioh for 10+ attempts but after walking away for a few hours or going to work and coming back to it the next night I would one shot it.

I don't know what is wrong with me.
 

Bowlie

Banned
I do that with rhythm games whenever I encounter a difficult stage, if the visual cues are good enough.
Sometimes I do the opposite, close my eyes and only listen to the beats. In any case, it's less distraction while you're playing.
 

L Thammy

Member
My brother told me about this technique when I was a kid, haven't used it lately. I didn't think anyone else did it. It works though.

Well, maybe not if you're playing Rhythm Heaven.
 

weekev

Banned
Muting no but I gave up on Champions Road in Mario 3D World then came back the next day and did it first time.
 

JCX

Member
Not with muting the game, but going to bed and coming back to it the next day. Just getting my head out of that space of repeated failure by taking an extended break can work wonders too.

Came to say this.

1st attempt - so close!
2nd-5th attempts - how did I get so close the first time but am dying early now?
Next morning - wow that was actually pretty easy.
 

Duxxy3

Member
Happened to most of Bloodborne for me. Maybe not mute, but put it on low volume. Easier to concentrate without the constant yelling and screeching.
 

prag16

Banned
Not with muting the game, but going to bed and coming back to it the next day. Just getting my head out of that space of repeated failure by taking an extended break can work wonders too.

Another +1 to this. Can't count how many times that's happened, failing a dozen times, rage quitting, then going back the next day with a clear head and getting through first or second try.

Muting? I never mute any game, so that admittedly means I've never tried the TC's "method".
 

L Thammy

Member
Nope. I usually have to jack the volume all the way up and really immerse myself to defeat it.

Maybe it's changing the volume that does it. They should make a gaming TV that changes the volume to a random amount ever so often to maximum your skill.

Not with muting the game, but going to bed and coming back to it the next day. Just getting my head out of that space of repeated failure by taking an extended break can work wonders too.

This is another classic pro strat.
 
Yes. Roguelikes/lites and online shooters are like this for me. Mute the game and usually put on some music instead and I'll play much better. For me it's because I become more casual. When I'm really into it I'll usually make mistakes because I'm more tense. But when I relax with music/no sound everything is easier. Less distraction, just the visuals.
 
...

what?

No.

I never mute games unless, i dunno, i have people over and it's late at night and they're asleep.

I never mute games either. I love the music and ambience and sound design, and want to experience every moment as intended. This is just for particularly difficult sections that I've failed countless times, and my enjoyment of a game's sound design at that point is irrelevant.
 

Stoze

Member
I'm pretty sure this happened to me with the first Bit Trip Runner on one of the last few levels. I also just recently tried it in The End is Nigh on some difficult sections where spikes go up and down in a rhythm, but it didn't help.

There's a ton of little mental tricks I've used like that on games, but as mentioned taking a break is the ultimate cure for getting through something. It's almost revelatory on how well it works with puzzle games.
 

Razzorn34

Member
Not with muting the game, but going to bed and coming back to it the next day. Just getting my head out of that space of repeated failure by taking an extended break can work wonders too.

This always helps. Sleep on it, come back the next day, and beat it on the first try.
 

foxuzamaki

Doesn't read OPs, especially not his own
Not with muting the game, but going to bed and coming back to it the next day. Just getting my head out of that space of repeated failure by taking an extended break can work wonders too.
I did this with splatoon's final boss, I was just struggling against him all night, finally went to bed and when I played the next morning I did it in one try
 

ibyea

Banned
Once, I spent two days practicing Super Mario World's Champion Road a few hours at a time, losing all the time. In the third day, in midnight, I decide to practice the level, and then I beat it in my first try. It was weird, but pretty cool.
 

Zafir

Member
Not with muting, but as others have said, it's happened where I've taken a break and done it first try when I've come back to it.
 

GamerJM

Banned
No but I feel like I should try this sometime. I know people who play Melee better when they listen to their own music instead of the in-game audio.

I tried it for a rhythm game once I think actually and I only ended up doing worse. There was a player in the GH/RB community who only played on mute.

I've done the "wait a day," thing, but even then I usually still take a few attempts. It's usually like, 100 one day with no successful attempts vs. 4 with one.
 

jroc74

Phone reception is more important to me than human rights
Not with muting the game, but going to bed and coming back to it the next day. Just getting my head out of that space of repeated failure by taking an extended break can work wonders too.

Same here. Especially if I have to hear sound cues in the game. I cant mute it.

There have been times I stopped playing for months, go back and its like I became a master while I took the break, lol.
 

LordOfChaos

Member
Try Cleric Beast in Bloodborne on mute.

Without the hype of the music it's just so easy to think it through and have no issue with him (not that he's super hard with it).
 
My brother, sister, and I would constantly have to do this back in the day. Sometimes a song/sound effects get too annoying when you really can't pass something. Always worked for us.
 
I usually kick back and slouch in the recliner while I play, so whenever I fuck up a bunch of times in a row, all I'll do is sit up straight and usually that'll get me focused enough to advance.
 
Super meat boy. I love the music. But after death 100 I find that muting the music and moving where I'm sitting from helps. Standing usually does the "I'm serious as fuck" trick.
 

gelf

Member
Only time muting ever helped me was when I used to mute Labyrinth zone in Sonic as the drowning music stressed me out too much as a kid.

Most games I'd find harder with the sound down I think.
 

Jumpman23

Member
No muting the sound but the coming back to a game and doing something I couldn't previously after thousands of attempts.....happens all the time. I'm looking at you Shovel Knight!
 
OP, out of curiosity, do you use a receiver that sends the sound through external speakers? Sometimes those have delay, and muting the delayed sounds would certainly help you play better.
 

Poppy

Member
muting super hexagon will make you better at the game but is it really worth the tradeoff? i says no, chipzel music is too sweet
 
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