[Previous] Today's Left is Especially Bad | Home | [Next] Harry Binswanger Refuses To Think

Block Havoc Video

Block Havoc is a hard, fun game where you dodge obstacles by spinning two balls clockwise or counterclockwise. I made a gameplay video with commentary. You can see me die a ton of times and talk about what I'm doing and how I'm figuring the game out a little at a time.

Update: I made a second video! I play Hard, Dark (445 high score!) and Color mode. Lots more commentary!


Elliot Temple on November 18, 2016

Messages (21)

Did you start on easy mode (if there is one?)

Are you playing on an iPad?

Do you think playing games like these helps becoming better at problem solving in general? It seems a completely different thing than consciously having to think of life problems and discovering or creating the knowledge to solve them.


Anonymous at 12:16 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7664 | reply | quote

I find it interesting how persistent you are. I would just not care if I kept dying and dying in the same spot.


Anonymous at 12:18 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7665 | reply | quote

> Did you start on easy mode (if there is one?)

Yes.

> Are you playing on an iPad?

iPhone 6s.

> Do you think playing games like these helps becoming better at problem solving in general? It seems a completely different thing than consciously having to think of life problems and discovering or creating the knowledge to solve them.

It takes conscious thought, and rational methods, to approach the game well and succeed.


Anonymous at 12:19 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7666 | reply | quote

this video is just a small sample. i already went through a similar learning process for Easy and for Normal. for a lot longer than the video length. after already being very good at Duet.

try it yourself. see how hard it is. then note: the persistence, precision and skill involved in playing Block Havoc is absolutely tiny compared to what philosophy requires.


Anonymous at 12:37 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7667 | reply | quote

Looks harder than the duet game.. I loved the duet game..


FF at 12:44 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7668 | reply | quote

>> Do you think playing games like these helps becoming better at problem solving in general? It seems a completely different thing than consciously having to think of life problems and discovering or creating the knowledge to solve them.

> It takes conscious thought, and rational methods, to approach the game well and succeed.

How so?

Maybe we are understanding conscious differently. When you chose to sit down you are consciously using your muscles but that is a different level than thinking verbally.

> try it yourself. see how hard it is.

My old iPod can't run this game. :(

I don't think I would have the persistence to have a high score. I did play a lot of hard games, because that's all there was in the past. I don't think it help me be more rational and better at life.

How do you feel when you play this game? It seems you are pretty relaxed. I felt anxious just watching except the parts you were really good.


Anonymous at 1:40 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7669 | reply | quote

> I don't think I would have the persistence to have a high score. I did play a lot of hard games, because that's all there was in the past. I don't think it help me be more rational and better at life.

Toki Tori was hard.. You and Elliot both seem to like it.

What skills can you learn from that game?

I gain anger management skills, persistence, patience when playing hard games.


FF at 3:19 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7672 | reply | quote

How do you gain persistence? It seems you already need to have it to play the games.


Anonymous at 3:53 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7673 | reply | quote

Speaking of Toki Tori, is this level about teleporting at the right timing? I'm convinced it is, because otherwise there aren't enough "wall swaps" to finish the level, but it seems impossible to do.

http://image.farm/images/2016/11/19/49dadbbe385b73ffafddbfbd09f64a2c.jpg


Anonymous at 4:29 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7675 | reply | quote

Oh, it is possible. I just did it! Now does it help solve the level...


Anonymous at 4:32 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7676 | reply | quote

No, because now I'm missing a teleporter.

http://image.farm/images/2016/11/19/a685df5ce17d4028b25ce7e906ed273f.jpg

My reasoning is flawed.


Anonymous at 4:57 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7677 | reply | quote

> Maybe we are understanding conscious differently. When you chose to sit down you are consciously using your muscles but that is a different level than thinking verbally.

did you miss the literal verbal thinking out loud in the video?

if you aren't relaxed while playing, then you're playing badly. fixing that is part of improving at the game.

improving at persistence is also part of getting good at the game.

the game requires lots of skills. you're already good at some, but bad at others. you figure out which are which and improve the ones you're bad at. then you see how far that can take you and reevaluate what to work on next.

the game can help you gain these skills. like you can persist at something for a few hours then succeed, and see how persistence really does work in a concrete way. you can get impatient and play worse and see, in a concrete way, how impatience is self-sabotage and really bad -- you can get new perspective and information about the value of patience and see more clearly the harm of impatience. it's the same with anger where you can get concrete examples of how anger harms your results, or not being angry is helpful to good results. and you can practice not being angry when you die, if you need to. you can practice it lots of times in controlled circumstances.


Anonymous at 10:32 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7679 | reply | quote

that toki tori level in the screenshots is hard. i forget if the teleport is required or not, but yeah it's possible. i suggest you skip that level until you do most of the other ones.


Anonymous at 10:34 AM on November 19, 2016 | #7680 | reply | quote

updated the post with a second video!


Anonymous at 10:45 PM on November 19, 2016 | #7682 | reply | quote

what hardware/ software you use to make your gameplay videos with commentary?


Anonymous at 3:21 AM on November 23, 2016 | #7703 | reply | quote

i used: imac, iphones 6s, lightning to USB cable, quicktime player (has a built in recording feature).


Anonymous at 3:36 AM on November 23, 2016 | #7704 | reply | quote

what do you use to compress the videos before uploading to youtube?


Anonymous at 5:34 AM on November 23, 2016 | #7705 | reply | quote

> what do you use to compress the videos before uploading to youtube?

Do you have Adobe Premiere on your pc? Get that


FF at 7:02 AM on November 23, 2016 | #7706 | reply | quote

> Do you have Adobe Premiere on your pc? Get that

that's not free


Anonymous at 7:53 AM on November 23, 2016 | #7707 | reply | quote

> what do you use to compress the videos before uploading to youtube?

i told you the tools used.


Anonymous at 11:14 AM on November 23, 2016 | #7708 | reply | quote

> that's not free

Get a pirated version.


FF at 5:40 PM on November 23, 2016 | #7709 | reply | quote

Want to discuss this? Join my forum.

(Due to multi-year, sustained harassment from David Deutsch and his fans, commenting here requires an account. Accounts are not publicly available. Discussion info.)