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Minigame Strategies


Vampire Amaya
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For many of the minigames, there are no real strategies, you just need to work the answers out, but I have done my best to compile a strategy guide for anyone who may need it. Feedback is much appreciated, as are any of your own strategies if you would like to contribute. :)

 

 

 

 

Language

Alphabet Action

This minigame is all about selecting the four words shown in alphabetical order. Not much to it really, and no real strategy for getting through. The first lot of questions for this minigame will be very easy, showing words that all start with a different letter, but the later questions will have at least three of the words sharing the first letter and maybe a couple of letters after that.

Strategy: No real strategy here, if the first letters are the same, look beyond them, if the second letters are the same, look beyond them, etc. etc… You can pause the game if you need to, to give you some more time to think about the answer.

 

Opposites

This minigame shows you four different words, and two of them will be opposites in some way, like ‘high’ and ‘low’ for example. The later questions for this minigame may have words that you haven’t even heard of, so it can be a good idea to have a dictionary/thesaurus at hand when attempting the later questions.

Strategy: If you can’t pick out the opposites straight away, it’s best to start by looking for a word that doesn’t fit in at all, then you have three to work with, but if you’re really having trouble you can pause the game and look up the words in a dictionary. For the most part this is a really simple minigame, but a dictionary or thesaurus really can come in handy on the later questions.

 

Missing Letters

For this minigame, you are shown a word at the top of the screen that will have two letters missing, and below there will be a choice of four answers shown as pairs of letters. In the later questions the words will get longer, and more than likely there will be some that you won’t recognise. As well as this, the missing letters at the bottom can be in any order, for example, if the word shown is missing an ’L’ and an ‘O’ respectively, the answer could read ‘O L’.

Strategy: Initially, your take on this minigame should be to look at the word at the top of the screen and figure out which letters fit into the gaps without looking at the answers below. If you think you know it, see if your solution is there. If your solution is not there, try fitting in each pair of letters until you come to one that works, though this method takes rather more time than the previous one. I suppose a spelling dictionary could come in handy here.

 

Shuffleword

Probably one of the easier language minigames, ‘Shuffleword’ would have you piece a word back together from the three or four word segments at the bottom of the screen. You must select the segments in the correct order, and remember to look at them closely, as you may think the word is different to what it actually is.

Strategy: There’s no real strategy, but it can often be easier to identify the end of the word first, and try to work out the rest from there. If you’re still having trouble with this, I suppose you could try an anagram solver.

 

Mixed Up

This is a kind of anagram game. You’re shown a word at the top of the screen (I’m not even sure some of the later ones are real words!) and four possible answers at the bottom, one of which has exactly the same letters as the original word at the top. The earlier questions give you probably four to seven letter words, while the later ones can have more than ten letters.

Strategy: I doubt very much that you’ll have time to write the letters down, so the initial strategy is to look for a letter that doesn’t belong in the word or a missing letter that should be in the word. If you still can’t do it using this strategy, a less sure way is to count the number of letters, though this is not recommended because original letters can be replaced by ones that shouldn’t be there.

 

Word Deductions

The questions in this minigame give you four words, each of which will relate to a number (for example, ‘triangle’ would be ‘3’), and the four answers will be a selection of four numbers. You must select from the answers which series of numbers corresponds to the words.

Strategy: The best way I’ve found to do this, is while reading the words in your head, say aloud the number it corresponds with. For example, if the four words are ‘cyclops, triangle, dodecahedron, bicycle’ you’d say aloud ‘one, three, twelve, two’, then go ahead and look for your answer. If you’re still having trouble, you could ask someone else to read out the words while you look at the possible answers and figure it out.

 

Odd One Out

You will be shown three words, and will need to choose the word that doesn’t fit in. There will always be a ‘theme’ to the selection of words – stringed instruments, for example – and one word will not fit with the theme – ‘cello, violin, drum’, for example. The earlier levels of this minigame are very easy, but the later levels will make you think a bit harder, especially if you can’t figure out the theme for the selection of words.

Strategy: There’s no real strategy for this minigame, you just need to figure it out, but you could try using a dictionary for some definitions to try and help you figure out which word is the odd one out.

 

 

Numeracy

Sums

Addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. A very easy minigame, even in the later levels. All you have to do is complete the sum at the top of the screen and select your answer from the possibilities at the bottom. You could be missing part of the sum instead of the answer to it, in which case you will need to work backwards from the answer.

Strategy: You should only really need help during the later levels (if at all). For big numbers, concentrate on the last digits, for example: ‘409 x 366 = ?’, just do ‘9 x 6’ which is 54, so you know your answer ends with a 4. If you’re missing part of the sum instead of the answer just work backwards - if the sum says ’29 + ? = 72’ then work out ’72 - 29’ to get the missing number. If you’re really having trouble, get a calculator.

 

Number Relations

This minigame provides you with three boxes, each containing two, three or four numbers. The easier levels will have two numbers in each box, then as the difficulty rises there will be three numbers, and at the highest difficulty there will be four numbers. The last box will always have one number missing, and you will have to figure out what number should be there. One of the numbers in a box can be made by adding, subtracting, multiplying and/or dividing the other number(s) in the box, and the exact same technique will work on the other boxes using the numbers in the exact same position as in the first box. You shouldn’t need any help until the later levels.

Strategy: I prefer to write down the numbers so I have more time to think. Remember, every number in the box must be used, and must be used only once! Start off simple, see if you can add three of the numbers together to get the fourth, then see if it works on the next set of numbers. You will most likely need to combine operators (for example, add and multiply or multiply and divide). It may sometimes be easier to start with the second box if you can’t make any progress with the first.

 

Symsums

This minigame gives us pictograms, and you will have to figure out the value of one of the symbols (or the combined value of multiple symbols) used in the pictogram. An easy minigame, even in the later levels.

Strategy: No real strategy for this. Start by finding a known value, which will most likely be the three symbols in the top row, or two symbols in a column. Once you have the value of the single symbol, find another combination with a known value that shares the symbol and figure out the value for the other symbol, keep doing this until you get your answer. You can pause the game while you work the answers out, and even write it down if you need to.

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Numeracy (cont.)

 

Equilibrium

I hated the look of this minigame at first, because I could never do this type of thing with weight distribution at school, but when I read the explanation it all became so easy! In the middle of the scales there is a point which allows it to balance. Either side of this point will be a number of spaces and one or more of the spaces will be filled with numbers. All you need to do is figure out the missing number.

Strategy: In order to get the actual weight value for a space, you must multiply the value within the space by the number of spaces it’s away from the point.

Say you have the number directly to the left of the centre point, and you’re missing the number four spaces from the point on the right: you take the number you have and multiply it by four to get the missing number.

Say you have the numbers two spaces and four spaces to the left of the centre point and three spaces to the right, and you’re missing the number directly to the right of the point: you take the number you have that is four spaces to the left and multiply it by four, then the number two spaces to the left and multiply it by two and add the products together to get the weight value for the left side, then take the number three spaces to the right and multiply it by three to get the known weight value for the right side, then work out the difference between the weight values to get the missing number.

If it helps (which it most probably will), you can write the question down, along with your working out.

 

Symbols

This is basically like the ‘Sums’ minigame, but instead of missing a number, you’re missing one or more operators (symbols). Just because you are missing more than one symbol does not mean they will be different symbols. You shouldn’t have any trouble at all with this minigame.

Strategy: What I do is read the numbers at the top of the screen and remember them in order, then I pause the game to figure out what I can do to the first numbers to make the last one. There can sometimes be more than one answer, so if the one you thought of isn’t there, think of another. You could try writing them down, or maybe a calculator could make it easier, though you might be trying many different combinations before you get the right one.

 

Fractions

Despite the name, this minigame isn’t all about fractions - you have decimals and percentages, too, sometimes mixed in the same question. All you have to do is figure out what fraction, decimal or percentage is the same as, or closest to, the example given.

Strategy: Good knowledge of fractions, decimals and percentages would certainly help you here. Most things can be easily answered with an educated guess, if not by actually knowing the answer. If you don’t think you can guess, it’s probably time to grab a calculator. To work out how to make a fraction into a decimal, simply divide the top number by the bottom number. Then to get the decimal into a percentage, simply multiply the decimal by 100.

Basic fractions, decimals and percentages:

1/5 is the same as 0.2 and 20%

¼ is the same as 0.25 and 25%

1/3 is the same as 0.33 (or 0.34) and 33% (or 34%)

2/5 is the same as 0.4 and 40%

½ is the same as 0.5 and 50%

3/5 is the same as 0.6 and 60%

2/3 is the same as 0.66 (or 0.67) and 66% (or 67%)

¾ is the same as 0.75 and 75%

4/5 is the same as 0.8 and 80%

 

Target Practice

In ‘Target Practice’ you are given a number, and you must find either multiples for the number or divisors for the number. There will (more than likely) be multiple answers for the question, and it doesn’t matter in which order you select them, but be careful because just one wrong answer means you fail the question.

Strategy: Knowing your times tables is a must for this minigame. You should only really need help in the later levels, and to be honest the best strategy is probably to pause the game while you use a calculator.

 

 

Logic

Relationships

For this minigame, you will be shown an example word in the question and will have to choose a word from three possible answers that is either least like it or most like it. If the first question says ‘most’ that doesn’t mean all of them will, and for the later levels the answer will be less obvious.

Strategy: First, look at all four words - the example word and the three possible answers – and determine what connects them (forms of transport, musical instruments, etc.). You may then need to determine a sub-category in order to choose the right answer (road transport, stringed instruments, etc.). This shouldn’t be too hard unless you come across a group of words that you don’t recognise or aren’t sure of and therefore can’t figure out a sub-category for, but then there’s always Google!

 

Chain Reaction

I found this to be one of the more annoying minigames. For this, you are shown a series of coloured shapes with a section missing and given four possible answers to fill in the gap. The missing section can be anywhere in the chain, and if it’s at or near the beginning you’d do better to work backwards. The earlier levels need no explanation, but for the later levels you will need to look hard for the answer.

 

Strategy: First make a choice on whether to look at shapes or colours, and once you’ve made that choice look at the chain at the top of the screen. If you chose shapes, look at the pattern of shapes (and vice versa) and it will soon repeat itself, then when you get to the section that’s missing, look at the possible answers to see which one fits. In the later levels, you will most definitely need to look at both the shapes and colours, so you will need to be quick. If the missing section is at or near the beginning, work backwards from the right, doing the same for the four sections at the bottom.

Edited by Vampire Amaya
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Logic (cont.)

 

Symballistics

You will be shown a series of images at the top of the screen, with one image missing. All you need to do is figure out which image from the selection at the bottom fits into the space.

 

Strategy: There’s no real strategy for this minigame, you just need to know what you’re working with. There will be many different types of image sequences:

1) A square with two geometric shapes in it, which either move to the left or right in each image, and you need to figure out if they are moving left or right.

2) A square with multiple geometric shapes in it, which will add one shape in each image, and you need to figure out how many shapes are in the missing image.

3) A square with lines in it, which will add one line in each image, and you need to figure out how many lines are in the missing image.

4) Two coloured shapes as one image, followed by two of the same shapes in an inverted image (either the shapes or the colours can be inverted), followed by two different coloured shapes, and you need to figure out what the inversion is in the missing image.

5) A circle with a radius line in it where the line moves clockwise (or anti-clockwise) in each image, and you need to figure out the position of the line in the missing image.

6) A ‘clock’ image where the hands move clockwise (or anti-clockwise) to different positions in each image, and you need to figure out the position of the hands in the missing image.

 

Sequences

You will be shown a sequence of numbers at the top of the screen, each number separated by a comma, and with one number in the sequence missing. For the earlier levels the same sequence may be repeated but with a different number missing. All you have to do is figure out how the numbers form a sequence. You could be adding two each time; the numbers could be prime numbers or square numbers; you could be adding two, then three, then two, then three; you could be adding the previous number to make the next one. The list goes on!

 

Strategy: No real strategy for this minigame, but I certainly prefer to write the sequence down for this minigame, as I’m not an exceptionally quick thinker. Like I say in the description, all you need to do is figure out how the numbers form a sequence and it will be a piece of cake to figure out the missing number.

Decoder

You will be shown one or two example ‘equations’ that involve one or more coloured shapes and an image. The shapes will alter the image by either rotating it clockwise/anti-clockwise, vertically/horizontally reflecting it or changing its colour, or doing more than one of these. You have to figure out which shapes correspond with which alteration.

 

Strategy: There’s no real strategy for this minigame, just make sure you think about the answer and don’t jump to conclusions. For the easier levels of this minigame you will most likely be given the same equation as the example but with a different image. For the ‘medium’ levels, it may change one of the shapes used, but for the harder levels you will need to pay close attention. Look for similarities that each image has, and look for which shapes the equations share. On the same note, look for any differences. You don’t have to be too quick for this minigame, even in the later levels, but don’t take the piss!

Alchemy

Forget everything you know about mixing colours! In ‘Alchemy’ you must figure out the missing colour by mixing the other colours (in your mind) using the reference chart to the left of the equation. For colour equations that have three steps you must mix the colours in order - left to right! If you don’t mix the colours in order you might end up with the wrong answer.

 

Strategy: If you are missing the final colour: Start with the colours on the left, check which colour they make when mixed, remember that colour then check what the next ones make and mix that colour with what you got from mixing the first two, then check what the third colour is and mix that with the colour you got from mixing the others.

If you are missing a colour in the equation: Same as above - work left to right mixing the colours, then check which colours need to be added together to make the final colour. Figure out which colour you need to mix with the colour that is present in the equation, to give you the right outcome when the colour you obtained from mixing the first two is mixed with this one.

Odd One Out

Another annoying minigame. You will be shown a selection of possible answers which will each be a shape (the same shape) with small coloured shapes attached to them. You need to figure out which one is the odd one out. The odd one out could have a different coloured shape attached to it, a different shape altogether attached to it, it could be missing a shape or it could have an extra shape attached to it. Be careful, though, as when there is an odd number of possible answers they could be in pairs, so what you think is the odd one out might not be.

 

Strategy: First, look for any obvious differences – missing shape, different colour, etc. If that fails (which it probably will in the harder levels) look over each shape remembering where the little shapes are and their colours, and you should soon come to one that doesn’t fit in. You could also ask someone else to help you, as they may spot it before you.

 

 

Visual

Hare & Tortoise

This one can be quite annoying. This is one minigame for which the timer does not go down quicker in the later levels, rather, the speed with which it goes down depends on the speed of the hare and the tortoise (ie. The quicker the hare and tortoise move, the quicker the timer goes down).

 

Strategy: No real strategy to this minigame, just figure out - by the speed each animal is moving - which one will get to the end first. If the tortoise is way in front, but moving super slow and the hare is moving super quick, the hare will probably finish first. It can be rather annoying, because half of the time, especially when they are moving quickly, it can be hard to see who will finish first before you run out of time.

 

Line Up

At the top of the screen you will be shown three items of clothing – a type of hat, belt and shoes. All you need to do is look for the figure in the line up who is wearing exactly what is pictured above. Be careful, as colours can be inverted or different.

 

Strategy: No real strategy for this one, either. For the easier levels, you can just look at the type of hat so it’s very easy, but in the later levels you will need to look very carefully at everything, as every figure will be wearing similar items. Try to rule someone out quickly by looking for small differences in what they are wearing, maybe one rose for that hat is white, or the doughnut is upside down, or the belt isn’t all gold.

 

Jungle Japes

At the beginning of this minigame you will be shown a picture of a selection of masks of different colours and shapes. What you need to do is select the masks from the bottom of the screen in the order that is shown, keeping in mind the different colours and shapes of the masks.

 

Strategy: No real strategy for this one, just select the masks in the order shown being careful not to select the wrong one if it pops up just as you’re moving to the correct one. For the later levels there will be two colours and shapes for each mask, so make sure you’re going for the right one!

Edited by Vampire Amaya
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Memory

Face Facts

I found this minigame much easier to do with the robot faces. You will either be shown a human or robot face (you will always get the same type – human or robot – in the same level) and you will need to memorise its eyes, nose and mouth (though I have noticed sometimes they don’t have a nose). For the later levels, you will also have to memorise the actual head.

 

Strategy: Basically, you just need to use some association, for example: if the robot is the yellow one, and he has the square eyes, with a bolt for a nose and a zig-zag mouth, say to yourself ‘yellow, square, bolt, zig-zag’. I found it harder to come up with associative words for the human faces, which is why I prefer the robots. If you still can’t do it using this strategy (though it has never failed me), you could pause the game when it shows you the face and write down the associative words for the features.

 

Zoo Capers

You will be shown a series of animals (and a ball!) and you will have to remember which animals appeared and the order they appeared in. The later levels are the only problem with this minigame, as you will be shown more than six things to remember.

 

Strategy: You could simply try to remember the animals and their order, but it would be much easier to just write the order of animals down.

 

Cacophony

For this minigame, you will have to remember a short sequence of musical instruments, then select the instruments in the correct order. No more than three different instruments will be used in any one question, and there will only be three instruments to select from for your answer.

 

Strategy: For this, I actually found it easier to remember the background colours on the instrument pictures, as no two instruments have the same background colour. Though, I suppose you could always write the order down instead…

Edited by Vampire Amaya
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  • 1 year later...

Some good pointers in this guide, although personally I would have liked some examples for Sequences. (and perhaps a little less "there's no real strategy for this one")

Hopefully a helpful tip for some:

In Sequences Silver I was struggling to find a logical pattern to

4,4,9,7,-,10,19, with the answer being 14. Before trying combining fibonacci with prime number powers, I noticed that several sequences in silver seem to 'skip' every other number.

A simple example: 1 3 2 8 3 13 4

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