That accursed xkcd thing. - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: mrflibble
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2014, 03:59:37 pm
content: Curse you XKCD, curse yoooouuuuuuuu!!!Oh, andhttp://gabrielecirulli.github.io/2048/

author: c4757p
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2014, 04:13:56 pm
content: Damn you mrflibble, do you know how much time I'm going to lose to this now?? I'd have just checked xkcd as usual and had no idea what they were talking about, but noooooo, you had to go and explain the reference!

author: Phaedrus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2014, 04:19:46 pm
content: A third of my office is playing it at the moment. When everyone's bosses get here at ten I suspect it will get a lot quieter.

author: apelly
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 19, 2014, 04:47:24 pm
content: You are to have no further business in my life mrflibble!

author: FrankenPC
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 19, 2014, 05:36:13 pm
content: OK, just one more time...OK, just one more time...OK, just one more time...OK, just one more time...OK, just one more time...AHHHHH!!!!

author: uwezi
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 19, 2014, 06:10:34 pm
content: Oh my good - here goes my time...

author: Dave
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2014, 07:18:48 pm
content: This game is ridiculously frustrating. And addictive.I played 5 or 6 rounds already, can't get myself to stop.My current top score is 6232 (biggest block 512).

author: rsjsouza
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2014, 08:27:42 pm
content: There goes my peace... To be sure I wouldn't be alone in my frustration, I spread the word at the office. Now everybody is hooked...

author: TerraHertz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 01:25:45 am
content: All these 'shove things around on a little screen' games may be fun, but after Minesweeper I decided to 'just say no'.But then again, just yesterday I had some flashbacks from playing Unreal, and thought Hey, it would be nice to play through that again. But then I'd want to play Half Life 2 (never did get around to that), and then some other newer games, and have to upgrade my PC/graphics card, and.... Sigh. No.

author: Phaedrus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 03:21:53 am
content: Play Half Life 2.Just do it.

author: TheBorg
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 04:10:48 am
content: I think I said "just one more time" an hour ago... Biggest block is 512 gah!

author: echen1024
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 04:53:11 am
content: Productivity = Ruined. I have played for 3 HOURS today.

author: echen1024
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 04:53:35 am
content: Quote from: TheBorg on March 20, 2014, 04:10:48 amI've gotten to 1024.The died.

author: sleemanj
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 05:29:38 am
content: Quote from: echen1024 on March 20, 2014, 04:53:35 amI got 1364 on the first tryGood enough for me, think I'll quit while I'm ahead.

author: T3sl4co1l
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 05:35:29 am
content: Tip: keep pressing one direction until it stops, then pick an adjacent direction. Then alternate back, then if that stops working, pick the next direction over and so forth.I doubt if there is a perfect strategy or series of inputs that could be used, and proven to work for that matter. But I'm sure such a procedure would have better than random success if performed hundreds of times (compared to random inputs, or going in a circle or other short period pattern).Tim

author: GeoffS
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 07:44:54 am
content: mrflibble you are banned for life!right after I better my score of 1024 ...

author: Gribo
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 08:55:45 am
content: There is an AI solver for this. The common strategy is to use only three arrows, and to put the largest number in a corner.

author: HackedFridgeMagnet
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 10:29:54 am
content: 14132 and 1024 being the biggest tile.better stop now.

author: ivan747
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 04:32:10 pm
content: Goddammit. 2 rounds. I'm leaving for my own good.

author: apelly
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 06:03:20 pm
content: For the love of FSM will someone lock this thread so it goes away and stops taunting me?Iwillnot play, Iwillnot play...And damn you too wilfred, for saying it's actually possible.

author: FrankenPC
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 12:17:49 am
content: Try these simple rules and see if they work:Do not push UP unless it's the absolute last move you can make.Mentally drive the larger blocks as far down as they can go. In other words, faced with several decisions, choose the one that grows the lower blocks first.

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 01:18:38 am
content: The easiest thing is to believe the game is rigged so that 2048 is impossible and then walk away.It really can't be coincidence that as soon as I get beyond 1024 all the tiles keep popping up in inconvenient places and the board quickly runs out of moves.

author: echen1024
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 03:06:50 am
content: Quote from: IanB on March 21, 2014, 01:18:38 amNo, it is just that as you go on, larger numbers are statistically harder to achieve. 4 is easy. Why? You need 2 2's, which are easily spawned. 18 is a little more difficult, but still quite common. 1024 if difficult, but will happen. To get 1024 AGAIN, however, to make 2048...

author: mrflibble
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 03:10:56 am
content: Glad to see everyone is enjoying it!*ducks for cover*At first I couldn't get past the 1024 block, but once you get the idea it's surprisingly easy. I noticed that in the beginning it doesn't really matter all that much. So beginning strategy: randomly mash up/right (and pressing left every now and then when stuck) until you get to 512 or so. After that you can start paying attention. And indeed, sort it towards your favorite corner.It never occurred to me to keep playing after getting 2048. Doh.I just did a round to see how far it would go, and I got to 35364. With the 2048,1024,512 etc scattered all over the place.Pics or it didn't happen:

author: GeoffS
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 06:00:44 am
content: Yes, , we've got photoshop tooStill trying ...

author: ve7xen
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 06:12:17 am
content: Yeah, once you get to 1024, if you make a mistake and have to make an orphan 2 or 4, you pretty much know you're hosed. Maybe if you can keep at one you can still do it.The "corner and avoid using up" strategy was what I came up with after a lot of playing earlier this week. Avoid trapping "lower" (relative to what else you have) on the board nearby your big guns at all costs. I found simultaneously building two blocks, one above and one to the left (or right) of your big guy to work well. When it's time to combine, it's usually pretty easy to line them up, then you're always building directly next to the big one in the corner. Also avoid having intermediate values, they just take up space. You want to have some 2s or 4s and the rest of the blocks be your maximums aside from the biggest.Final tip is not to overzealously match pairs. You know that either a 2 or 4 will be appearing. If matching a pair will end up causing (or risking) that 2 or 4 getting trapped between two 256s or something, it's a bad move.Got to 2048 and quit. Or I'd still be playing now. It also works great on mobile

author: mrflibble
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 06:54:41 am
content: Quote from: GeoffS on March 21, 2014, 06:00:44 amYou give me far too much photoshop credits. Easier to just play a game than to figure out how the hell those layers worked again in gimp.Quote from: ve7xen on March 21, 2014, 06:12:17 amHeh, yeah that's how I got in trouble with this one. The 2048 was originally in the upper right corner, with the 1024 left of it. Then I got a 2 on the right of the 2048, and I was basically fucked. You can sometimes keep it alive by shuffling around and with some luck get the right combo, buuuut not this time. I did get it reoriented towards the lower left corner and kept that going for a while, but not good enough.Quote from: ve7xen on March 21, 2014, 06:12:17 amA wise decision.

author: HackedFridgeMagnet
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 08:10:51 am
content: Yay

author: ketil b
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 01:00:17 pm
content: Numberwang

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 08:27:35 pm
content: mrfibble, I think I am going to have my Uncle Vinny "da hook" come an talk to you about the error of your ways.

author: Someone
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2014, 10:26:41 pm
content: Quote from: ketil b on March 21, 2014, 01:00:17 pmCompletely playable (winnable) and more enjoyable than the original, interesting how the numbers are just a convenience and the game can be simplified further.

author: tom66
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 22, 2014, 12:08:23 am
content: Haha I love the numberwang version! That is brilliant.

author: nihilism
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 22, 2014, 05:10:41 am
content: 8 hours later...

author: Tinkerer
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 22, 2014, 02:47:59 pm
content: I also won.

author: sarm
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 23, 2014, 01:13:00 am
content: At last i did it.

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 23, 2014, 05:19:26 am
content: Damn! That was hard!

author: Recyclojunk64
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 23, 2014, 03:19:19 pm
content: Mrfibble, thanks to you, half my weekend has been wasted. Now time for the paybackIt is possible to get to 4096, although the original code doesn't actually have a block that high unfortunately. Instead you need to to play here,http://martijnkorteweg.github.io/4096/Screenshot below, and to prove it isn't gimped, a video aswell

author: echen1024
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 24, 2014, 02:43:17 am
content: After 7 hours of attempting through the night, I have gotten it. Pics to come soon.

author: mrflibble
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 24, 2014, 04:03:56 am
content: Quote from: Recyclojunk64 on March 23, 2014, 03:19:19 pmYes, and thank you right back for pointing out 4096 is doable. I just played the original, would have been good enough to have 2x 2048 side by side. Well ...GODDABNABBIT!

author: Recyclojunk64
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 24, 2014, 12:07:06 pm
content: QuoteActually, turns out the 4096 block has actually been added to the main site aswell. And it's black! Second time was much easier, but still took some tries.Not long after the screenshot I lost concentration and accidentally nocked the 4096 block out of it's corner, preventing any hope of getting near to 8192 (although I'm not sure that's possible anyway)Let's see who else here can get to 4096

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 24, 2014, 01:00:34 pm
content: QuoteArrgh - just when I'd done 2048 they up the ante.I hate them!

author: nessatse
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 24, 2014, 09:13:56 pm
content: Now try it in 3Dhttp://joppi.github.io/2048-3D/

author: c4757p
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 24, 2014, 09:40:51 pm
content: Quote from: nessatse on March 24, 2014, 09:13:56 pmNo.

author: mrflibble
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 24, 2014, 11:17:33 pm
content: Quote from: nessatse on March 24, 2014, 09:13:56 pmOh alright, if you insist.Now where's my "That was easy" button? Took all of two attempts.Haven't gotten to 4096 on the original though. Anyways, must do productive things.

author: Dave
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 25, 2014, 12:00:39 am
content: Wooooo!