I particularly love how the second half of the game incorporates the game's message perfectly. Every 'mistake' you made end up causing you to go an extra mile to retrieve your past selves later on. There's this one level where I jump from a high place to get to the floor below; resulting in an epic coordination to catch my past selves midair twice perfectly. Then there's the music which I find highly appropriate to the theme.
In addition to xVindicatorx advice to rank up before getting Lar and Ling, I suggest that you go for Lulu during rank 0, then add in Ling when you're rank 1. Ling in front, MC middle and Lulu at behind. For bosses, either let Ling combo her hit or rest one turn before having Ling combo them. Resting one turn should net you 18 AP which is more than sufficient to down any 2~3k HP boss. All in all, just go for characters with high AP and one with high damage for overkill.
Special Prize Winner Badge You acquired this badge on Mar. 15, 2010. Hall of Fame Badge You acquired this badge on May. 28, 2013. Finally. Bout time my efforts pay :D.
Most difficult TD Hard Badge I'd ever gone through. I agree that the Hero's pathway and priority can have some tweaking, I lost once because the Hero's so obsessed with the Giants that it let the Minotaur Warlord/Parathief Captain through. Same goes for the towers; I wish I can order them to go for minions first and then only the Giants. If I set it to aim lowest HP, sometimes it'll attack the rear unit while the vanguard continue on unobstructed (particularly in minion-only wave). If I set it to aim the frontmost unit, it'll most probably aim the Giant while those minions under it, yet again, went unscathed. Ideally, I can juggle between lowest HP and frontmost unit but I doubt that's feasible in the heat of the battle. Hopefully the sequel will solve the problem. A fun game nonetheless. Especially the climbing units and unique Giants :D.
Well, there's no control problem in my case. Perhaps you're rolling and you moved too quickly in the sideways? When you're moving sideways while rolling, it actually stop rolling for a moment so you'll crash into that zombie that require you to roll. A mediocre game though I must admit it is fun after crashing two or three gates and picking up speed. Though getting to that part is quite redundant.
Tried to challenge myself by not using the preview. Level 9 with the ladybirds is totally brilliant. The fact that (most of the time) both bugs move in the exact same direction practically disrupt the 'system' of the player for a moment. I end up having to rely on the leaf pattern to distinguish between the ladybugs. Great game indeed.
Oh, and fk you to everyone who said this game is PURELY luck-based. I spent HOURS wrecking my brain figuring how to win the stage while combo and keeping my Joker. In case permanently losing Joker is unavoidable, TRY to do other combo that yield Blue Bomb. I managed to win the last level solely because I go for a blue bomb in level 29. Never EVER waste Extra Decks bonus when you can sacrifice a Joker and regain it. It's better to earn more extra deck than betting ALL your extra deck for a Joker. It's never going to work, convince yourself that.
My advice: go for as many Joker as possible in your first few rounds. In earlier stages with few limiters, I suggest going for the 4 of each colour combo. In later levels with 3~4 limiters, ALWAYS go for limiters that stick together and specific first (e.g. Stella/Luna > Stella/Same Symbol). The trick is to settle the limiter early and place the rest with 4 of each colour/symbol in mind. In case you're stuck in the last piece, 'sacrifice' your joker to win and obtain it back (e.g. You have 3Red/3Blue/4Yellow/4Green. Maybe the last piece is limited to Stella/Lunar; don't bother to deal/extra deck until you get it. Just find a Red/Blue tile, Joker it, and win the game. You'll 'regain' the Joker from the combo and you won't waste extra decks.) In super late game, deal and extra decks until you can go for specific limiter. Keep your Joker/Bomb/Change Symbol/Colour for end game purpose (e.g. to combo or it's the last level). Hope you all understand and good luck in hunting the badge :D.
Sand Sorcerer Badge ( easy - 5 points ) You acquired this badge on Jun. 10, 2009.
Rings Not Passed Badge ( hard - 30 points ) You acquired this badge on Apr. 29, 2013.
Finally! Once I understand how this is SUPPOSED to be played, it became an enjoyable and challenging game. You MUST planned for combo instead of simply winning. I recommend visiting this link to learn the combos: http://www.kongregate.com/forums/3/topics/742. In the first few level, it is important to go for Joker combos, the easiest being 4 of each colour or 4 of each symbol. If by level 10 you don't have at least 2 Joker, redo the entire game. I managed to win by conserving my 2 Joker till the end; the first one lost at level 20+ while the second one lost at level 29.
After finishing the game, I wonder as well. What is the 'correct' way to win Level 59? I can't get the block loosen as shown by the youtube guide and I was extremely lucky to have the block move in the correct direction once I release it. I hope Rocky10529 can clarify or at least drop some hint; it's too luck-based as it is now.
StephenJM81 quotes:
"Shoo, 59 took me a few hundred attempts on its own...finally realized I didn't have to trust luck, take a long circle around that magnet instead of pulling in close, it only takes one rotation for the block to pass and then you just sail on by"
I'm surprised. Level 30's the hardest level for me. Whereas Level 30 I take a long detour to reach the target, Levels 31~40 I simply keep myself along the top of the screen. And it gradually got easier from Level 31 onward.
Almost got 30k by the end of 3rd level on my 3rd attempt. Conventional method of ending the round quickly will not help as much as eating ghosts. Before using the superpower, lure a ghost beforehand. I notice that they always moved in swarms; probably because they've to trap us since they're slower. Once the ghost is 2~3 nodes away from you, simply use the superpower and eat them. Pay attention to surrounding lights as the other ghosts should be near. You'll usually net around 2~3 ghost, more if you're lucky. Since each ghost is roughly 500 points [Tho I think there's an increment based on combo], you'll get the Hard Badge quicker that way.
A note for others; there's actually an additional weapon slot/accessory for Interceptor (just click 1 square right from the rightmost box). Been failing the last boss for multiple times before knowing I forgot to maximize my damage output.
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StephenJM81 quotes: "Shoo, 59 took me a few hundred attempts on its own...finally realized I didn't have to trust luck, take a long circle around that magnet instead of pulling in close, it only takes one rotation for the block to pass and then you just sail on by"