Those "fish-bird-snake" puzzles in Skyrim

[Joshimodo]

I disagree. It's the lack of puzzles (or serious puzzles - the fish-bird-snake ones don't count) that ruin the immersion.

Seriously, if you ran a business or a bank with lots of money inside, would you plaster up the vault access codes on posters all around the building so everyone could see them?

Agreed. I was disappointed by the lack of clever puzzles.


There was only one that was vaguely interesting, wherein you had to read a dead guy's book to find out the rather obvious solution - Sitting on a throne.

 

[vivster]

of course it's all the same puzzles... because all the dungeons were build by the same people
though they must've not been very clever those ancient nords
if you lock something you would try to at least hide the key and not plastering the whole dungeon with it...

 

[gideonkain]

I thought they were very clever in that the solution is always available to you when you reach them but isn't obvious, the first one I encountered I thought to myself "Oh man, people are gonna be floored by this" because in this age alot of gamers have no ability to act without direction - why do you think war games are so popular, it makes you walk around doing something a guy is shouting at you to do, I have completed every puzzle I have encountered and I think the one that took me the longest clocked in at a good 5 minutes of exploration until I realized their was a room opposite of it behind a hidden wall that mirrored the correct sequence, very clever every time I encounter those things.

 

[danirax]

Its an OK idea those puzzles are usually too easy and the answer can be found by lighting a torch and walking around the room, but I did really enjoyed the one whit the when rotate one piece it rotates a few others....
EDIT: also I wanna see you trial an error 6 piece puzzle that activates 3 traps when you get it wrong....

 

[The Code]

I think that these puzzles are kind of fitting in the dungeons. They fit with the design of the place, are reasonably difficult, and finding/figuring out the pattern is part of the fun of them. The first one I came across had an NPC already walking up to the trigger lever. (I was sneaking a ways behind him thinking "What's this guy doing?") He pulled it and was immediately pincushion'd by a load of arrows, killing him where he stood. After looting his corpse (obviously my next action in this situation), I examined the room, found the combination, and hit the lever. The gate opened and I continued my journey, my coin purse feeling heavier and my confidence feeling stronger for it.

 

[DanielBrown]

I thought they were pretty annoying. Same goes with the claw puzzles. There was no challenge to beating them. Either I just fiddled a bit, or I looked around the room and saw the answer right away. There was one puzzle that was rather good though. The one mentioned earlier with the wolf, snake, fox and bear.

 

[duchaked]

I quite enjoyed the riddles in Dragon Age: Origins when they did show up. Those weren't too difficult, but made you think just the right amount.

 

[thahat]

Does anyone think these were a good idea?

You know the ones I'm talking about. You're in a dungeon and you come across a locked gate, and a few stone pillars with symbols on them that you have to rotate to get the right combination.

The first time I came across this I was searching for hours in the dungeon and through books for the solution to what I thought was a puzzle, but it turns out it wasn't - you just look around the cave for the correct sequence of symbols.

Then I came across it in another dungeon for a second time, and third! I couldn't believe they would use the same puzzle multiple times. How many times is this puzzle used? Copy and pasting these symbols around the game just seems lazy and cheap on Bethesda's part.

I would have liked some challenge at least, maybe a more complicated puzzle with the answer found in an obscure book. Especially when you can solve these puzzles by trial and error, trying every combination until you get it. It seems doubtful that a highly secretive sect would display the entry code for anyone to gain access, using symbols identical to the ones used halfway across the other side of Skyrim.

What do you think?

well they do use it, but mostly in variations. one of em was actualy quite tricky since how you used it was defined by how the symbols were alligned. ( and i dont count just try everything since it only has 3x3x3 options.. )

 

[SidingWithTheEnemy]

The best puzzles I've found are when you see a crappy iron dagger you'd never pick up sitting on a pressure plate. That's how you hide a secret room in a game.

Crappy Iron dagger?
That's my favorite loot, lightweighted and can be enchanted to be worth almost thousand times it base value.
I'm in some serious "crappy dagger buisness" and it made me filthy f*cking rich!

Anyway, back on topic:
The puzzles aren't that bad. Considering that you don't have the "backtrack all the way back to get the yellow keycard" thing. But they aren't exactly puzzles. My mind isn't really challenged and in my almighty arrogance I get the overarching feel that the game has been dumbed down a lot since Morrowind.

That said I love the dungeons. They are really interesting and although all those Draugr textures are the same, each dungeons seems to be new and exciting and I appreciate that I don't have to walk all the way back but can take a shortcut to get to the exit.

But can we please have less dragonclaws and more riddles or inserting things into other things next time?

 

[Blood Brain Barrier]

The main problem is you don't feel any sense of achievement getting through these puzzles. You haven't used your brain at all, which is how Bethesda wanted it. If you're going to be role-playing it has to be open to you to play a dumbass.

 

[Psychedelic Spartan]

It really annoys me, I mean on the golden claw quest, I spent forever trying before doing the math, realizing how many combos there are (only 27 but I'm not patient) and then asking my companion who said something about it being in the palm of my hand, so I opened my inventory, ONLY TO FIND that is was on THE BOTTOM OF THE CLAW! You know, Bethesda studios are located in the same state as me (Maryland if you're wondering), maybe I could pay them a visit... (insert evil laugh here)

 

[NoNameMcgee]

Yeah after a while I'm finding myself just noclipping through the locked door.

 

[Dandark]

I get annoyed with them sometimes. My biggest problem though is the one with the door where you need a claw for the correct combination.

I won't explore dungeons because im worried I will slog my way through it only to get to a door at the end and discover I needed a claw from somewhere that I didn't get before entering.

 

[Haxxle]

...aren't the solutions imprinted on the dragon claw you use to open the door? Or am I thinking or something else?

They are, but there are some other puzzles that involve rotating pillars that are based off of stuff you find in the environment as clues.

Pretty much mimic the same pattern on the other room into the one with the rotatable pillars.

 

[Something Amyss]

This is the beauty of the overuse of the term immersion. Or, perhaps, the uselessness. We have dueling arguments for how immersion is ruined.

"Puzzles ruin my immersion!"

"Lack of puzzles ruins my immersion!"

"Lack of Koalas ruins my immersion!"

 

[Andronicus]

I'm guessing the architects just assumed the Draugr would take care of the majority of intruders, but decided to chuck in a few simple head-scratchers as an afterthought, just in case. A big burly Nord with arms like tree trunks could easily plow through the undead guards, but schooling probably didn't play a large part in their muscles' development, and their best chance of getting through a puzzle room would be if they were big enough to tear the portcullis out of the frame itself.

I'd prefer it if the puzzles were a little less obvious, and possibly a bit more diverse. I liked the one where you had to work out which animal had to be facing outwards based on the features of their alcove, and the short poem found on the body in the room (ie. "snake is in the weeds, as it should be, whale is in the sea, as it should be", etc). Still fairly simple, but a nice change from "find fixed symbols in tomb, copy symbols on stone pillars 10 metres away".

 

[Pearwood]

That's my favorite loot, lightweighted and can be enchanted to be worth almost thousand times it base value.
I'm in some serious "crappy dagger buisness" and it made me filthy f*cking rich!

True but if you level smithing the cheap and easy way you'll have hundreds of the things just laying around.

 

[projectX42]

i don't mind them but it annoyed me when i found one that had the answerers behind the pillars themselves, seriously! i went searching all over the dungeon looking for clues then after giving up and submitting to just trying all the answers i saw them. the nords are ether incredibly smart or down right trolls