Exposing the truth about test 1
I have mulled over this all morning, wondering whether or not I should expose the following. I know Dark took it off his site, but a number of people I've spoken to believe this to be "in-game" and "built-in" and so I've come to the decision that this should be published here. You've all heard the rumors about being able to cheat on the DWY test, and yes they are true - some involve hacking messages to browsers from servers (which I DO consider cheating), but there is one which really does seem intentional, and I think is quite possibly MEANT to be there.
If you don't want to know, then don't read it. I am not in the business of spoilers, but as I've just said - I think this is in-game and so thus NOT a spoiler. If you disagree, fine, and if this is somehow just a big screw up on the part of TPTB, I'm sorry I fueled the fire, but to be honest I'm not taking the fall for their screw up - nobody would be to blame but themselves. Note to the haters - I'm not ruining the experience here by posting this - people have a right to know the truth (getting all RB there), and also its unfair in the first place that real players will get nowhere near the league table. And who knows - maybe you HAVE to get in a top percentile to progress - or need a certain number of points to view an extended DHARMA DVD edition of Pierre Cheng. You just don't know!
Right, with that out of the way - the "cheat". When you're logged on and click to the start the test, click on one of the fragments and then immediately press SPACEBAR. The whole page will go berserk and you're switched to a test where the timer remains at 100%. You can then complete the test, and usually get a high 90s score, if not 99% or 100% (though I personally have only gotten 99 after a few attempts). Why do I think this could be intentional? Well it is a PRESSurized SPATIAL test - a clue to the hack? Could this be Dan Bronson giving us all a helping hand? Or is it really a screw-up? Basically, I am a little annoyed - if it is intentional, why didn't they clarify with a little note from Dan Bronson about it. What's the point in a frickin leaderboard or "my progress" if there's an intentional way to ensure top marks. Maybe it is a cheat, maybe it isn't, but you have to take a decision about these things - and I chose to reveal the truth. Begin the hate barrage!
17 comments:
Here there
here is my 100
http://img396.imageshack.us/img396/6210/59470388pt8.jpg
Personally I've found getting 100% impossible, but being beside the point, cheating is now what you must do. If Dharma are looking for people with the top scores, then this is the way to do it. In my opinion I believe that this is a mistake in that there were no "clues" given to find out this cheat. But Hoodlum mistake or no it shall have to be written into the ARG storyline, no doubt with RuckusGuy as the culprit. I shall still attempt a full score but there has been no contact from in-game (Dharma) or outside (Hoodlum) as to the intergrity of cheating, but I advise everyone to do so because they can not go back over this. The site has been glitchy since it was put up so I say write it in and let us get on with the ARG
Zachary I agree. If they wanted a big ARG they should have made a new Speaker of sorts. Obviously the scale isn't like TLE but if you're doing such obscure things like this that could or could not be screw ups, you need a voice of authority.
Well it seems pretty certain to me that it is in-game. "Pressurized spatial" is a clear hint - notice that the pieces are not even spatial (3D) but only planimetric (2D). Anyway, I wonder how has anyone found out about it...
And the score you get after pressing spacebar is the same as the seconds remaining WHEN you press spacebar (I waited, pressed it at 75 and got 75 points). Therefore I think you can get 100 if you press it REALLY quick, which I have not managed so far - always takes one sec and I get 99 at most.
If you press space with counter below 100 you'll get points equals to taht counter, but some strange things happens when you'll manage to press space and click during first second (or even split of second). First three times I managed to do it I got only 52 points, then I got couple of times 96 points and then I was very surprised when I got 100. So it's possible to get 100 using described trick - you don't have to fool the server :)
All this bluff and double-bluff is driving me insane...I'm NOW starting to think there's a hidden element in this post we should be looking for!
Then again, maybe I was just insane to begin with...
It's a "Press Space" Judgment Evaluation. Is it possible that those who use this trick will get judged or evaluated differently than those who don't? It doesn't seem to make sense to put the word Judgment in there, really. It seems to be more of a decision than a judgment when it comes to figuring out the puzzle.
Well, this would explain why there's a "Leader" board rather than a "High Scorers" board. I dare say that this post is no spoiler at all, and that those of us just finding out about this now are screwed -- the true "leaders" are the first ones who got a 99 (or 100) and I expect that the board will show names in order of who reached 99 (or 100).
- mnw
It's the Kobiashi Maru (sp?) test from Star Trek... the way to win is to cheat.
If it's good enough for James T. Kirk, it's good enough for me.
On the Lost TV forum and Dark's websites, some members have found and posted the code on the site for this "cheat."
But you do make a good point that there is no authority. I made a screen cap of what happens when you cheat and analyzed thoroughly, hoping for some sort of hidden message or clue from RuckusGuy.
But nada.
I'm gonna take a chance and not "cheat". If it turns out that I'll be behind in the game, then that's a risk.
I think the cheat is intentional, and, furthermore, TPTB had to know it would be all over the web in a matter of a day or two. The anagram "patience is bitter" could be a clue. It sounds similar to "patience is better". The anagram could be telling us that it is better to be patient and play the game by "the rules". Those that do not use the cheat may be rewarded. Those that do use the cheat may even be kicked out of the Dharma Initiative recruiting drive completely. In other words, this first test MIGHT be more an ethics test than anything else. "Press Space Judgment" means those who press the space bar will be judged.
A little off topic - but am I the only one who hasn't gotten ARG related emails from Hans Van Whatshisface?
Im registered and all - I log in - I test...but no emails have ever come my way.
Has anyone else NOT received email about/from the ARG?
I'm starting to feel as loved as Nikki and Paulo
You did very well publishing the cheat. It shouldn't be a spoiler to anyone. It's a challenge. I agree with David that the cheat is intentional. Not cheating should be the result of a choice and not because you just don't know that you can cheat. The trouble is that in real life chosing not to cheat has always worked against me...well I guess I'll make the same choice, so I'll stick with my true score.
Perhaps the "glitch" is meant to point to the connection between SPACE and TIME. If the island moved in space maybe it moved in time as well.
I think the space time thing is a great idea dude!
I think it's obvious at this point, after Test 2, that the SPACE BAR cheat of Test 1 was intentional. Dharma (being Dharma) is testing more than just our ability to put together jigsaw puzzles or answer random questions. It's testing our abilities to observe and to read blogs like this!
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