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Thread: MouseAdventure Team Tips

  1. #1

    MouseAdventure Team Tips

    As the request was made in the MA Zone thread re: MA tips, I figured I'd start a new thread for those teams out there that have reservations about switching from Basic to Advanced, jumping headfirst into the Advanced game (guilty, thanks to Nala), or just want to be a little more competitive. I'm not trying to tell anyone they're doing it wrong, as everyone has their own reasons for playing MouseAdventure.

    Here are some of the things that we have learned over the years. Let's get some suggestions going for those who want help:

    1) Time management is key. Work the big puzzles where you gather a bunch of information first so your puzzle solver can be solving those big ones while you're moving to another location or working other puzzles. Caveat: You may have to go back to get the answer. Be prepared and ensure you read the entire puzzle (Read everything, assume nothing) to have a good idea if you will get the final answer with the solution or if it will point you to find the answer nearby. Know how much time you have left and budget your time to work the big-ticket puzzles (classic format) and get to the low-density puzzles when you rack up a good base of points. Also, know what the payoff is: if you have to search for 20 minutes to find an eye-spy worth 5 points, it probably isn't worth it. Have your eye-spy expert or the team collaborate on where you "think" the eye-spies are before you get started so you can pick them up as you go. You're not going to lose the game by 5 minutes. Have a quick team meeting and organize your quests in a safe place (i.e. not a place you'll get run over by other teams or chased away by MA staff for blocking the PP exit) before you really get going. Hand out quests/eye spies to the appropriate team members before you go.

    2) Team composition is also key. If you do the game for fun and like the entire team to collaborate on every quest, there's nothing wrong with that. For those who want to be extra competitive (psychotic is what I call Jen (*Nala*)), we have found that splitting up the quests to play to each player's strengths is a good thing to do. Have someone who is good at the logic/math puzzles, someone who is good at the word puzzles, someone who is good at eye-spies, and someone who is good at trivia. These can be the same person (Nala is our primary puzzle person, Danie (Rafiki) is our eye-spy person, and I'm the trivia person with Rafiki's help; Rafiki and I work on puzzles that we feel comfortable with while Nala is engaged on the tough ones). Those not working on a puzzle right now should be feeding the information necessary to the person who is. Example: You need to find 30 words for a word-search. Non-working members should be in charge of finding the words and getting them to the working player so that player can tick off words as he/she goes. Have a team leader who makes the hard calls like, "We don't have time for that now. We have to get to Tomorrowland to work the 50point quest."

    3) Check your ego at the door. This was the hardest part for us, and it took a lot of games to get over this one. If roles are defined, then everyone has to be working on their role. No, "but I want to work on that puzzle," if that's not your role. Trust me, I love to be involved and know what Nala is doing. But, that just distracts her and I can't be working on other stuff if I'm constantly bothering her. Don't ask once a quest is solved, "How did you do that?" Deal with that after the game if you're interested. Also, if a team member says, "I need _____ right now," or "You have to get me the rest of this information or I can't complete this puzzle," you have to be willing to support that. Arguments about who's in charge just suck up the time you could be using to solve more puzzles.

    4) Check your work. A lot. Another hard-learned lesson. We spent a lot of games with the "Doh!" factor, of little math errors, little logic errors, or little spelling errors (don't think, "I know how that's spelled;" find the word there in the park). Mouseadventure is becoming more competitive, and little errors of a few points can knock your from a potential 1st place finish to 5th in a hurry (yep, also learned from experience). Have another team member look at it. If you did it yourself, you don't have perspective.

    5) Eat and drink on the move. Have protein bars, Clif shots, Power Gels, sandwiches from home, whatever you like, can eat, etc. to pull out as you're moving. Have a team member who's in charge of the "It's time to eat," or "Are you drinking enough water?" Nothing hurts worse than getting irritable and fighting over something stupid only to figure out that you're just hungry and everythings better after an hour of time-wasting and a Clif Bar. A Camelbak or similiar device is your friend. Don't count on being able to sit down for a leisurely lunch somewhere in the park, although there are times when a big puzzle is in the works and sitting down for a snack while you're working may be appropriate.

    6) Definitely have a clipboard, preferably one with a storage compartment. Each team member should have a clipboard or something they can write on so everyone can be working on separate quests. Have a team member in charge of organizing and not losing game materials. Highlighters help a lot with word searches.

    7) Know where the ride exit is. Drop off any non-riding team members there before the rest of the team rides WITH THE GAME PACKET. Penalties are not fun. We are partially responsible for clarifying one of the variations of the "Star Tours" rule in figuring this one out.

    8) Ask for help if you need it. The MA staff is great when it comes to this. If they can clarify something for you (usually a quick, "did you read the ENTIRE quest?"), they will do so before hitting you up with a time or point penalty for help. If you're worried, caveat your question with a quick, "We don't want to take the penalty here, but we think something's missing/can't quite get this. Can you clarify _____ for us?" You may just find an error that will help out every other team in the game.

    OK, that's what I can come up with now. Anyone else with tips you think should be shared, please add here.

    Kevin


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  3. #2
    Ready for MA World Explorers! Drince88's Avatar
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    A play off of 8 -- Stop by MA Central/satellite locations a couple of times, especially if you think there's something 'off' with a quest and just ask if there have been any changes. Maybe you haven't gotten to that quest yet (which is why you should do it even if you don't suspect something) or maybe the place/time you asked before they didn't have the info.

    Read everything - assume nothing are the biggest tips that can be given. Even after multiple events, we made some really silly mistakes on that front.

    You don't ALWAYS have to have everything to solve a puzzle. Last time we were running out of time, so stopped to see if we could solve the puzzle with about half the info. We were able to figure out 'the question', but unfortunately didn't have time to get the correct answer. (But our guess was a very logical one given the question!))

    It's not always the best strategy to solve high points first. We've found we do better if we have a warm-up quest in the mid-point range, just to get our brains into MA zone.

    I highly agree with Kevin's 5 above. One event we did was quite a bit warmer than the previous days had been (this is not an unusual occurrence, by the way) and we'd brought what we thought was adequate water. We had to stop and buy water before noon. We wouldn't have stopped in a long line, but there were some kiosks with shorter lines. You can also save a water bottle in your backpack so you can just fill it up at a water fountain and not spend the money. Protein is your friend for meal-substitution, but a short sugar rush (jelly bellies are our preferred source) can also be helpful. We learned to keep the sugar rush in our pockets, so it was easily accessible. The one time we didn't, we never did eat any, because 'it would take too long' to get it out of the backpack/ out of sight-out of mind.

    Get a good nights' sleep. We actually do pack everything into backpacks/etc the night before so that we don't forget anything (and don't carry cameras, etc that are just going to be weight we don't need).

    Cathy

  4. #3
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    Wow! Great tips from an amazing team! We've played Basic many times and find that the items we bring are very important. We keep a list to refer to each time so that we don't forget anything. These things include: lots of scratch paper, pens, pencils with erasers, highlighters, scissors, tape, magnifying glass or reading glasses, graph paper, ziplock bag for small game pieces. We also get park maps beforehand, as we have often needed them and they are an "allowed" item.

    We have learned over the years to work mostly in pencil and then record on our answer sheet in pen. We have someone who collects the completed quests so that they are out of the way of those in progress. We gauge our time according to the point value of the quests. And definitely bring food that can be eaten on the go - we all bring different things and we all share.

    Do we occasionally bicker? Yes. Do we have great fun? Always!

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    Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix
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    Quote Originally Posted by julierika View Post
    We also get park maps beforehand, as we have often needed them and they are an "allowed" item.
    I'm just going to jump in here with a reminder on park maps: if WE provide one in your game materials, that's the map you should use to solve quests. It's not unusual that we have to get 200 copies of the park maps we've used in writing the game, because we know the map will change by the time the event date and we need teams to have the "right" map.
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  6. #5
    Ready for MA World Explorers! Drince88's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by julierika View Post
    Do we occasionally bicker? Yes. Do we have great fun? Always!
    This is really important - that you can keep the disagreements at the "bicker" level and don't let it get in the way of the fun. (And again, why the hydration and fueling is important.)

    Our team has three goals for MA events - and the third is a distant third (and not always achieved).
    • Still be talking with each other at the end
    • Have fun
    • Finish Respectably
    .

    If you go in with those three goals in mind, and know that the third IS in third place (and not the most important), you'll get your money's worth from the price of admission.
    Cathy

  7. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Drince88 View Post
    You don't ALWAYS have to have everything to solve a puzzle. Last time we were running out of time, so stopped to see if we could solve the puzzle with about half the info. We were able to figure out 'the question', but unfortunately didn't have time to get the correct answer. (But our guess was a very logical one given the question!))

    It's not always the best strategy to solve high points first. We've found we do better if we have a warm-up quest in the mid-point range, just to get our brains into MA zone.
    I totally agree with Cathy here, and that's something that I applaud Jen for, as it's something I'm just not that good at. She has solved many, many quests with what I consider very limited information (including the infamous confetti quests) using logic and "Wheel of Fortune" skills. If it makes sense, especially upon checking with other team members, then it's probably good. It's usually best to do that rather than spin on finding that last word that's just eluding you. Sometimes, though, especially with the "Leftover Letter" puzzles, this just isn't possible. Working backwards is sometimes your friend, too. Jen has also answered some quests (don't ask me how) by just reverse engineering the possible answers and we didn't even have to go to the areas specified by the quest.

    Take some time, too, to log your guesses for eye-spies once you're on your way to turn in your packet. You don't lose anything by throwing down a few logical ones when you're done with everything else and have a few blanks left over. I think we ended up putting ourselves over the top in one game by doing this. Eye-spies have never been our strong suit, and we usually end up with about 30%+ that we just can't seem to get.

    As far as solving the high value ones first, I guess that's part of the organization on the way out of the starting area. Guess I should have been more specific. I agree that this isn't always possible, and a good warmup is a great thing. Also, geography may work in favor of hitting several lower-value quests on the way to the section of the park where the big ticket items are. Backtracking can waste a ton of time. Figuring out your team strategy up front is what I guess is the most important thing I see here.

    Limiting backtracking is overall pretty important. Mouseadventure is definitely more of a marathon than a sprint, but after over 10 miles of walking (I think we actually logged over 14 in MAWE2), we just don't have the energy to do another mile or two to get the elusive answer to the question we just solved. Before you completely leave an area, especially if it's in a corner (Critter Country, Toontown), make sure you aren't missing the obvious "look around for the final answer" portion of the question. We have both given up because it's too far and sucked up a long hike back through the park because we missed this piece. Most noteable, I recall a big word search at the Disneyland Hotel that we just hazarded a guess at the final answer for (boat # in the lagoon), because we got everything we needed for the quest, Jen worked it later in the day when we were in the park, and then we realized we would have to go back.

    Oh, and to jump in to AVP's point: Check out some of the provided materials (Boo's sock, anyone?) to make sure that they don't have hidden blacklight script on them if you have a chance. You just never know when the devious MA staff will put something important in a seemingly innocuous item. We've "found" this at the last second a few times. Or, more specifically, if something obviously goes with a quest, make sure that it's available and you check it out when you're on the ride it goes with. The Floody quest in our first MA was one of these. We scrambled to get the right info in the last minute of the ride because we 'discovered' that the key was in UV text.

    Oh, and unscrambling is a good skill to have. Did you know that CLEATS and CASTLE contain the same letters? We figured it out after looking at horses hooves on Main Street for five minutes and forgetting to look up and see the big CASTLE right in front of our faces.

    Kevin

  8. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Simba0614 View Post
    7) Know where the ride exit is. Drop off any non-riding team members there before the rest of the team rides WITH THE GAME PACKET. Penalties are not fun. We are partially responsible for clarifying one of the variations of the "Star Tours" rule in figuring this one out.
    Let me clarify my syntax here: Make sure the GAME PACKET RIDES. Do not leave the game packet or any other materials (food and water would be nice, though) with the non-riding team member.

  9. #8
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    Thanks so much for all the tips! It's really helpful!


  10. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Simba0614 View Post
    8) Ask for help if you need it. The MA staff is great when it comes to this. If they can clarify something for you (usually a quick, "did you read the ENTIRE quest?"), they will do so before hitting you up with a time or point penalty for help. If you're worried, caveat your question with a quick, "We don't want to take the penalty here, but we think something's missing/can't quite get this. Can you clarify _____ for us?" You may just find an error that will help out every other team in the game.
    We can't stress this enough. You can always ask us a question -- based on what that question is, we will let you know if it is considered a hint or a clarification. But don't think you will get penalized just for asking a question. Just PLEASE remember if it is pertaining to a quest to ask it at a station, if stations are part of the game -- otherwise, ask it at MA Central. If you see staff or crew members roaming or standing, that person may or may not have the materials with them to help you -- but they should be able to answer questions about the game (where is turn in, what time does the game end). Just ask.
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  11. #10

    Something we (San Diego Mouse Catchers) always try and do is have a discussion after the event about what we did right and wrong, and we try and make notes to remember for next time. When it's fresh in your mind it's always easier to see a problem in how you did something(time management, etc.) and likely know what the solution is.

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  12. #11

    Many, many thanks for the tips!

    ...may we have some more, please?
    (Especially since we're diving into the deep end after several years in "Basic" - yikes!)


  13. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Simba0614 View Post
    Let me clarify my syntax here: Make sure the GAME PACKET RIDES. Do not leave the game packet or any other materials (food and water would be nice, though) with the non-riding team member.
    Game Packets like to ride rides.
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  14. #13

    I contimplated doing the advanced just because I wanted to go two days...but knowing how hard they r we opted to just do basic until we get good at it..lol maybe a while

    I'm the Disney Princess your Mama Warned you About!

  15. #14
    Disneyphiles Janis and Aaron's Avatar
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    Great tips from everyone. Here's one I haven't seen mentioned: If a quest calls for a single team member to do something (trivia on the steps at DCA, memorizing Disney characters on a mural on Main Street), it can be a good time for the others to break out the snacks and drinks. Ditto if a team member has to take a potty break. Take advantage of enforced downtime!

    If you want a Camelback-type bag but don't want to spend a fortune, Target and Kmart have decent knockoffs for $20-$30. (Walmart has them too, but at least at ours, the water bladder had a funky ziploc-style closure.) Thirst is your enemy, and dried-out brain cells can't focus.


  16. #15
    The Hollywood Chain Gang CariBelle's Avatar
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    What about the trivia section? I've been reading up on TTZ and certain episodes, but from what I understand the trivia is still very Disney based- so how in the heck do I study for that? lol


  17. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by CariBelle View Post
    What about the trivia section? I've been reading up on TTZ and certain episodes, but from what I understand the trivia is still very Disney based- so how in the heck do I study for that? lol
    Hey Cari!

    I know trivia is tough one to study for. The tips I can give are:

    1) we won't ask anything so granular that you wouldn't be able to figure it out (like how many tea cups are on the table in the "unbirthday scene" in Alice in Wonderland movie).
    2) Go with your gut - I've heard of teams that over think the answer and talk themselves out of the correct one.
    3) Now that you aren't doing them in the ballroom, give yourself time to answer them -- READ the question a couple of times and see if you can figure out the answer without looking at the choices - then see which one matches the answer you were thinking (the SAT method)

    But I'd love to hear what teams do to study for this one.
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  18. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by Niwel View Post
    But I'd love to hear what teams do to study for this one.
    We have been watching as many Twilight Zone episodes as my DVR will hold...
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  19. #18
    The Hollywood Chain Gang CariBelle's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Niwel View Post
    Hey Cari!

    I know trivia is tough one to study for. The tips I can give are:
    Thank you Niwel! That does help a lot, I'm a pretty good guesser when it comes to multiple choice type stuff so I was hoping that would play into MA trivia as well.
    Now that we are a few days out I can't tell if I'm more excited about playing the game or seeing everyone!

  20. #19
    Simba's Pride *Nala*'s Avatar
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    Trivia: That's another of our "that's not our best, so we'll do what we can" game elements. We generally figure to get about 50-60% of these and make sure we just do really well on the quests to make up for it.

    However, we have kind of done a role split in the past. I am the general "how did that bit of weird stuff get in your head" guy and I have a good memory for actors, roles, and movies in general; Danie kind of compliments that, along with watching the Disney channel shows to pick up those elements. Jen has taken it upon herself to study the park stuff (opening dates, attractions, etc.) that is central to the game theme. We generally (although not this time with a 2-year-old and another on the way) pull out Disney A-Z and just skim pertinent stuff or whatever strikes our fancy prior to game time.

    Kevin (inadvertently posted from Jen's account: what kind of trouble can we get in with this . . . remember to log out, OK?)

    Jen
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  21. #20

    Now that we're almost spitting distance from the event, I'm going give this tip again. Check the weather and plan accordingly. It sounds obvious, but I feel like this is something that often gets forgotten in last minute planning. For example, my first MA was Reindeer games. One of my team mates was like "Hey, here's a pack of 12 clear ponchos, so we can hold them over clip boards and people can still see our team sweatshirts". She was the only one of us that looked up the weather and went RAIN! The rest of us had looked too early in the week and just though, meh, sprinkles.


  22. #21
    Registered User Jodi's Avatar
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    It can't be repeated enough: ask questions! Sometimes even hearing someone else say "you might want to re-read that paragraph" is enough to make the lightbulb turn on.

    Sometimes, you might have read everything, but misunderstood the instructions. Last time, on the "Island Guide" quest, the instructions were to use the park map to "eliminate or add listings using the instructions below" then you had to go through a list of steps (eliminate all fastpass attractions, add all DL railroad listings). Whenever we got to an "add" we added it to the end of the list. What we were supposed to do, in the way my mind finally got it, was "un-eliminate" it, or restore the item to where it was on the original list.

    Anyhow, we spent WAY too much time on it (especially for a 20 point-er), but once we got the clarification, we finished it within minutes. Asking sooner would have been helpful!

    And yes, in case you were wondering, I did go to my desk drawer and pull out that quest to properly quote from it!


  23. #22

    I have seen some good tips jumping up in the Recap thread, but haven't had time to go in and extract (plus, I'm dumb enough online to not be able to properly quote and/or give credit) to place here. Maybe this thread, along with the MA Toolkit thread should be either stickied or linked on the main MA page so they're accessible for everyone down the road as well . . . Just a thought for the admins . . .

    Kevin


  24. #23

    Let's reopen this thread so people can post new tips!


  25. #24
    Romance @ Disney Goddess
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    I know we mention this a lot.... But if you only bring two things that morning, make sure one is a pencil and the other is a watch. Pick up a cheap one from the drug store for each team member... That way everyone knows what time it is and you don't need to take out your phone and risk someone thinking you are cheating.


  26. #25
    Registered User fairestoneofall's Avatar
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    Thanks for resurrecting this. I just re-read it and, after taking the 2012 fall games off, I'm ready to jump back in. I took out my clipboard this week and I'm glad I did. Someone has ransacked my supplies. Grr.

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