Go Go Googles strategy guide (UPDATED!)

[williamson_39]

Going Going Googles
Williamson_39

I've had some luck with good scores (highest over 31,000) and a trophy or two, so I thought I would share some practical strategy and survival tips for discussion.

Goal:
Spell googles (by collecting goo goo berry letters) as many times as possible for the first 9 levels, then just try to stay alive as long as possible for a good score, KC, and tournament win. The reason for this is to maximize your trophy chances while the game is still relatively easy (it is awarded, based on a 1 in 400 chance, for spelling "Googles" and is entirely random - no order of letter collection, level of completion, choice of google used, or any other trick will give you any better odds - for more detail see the sticky blue thread "Random Trophies...EXPLAINED" in the main gamez forum). The more often you spell it, the sooner you will get a trophy. After level 9 however, spelling is secondary to just reaching the level's point goal and surviving for maximum KinzCash!

Here's what you're going for:
winning Go Go Googles.JPG

High Scoring Strategy:
(for max KinzCash, Tournaments wins, and good Trophy chances)

1. Be patient. You can play fast by jumping all the time and collecting flowers as fast as possible, but this will end your game faster and with fewer trophy chances. The best game is slow (even boring for the first five levels), but allows you to spell "Googles" at least 3 times during the game, if not four or five. The trick: don't jump at all except to block a fly or grab a letter. If you're really patient, you can also forget about collecting flowers except when unavoidable. Stay in the middle and wait for your target letters and flies.
2. You can get at least five letters per level (although there will be duplicates you don't need). However, if you take your time as recommended above, you can get more as you progress to higher levels. (1 extra letter every second level to a maximum of 10). Remember, if your goal is a trophy, spell as many times as possible while the game is still easy. With a friendly string of letters, you can spell it 4 times before level 9. littlex3red has posted a count of letters available per level below in this thread, which is a big help when deciding how long you should try to extend each level before you might as well just finish it - it works out to: 5 + (Level/2), always rounded down, to a maximum of 10.
3. Starting at about level seven, you usually have no time for an extra jump between flies. If you're playing for trophy chances, this doesn't matter (because you won't make any unnecessary jumps anyway) but if you're trying to finish a level because you've had too many flies slip by, you need to know how to finish safely. Before level 7 you can usually jump twice per fly - once to block it, and once again to collect an extra batch of flowers before the next fly. After that, you're safer to wait for the fly before you jump.
4. By level 8 or 9, you need to think twice before jumping for letters that you already have. If a fly is due, don't bother with the duplicate letter. If you need the letter, it is worth letting a fly get by as long as you can afford it. Also, two quick flies are usually followed by a longer gap before the next one, so you can take some calculated risks.
5. After level 9 (or sometimes in the middle of level nine if you've missed too many flies) you need to change your focus. Jump for flies (or the first fly in the swarm), but grab as many flowers on the way down as possible. Block other flies while you fall if you can, but you need to reach the point goal quickly to survive, and you can't possibly stop every fly anyway. Forget spelling unless there is a letter that you need right in your path. If you jump carelessly without blocking any flies at all, you will very likely get out of sync and lose quickly. You can also try to quickly grab flowers for a while to get close to finishing, then slow down to spell again if you haven't already missed too many flies.

Speed Strategy: **NEW
(for maximum trophy opportunities in a given amount of playing time)

Alternatively, if you are not concerned with KinzCash or a tournament placing, you can play faster and just go for a couple of spellings then start a new game. In the long run, this can give you more chances in a given amount of time, and you'll waste fewer opportunities by dying with one or two missing letters. Just quit as soon as you've spelled it once (or twice, whatever you are comfortable with) and start over.

I've been starting over immediately if my first spelling is completed after level 3. Otherwise I do it twice - that way I don't have to mess with level 8 and over very often. I also don't wait for more than 4 letters per level, because they are many seconds apart at that point - you're better off playing the first part of each level where the letters are more frequent. Again, this saves time, but costs KinzCash compared to the slow-play strategy above.

The way the letter timing works out, you can do three quick jumps at the beginning of a level, then get the first letter. Two or three more jumps, letter. Three or four jumps, letter. Five or six jumps, letter. If you're getting enough flowers in each jump, your level will end right about the time you get the fourth letter. The beauty of it is that you can almost forget about flies.

Mechanics:
The white google is faster vertically and, and goes higher. The pink google is much faster side-to-side, but can't go to the top for some letters, although you can get high enough to reach any fly. Press the spacebar to switch between them. Whichever google you use, plan your jump so you land back in the middle, ready for the next fly or letter anywhere. If you land off to one side, you will miss more.

If you click again at the top of your jump or on the way down, it will give your google an extra 'bump' up. This is needed to reach the top, and helpful for slowing your fall and changing direction to catch a fly, a letter, or more flowers on the way down. However, you also run the risk of not being able to do a full jump again in time, so be careful on higher levels.

If on the other hand you do the second click while ascending, it will actually stop your vertical progress. This is most useful with the white google on level 9+ where you have to block multiple flies at a time, although it requires good timing and a certain amount of good luck.

Goo Goo Berry (Letters) and Buzzerfly Timing:
The first letter comes a few seconds into each level, followed quite quickly by the second one. There is a longer gap of time before the third and subsequent letters, and much longer after the fifth. Each gap between letters is about 5 seconds longer than the previous one. There is a small amount of random variation in timing from level to level, but only a second or so either way. The rate at which letters appear does not increase as you progress in the game.

On the other hand, flies get faster and much more numerous as you get to higher levels. There is no fixed pattern to their appearance. The game establishes a fly-frequency for the level, and then randomizes around that rate. This is not noticeable until level 8 or so, when they appear more often. By level 12 and 13, they come in swarms - sometimes a couple of groups of three or four almost at the same time. Needless to say, it can't last!

Did you know there is a Ghost in Go Go Googles? If the last fly lands at the same time that you complete the level goal, sometimes the leaves fall off the Gozium Bramble, but the game continues! It normally doesn't kill you, but it does make it awkward, and you can no longer see your collected letters. I posted more about the bug in another thread: http://www.webkinzinsider.com/forum/...o-t154026.html.

Scoring Well:
Since everything you touch gives you points, and all those points fill the goal meter for the level, you will find that your score is within a few points of the same after a given level of every game. However, if you plan your last jump to grab as many flowers as possible, and a fly and even a letter in the bargain, you can exceed the goal meter by 200 points or more.

With about ten pixels left in the goal meter, I try to clear one side with a couple of jumps, while blocking flies and grabbing letters of course. That tends to concentrate the flowers on the other side (since they are replaced randomly when you get one). That sets up a feast for your last jump, when only one pixel remains in the meter.

By the end of level 9 (after which all strategy goes out the window in favour of simple survival), this can mean a difference of a few KC, which isn't much, but those points may put you over the top in a tournament.

Final Thoughts:
If you are feeling frustrated about your lack of success trophy-wise, take a look at the Google Trophy Odds study to see how you stack up against others who have been trying for a long time. I'm sure it won't cheer you up, but it will at least put your experience into perspective. Misery loves company! Keep trying - this one takes incredible patience but you'll feel like a champion when you get one. You can also look at Part II of the Random Trophies research, which will give you an idea of how likely you are to win given how many games you've played.

As with any random outcome, you should be skeptical about superstitions created by winning a trophy. What ever sequence of events seemed to work will not be repeatable (please correct me if you can win a trophy at will ). A quick look at older threads will reveal lots of hopeful hints, but random is, well, random. This game presents the slimmest chance (1 in 400 each time you spell "Googles"), so if you really want a trophy, play a lot, and play patiently.

[mom&corey]

rep point for you for being helpful!! I have never gotten a trophy in this game but only really started playing it about 10 days ago. I have gotten to level 9 but have never spelled GOOGLES more than twice. It does seem like I wait for the flys more than jump. I will try your strategy and see if I can get higher than my score of 18,xxx

[blackandgold1]

I spelled googles 3 times and no trophy I got up to level 8 and my score was 16,219 and I got nothing but 72 kinz cash

[williamson_39]

Thanks for the feedback. By the way, there is another thread in the Googles forum that describes the number of letters available at each level. That will help in knowing just how patient it is worth being (not so much on level 1!). I missed that when I wrote the above - and fell victim to my own superstitions about letter frequency. Go Go figure.

[mom&corey]

I finally made it to level 10 - but still only spelled GOOGLES twice. I was missing one letter for a third time. I got 4 "Ls" in a row and then could not get another letter.

[williamson_39]

Yes, those strings of repeated letters are really painful. Especially if you missed the one you really needed just before that...

[williamson_39]

Here's another little tip for increasing KC. Get your goal meter almost to full (1 pixel shy) by catching only flys or a flower or two at a time as you start to get close. Then plan your last jump to grab a fly and as many flowers as possible.

It doesn't make a huge difference, but it means about 102KC after level nine instead of 98. It's also satisfying to grab a huge wad of flowers once in a while if you play the rest of the game slowly for trophy chances.

---------- williamson_39 added 1 Minutes and 0 Seconds later ----------

And it might put you over the top in a tournament!

[williamson_39]

Good news. It has been recently confirmed that you can win on your very first spelling! So even though it still makes sense to go slow and spell as much as possible, there's hope for all!

Originally Posted by williamson_39

Good news. It has been recently confirmed that you can win on your very first spelling! So even though it still makes sense to go slow and spell as much as possible, there's hope for all!

Yes, you can...I've won this trophy four times so far.....And the wins were VERY far apart.....Twice the wins were on level 2, the first time I finished spelling GOOGLES. Interestingly, I did notice that I spelled it rather early in level 2, but since it's "random", this shouldn't have anything to do with it...Or should it? Makes ya' wonder, doesn't it?

[CoolKinzMama]

Yeah! There is hope for all...my kiddos would be so happy to see a trophy in one of their rooms. I'll be playing this game a lot more now.