FAQs and Guide to winning a trophy in Operation Gumball

[momwhoplays]

Operation Gumball FAQ and a guide to winning a trophy

I have enjoyed pm’s I have received from several friends asking how to win at OG (Operation Gumball). I thought I would post the FAQs I receive here. If anyone else has tips on winning at OG, please feel free to post here. I would like to build a network of members helping members to win an OG trophy here on this thread. Here are some questions about the game you may have:

What do I need to do to win a trophy?

Play often. Read the tutorial in the above sticky (the blue thread) written by Hamlet, & I have written a thread in this section on how to pass level 20. I will also post tips on this thread (see below). The more you play, the better you will get. Ask questions here, & I’ll try to check this thread daily & get back to you. If you have an area where you’re stuck, take a picture if you can, & I’ll be happy to look at it with you and give you advice.

Do I need to complete the game to win a trophy?

No. It is a random trophy. We have WI members who have won a trophy on level 1. The odds are very slim, but still possible. I have won trophies on levels 3, 6, 9, 11 & up. I have passed level 30 (the highest level) four times, with no trophy. You can win a trophy at any level; the odds just improve the higher you go. Usually I win a trophy around level 23.

How many levels are there in OG?

There are 30 different levels in OG.

Can you win a trophy at the arena?

Yes. I recommend playing Operation Gumball at the Arena every time you play. If you do well, you’ll win 20kc or 10kc as a bonus. The only time I don’t play OG at the Arena is if it’s the game of the day or the hour. The 10% or more bonus is higher than 20 kc, if you play well.

Can you give me some tips on how to win?

I will now explain the game, post pictures, and explain my strategy.

The goal of OG is to guess the correct numbers in the correct position. A red ball means there is one correct number and in the wrong position. A green ball means there is one correct number in the correct position. In levels 1-3, the solution is a 3 digit number. In levels 4-6, the solution is 4 digits; in level 7-9 the solution is 5 digits long, & in level 10 the solution is 6 digits long. In levels 1-10 there are no repeated numbers. After level 10, the cycle repeats itself. There is a chance of two or more of the same number in the solution after level 10. There is a 3 digit solution for levels 11-13 and 21-23; a four digit for levels 14-16 and 24-26, and a five digit solution for levels 17-19 and 27-19. Levels 20 and 30 have a six digit solution. The number of guesses decreases the higher you go. In the higher levels, the lowest number of guesses is 7.

So when you are guessing, aim for solving the solution in 7 guesses or less. If you make an error, learn from it. Take a picture, and study it, to improve for next time. Sometimes it’s just impossible to guess. This game does involve some luck, but with educated guesses, you can rise to a reasonably high level.

When I play in levels 1 to 3, I start with a guess of 121 and then introduce other numbers, making guesses based on the results.

Here is an example.







In the first guess, we learn that either 2 is in the first or third position, or 1 is in the middle. With the second guess, we learn that 2, 3, and 4 are not in the solution. So now we know that 1 is in the middle. So now I introduce 5 and 6. One of these is correct. With the 4th guess, we learn neither the 5 nor the 7 are in the solution. That means that 1 is in the middle and 6 is in the third position.

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When I play OG after level 3, I always start with 1212, then 3434, then 5656. Usually, I then guess 7878, but if all or most of the numbers have been identified, or if it’s beyond level 20, then I usually don’t do a 7878 guess. During the first three or four guesses, I am determining what the possible numbers are. During the next guesses, I ask myself several questions with each guess after that. Here are the questions:

1) What results do you expect with this guess?
2) What numbers do we know or are we guessing are in the solution?
3) What is the position of these numbers that we know or we are guessing?

By finding one correct number in the right place, the rest can be determined, usually.



Here is an example of guessing a four digit solution:







In the first four guesses, we learn that the solution has a 1 or 2, a 5 or 6, a 7 or 8, and a 9 or 0. So next I determine is it the 1 or 2. By using a number that we know is not in the solution (the 3), we can determine this. In the fifth guess, we learn there is no 2 in the solution. There is a 1, and it is in the second or fourth position. In the sixth guess, I introduce the number 5. We learn that the 5 is in the solution, and either the 1 or the 5 are in the correct position. With the next guess, now that I know two of the numbers in the solution, I take a guess at the whole number. The color of the balls will show me if my assumption is correct.

Here is another example:





In the first four guesses, we learn that the solution has the 1 or the 2, the 3 or the 4, and both the 9 and the 0. When there is a known number, I use it as a filler. In the fifth guess, we learn that 2 is in the second position. If there were two red balls, we would know that 9 were in the first position. In the 6th guess, we learn 3 is not in the solution, and since we went from two green balls to a green and a red ball, we learn that the 9 is in the second postion. In the 7th guess I placed the 9 in the third position instead of the second by a mistake. The zero is added. In the 8th guess, I know where the 4, 0 & 9 belong.


Levels 7, 8, and 9 are five digit numbers. Here is an example:








In the first four guesses, we learn there is a 1, 2, 7, 8 and a 3 or 4 in the solution. So in the 5th guess I test, is it the 3? Since there are two red balls, we know the first number has to be the 1. We also learn the 3 is in the solution. The 6th guess determines location of the number 2. The green ball is for the 1 in the correct position, and the red ball indicates the 2 is in the wrong position. We know the 2 is at the end—there is no other place for it. So now that we know where two of the numbers are, we can guess the remaining numbers. The number 3 can only be in the middle. So the solution is 17382 or 18372. Our next guess is correct.

Level 10 is trickier, with a 6 digit solution. Here is an example:





The best advice I can give is to take your time with level 10, and double check that your guesses fill with what you know. Watch were your fingers type to avoid typing the wrong number.

The first three guesses show us that the 1 or 2 are in the solution. We know the 3, 4, 5, and 6 are also in the solution. Only one number remains, so now we will start guessing the location of the numbers, & fill in the 6th number later. With the 4th guess, we know the 3 is in the solution, & we test if the 1 is. We learn it is not the 1, so it is the 2. With the next guess, we bring the 5 into the guess. We know the 2 and 3 are in the solution. Either the 5 or the 2 are out of place. So with the 6th guess, we test the location of the 5. Since we have two red balls, there are two possibilities. Either the 3 is in the third position, and the 5 is in the fifth position, or the 5 is in the first position and the 2 is not in the second position. We test the first hypothesis, and learn that all of the numbers are in the wrong place. This is helpful. Now we know the 5 is in the first, the 2 is not in the second so we guess it to be in the 4th. The 3 has to be in the 5th position. We use the 7 as filler, and we guess the 6 to be in the third position (it could also be in the 5th position). We also learn that the 7 is not in the solution—the green balls refer to the 5, 6, 2, and 3. The next guess determines that there is an 8 or a 9 in the solution. We know, in the 9th guess, that the 5, 6, 2, and 3 are in the correct positions, and the 9 is in the solution. So the only other possibility is to reverse the positions of the 4 and the 9—this gives use the solution.

Tips on passing level 10:
*take your time
*guess 1 or 2 possibilities at a time
*use fillers (such as the 7) to introduce new numbers
*think of all the possibilities
*identify which ball refers to which number


It is my hope that this information will help you succeed at Operation Gumball, and earn a beautiful trophy. I will check this thread daily, and help you with what you need. If you would like any further information, please ask. I could also post strategies for passing levels 11 and up if needed. Have fun! The kinz cash payoff is great, and the chances for winning a trophy increase the farther you go.

[marthaaa]

OMG! This is sooooo helpful! I actually am pretty good with numbers and play OG sometimes with a little bit of success. You have identified strategies that I don't even use! You have also made it very easy for people to kind of study your thoughts and theories and become better OG players! Just excellent! Thanks for all your hard work!

[momwhoplays]

Thanks, Marthaaa. Good luck with seeking an OG trophy!

[lauraanne]

When I first started playing I thought there was no one who could win a trophy now I am getting better and better by using your tips. I have even started teaching your tips to my friends children and they love playing the game. They are very very young and most games are toooo difficult for them but guessing numbers is easy for them now after using your tips. They were so excited when they got to level 7. Thanks for this wonderful guide that is soooo easy to follow that even a caveman could do it.

[momwhoplays]

thanks so much, Lauraane. I'm glad this helped you!

[pilz1]

This is very helpful!!!

[DES]

I am off to try this wonderful solution. I'm sure I'll need to keep coming back here for help, but this is definitely better than what I was doing. Thanks

[momwhoplays]

Thanks, Pilz1 & DES. Glad this was helpful

[devinxx]

I was wondering if you could PLEASE help me out on this. I understood all the way up to here. I am real dertirmed to get a trophie on this game, i have played it 32 times now since last night.

Can you please tell me like what did wrong and how i do this level step by step?

THANKS!

[Iamwebkinzfan]

thanks 4 the help!!!!