History GuideDangIt / Other

* Any freelance job based around "pitching," particularly freelance journalism, is essentially just a game of trial-and-error based on random hunches and theories about what editors will like.

** Job interviews, especially the dreaded "Where do you see yourself in five years?" question.

* And then there's ''Solaris''. It was a fun little shooter for the Atari 2600, had amazing graphics for it's day, a couple of you might remember it: you flew a little triangle in levels that looked to be psuedo 3d, in a 3rd person view. Considering that virtually all other home shooters at the time were top down or side on, this was amazing. Anyway, this game actually had an ending. Yes, someone actually BEAT this game, and it IS beatable. They had to hack the ROM to do it, and then write down all of the grids they went to and the time they did, but they did beat the game. Guide is [[http://skintigh.tripod.com/atari/solaris.html here]].

* ''VideoGame/RuneFactory 2'' has a few, the biggest one being what to do after getting every last stone tablet fragment in the second generation. The only hint as to what you're supposed to do comes from Barrett, who first tells you not to get any ideas to [[spoiler: seal the dragon]] and then proceeds to make a small, seemingly insignificant remark about how there's no way to get under the town. Freebie hint: [[spoiler: your barn doesn't expand above ground]].

* The third faction [[spoiler:/el]] is this in ''VideoGame/{Hacknet}}''. [[spoiler: To get to them, the player needs to delete x-server.sys on Naix' root gateway and then following his missions. However, this is not possible anymore if "Aggression must be punished" has been completed.]]

* The Flash Game [[http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/471068 PSAI]] is an extreme example of Guide Dang It.
* The C64 had some painfully Guide Dang It titles; among them the BC series, Quest for Tires and Grog's Revenge. To this day I still don't understand "Use keys A and B in the first cave you See", just that it means a lot of dying.

* There is a rather baroque puzzle built into a scenario in the tabletop RPG TabletopGame/CallOfCthulhu Sourcebook Secrets of Japan. Basically, the [=PCs=] need to find a secret door in a maze. The only real hint of the door's location the player characters can get requires them to 1) be able to understand Japanese writing (not a big obstacle, seeing as how at least one of the [=PCs=] or [=NPCs=] within the party are expected to Japanese), 2) pick up one of the cultists' [[spoiler:prayer books]] earlier (not as big a snag, it is loot after all), 3) explore enough of the maze to map out its layout without hitting any traps or monsters (thankfully, there's only one or two of each in the entire maze) and 4) compare the map and [[spoiler:the first letter of each line in the prayer book]] for some random reason, thus learning the right directions for getting to the secret door from the entrance. Mercifully, [[AnyonecanDie despite]] [[KillEmAll the game's]] [[TotalPartyKill reputation]], the scenario outline nevertheless offers alternate ways for the [=PCs=] to find the secret door, such as pure luck, the guidance of [=NPCs=] or successful Idea and Spot Hidden rolls.
* In the MSX version of ''[[VideoGame/{{Gradius}} Salamander]]'', if you want the good ending you have to have a number of secret items PLUS a copy of ''Nemesis II'' (another game in the series) in the second cartridge slot...God help you if the MSX you're playing on doesn't HAVE a second cartridge slot. also, you have to go through a secret level that's...well, Temperamental on anything but a MSX1.
* Any game by Creator/{{Cactus}} that involves puzzles or multiple endings. the ''Mondo'' series (which is approaching a third game) are large offenders, ''VideoGame/MondoMedicals'' being the most {{egregious}} of the two released games.
** Another notable offender is ''StenchMechanics'', which can lock you out of two endings if you [[spoiler: get the suit before inhaling the purple stench]]. That combined with some counter-intuitive moments ([[spoiler: turning on EVERY LIGHT despite captain's orders]], for instance) makes for some headaches.

* The NES version of ''VideoGame/SectionZ'', an early {{Capcom}} ShootEmUp originally released for the arcade, consists of three stages with 20 "sections" each. The game requires you to memorize the layout of each stage and know which teleporter will take you to which section in order to find the two power generators in each stage and destroy them in order to reach the stage boss. This isn't a hard task to do, since you have to manually map the game if you have trouble remembering the correct path. However, the paths to the final two generators are hidden in warp gates which you can only find by shooting at the exact spot where they're located. If you don't know where the warp gates are located, you will spent an eternity flying through various sections in circle finding nothing.

* Online Games by MotionTwin tend to fall into this territory more than often, mainly because they're not-so-perfectly translated from French, and all the official guides stop at the basics and a couple FAQs. Good luck finding out what class build to use in {{Minitroopers}} or which way to build a town in Die2Nite without a player-made guide...

* MMORPGs that don't offer clear quest directions often necessitate consulting a website. Even if the in-game descriptions are clear enough, some aspect of the game will be better described on an external website.

* The finished but still-current {{Neopets}} 'plot' quest called Altador is absolutely impossible without using a guide: Some of the requirements make you click A SINGLE PIXEL in an image which it was never specified to do so, and go to locations in a certain order which seemingly had ''absolutely nothing'' to do with the plot. Some of the 'puzzle' varieties in the games consisted of pressing switches in the right combination-- for the second-last combination puzzle, '''there were over 1,000 possible combinations''' and you had to try ''every single one''. All this for some measly items per day while the plot is still relevant, which don't even amount to much cash right now (but will in, say, 10 years) so it's useless to most players of the game.

* {{Homestuck}} has an in-universe example with [[TheGamePlaysYou Sburb]]. Much of the initial story is simply the protagonists- a group of new players- trying to make sense of its interface and figure out what the hell is going on. And the ''only'' reasons said protagonists survive for any length of time is that 1,) they have help from a previous group of experienced players, and 2,) they were very, very lucky.

* ''VideoGame/YumeNikki'' is the definition of this trope. No explanations, no plot, no storyline, no interactions with npc's (unless you stab them- that does nothing), nothing. Many a person will wander around the WideOpenSandbox of the game's maps, looking for that one thing they need. Then, when you get all your effects, there is no hint as to what you need to do to complete your game. It's actually counter intuitive. [[spoiler: You drop ALL your effects in the main room, wake up, there will be a set of stairs on the balcony, and jump off the set of stairs.]]

* ''{{Shivers}}'' had quite a few. Fortunately, the earlier puzzles were [[AllThereInTheManual in the manual]], but others, such as the red door and Egyptian door puzzles, were almost impossible.

* Inserting a USB plug into the socket is described as a serious problem by people, resulting in broken USB sockets, broken pendrives, and some MemeticMutation on various sites claiming you have to turn the plug 3 times and etc. Actually plugs have a logo on them which indicates the top of the plugs. The eop goes opposite of the PCB where's the USB socket is soldered, eg. on laptops the logo on the plug points upwards. But it's always funnier to create unfunny memes about the issue instead of learning how to plug it correctly.

** For another corridor, the message was to "ask the round creature for help several times." This was, as stated above, the blue lander. You had to enter and exit its room several times in a row (through the same door and without going through any other rooms) before it would unlock the cooridor. But prior to the last time (when you get a message saying the door is open) there is no message given to suggest that what you're doing is right.

*** To be fair, there are enough references to "573" (in IIDX, other Konami games, and even Konami's offices' phone numbers) to make you suspect that is, in some sense, a "special" number to Konami. In case you're wondering about the significance of 573, [[spoiler: basically, one possible pronunciation of "five-seven-three" in Japanese is "Konami". Not exactly that simple, but if you want the full story, learn Japanese.]]

*** And then there's one song that requires you to know to spell [[spoiler: FOREVER]] using the first letters of songs' titles to unlock, and doing so dumps you into the song ''without even highlighting it''. What? You're missing a letter? Back to the Unknown Target songs for you!
*** Another song can only be unlocked by playing the 2-kyu course in Dan'inintei mode
*** Thankfully, Konami posted the requirements on their official web site, 5 weeks after the game was released.

** The Robot Monkey sidequest triggers by defeating Mai, then visiting the game shop, then Domino Pier, and finally visiting [=KaibaCorp=]. If you fail to activate it by the time you defeat the Paradox Brothers in China, you miss out on the sidequest for the rest of the game.

** The Robot Monkey sidequest triggers by defeating Mai, then visiting the game shop, then Domino Pier, and finally visiting KaibaCorp. If you fail to activate it by the time you defeat the Paradox Brothers in China, you miss out on the sidequest for the rest of the game.

* In ''VideoGame/YuGiOhReshefOfDestruction'', obtaining the power of Ra's Phoenix Mode requires you to input a password at Grandpa's shop. There are no hints as to the correct password in-game.

* In ''VideoGame/YuGiOhReshefOfDestruction'', obtaining the power of Ra's Phoenix Mode requires you to input a password at Grandpa's shop. There are no hints as to the correct password in-game.

* Learning to use a weapon system completely unrelated to the one you've been trained on is this for most people who've only ever used one system predominantly. It's like the worst case of DamnYouMuscleMemory ever.
** The people hit especially hard by this tend to be, surprisingly, American police and Military personnel whose only interactions with firearms stem from their jobs. This is because the U.S.A. has a shooting culture centered 100% around the AR15, and it has been that way for nigh on 50 years. No other rifle is in main frontline usage with anybody in the U.S. Chances are that these people haven't been taught to use anything else. Now imagine A SWAT guy who has been shooting [=ARs=] during his entire shooting career suddenly tries to use an AK.
** He probably first flubs loading and doesn't realize that you load an AK by rotating the magazine into place instead of jamming it up a well. The second GuideDangIt comes to the safety. He could have kept his middle finger on the trigger and used his pointer to index the thing instead of taking his whole hand off the grip. The next GuideDangIt comes when it's time to reload and the bolt doesn't stay locked back and he has to hit the mag release located beneath the trigger guard.
** Switching from familiar to unfamiliar platforms in general is a huge case of GuideDangIt if nobody's showing you how it's done, and the controls on the platforms are very very different.
* The airline industry has learned that not training its pilots on new systems can end in disaster.
** Failure to explain metric conversions to pilots (who were used to Imperial measurements) resulted in [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gimli_Glider The Gimli Glider]] taking off with only half the fuel it needed to reach its destination, and its tanks went dry in mid-flight.
** Scandinavian Airlines Flight 751 was brought down when a system its pilots didn't know about counteracted their attempt to clear the engines of ice.

* WebVideo/TheAngryVideoGameNerd points out that having the manual is essential to playing the games in the MagnavoxOdyssey console. Otherwise it would be near impossible to figure out what to do with two player-controlled squares and the plastic overlays (and sometimes, real pieces and tokens) used for each game.