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[H] - Minesweeper

Forum Index > General Games
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1 2 Next All
Daumen
Profile Joined July 2011
Germany1073 Posts
Last Edited: 2012-02-22 10:58:51
February 22 2012 07:18 GMT
#1
--- SPOILERS IN THE COMMENTS ---


So I played some Minesweeper to keep me Busy while I wait for the SC2-Servers to come back online but now I am stuck... can anyone help me ? I already had 2 "luck shots" and I dont want to risk any more ;D

If you want to think of your own then I recommend NOT reading the Comments.


Original Problem:
[image loading]



Update #1:
kdgns helped with an information about the top left corner, he said:
+ Show Spoiler +


The 3 blocks to the left of the 4 in the upper left are all mines since the 2 to the right of it gets the last one



So the Field now looks like this:

[image loading]

But this new piece of information does not help me get to the next step :/
So I ask once again, does anyone see another piece of Information in here? Im stuck AGAIN!



Update #2:
kdgns helped me again, this time it concerns the bottom "island":
+ Show Spoiler +
kdgns wrote:
the unopened blocks at the center bottom, look at the group of 2s you should be able to deduce the identity of the block 11 from the right and 4 up from the bottom.

He was right! The mentioned block(Yellow Squared) could NEVER be a Mine so I cleared it, now it is a 4.

The Field now looks like this (The Yellow Square marks the forementioned block):
[image loading]

From here I can again, not see a solid solution to any of the Problems, If I dont find the Solution after a while I WILL take a guess.

But I want to know if it really is nessessary to guess here, is there a safe way to get another piece of information from here?


Update #3:
+ Show Spoiler +

I took 2 guesses here (Yellow Squared). Neither of them helped me a lot, had to take a 3rd Guess(not documented here, it was the square left of the "4" with the Yellow mark in the screenshot below).

The Field:
[image loading]


Update #4:
+ Show Spoiler +

The guessing mentioned in Update #3 helped me to clear out the bottom island. Next thing to do was take ANOTHER guess and it went BOOM!

The End:
[image loading]

I still wish to know if I could have managed to get to any information without taking risks, maybe I overlooked something <.< but my hopes are dwindling. I learned that Minesweeper really is about luck even if you discovered half of the map. Also I have learned that SC2-Server Downtime can lead to a 14836 Second TL-Assisted Minesweeper run. Thanks to this awesome community ;D It was fun.


plx give explanations for any thesis.
Ty

Off topic - Should this thread go to "General" ?
President of the ReaL Fan Club.
kdgns
Profile Joined May 2009
United States2427 Posts
February 22 2012 07:28 GMT
#2
The 3 blocks to the left of the 4 in the upper left are all mines since the 2 to the right of it gets the last one
Daumen
Profile Joined July 2011
Germany1073 Posts
February 22 2012 07:31 GMT
#3
You sir, are a genious.
Thank you very much. If I run into another problem ill update this thread
President of the ReaL Fan Club.
kdgns
Profile Joined May 2009
United States2427 Posts
February 22 2012 07:59 GMT
#4
the unopened blocks at the center bottom, look at the group of 2s you should be able to deduce the identity of the block 11 from the right and 4 up from the bottom.
MCMilo
Profile Joined February 2010
United States365 Posts
February 22 2012 08:11 GMT
#5
*shrug* Just guess and move on. Getting worked up over one minesweeper game is just silly.
sint
Profile Joined February 2012
Netherlands5 Posts
February 22 2012 08:17 GMT
#6
at the top left there is a 4 with a 2 next to it. the 2 says above or beneath the 4 is not a bomb, so the 3 left from the 4 are 3 bombs. i hope you understand me

Daumen
Profile Joined July 2011
Germany1073 Posts
February 22 2012 08:22 GMT
#7
sint, open the spoiler to "Update #1" is that what you meant?
President of the ReaL Fan Club.
sint
Profile Joined February 2012
Netherlands5 Posts
February 22 2012 08:25 GMT
#8
yea thats right
kdgns
Profile Joined May 2009
United States2427 Posts
Last Edited: 2012-02-22 08:37:14
February 22 2012 08:34 GMT
#9
I hope my hint was clear when you have something like


[A][X]
[B][2]
[C][2]
[2][X]

where X is a known mine and A, B, C are unopened

since the either B or C is a mine due to the lower of the connected 2s, B or C will satisfy the requirements for both of the connected 2s, so A will always be a safe square you can click open, pray its a 1

in fact this combination is so common ([X][2][2][X] on a wall) if you ever see it even if the wall is completely unopen, there is a high probability that the squares directly below the flagged mines will be safe, and should be the first spot to guess when there are no more options.
Daumen
Profile Joined July 2011
Germany1073 Posts
February 22 2012 08:42 GMT
#10
Your hint
the unopened blocks at the center bottom, look at the group of 2s you should be able to deduce the identity of the block 11 from the right and 4 up from the bottom.
was clear, I deduced that the block left to the 2 can NOT possibly have a mine, since I tried to assume there was one and it lead to logical problems, so i opened it and there is a "4" now.

At the moment i am trying to figure out the next step on my own ;D ill update the thread if I need further help ^.^

President of the ReaL Fan Club.
Daumen
Profile Joined July 2011
Germany1073 Posts
February 22 2012 08:44 GMT
#11
On February 22 2012 17:34 kdgns wrote:
I hope my hint was clear when you have something like


[A][X]
[B][2]
[C][2]
[2][X]

where X is a known mine and A, B, C are unopened

since the either B or C is a mine due to the lower of the connected 2s, B or C will satisfy the requirements for both of the connected 2s, so A will always be a safe square you can click open, pray its a 1

in fact this combination is so common ([X][2][2][X] on a wall) if you ever see it even if the wall is completely unopen, there is a high probability that the squares directly below the flagged mines will be safe, and should be the first spot to guess when there are no more options.


Even though I understood your previous Hint, THIS (what I quoted here) is a little strange, you are talking about "probabillity" and "guessing" even though your previous Hint led me to a 100% sure thing.

Im a little bit confused but well...

I often hear that you NEVER need to guess except in the beginning of course...
President of the ReaL Fan Club.
kdgns
Profile Joined May 2009
United States2427 Posts
Last Edited: 2012-02-22 08:48:30
February 22 2012 08:47 GMT
#12
your situation had 1 open square already so there is no guessing, I was talking about a hypothetical situation

[A][X]
[B][2]
[C][2]
[D][X]

where A, B, C, and D are all unknown, in this situation, there is a high likelyhood (not 100%) that A and D are safe squares and B or C is mined.

Many minesweeper games will result in guessing, but theres guessing smartly and guessing wildly.
Daumen
Profile Joined July 2011
Germany1073 Posts
February 22 2012 08:59 GMT
#13
Yeah you are right with your hypothesis, but now i have been trying to figure out a SAFE way to manage my problem now but i think i have to make 2 very risky guesses.

I opened up Paint and made a copy to come up with multiple solutions and then see if every possible solution would say anything like "This block MUST be a Mine / This block MUST NOT be a mine" but I couldnt find it (for the bottom Island anyway)
President of the ReaL Fan Club.
Meta
Profile Blog Joined June 2003
United States6225 Posts
February 22 2012 09:08 GMT
#14
I hate when this happens in minesweeper. Some games come down to pure blind luck.

Play free cell instead. It's the esport of games that come with windows.
good vibes only
Daumen
Profile Joined July 2011
Germany1073 Posts
February 22 2012 09:16 GMT
#15
Damn Meta, now my view of Minesweeper is shattered ... I thought it would NOT come down to blind luck after I've come so far <.<

damn it damn it damn it <.<

Now I think i need to try one of these red marked ones:
+ Show Spoiler +

[image loading]

Because the chances of Success is 2 in 3. Its the safest guess i have found so far for the bottom Island.
President of the ReaL Fan Club.
Firebolt145
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Lalalaland34495 Posts
February 22 2012 09:28 GMT
#16
Minesweeper even at its highest level still involves some luck. Difference is at that level, you realise that it is purely luck so you click at random without hesitation, avoiding any wasted time. If you got unlucky, oh well, start again. If you got lucky then yay!
Moderator
igotmyown
Profile Blog Joined April 2009
United States4291 Posts
February 22 2012 10:11 GMT
#17
Your best chance is around the 2 NE of the 4 with 3 mines next to it. There's 1 mine in 4 available slows, and moreover, you could estimate there's already a 50% chance that it's the one to the left. So if you assume indepedent probabilities (not true), NW of that 2 is has a 1/6 chance. However, it is unlikely it will give you useful information.

If you want a useful guess, I'd click NW of the 2 (left of 1 1 1 2 3) on the left side. If it's not a mine, N of the 2nd 1 and N the 3 are free, and there's a good chance it will give you useful information.

Finally, a lot of unknown tiles have an either or pair, so if you have enough mines, you can account for a large number of mines, and you can either deterministically or probabilistically get information on a

a
a b
situation, where the mines are either both a or just b, or similar ones. For example, in the southern middle block, there are exactly 5 mines in above the bottom 4 rows. That puts you at 18.
kdgns
Profile Joined May 2009
United States2427 Posts
February 22 2012 10:31 GMT
#18
bottom center has approximately 11 mines in that you know of, with little room for more

Top left has approximately 6-8 on the walls. This leaves 4 to 6 mines in the bulk area of NE, 6 out of 40 bulk squares are mines, so guessing in the bulk of NE would yield 85% chance of not hitting a mine, but it would also give the least reward, you would be hoping to hit a blank square to open up an inside wall.

The horizontal bottom edge of the NE corner is the most tempting to start to guess, opening up 1 square could potentially clear the whole area.


[A][B][C][D][E][F][G][X]
[X][2 ][1][1 ][1][2 ][3 ][H]

If A is a mine, B, C, E, F would be safe and D is a mine
if B is a mine, A, C, D, F would be safe and E would be a mine
if C is a mine, A, B, D, E, would be safe and F is a mine

1/3 chance of hitting a mine if you guess A, B, or C, and it would clear up the entire row

If it was me, i would take a chance in the bulk, then no matter what you get, go for A, B or C
Daumen
Profile Joined July 2011
Germany1073 Posts
February 22 2012 10:46 GMT
#19
I just failed ... Update inc xD

Thanks everyone for the theorycraft. It definetily helped me improve my english at least ;D At first it was quite confusing but well ... Special Thanks to kdgns! <3
President of the ReaL Fan Club.
igotmyown
Profile Blog Joined April 2009
United States4291 Posts
February 22 2012 10:56 GMT
#20
It could be worse. I often get try for speed, get tired halfway through, then misclick on a mine because I refuse to safe click.
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