Ah, Pivvot, how we love thee, and despise thee at the same time...

This game is a ton of fun, and a great challenge to keep your senses running sharp. But, it can be frustrating at times, so I'm going to compile this guide on how to get through every type of obstacle!

If you do not understand the basics of gameplay, I'd recommend checking out Gumball's guide on basic (and some detailed) information on how to play the game here:
http://steamproxy.com/app/293900/guides/#scrollTop=0

With the basics out of the way, I'm just going to outline what will be covered in this guide.

- All Voyage obstacles.
- All Expert Voyage obstacles
- Looper Mode
- Berserk Mode
- Cheaty ways to win

So, without any more delay, let's get to it!

So, Voyage should be the first gamemode that you play (You can play looper when you first start the game, but I'd recommend not doing that yet.), and will keep even an intermediate player challenged. Endless and Random Endless should be where to go when you've mastered Voyage, or you could even step it up to Expert Voyage. But right now, let's just focus on how to get past all of these basic obstacles. Remember that in Voyage, the easy obstacles will be Blue, the moderate obstacles will be Green and the hard obstacles will be Yellow.

First, the spike:

This is the most basic obstacle in the game. If you die on this one, you're probably either new to the game, or have the worst luck in the world. To avoid it, merely move to the other side of the track.

Now, the 2nd obstacle introduced, the bump:

Another extremely basic obstacle, this little bump can be a little bit trickier. To avoid this obstacle, try to stay in a line with the point, with your ball away from the large part.

The 3rd obstacle can be a little intimidating... The Big Spike:

This massive spike can get you where the small spike could not. But, it's still easy to avoid, just try to stay in line with it, away from the large part.

Number 4 already! The Floaties:

These things can be really tricky and intimidating to a new player. Don't worry, they don't move, they just rotate a bit. To avoid death here, you need to be precise and merely stay in between the two sides surrounding you.

The 5th obstacle is pretty simple, and that's the fan:

These things can be a bit confusing. There's 3 of them, and 2 will be on the same side. But they don't necessarily alternate as you would think. Just keep your wit about you, and always move away from them when rotating.

Here's #6, the spike strip:

This obstacle is extremely intimidating. Still, to this day, it holds the second most, or even the most number of deaths that I've been dealt in Voyage mode. There are two ways to do this obstacle: 1 is to be on the track when the outside spikes are the ones that you're encountering, then quickly rotating up or down to avoid the track spikes, and repeating this one more time (There are 4 sets of spikes on this obstacle). The 2nd way is to find that Sweet Spot between the two and ride it out. It should be at about 45 degrees, but it's hard to be precise, so I just use the first method.

For the 7th obstacle, we have ribs:

This obstacle is a little difficult to get right, but the theory behind it is simple. You merely ride right down the track, and you're fine. Those ribs surrounding you, getting more cramped as you go, will not hurt you like that.

Obstacle #8 is pretty easy, the ball sets:

For these, the tactic is simple; merely stay on the side without the balls. Switch over when you're about to hit the next set. The problem is that timing it can be a bit tricky. A bit of practice will solve that, though.

The 9th obstacle is the pillar cave:

That's right, a cave with a pillar. At least that's what it looks like. The basic way to get past this obstacle is to rotate to about a 40 degree angle, relative to the track, at the start, then once the pillar has passed, get back on the track. Again, timing can be a pain, but practice a bit, and you'll be okay.

We're already at the 10th? Well, that would be the scattered balls:

These things are quite easy in theory. When you're going really fast, though, they're a bit more painful. Just keep moving to whatever side doesn't have a ball on it.

11th is the pill bottle:

These ones are really easy on the lower speeds. Basically, get on the short end of one, then rotating away from the next, just jump to the other side of the track. Do this once more and you're good. These ones never change, so they're easy to get used to.

The 12th is another easy one; the fork:

This one looks intimidating, but it's quite easy if you're good with timing. Just slip into a 90 degree angle with the track and you're set! The reason the image for thisis red is because of the "drug mode" that initiates every time you get 1 obstacle away from a checkpoint.

Now for #13, the twin peaks:

This one is possibly the hardest obstacle to get used to in Voyage. Basically, when approaching this, you first need to be pointing away from the obstacle, as seen in the image. As you reach the peak, however, you must quickly rotate over to be facing away from the obstacle again (Remember, points of reference!) before you collide with the second half of the spikes.

#14 is, in my opinion, the hardest, the D-Pad:

The reason I call this the D-Pad is because, like on video game controllers, this obstacle will have one arrow in each direction. Now, this obstacle takes timing and precision. To start, as you approach, you want to be perpendicular (90 degrees) with the track, with the ball away from the obstacle. As you enter the obstacle, and pass the first set of arrows, quickly rotate away from the second set until you are on the track once again. This one takes a lot of practice, and a bit of luck.

And finally, the final obstacle, the Spiked Tire:

It is at this point in time that I realize that I'm horrible at coming up with names. But for this obstacle, you must rotate in the same direction as the circle in which you go through, then dodge 3 consecutive spikes. But how do you know what direction the circle is spinning in? Well, here's a good tip... it should always be towards the track in which you will be going onto instead of the track you came off of. After rotating, quickly line up to be on the opposite side of the track as the first spike, and then follow the same rules for dodging obstacles!

And that's it! You're a master of Voyage! Your next step should be the Expert Voyage, though you should be skilled enough at the game to try out Looper as well.

So, Expert Voyage is where things start to get difficult - yes, you just read that right. Expert Voyage is where the big kids play. So, without further ado, let's get started on discussing how to get past these obstacles. Let's start with mentioning that the easy obstacles here are Yellow, the moderate obstacles are Red/Purple, and the hard obstacles are Blue.

The 1st obstacle is the Mount Spikes:

This one is probably easier than the harder obstacles on Voyage, but can still catch you off guard. The only way to avoid them is to have your ball stay in the crevice that the track creates, preferably forming a line that splits the "V" in half perfectly.

Obstacle #2 is the Pressure Spikes:

These spikes put a bit of pressure on you, but they're easy enough to dodge. Just follow the old rule of always rotating away from the obstacle, and you should be good.

#3 is the Triple Shield:

These things are one of the harder obstacles in Expert Voyage, in my opinion. You need to rotate slowly and precisely, so that you don't bump into any of the 3 obstacles. All I can say is that it takes practice, and always rotate towards the obstacle you just finished.

The 4th is the Loop-de-Loop:

This obstacle is pretty simple - 3 wheels, just like the one we saw in the Spiked Tire in Voyage mode. There are no spikes in this one, and the hardest part is figuring out which way the first wheel spins. Remember that the wheel has to bring you to moving in the same direction, and from where the end is, find the beginning. After the first wheel, just reverse direction for the second, the reverse once more for the third.

Oh boy, #5; the infamous Maze:

This one has had me stumped for a long time. I've recently found a way to get past it though - stay on the side that you entered the obstacle on, with about a 20 degree angle towards the exit of the obstacle. This has worked every time since I've began trying it, but it takes a bit of practice to get positioned right.

The 6th obstacle is the Zigzag:

This obstacle is quite easy. To start, there will be a small spike with a large rectangle attached to it, you want to move to the side that has the small spike. Once you're past that, there will be 2 giant arrows you need to avoid - jumping onto the track will do the trick for that. Finally, there will be one last spike with a rectangle, which can be on either side of the track. So, just rotate to avoid it as you see it.

Ah yes, #7... the Bump in the Road:

This one had me stumped for a fair bit. There are two bumps in the track, with balls in them that want nothing more than to ruin your day. But to avoid these, stay on the side of the track that is away from the bump as you approach, then when you get on, rotate towards the ball. Yes, that's right, towards. As you rotate towards it, the curve will keep you away from it, and you'll be set up to react to the second bump. Now, the second can be the same or opposite to the first, so you'll need to react accordingly to get lined up again before you get caught in it.

#8 is the Shark Wave:

This one is another easy one - the spikes should always be opposite to each other, so just keep rotating to the other side of the track, away from the oncoming obstacle of course. Don't let the waves catch you off your guard though, just imagine that it's all a straight line. You'll be fine.

The 9th obstacle is the Sandbags:

If you've got good precision, this might even be easier than the Spike from Voyage. All you need to do is line up to be pointing in the same way as the rectangles are long, and sit back and relax. If your precision is poor, this may take more practice to get used to.

#10 is the Spiked Bumps:

This obstacle is definitely not an easy one. It's similar to the Bump in the Road, but instead, there are spikes inbetween the two bumps. What you will need to do is set up to be pointing straight away from the ball when you're at the top of the bump, then quickly adjust to be in a 45 degree angle (away from the ball you just passed) before you reach the trough (Bottom of the bump). As you reach the trough, you'll need to immediately adjust to be in a 45 degree angle to that same ball you rotated away from before. As you reach the top of the next bump, you must one more time rotate to be 45 degrees away from the ball you just passed, since there will probably be one last spike on that last bump.

The 11th obstacle is the Brick Walls:

This one is pretty easy, if you keep your wit about you. All you have to do is keep rotating to avoid the alternating walls in front of you. There may be a few that appear in succession, but if you're attentive, you can avoid rotating into them. Halfway through this obstacle, you will hit a 90 degree turn and about 4 more walls. Make sure to rotate towards the corner when this happens, or you're doomed to hit the nearest wall.

#12 is the simple 90 Degree Slip:

Just like the Sandbags, all you need to do is line up once and travel right through. But unlike the Sandbags, you want to be at a 45 degree angle with the track, since there are two obstacles that sit right on the track. If you're at about a 45 degree angle, you'll slip right through both sets of obstacles with ease.

13 is the Oh-So-Fun Clutterbox:

The reason this is called the Clutterbox is because it's totally unpredictable. The only way to get past this obstacle is to keep sharp and stay precise. Just remember to rotate away from the oncoming obstacles, and know that your precision will determine your results from there.

#14 is the Vertical Balls:

This can be really intimidating at first. Your ability to predict and stay calm will be what keeps you alive here. First off, you need to predict whether the first set of balls will be high or low - If high, stay on the track, if low, stay perpendicular to the track. You'll be able to get through the first 4 balls like this (2 on both sides), but after that, you'll need to rotate either onto the track or off it, the opposite of what you chose at the start, in order to stay alive.

And now, the 15th and final obstacle - The Compressor:

This obstacle is quite fit to be the finale of Expert Voyage, but with a bit of practice, you can overcome it. Basically, there are two balls that are around the track, and spikes on the track. These two balls will move in the same direction - so when one is near the track, the other is away. I try to stay on the side with the ball that is away from the track, and stay at about a 60 degree angle. If your prediction was wrong, that will be the most likely reason for your demise.

And that is Expert Voyage! Now, onto Looper!

Apparently the guide for Expert Voyage was quite long, I did not expect to be able to run out of space. Anyways, Looper mode is not for everyone, and the achievement associated with it - Don't Turn Around! is quite difficult to get. But, with some practice and temperament, you should be able to get it. Follow these few tips to ensure your success:


1st off is to make sure that you get a good start. Looper can go quite quickly, so you should always make sure to get at least 3 loops in your first shot. 2 is okay, if you can manage 4 in the next one. Often it can even be hard to get 1 loop right off the bat - these times usually lead to bad runs overall. So I say that, even if you think you're going to get hit, get 3 loops right off the bat. The most I've gotten is 7, but that doesn't happen nearly as often as we'd all like.


My 2nd piece of advice is quite opposite to my 1st - and that is to not get greedy! At the start, your progress isn't that great, so losing isn't a big deal. But when you're 1 loop away from 50 points, only having rotated one direction? Yeah, you don't want to lose that. Remember that every 5 loops you complete advances the round - which means 1 more point for every loop, and 1 more obstacle to stop you. It may seem like there is no way to complete a loop at all at points, but there will be an opening eventually. You just need to be patient.


And my 3rd and final piece of advice to you builds strongly on my 2nd; Don't risk it in an uncomfortable situation. Some obstacles, like the Maze and the Tricycle can appear, without the obstacles in them of course. But these move the screen, and can make it extremely confusing to know what way the obstacles will move next. For these areas of the track, I would just suggest that you go into a position that you're confident that you'll live in, and just stay still. Unless, of course, there are no obstacles heading towards you at the immediate moment.

Now that you've mastered Voyage, Expert Voyage, and Looper, it is time for the real challenge to begin... Berserk Mode!

Berserk Mode is undoubtably the most cruel and destroying mode in this game. Expert Voyage may be where the Big Kids play, but Berserk is where the pros make their impact. For this mode, you'll need to have good reactions, strong senses, and a little bit of luck.


First off, never, ever look at your time! You'll have plenty of time to look at it when you fail, but by looking at it in-game, you're only going to get yourself killed. And remember that a sound, along with a notification at the top of your screen will happen when you beat your old record, so direct all of your attention to merely staying alive another second.

My second piece of advice is to Stay Calm! I cannot stress this more, by freaking out, you're just going to lose. It's as simple as that. Merely stay calm, and make sure that you're in a comfortable position before you begin.


Third, don't rely on your eyes. Yes, you need to look at the screen to see where the next obstacle is, but that's all you should be looking for. Because you're in constant "Drug mode", you'll need to rely on instinct to tell you where the ball is. This mode is too fast to be trying to look for where your ball is, when it's the exact same color as the track is at all times.

And finally, don't look back! Looking at berserk cogs that you've already passed will do you no good; I would even say don't look at what cogs are likely to kill you in the moment either. Always look forwards, to the new cogs that are coming at you.

Remember everyone, that Berserk Mode is an extremely difficult mode that requires a lot of practice to master. Don't expect to be able to get past 5 seconds on your first try. I'm personally in the top 100 players in berserk mode (At the moment of writing this review, I believe I am placed at 75th in the world), and I've only made it to about 35 seconds. Only about the top 15 players have gotten the achievement associated with this mode, so don't get discouraged! Or, maybe do. It is just an achievement, after all...

I'm not huge on using stuff that's "Cheaty", but there is one tactic so far that I know that you can "cheat" with. I'll likely add more as I learn more, but for now, it's just the one. Also note that I have no screenshots of this in action yet, I may add one or two at a later time.

Possibly one of the cheatiest ways to win is to use a good old multiplayer trick. Of course, this trick doesn't work in looper mode, since there's no multiplayer in that mode, but it's quite handy in berserk. First off, because you basically get a second life by doing so, but secondly, because of the respawn item that can pop up every 4 seconds or so once one "player" is dead. And not only does this bring your other self back to life, but the object itself actually replaces an obstacle! So that's one less obstacle you have to dodge! Of course, you'll sometimes get into the moment so much that you'll dodge the revive...
And following on that note of the revive, when the other player is revived, they have an invulnerability period of 2 seconds or so. So, even if you die reviving them, you still get 2 extra precious seconds on that clock of yours!

Now, that's the end of my Guide to Pivvot, and all of its obstacles. I didn't cover Random Endless, Expert Random Endless, Endless, or Expert Endless just because they use obstacles from Voyage and Expert Voyage, without introducing any new ones. I hope this guide helped you become better at the game, and wasn't a complete waste of both of our times. I also hope that you overlook my bad naming, and that maybe you'll throw me a rating or a comment!

So, this is GriffonDefender, signing off. Until next time, folks!