Jump to content

Explanation of sports card system/How I got Sports Illustrated


Merco

Recommended Posts

  • 5 months later...
On 2/28/2021 at 7:05 AM, Merco said:

Disclaimer: Much of this is owed to the author of the PS3Trophies trophy guide, who put me on the right track to getting Sports Illustrated in the first place.

 

I finally got the Sports Illustrated trophy today; I was playing on the digital EU version of Blacksad, on the latest patch (at the time of writing). It took a lot of research to find out how the card system worked and most of the info on other forums is misleading, so this post is to demystify the process and hopefully make it much easier for everyone to get all 100 cards. Most notably, if you are missing a certain card, e.g. #56, there's no guarantee that it will be where another player found it, given the number of variables in play.

 

Basically, there are 160 potential spawn points for sports cards when you start a new game, but only 100 of these will actually be used. Any card could be in any location, with the exception of cards 21-22 (Tim Thorpe) which are always in the final location of the game. Additionally, you will only be able to find so many cards per area. The total cards per area are as follows:

 

Dunn's Gym: 24
Blacksad's office (while you are looking for lockpicks): 3
Sam's Diner: 3
Yale's apartment: 6
Mary's apartment: 1
Hospital: 6
O'Leary's (alleyway, restaurant corridor, basement & office): 14
Farnham's hotel room flashbacks: 5
Dunn's apartment: 9
Green-wood Cemetery: 4
Weekly's darkroom: 1
Docks (outside area & roof): 6
Docks Warehouse & basement: 7
Thorpe's office: 11

Total: 100

 

The Microids card locations guide shows you where every card spawn point is, so use this to check every potential spot and tick off each card that you find in each area. I started an entirely new game (deleted old saves) and made sure that I had found all of the area's possible cards before moving on to the next area. Once you have found the max number of area cards, it is safe to move on to the next area without checking the remaining potential spawn points.


General tips

  • Be extremely thorough - use the right stick to pan and look around during zoomed-in sections, and make sure that you check every area carefully as it can be very finicky to get the Cross prompt to appear, even when you are looking at/next to a card. Additionally, sometimes cards are completely invisible, but the prompt will still show up.
  • Press Cross carefully - there are a number of times when you will irreversibly move on in a scene (e.g. going through a door or window), so make sure that you are hitting the card prompt (which will have a star on it).
  • Some card spots, notably the one outside of Dunn's office, are visually glitched, and a card is visible even if the spot is or isn't in use.
  • Quit to the menu and backup your saves regularly; there are apparently some issues with cards not appearing due to long session times, although I didn't encounter any of these. This also allows you to re-check spots if you do something irreversible and didn't collect enough cards in an area.

 

Card-Specific tips (using the Microids guide for reference)

Dunn's Gym

  • #19 - This is visually bugged, and will appear whether or not the card spot is actually in use.
  • #22 - This card will usually be out of sight, so it takes some wiggling around of Blacksad to check the spot.
  • You will only be able to check Dunn's office after obtaining the lockpicks, as Jake will prevent you going in otherwise.

Yale's Apartment

  • #56 - Make sure that you pan all the way to the left to check this spot.

Mary's Apartment

  • #58-59 - Pan right to see #59; #58 should be immediately visible.

Hospital

  • #65 - If you only find 5 cards in the Hospital the first time, the 6th card will be #65. Collect it immediately, as checking the cupboard and looking at the anteater will progress the scene and block you from going for the card.

O' Leary's

  • #69 (Alleyway) - A very fiddly spot; I only managed to get the prompt by walking past/under the lit-up sign away from the camera then turning around to face the camera.
  • #76 (Alleyway) - Another tricky one - make sure that you pan all the way up to see the fire escape and possible prompt.
  • #79-84 (Basement, before freezer) - The PS3Trophies guide suggests that these spots are lighter/torch dependent, i.e you will only be able to collect 79, 80 and 84 while holding the lighter, and 83, 82 and 81 while holding the torch. I didn't have any lighter-specific cards on my successful run, but when using the torch these spots are extremely precise, so do a very thorough sweep before you enter the freezer.
  • #85-86 (Basement, freezer) - Pan with the right stick, up and right respectively to spot the prompts.
  • #87-90 (Basement, past freezer) - These are torch section cards, so do a very thorough check while moving the torch light around with the right stick.

Farnham's Hotel Room Flashback(s)

  • #95 & #97 - There is a strange glitch relating to the cupboard doors here, where you open the left cupboard and get the right cupboard's contents appearing (or vice versa). If you close the cupboard and try it again, sometimes it shows the correct contents.
  • To maximise your available time/opportunities to search for hotel room cards, do the following during each flashback: (1) Only look at the left-most item on the table (to the left of the exit door). (2) Look at Farnham's pocket. (3) Open the cupboard with Farnham's jacket/address book in it. (4) Look at the other cupboard, which will have Farnham's gun in it. (5) Look at the remaining item on the table to the left of the exit door.
  • If you look at the gun and the Ding Dong chip before being asked about them, you will skip two flashback sequences and miss two chances to look for cards.

Cemetery

  • #117 - Very easy to miss; go behind the tombstone and have Blacksad face towards the camera to get the prompt to appear.

Weekly's Darkroom/Tennis Flashbacks

  • #122 - The physical card is usually invisible even if this spot is being used, so pan very slowly to get the prompt to appear.

Docks (Outside & Roof)

  • #124 - Very convoluted. When the docks arrival cutscene finishes, look at Gill's gun then Mitchell's head while using cat sense. Mitchell will leave, and you can pan to the right and look at the roof, which will transport Blacksad to the alleyway. From here, go all the way back around to where you started the scene (at the entrance to the warehouse that Gill is guarding). Walk towards Gill; Blacksad will flatten himself against the truck and you will be able to do cat sense again. Instead, hold the left stick left so that Blacksad leaves the area again - this will cause the camera angle to change and allow you to check card spot #124. If you try looking without changing the camera angle, the prompt will not appear.
  • Getting on the forklift or driving it into the alleyway spot are irreversible actions, so make sure that you check the docks area before doing this (or use a backup save to restart if there aren't enough cards on the roof).

Thorpe's Office

  • #160 - I only found 10 (of 11) cards when first going through Thorpe's office, and checked every spot carefully. Having only found 10, I made the final deductions and finished the game with 99/100, then went on load/continue and went back into the office sequence from the very start (which has Blacksad talking to Stone & Yale, meeting Weekly then arriving at Thorpe's office). I went through the office again and found this card (my last one, and one half of the 21-22 Tim Thorpe pair) in the #160 spot, which is a filing tray on Thorpe's desk.

Thanks so much for this! It saved my ass many times during my run!

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 7 months later...
On 23.8.2021 at 6:52 PM, Merco said:

Glad I could help - it's not your average collectibles system, that's for sure!

Do you (or anybody) know if there is any way to determine where the remaining cards would be? I have 15-20 cards left, so if I start a new game (basically have to anyway for the endings), will all my remaining cards (except Tim Thorpe as mentioned) be in Dunn's Gym, because it contains 24 cards? If not, how would I know when it is safe to move on from that location without having missed any card there?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, Infernopommes said:

Do you (or anybody) know if there is any way to determine where the remaining cards would be? I have 15-20 cards left, so if I start a new game (basically have to anyway for the endings), will all my remaining cards (except Tim Thorpe as mentioned) be in Dunn's Gym, because it contains 24 cards? If not, how would I know when it is safe to move on from that location without having missed any card there?

I'd honestly suggest using the microids guide that has pictures of every location and pretend your going from scratch examining all locations depicted in the microids guide in every location cause with how the cards are randomized and that you didn't keep a count they could be anywhere in any area

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, Taliesin_2943 said:

I'd honestly suggest using the microids guide that has pictures of every location and pretend your going from scratch examining all locations depicted in the microids guide in every location cause with how the cards are randomized and that you didn't keep a count they could be anywhere in any area

@Infernopommes I'd second this - I got my cards done on a completely fresh save, and there's not enough information available to say if missed cards reposition or not on subsequent playhroughs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

Did a new playthrough, following the pdf, and ended up with three collectibles short ...

 

What's another playthrough, eh. Would only be my ninth by now. :/

 

From what I understand, the trophy for having all albums completed only unlocks if you actually have all 100 cards. Since I got two individual album trophies, that means I could potentially fill the other two first on the new playthrough, and still having to collect the remaining cards to get the last trophy? So much fun.

Edited by Infernopommes
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
On 26/03/2022 at 11:48 PM, Infernopommes said:

Do you (or anybody) know if there is any way to determine where the remaining cards would be? I have 15-20 cards left, so if I start a new game (basically have to anyway for the endings), will all my remaining cards (except Tim Thorpe as mentioned) be in Dunn's Gym, because it contains 24 cards? If not, how would I know when it is safe to move on from that location without having missed any card there?

Did you get the remaining cards?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm still missing the three cards I mentioned in my last post. Haven't played the game since, not planning on doing it anytime soon either. It was just too buggy for me, all these replays became pretty annoying. I will probably do another playthrough eventually after wiping my save, but I'm in no hurry with this one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

36 minutes ago, Infernopommes said:

I'm still missing the three cards I mentioned in my last post. Haven't played the game since, not planning on doing it anytime soon either. It was just too buggy for me, all these replays became pretty annoying. I will probably do another playthrough eventually after wiping my save, but I'm in no hurry with this one.

Lol in a better more trusting and less judgmental world id offer to run through and get all of your cards for you I enjoyed the game never really ran into any major problems except how clunky the camera can be but alas we don't live in that kind of world and I don't get much time really to multitask 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 hours ago, Taliesin_2943 said:

It would appear that they did not since the trophy for having them all remains unobtained :(

I finished my 1st run, and I'm missing 2 cards, 1 that you can only obtain after you beat the game and other i couldn't get on the Docks (outside area & roof). If i do chapter sellect, can i try to get the card i missed? Or I need to start a new game?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Tezzet_Senpai said:

I finished my 1st run, and I'm missing 2 cards, 1 that you can only obtain after you beat the game and other i couldn't get on the Docks (outside area & roof). If i do chapter sellect, can i try to get the card i missed? Or I need to start a new game?

The card u can only get after you beat the game will still be in the office in last chapter I think it's the only card that's hard wired to be there. I'm not 100% about the other card though it's worth a shot at least to go to that chapter at the docks and see if it's there if it is just play till the game auto saves to make sure it counts. I think it's set up so a set few cards show up in set chapters but the spots are randomized but the guide I mentioned earlier will show you the spots just gotta go check them. 

 

The problem the other person had was they didn't know what areas they missed so it's impossible to say where to look but you seem to know what area your cards should be

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 months later...
  • 3 months later...

This glitched up the ass game just finished my patience. I have a save with 100 cards, no trophy, all the 4 trophies about each sport, sure, but why the big one should work? Not the mention, The Reaper got gliched for me as well, I did a complete new run, with previous save deleted from my console, blank state, made the 6 mofos die, NOPE, still not unlock. FU Pendulum, I've been a fan of your game since Runaway, but this glitched up mess? I wish i didn't buy this piece of junk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I completely wiped my save and finally started this game for the tenth time now.

 

In the alleyway of O'Leary's HQ, I collected 4 cards from all 8 possible spots. According to the guide, there should be 5 cards. I checked all spots several times, moving the camera in all possible directions. The cards I got were on the locations #69, #71, #75 and #76. I even downloaded an older save and played up to that point again, with the exact same result. I only got 5 in the hospital, so with Card #65 sitting at a later location, I'm currently 2 cards short in total.

 

Is the guide wrong by any chance, and there are only 4 cards to collect in the alleyway? Or am I screwed yet again?

 

EDIT:

After finishing O'Leary's and Farnham's hotel room flashbacks, I'm sitting at 60/62. One of the missing ones is the remaining card from the hospital, the other the one is the one I didn't get from O'Leary's ...

 

EDIT 2:

Finished the game with 99/100, after replaying the last chapter for Thorpe's card. There is still no new card outside of O'Leary's HQ, and I have no clue where else to look.

 

EDIT 3:

After restarting the game (without deleting my save), I finally found the last card in spot #84. That was empty in the previous playthrough, so I guess one card outside of O'Leary's just bugged out on me, then that one card got reshuffled after restarting. So glad I kept playing: Originally, I had intended to only play until the Alleyway, then deleting the save and starting from scratch, but then I thought of at least finishing all of O'Leary's and it paid off. So ~10.5 playthroughs for what should have been 1 + cleanup. Oh well, FINALLY DONE!

Edited by Infernopommes
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...