The reason bindi and the ink machine game is confusing is that two different answers circulate, and both were correct at some point.
Doing this without understanding it works fine until something changes, which it will. Most guides are written once and never revisited, which is worth remembering when one does not match.
The one-paragraph version
If you only do one thing from this page, do the first step properly.
Doing it faster once you know the method
Anything presented as a hidden trick for bindi and the ink machine game is normally a step a popular guide left out. What worked last season may still work, but it is worth confirming before committing an evening. Most of the disagreement online here comes from people describing different versions. If the explanation feels overcomplicated, it probably is — the working version is usually short.
The second time takes a fraction as long, which makes the first attempt worth doing carefully. A result that works but that you cannot explain will not survive the next change.
- Do the simple version first, even if you intend to refine it.
- Keep the original settings somewhere you can restore them from.
- Check the version you are running before following any step-by-step advice.
- Check which version you are on before trusting any specific numbers.
- Do the boring preparation step, even when it looks skippable.
Related things worth knowing
Terminology differs between communities more than the underlying behaviour does. Community wikis are excellent for data and unreliable for timing, which is a useful distinction. Where several approaches exist, the popular one is popular for being easy to explain rather than best.
The step people skip in bindi and the ink machine game is the one that makes everything after it reliable. It is worth knowing which part of this the game actually enforces and which part is convention.
How to check it worked
Assume anything automated in the interface has an edge case, because it usually does. A change that works but that you cannot repeat has not really solved anything. Where a guide and the game disagree, the game is right and the guide is old.
Written notes beat memory when you come back to this in a month. Small details matter more than they should here, so read the order of steps carefully. There is a point where further refinement stops being worth the time, and it arrives early.
If your situation is slightly different
Start with the simplest option before touching anything that is hard to reverse. Keep the first attempt simple and add refinements only after it works. Details that seem cosmetic occasionally are not, which is why the order is specified. Checking the outcome takes seconds and prevents the most common category of wasted effort.
Understanding the reason behind a step lets you adapt it when your situation differs. The simplest explanation that accounts for what you are seeing is usually the correct one.
- Change one thing at a time and check the result.
- Confirm the result immediately rather than later.
- Back up your save if the game gives you the option.
- Read to the end of the section before starting it.
- Test one change at a time instead of five at once.
Where people usually trip up
- Mixing instructions from two versions and getting neither.
- Optimising before the basic version has worked once.
- Starting without enough time to finish, then losing the thread halfway through.
Still unclear?
Does this apply to every version?
The steps target the current release. Older versions usually behave the same way, though menus may sit in different places.
What if it does not work for me?
Go back to the first step and confirm each assumption instead of retrying the last one. The failure is almost always earlier than it appears.
Is any of this reversible?
Nearly all of it. Anything that is not is flagged in the steps, and there is normally a safer alternative worth considering first.
Where should I look if this does not cover my case?
The official notes for your version first, then a community thread from the same version. Both together beat either alone.
None of bindi and the ink machine game is difficult in isolation — the difficulty was only ever in the sequence.