Talk:Rafael's playthrough - Introduction/@comment-75.139.26.85-20151229002223/@comment-27460754-20160120005236

And I've done the merchant camp and my playthroughs haven't suffered. It might be trading for the free goos for w/e the malus is but as I tend to go for more depth in my gameplay and look in all the nooks and crannies for easter eggs and the like, I think that avoiding areas and quests for at best fringe benefits is suspect.

I might change my mind as gameplay goes on and those hidden values potentially become more crucial, but the fact that they are hidden suggests they aren't meant to have that big an impact.

Sierra has said that starting over for them alone isn't worth it, so while they might be helpful, I don't think the importance being placed on them matches their actual worth.

Best way I can sum it up is that while following the Walkthrough's directions, with a few adaptations, and not having that high secret scores, I managed to have enough time to do all the critical tasks including getting Aka's spell and still have time for the spar with Nalili that does nothing but give them experience.