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| The Entertainment Review |
| Genre: Adventure Developer: Amanita Design |
takes a single look from players to understand why it won the award. The game actually doesn’t look much like a game at all, but
instead it looks a lot like a moving graphic novel filled with hand drawn art that is brimming with life and personality unlike anything that
has ever made its way to the PC.
Anyone who has enjoyed works that look the “The Nightmare before Christmas” or “The Corpse Bride” with love this game. When it
comes to the game play of “Machinarium,” it works as an old school point and click adventure, and even though it is a point and click
game, it is in no way a simple game to work through. This game will amaze and frustrate players, but it is well worth in to experience
one of the most awe inspiring and endearing games of the year.
In this game players take control of a cute little robot that is rudely thrown out of his city with the trash. By pointing and clicking through
the bleak trash filled environment players can return him to his home, reunite him with his girlfriend and even prevent a terrorist attack
from happening. The hero has the ability to stretch and squish his body, making for some very interesting puzzles to be solved
throughout the game. There is no dialogue in the game, but when the robot encounters someone he knows a thought bubble will
appear that shows a short clip of a memory that he has about the person or thing. There is a bit of a sense of dreaming despite the
bleak atmosphere that surrounds players. The first few scenes in the story are fairly short, one screen challenges, but the game soon
opens up so that players may have to wander through multiple areas to find a solution to the puzzle.
Like many games in the genre, players will have to move around the world and gather items along the way, which the robot will swallow
and store in his body until needed again. When an object has served its purpose in the game, it will be removed from the robot’s
possession in some amusing way so that players aren’t left trying to use it in the wrong situation later in the game. It also keeps
players from accumulating a large amount of items to work through when a new puzzle becomes available to work through.
The extreme difficulty of the game will have players stumped in some of the earlier scenes. A couple of pieces of help have been given
to the players. In the upper right hand corer of the screen players will find a light bulb. When players click on it, a thought bubble will
appear above the robot indicating what the goal of the puzzle is. This is simple a hint though and it won’t reveal how the goal of the
puzzle is reached. More useful is the built-in walkthrough that, while is a little bit questionable, ends up being a necessary part of this
challenging game if players are planning on getting through this entire game. Next to the light bulb is a tome that can be clicked to
initiate a brief two dimensional shooter mini-game. When players complete the mini-game they will be granted a detailed visual
walkthrough of the scene that the players are working through.
The mini-game isn’t difficult, it is more tedious than anything. It takes a couple of minutes to complete, so it is really just an obstacle
that keeps players from overusing the walkthrough. Sometimes the hint book won’t tell players everything they need to know, so it really
doesn’t work like a true cheat system. While this is a fairly creative way of helping players through some of the more difficult levels of
the game, the fact that the game needs a walkthrough built into the game, it is obvious that the difficulty of the game is fairly high as well.
On top of the difficulty of the game, there are a few interface issues that keep the game play from being as great as the graphics. The
robot can only investigate things that are near to him, so players have to wait for him to walk across the room if the object they want to
work with is over there. Checking each room for all possible interactive items can be a little bit tiresome, and once he is in motion,
players aren’t able to change his course until he reaches the first destination chosen.
Though there are some complains about the game, it is still worth playing through. The visuals are amazing, and the little robot is able
to communicate more emotion to the player than most other characters in videogames, even without the dialogue. The music also fits
well into the game with its electronic sounds that continually shift between making the player calm and then uneasy.
“Machinarium” is a must play point and click game that brings players back to the early days of the genre with a high level of difficulty
that will keep players puzzled for hours. The difficulty of the game is also the game’s weakness and some players will be frustrated
and quit playing before exploring the most fascinating areas of the game. However, the visuals, along with the amazing audio that
accompany the game will bring a strong emotion to players, but they better be ready for a challenge.
instead it looks a lot like a moving graphic novel filled with hand drawn art that is brimming with life and personality unlike anything that
has ever made its way to the PC.
Anyone who has enjoyed works that look the “The Nightmare before Christmas” or “The Corpse Bride” with love this game. When it
comes to the game play of “Machinarium,” it works as an old school point and click adventure, and even though it is a point and click
game, it is in no way a simple game to work through. This game will amaze and frustrate players, but it is well worth in to experience
one of the most awe inspiring and endearing games of the year.
In this game players take control of a cute little robot that is rudely thrown out of his city with the trash. By pointing and clicking through
the bleak trash filled environment players can return him to his home, reunite him with his girlfriend and even prevent a terrorist attack
from happening. The hero has the ability to stretch and squish his body, making for some very interesting puzzles to be solved
throughout the game. There is no dialogue in the game, but when the robot encounters someone he knows a thought bubble will
appear that shows a short clip of a memory that he has about the person or thing. There is a bit of a sense of dreaming despite the
bleak atmosphere that surrounds players. The first few scenes in the story are fairly short, one screen challenges, but the game soon
opens up so that players may have to wander through multiple areas to find a solution to the puzzle.
Like many games in the genre, players will have to move around the world and gather items along the way, which the robot will swallow
and store in his body until needed again. When an object has served its purpose in the game, it will be removed from the robot’s
possession in some amusing way so that players aren’t left trying to use it in the wrong situation later in the game. It also keeps
players from accumulating a large amount of items to work through when a new puzzle becomes available to work through.
The extreme difficulty of the game will have players stumped in some of the earlier scenes. A couple of pieces of help have been given
to the players. In the upper right hand corer of the screen players will find a light bulb. When players click on it, a thought bubble will
appear above the robot indicating what the goal of the puzzle is. This is simple a hint though and it won’t reveal how the goal of the
puzzle is reached. More useful is the built-in walkthrough that, while is a little bit questionable, ends up being a necessary part of this
challenging game if players are planning on getting through this entire game. Next to the light bulb is a tome that can be clicked to
initiate a brief two dimensional shooter mini-game. When players complete the mini-game they will be granted a detailed visual
walkthrough of the scene that the players are working through.
The mini-game isn’t difficult, it is more tedious than anything. It takes a couple of minutes to complete, so it is really just an obstacle
that keeps players from overusing the walkthrough. Sometimes the hint book won’t tell players everything they need to know, so it really
doesn’t work like a true cheat system. While this is a fairly creative way of helping players through some of the more difficult levels of
the game, the fact that the game needs a walkthrough built into the game, it is obvious that the difficulty of the game is fairly high as well.
On top of the difficulty of the game, there are a few interface issues that keep the game play from being as great as the graphics. The
robot can only investigate things that are near to him, so players have to wait for him to walk across the room if the object they want to
work with is over there. Checking each room for all possible interactive items can be a little bit tiresome, and once he is in motion,
players aren’t able to change his course until he reaches the first destination chosen.
Though there are some complains about the game, it is still worth playing through. The visuals are amazing, and the little robot is able
to communicate more emotion to the player than most other characters in videogames, even without the dialogue. The music also fits
well into the game with its electronic sounds that continually shift between making the player calm and then uneasy.
“Machinarium” is a must play point and click game that brings players back to the early days of the genre with a high level of difficulty
that will keep players puzzled for hours. The difficulty of the game is also the game’s weakness and some players will be frustrated
and quit playing before exploring the most fascinating areas of the game. However, the visuals, along with the amazing audio that
accompany the game will bring a strong emotion to players, but they better be ready for a challenge.
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