Automachef

I am very positively surprised. I bought this game because it was cheap and it looked interesting in the pictures. I was not disappointed. It took me 30 hours to complete the main campaign and it was a really good time. After passing the main campaign, we still have a second campaign in career mode, which allows us to virtually endless fun. A script editor and free build mode have been added for enthusiasts. The game really requires brain use, some levels are really demanding and you have to head well to find the optimal solution. The game suffers from several adolescent problems, but will probably be fixed in updates. Unfortunately, this version is stripped down compared to the Steam version, because in that you can download free DLC with new recipes and levels (from Workshop), and in this version it is not possible. Overall, my rating is strong 8,5/10. I had a great time.

It is not poorly designed, but it is not the kind of puzzler i like at all. It comes off like it might be a SpaceChem style, lots of ways to solve the problems, and seldom can one way of solving a puzzle make the bell on all efficiency tracking at once. So puzzles are quite open ended and beg to be played multiple times to solve for different forms of best efficiencies. These puzzles however come with constraints that mean each level really does have just one maybe two possible ways to beat them and meet the requested efficiencies. So this is more like putting together a puzzle. You are not solving problems so much as just seeing if the pieces fit right or not. Once all the pieces fit right, you have "solved" the puzzle. Some specific designs that i find really poor here: You get a budget for the parts you can buy and can't go over budget, this is not an efficiency this is a hard stop you can't go past. based on how levels work, this means the budget is obfuscated time sinking. If a level demand is to make X food item, then this means we already know a set of parts has to be purchased no choice about it. So why not start the level with the demand parts already and just a lower budget then? This is not a real puzzle to solve in the way the game is designed, it is just obfuscation that is the illusion of puzzle solving/agency for the player. When in reality it is a no choice situation, an obfuscated direction of just doing what you are told to do, that makes it look like you solved a puzzle of some kind. So after about 9 levels i was done putting together puzzles pieces, and uninstalled this to go find an actual puzzle to solve. However for what it is, if you like this kind of thing, then it is probably a very challenging version of this, put to together the puzzle, kind of game. I just don't get in for these like i do actual my brain solves the problem puzzles.

This game is a mix between Big Pharma and Zach-like games like Spacechem and Infinifactory. If you enjoyed these games, Automachef is well worth its price. It has the same addictive self-optimisation mechanics that constantly makes you want to improve your score (here measured in efficacy) even though you completed the level already. So far, I played the campaign and the contract mode but there is also a sandbox mode and you can even create your own scenarios. The campaign is certainly the main playing mode, where you learn the fundamentals of the machines you are using and how to optimise your solutions. I think the game has a decent learning curve, especially when you played games like this before. I also liked the humour of your almost perfectly human robot advisor. In contract mode, you "manage" your company by taking contracts and solve the puzzles as cheap as possible to earn more money. With your profit, you can then buy new machines to become more efficient. However, do not expect a management part as in Big Pharma or real simulations. All you do is taking increasingly difficult contracts and upgrade your machines. Although contract mode feels more generic, it is a nice addition to the campain. The graphics are nice and not distracting. The background music is okay but I turned it off after a while since it got a bit repetitive. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a way to change the language settings. That means, you have to play the game in the language of your Windows installation. It is not really a big deal but still a weird design decision (that could be fixed easily with the next patch). Also I didn`t encounter any bugs so far. All in all, I would definitely recommend Automachef to anyone who likes these kind of optimisation games.

If you like Factorio or any game with production chains, then this one is right up your alley! If you're looking for ways of releasing your creativity and logical thinking, you won't be disapointed. If you like to challange yourself, you strive to perfection, optimizing everything around you... yeah, you get the point ;) There's nothing hidden from you, rules are plain and simple. Levels (me thinks over 40, with bonus ones!) change the way you approach the puzzle. You can test your design without consequences and you learn by debugging and observing your process. This lets you quickly understand what works and what doesn't.