Machinarium Collector's Edition

The artworks are nice and atmospheric. Unfortunately the gameplay is rather dull, boring and very directive. First you have to spot tiny items that often have similar colours to the background, and are sometime hard to notice. Then you should also be careful as where the mouse cursor change shape, to indicate a possible action, as again, the changes are sometimes easy to miss. Finally many puzzles are illogical, so you ended up trying every items one after the other and clicking everywhere. frustrating.

In the relatively short time it has been around, Machinarium has become a classic game in the "point 'n' click" genre. It stands with the best of them. The art style has a lot of character. Every backdrop, every item, every character has been lovingly designed and the art can tell it's own story. Even though there's no "dialog" (characters' speech balloons are short sketchy cartoons), every character is very loveable, even the bullies. The music and sounds of the game are similarly well crafted. It is clear that music is put on high pedestal by the creators of the game and it is better for it. But what really stands out are the puzzles. Every puzzle is clever and there is a definite sense of accomplishment after solving it. What's more, I never felt like there was a "repeat" of puzzle. Each one was unique and challenged me to think in a new, novel way. I'd love to give examples, but that'd spoil some of the fun! Also worth mentioning is the hint system. In the top right of the screen, there is a hint button that offers a single hint for an area. Usually the hints give direction as to what the immediate goal is, which is especially useful if you ever find yourself confused by what you should be doing. You still have to figure out how to reach your goal, though. There is also a kind of "walk through" in the top right corner that can be accessed at any time if you get really stuck. It gives you more details in an almost comic book form. If you're worried it'll ruin the game, though, fear not! The walk through is locked and the only way to unlock it is to play a short horizontal shooting game, which isn't terribly easy. You must do this every time you want to open the walk through. If you're tempted to cheat, it's much more convenient to find a walk through on the internet. The hints definitely do not spoil the game. Word of warning: this is a slow paced game. You will often just be sitting still as you try to figure out what to do next, and when you figure it out the event often unfolds slowly. The pace can soothing and relaxing or it can be annoyingly slow if you're impatient. Just know what you're going into. So overall: great visuals, great music, great characters, great puzzles. Easily worth $10.

What can i say about this game that hasn't been already said, the story is interesting, with its cartoonish mute way of storytelling, the backgrounds and characters are beautifully hand drawn, and it has the sense of humor typical of its genre, some puzzles are difficult to guess, but at least it has a guide for those really difficult ones. Te only problem is with certain really difficult puzzle thant can't be solved with a guide and sometimes is more a matter of luck, but overall, a really enjoyable experience.

It's a wonderful world they've created here, with art, music and animations all contributing. I enjoyed the puzzles and games within the game. I'm not sure exactly why but somehow I found more satisfaction in working out each one than with other games. Well, some of the puzzle sequences end with making another robot person happy :) Maybe the rest was a tendency towards "Ah, that's it" without a lot of fanfare or distraction. Overall, it's a less is more situation. Your wee guy has a tendency to throw away items when they've done what's needed so inventory isn't cluttered and there aren't a million things to try. But sometimes the right thing to do is hidden, even though it's right in front of you. It's a short story rather than a novel. But like the best short stories it gives enough back story to fill it out and draw you in. I'm hooked.

Good for a relaxing rainy afternoon or snowy day. Great artwork and music. Thanks to the power of the internet can cheese through this or spend time trying to solve the puzzles.