Keep the signal alive
Manipulate inputs by using unique modules and patching cables via a simple drag-and-drop system.
Make your mark
Prove yourself as the best machine whisperer by completing more than 40 puzzles and competing in our leaderboards.
Control the interface
Customize it to...
If you like any of the Zachtronics games (TIS-100, ShenzhenIO, Exapunks), you like this one too! While not quite as polished as the Zachtronics games, it's still great fun, especially if you're a fan of analog modular synthesizers.
The Signal State is an optimization puzzler game made by someone who isn't Zachtronics for once. An exciting concept, as it opens the door for new ideas. New takes. New spins. So, how does The Signal State stand up to its predecessors?
Let's start with complements. The competition has always struggled with difficulty curving, with simple puzzles frequently transitioning into a brick wall. The Signal State avoids this pitfall, providing a steady and engaging ramping-up.
This game also nails its aesthetics. Everything looks real and sounds satisfyingly snappy and clicky.
Moving into a discussion of the game's issues, your rack will very quickly become a confusing mess on even mid-game puzzles. Maybe this is also an aesthetic choice and I don't get it. This is my review, though, and I don't like it.
And now, the big problem. Other optimization puzzlers put a big emphasis on their "optimization" aspect. Not so with The Signal State. Whereas Zachtronics games give you big, unavoidable graphs at the end showing how well you did compared to other players, The Signal State gives you a few numbers off to the side comparing a cumulative score to everyone elses'. Being ahead of a curve gives you a rush of pride. Being behind drives you to go back and improve. "You scored 8045th in the world!" does absolutely nothing. Add to that the fact that cable length is VERY unfun to optimize, and I found myself solving puzzles once and immediately moving on.
I also ran into plenty of solutions that I felt should have worked but sort of just...didn't? I don't know what it is, but modules seem to behave inconsistently sometimes. Maybe I'm imagining it, but I "got too clever" enough times that I have to mention it here.
In conclusion, this is another optimization puzzler. If you've enjoyed Zachtronics' catalogue, you'll probably enjoy this game. If you haven't, you should probably just play a Zachtronics game; they're the same but slightly better.
This really helped me solidify my understanding of some concepts in Eurorack. I've been experimenting with Eurorack for the last four years, but this is another way of experiencing it and provides a different lens through which to examine some of the core concepts. Super happy with it.
I am not one for puzzle games usually, but the demo of this one felt so alien that I ended up buying it. And my god what a blast!
Not only I was compelled to play through the story in any moment of free time I had, but this title has also opened up the world of analog computing for me and now I am playing around with CVC Rack and pondering whether to buy a THAT.
It surely has shortcomings, not so much in the "John Deere hatred"-themed story, which is simple, functional and just, but rather in the missing few features that would have made a game like this even more approachable, like an Undo or a grouping function.
But really nothing beats learning that your brain can work in a completely new way, interacting with things you have never seen before and then learnig that until the 1970s those things ruled computing and that they are still around and maybe making a comeback in specific domains!
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