SpaceChem
<div class="IPBDescription">A most excellent puzzle game</div><!--QuoteBegin-"Website"+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE ("Website")</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->SpaceChem is an obscenely addictive, design-based puzzle game about machine building and fake science.<center><object width="450" height="356"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/sVDYxYpneag"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/sVDYxYpneag" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="450" height="356"></embed></object></center><!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I saw a demo of this on Steam and decided to try it out. I didn't even finish the entire demo yet and I already love it. <a href="http://www.spacechemthegame.com/index.php" target="_blank">Website</a>.
It's a puzzle game about designing machines to create the required molecule outputs from the given inputs. The machines you create are conveyor belt type systems with different operations like taking in an atom/molecule from the input, grabbing, rotating and dropping it, creating bonds with other molecules and finally producing the output. Some of the mechanics are very similar to <a href="http://pleasingfungus.com/" target="_blank">Manufactoria</a> for example.
You have two different color components, red and blue. Both can interact with molecules the same way, but follow their own paths and components. There are of course criteria for failure, such as having your atoms collide with eachother or producing the wrong kind of output. Your machine also has to produce the required output for extended periods of time, so you must make sure it is stable.
Once you've gotten hold of how a single reactor works, the game 'zooms out' one level. Here you need to chain your reactors' and assemblies' inputs and outputs to turn the basic materials into complex compounts and deliver them into freighters. This also creates new problems on the reactor scale, as the input may not be readily available whenever a machine inside the reactor needs one. You also have a limited number and type of reactors you can use. For example, a simple reactor has two inputs, two outputs and can both create and destroy bonds. But a disassembly has one input, two outputs and can only destroy bonds, where as an assembly is the opposite: two inputs, one output and can only create bonds.
So basically; on the large scale you have different types of raw chemicals and freighters that require certain types of products. Between them you must construct facilities and connect them with pipes to refine the chemicals into products. On the smaller scale, inside those facilities, you must create machines which perform these chemical reactions stably.
The demo seems quite extensive. I played it for about two hours already and didn't even finish it. This is according to Steam, since I lost my track of time somewhere around level 5 or so. And I think the next level was going to be a new type of level, or at least contain some challenge that I hadn't seen previously (possibly the "surprises" the video mentions). The full game costs 15€ and boy howdy, right now it seems so much worth it. I am, however, going to finish the demo first.
I saw a demo of this on Steam and decided to try it out. I didn't even finish the entire demo yet and I already love it. <a href="http://www.spacechemthegame.com/index.php" target="_blank">Website</a>.
It's a puzzle game about designing machines to create the required molecule outputs from the given inputs. The machines you create are conveyor belt type systems with different operations like taking in an atom/molecule from the input, grabbing, rotating and dropping it, creating bonds with other molecules and finally producing the output. Some of the mechanics are very similar to <a href="http://pleasingfungus.com/" target="_blank">Manufactoria</a> for example.
You have two different color components, red and blue. Both can interact with molecules the same way, but follow their own paths and components. There are of course criteria for failure, such as having your atoms collide with eachother or producing the wrong kind of output. Your machine also has to produce the required output for extended periods of time, so you must make sure it is stable.
Once you've gotten hold of how a single reactor works, the game 'zooms out' one level. Here you need to chain your reactors' and assemblies' inputs and outputs to turn the basic materials into complex compounts and deliver them into freighters. This also creates new problems on the reactor scale, as the input may not be readily available whenever a machine inside the reactor needs one. You also have a limited number and type of reactors you can use. For example, a simple reactor has two inputs, two outputs and can both create and destroy bonds. But a disassembly has one input, two outputs and can only destroy bonds, where as an assembly is the opposite: two inputs, one output and can only create bonds.
So basically; on the large scale you have different types of raw chemicals and freighters that require certain types of products. Between them you must construct facilities and connect them with pipes to refine the chemicals into products. On the smaller scale, inside those facilities, you must create machines which perform these chemical reactions stably.
The demo seems quite extensive. I played it for about two hours already and didn't even finish it. This is according to Steam, since I lost my track of time somewhere around level 5 or so. And I think the next level was going to be a new type of level, or at least contain some challenge that I hadn't seen previously (possibly the "surprises" the video mentions). The full game costs 15€ and boy howdy, right now it seems so much worth it. I am, however, going to finish the demo first.
Comments
It's super fun to optimize these things down to nothing. A friend at work and I have a rivalry going over "Nothing Works". I've got it down to 431 cycles :)<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
What the ######, man :D . I checked my first solution, it was 1287 cycles. Of course I didn't think it was going to be superoptimized, but still. Guess I'll go find a better solution.
Also, I finished the demo. The last mission was, as I suspected, a different kind of mission. A nice change of pace and I can see how similar, more complicated missions will likely be interesting.
And finally, the music in this game is pretty great, although there doesn't seem to be too many tracks in the demo. Hopefully there's more in the full version.
[edit] After redoing the level with optimization in mind, I got down to 745.
[edit2] Yay, made huge changes to my hydrogen cyanide assembly! ... down to 741 cycles :|
[edit3] 559! I guess I'll just post the final result after this.
[editfinal] <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?hd=1&v=yr66hnSWFFg" target="_blank">435</a>, my final answer. Weirdly enough the weakest (or should I say slowest) link is hydrogen processing. That's why there's that crazy pipe.
It's super fun to optimize these things down to nothing. A friend at work and I have a rivalry going over "Nothing Works". I've got it down to 431 cycles :)<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Youtube or it didn't happen.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLq20JWjijY" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLq20JWjijY</a>
I also have my individual reactors screenshotted
<a href="http://steamcommunity.com/id/them/screenshots/" target="_blank">http://steamcommunity.com/id/them/screenshots/</a>
I tried reading the first post but apparently it's far beyond my scope of understanding. I mean, I know the words but the mental image I got was like trying to sketch individual potatoes as they are in a mixer. I don't think my ego needs to even try level 1 of this.
<a href="http://www.kongregate.com/games/krispykrem/the-codex-of-alchemical-engineering" target="_blank">Codex of Alchemical Engineering</a>
Clearly a matter of opinion. What if the guy in his lab is tinkering on a fantasy virtual New Zealand?
:D :D
That's funny, I thought SpaceChem was much harder.
Ok I can't compete on SpaceChem but here's my White Gold level 15 soln getting 288/98:
<span style='color:#000000;background:#000000'>p,3,10;p,10,11;t,13,8;b,6,6;t,1,6;b,6,8;m,3,13,0,3,jwwcldoruwwwwwwwww;m
,4,13,180,2,jwwcdruolwwwwwwwww;m,11,13,0,1,jwwclorwwwwclorwww;m,10,13,180,2,jcrd
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6,180,2,jwwwwwwwwwwcrrollw;m,3,6,90,2,juwwwwwwwcdlwww2or;m,13,10,90,2,jcldlorruc
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Aaaaaand guess what? There's another 15 levels in magnum opus challenge edition woo!
So, basically, if anyone out there wants to be the next Notch, study Zach's other games...
OH, and he has a game "manufactoid" in which you actually use LUA to code things in the game. I mean, it really is a game. But you program in it. LOL
Also, I finished the demo. The last mission was, as I suspected, a different kind of mission. A nice change of pace and I can see how similar, more complicated missions will likely be interesting.
And finally, the music in this game is pretty great, although there doesn't seem to be too many tracks in the demo. Hopefully there's more in the full version.
[edit] After redoing the level with optimization in mind, I got down to 745.
[edit2] Yay, made huge changes to my hydrogen cyanide assembly! ... down to 741 cycles :|
[edit3] 559! I guess I'll just post the final result after this.
[editfinal] <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?hd=1&v=yr66hnSWFFg" target="_blank">435</a>, my final answer. Weirdly enough the weakest (or should I say slowest) link is hydrogen processing. That's why there's that crazy pipe.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Actually, if you remember that you can move start points and that the waldos can cross without colliding so long as they aren't holding atoms, you can speed up hydrogen processing to almost the speed it takes to move one atom from in to out and return the waldo. My slow point is on the breakdown step, three or four loops to get things sorted.
I remember an old game called Robowars in which you pitted fighting robots against each other. Human interaction with the fights was null, you set two bots against each other and watched them fight. The fun was in programming them, which you did with a language designed for the game, called Robotalk. It essentially took the place of My First Programming Language, and it actually helped a bit later on when I started learning real programming languages.
Not unlike the function of VB these days.
<span style='color:#000000;background:#000000'>Except people still use it professionally.</span>
--Scythe--
*I just beat Kohctpyktop(Constructor?). Damn what a hard game. It's fun when your designs begin to look like medium scale integration chip designs from across the room from the monitor...
Yeah, it was pretty cool like that - I may have to revisit that game some time.
<a href="http://distractionware.com/blog/?p=1774" target="_blank">http://distractionware.com/blog/?p=1774</a>
buncha great indy games from last year. Only played a few so far but the man has good taste.