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Reader review by teradio
May 20, 2011 Romel Ramos – A point and click adventure, Machinarium is a puzzler set in a futuristic robot world. You play as an innocent looking robot; journeying through a gritty machine city, while his story unfolds.The game begins as your character is rocketed out of a machine city and crash lands into a heap of debris. At that point, you must then click around to re-assemble yourself and get back into the city to search for the culprit. It all begins quickly and continues to rush onward; the robot boy has once again been harassed by one of his childhood bullies and now he’s out to get even and possibly save a childhood sweetheart as well. Your robot can walk around and either extend or compress his body to reach high and low objects or places (respectfully). Throughout the robot’s quest; players will come across challenging click-and-drag puzzles and scenarios, where ingenious usage of unlikely items is necessary to further advance the game. As simple as that sounds though, this game is fairly difficult. There were; on many occasions, where I found myself getting stuck for hours upon end, at certain spots. A keen sense of observation is required to succeed in the game; but if things get too hard, hints and a small walkthrough are available on the top right corner of the screen.
Though eerie and gritty, the world of Machinarium is quite scenic. Your character runs around screen upon screen of what seems to be a breathing painting of worn concrete and buildings rusting over with shades of taupe. In the background, the city is always receding into sketches and an overcast sky. The sound effects are crisp and really help set and define an atmosphere, be it the subtle swish of a bartender’s rag or the light ringing of electricity in the air. The music is especially fitting, a synch of obscure indie instrumentals to accentuate the city’s quirky and mellow design. The robot characters in the city don’t usually talk though, they’re all uniquely designed. Any story progression is shown in the form of little thought bubbles that animate a usually charming scene. The game is not 3D though, rather it’s a flash-style game that consists of your 2D figure venturing on a flat 3D plane.
Immersed in a mechanically aesthetic world, the player will not notice time fly by, during which the mind is fighting grueling battles of riddles and puzzles. That being said, the game is unfortunately, rather short and is doesn’t really hold a high replay value. The ending credits will roll by and the player will be left with but a distant memory of the machine city.
Machinarium is an addictive game from start to finish, with visuals to appeal to both the eyes and ears. Though the story is not complicated, its simplicity is a delight. The game’s biggest drawback however, is its short length. (It can be downloaded at www.machinarium.com for the small price of $20), money well-spent for a short and sweet mental joyride.
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