Machinarium will appeal to anyone who's a fan of classic adventure games. A brilliant creation in its own.
Machinarium caught my eye just by it's artwork alone, but I was hesitant at the start due to all these new "adventure game" titles pounding the market, such as the new Monkey Islands by Telltale. Don't get me wrong, those Telltale games are ok, but their production value is low and lacking. The story is bland and characters are poor in quality. Unfortunately, it just seems like a quick cash grab on a infamous title.
Enter Machinarium - a beautifully told story without a single word spoken! Once I started playing, I was immediately floored by the use of picture bubbles to represent voice. It worked brilliantly and the illustrations and animations were stunning to say the least. Instead of seeming like a budgetary/ time constraint choice, it was a masterful execution with the utmost of thought behind it. Characters interact and speak through these bubbles which add a lovely charm and humor to the game. Not once was I unable to understand what any character was conveying.
The art direction is gorgeous and executed flawlessly. Being an illustrator I can see the countless hours that were spent perfecting the art and stage design. Levels are thought out with loads of care and has a wicked comic book page layout effect when your character entires different parts of the screen, specifically speaking, in the bar.
What's an adventure game without puzzles? Machinarium never runs into the problem of having to rub every inventory item against every clickable object in a room. Puzzles are 100% totally logical and you always have an idea of what you need to do, you may not have the right item, but you know you're missing something to proceed. You're never left wondering where to go next and the help system is humorous in it's own right. A nifty little shooter game, followed by a semi-cryptic image of what you need to do... so there's even some puzzle solving involved with the help guide to how to solve the current puzzle! It's great to see that the makers of this game understood that players sometimes don't want the answer given to them, they just want a little nudge. Never once did I find myself consulting the Almightly Gamers Guide of The World called Google for answers.
The story of Machinarium is simple but unbelievably well told. Think of it like the movie Goonies. You know the motives of the characters, you know where and what they're doing... but how will they achieve their goals and what problems stand in front of them.
Let's get into one of the greatest things about this game, and thats the sound design. They realized they made great audio and they sell it with the game if you're willing to shell out a few measly dollars for it, and let me just say it's worth it. Music has this electronic feel to it, but it's so well suited. It's not some house/ techno track but this airy, clicky robot ambient flair that blends in perfectly. Sound effects are modeled around the world and crafted to what you would expect the world to sound like. A clunky, rusty environment with touches of life squeaking through the cracks.
The only negative thing about this game, is it's short length, but I can't even dock it for half a mark, because it's made by an indie developer and the fact that it's only a few hours long, only makes me want the next Machinarium.
To those who made Machinarium, Amanita Design, I applaud you for your creation and I look forward to your next installment.