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 The Incredible Machine is a very important game for me. I don't know exactly when my parents bought it for me, but it was probably among some of the first video games I ever played, right there alongside Tetris GB, Donkey Kong Land, and Chip's Challenge. I remember sitting down at our family's recently purchased Windows 95 computer and loading in that CD only to be taken into a world of moving parts, colors and funny noises. The game was a fountain of creativity like the BRIO train tracks or marble mazes I used to make when I was younger. It's no surprise then that the series hooked me as much as it did. I never had the The Incredible Machine 2 or 3, but I did get The Incredible Toon Machine at some point and my brain struggled to get that drat cat and mouse to cooperate and solve the puzzles. Never did beat that one. A few years later, around the year 2000, I was gifted the latest game in the series: "Return of the Incredible Machine: Contraptions". I wasn't aware of it at the time, but this game was basically just a remake of the original with some puzzles from 2 mixed in but that didn't matter. See, the game looked great at the time. Gone were the more simplistic drawings--now the game sported lots of color, crisp music and was generally more fun (a good coat of paint went a long way here). I spent HOURS upon HOURS playing this game, eventually building somewhere around 50 of my own puzzles using the built-in editor. It was pretty much the perfect game for a ten-year old sciences-focused kid. So seventeen years later, I bought it again. And that's what we're playing today.  Return of the Incredible Machine: Contraptions is a puzzle game about using Rube Goldberg machines to solve objectives. If you don't know what a Rube Goldberg machine is, it's basically an extremely overcomplicated process to do something very simple, taken from the namesake of the man who used to draw cartoons of such scenarios throughout much of the early to mid 20th Century. You're given a playfield, an objective and a number of parts in a parts bin to use to try and solve objectives. Ostensibly an edutainment game, you'll learn a bit about fire, explosions, cause and effect, light, projectile motion, and more as you play. And when you're done with the nearly 250 puzzles that await you, there's a built-in puzzle editor for you to make your own devious contraptions for others to play!  This wasn't intended to be a full LP with a thread or anything when I started playing it. I just wanted to stream the game for some of my friends. But after posting the first video from my stream to my Youtube channel, I received a very positive response from people on Twitter and Youtube so I figured that maybe there was some merit to actually posting this on SA after all. As such, this is an extremely casual stream LP of the game where the only intention is to have fun and talk about the game maybe only 50% of the time at most. I'll be joined by Faerie Fortune and Quantum Fizz, aka May for the duration of the LP. Expect that people might drop in and out of the recording and please understand that since this is recorded as a stream I do talk to the chat on occasion, though a chat window is not part of the videos. Additionally, since we're still recording videos for it, I can easily drop a link in the thread when we go live if anyone wants to catch the live recording. I'll be playing through all of the puzzles in the game and taking a little time to mess with the editor. If anyone else owns this game and wants to make some puzzles for me to solve I'll do an episode at the end where I solve user-submitted puzzles. I might also look to download some random levels online if I can find any. By the way, if this is hitting any of you in the nostalgia right now and you want to play or make puzzles for yourself, you can buy it on GOG.com for $3.29 until the 20th of June as part of their summer sale. After that it'll go back to being $10, which is still a great price considering you also get Incredible Machines 1, 2, and 3 with it.  Episode #1: Tutorial Puzzles, Part 1 Episode #2: Tutorial Puzzles, Part 2 Episode #3: Easy Puzzles, Part 1 - with Krysmphoenix Episode #4: Easy Puzzles, Part 2 - with Krysmphoenix Episode #5: Building our own Puzzles, Part 1 - with Krysmphoenix and a surprise Tyty Episode #6: Medium Puzzles, Part 1 Episode #7: Medium Puzzles, Part 2 Episode #8: Medium Puzzles, Part 3 - with Krysmphoenix Episode #9: Building our own Puzzles, Part 2 - with Krysmphoenix Episode #10: Difficult Puzzles, Part 1 - with Krysmphoenix and Tyty Episode #11: Difficult Puzzles, Part 2 - with Tyty Episode #12: Difficult Puzzles, Part 3 Episode #13: Difficult Puzzles, Part 4 Episode #14: Building our own Puzzles, Part 3 - with PoorlyWrittenNovel Episode #15: Expert Puzzles, Part 1 Episode #16: Expert Puzzles, Part 2 Episode #17: Expert Puzzles, Part 3 - with PoorlyWrittenNovel Episode #18: Building Our Own Puzzles, Part 4 - with PoorlyWrittenNovel FPzero fucked around with this message at 17:14 on Sep 22, 2017 |
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Jun 17, 2017 18:04
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| # ? Apr 27, 2024 23:18 |
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I loved all these games, but I loved Sid & Al's Incredible Toons most of all. I think we still have this box at home somewhere: 
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Jun 17, 2017 18:24
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I forget, did they have the lasers in the first game?
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Jun 17, 2017 19:20
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I would agree with the assessment of "edutainment game that is actually quite fun and creative" as I did end up playing this in elementary school, since a few science teachers found it and decided it would be fun to show off as a demonstration of basic physics and engineering principles, and I would often sneak off to play it during recess. Also, I learned to enjoy certain forms of classical music from it as the introduction from Modest Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition" is featured throughout.
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Jun 17, 2017 19:51
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They had this in the library back home, and it was *always* in use. I like those sorts of computer edutainment things where other kids can watch and participate.
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Jun 17, 2017 21:58
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The nostalgia is real. I just reinstalled Even More Contraptions the other day and I'm probably going to beat it now.
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Jun 17, 2017 22:21
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Oh poo poo, I have so many vague fond memories of this game, so this is what it was!
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Jun 17, 2017 22:26
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Now I want to reinstall it as well. I've got the collection on GOG already, and I have the CD of 2 somewhere in my collection of vintage games. I mostly loved playing around with the physics sliders in the later games. I've also got Toon Machine around and similarly gave up on it when the physics clearly didn't seem to be working properly.
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Jun 17, 2017 22:28
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Loved that game. I only ever really played the original though. I think I played 2 or 3, but frankly I can't remember that one at all. I believe in that one the physics where glitched, so I could just cheese my way through most of the game. But in this game, I have a memory of a certain weird item suddenly popping up in the building menu once. Either it was a special holiday Easter egg, or I might have been crazy at that time. There were like three or four puzzles, I was truly stuck on back in the day. I will probably recognize them once I see them.
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Jun 17, 2017 22:55
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There's actually a new The Incredible Machine game on Steam. They no longer had the rights to the name so it's called Contraption Maker but it's straight up The Incredible Machine.
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Jun 17, 2017 23:12
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gschmidl posted:I loved all these games, but I loved Sid & Al's Incredible Toons most of all. That one was definitely the best. However, this one was great too. If I remember correctly this is the one that had lasers, mirrors and colour puzzles as well?
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Jun 17, 2017 23:21
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Lasers are definitely in this game. We'll be seeing them in the next episode.SirSamVimes posted:There's actually a new The Incredible Machine game on Steam. They no longer had the rights to the name so it's called Contraption Maker but it's straight up The Incredible Machine. I actually have this but I never really played too far into it. Then again I think it was still in Early Access when I played it last so I'm sure it's much more like what I was looking for at the time.
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Jun 18, 2017 02:13
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I never owned the original Incredible Machine but it was the best edutainment game on the computers in my grade school so, yeah. Meanwhile, I bought Contraption Maker and have lived those yesteryears vicariously through it 
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Jun 18, 2017 02:35
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The Incredible Machine (or, as I called it, TIM) was a favorite of mine back on my old 486 box, and I'm delighted to learn that the franchise continued past the 3 games that I was aware of.
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Jun 18, 2017 03:02
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For most of grade 7 this was pretty much the only thing people would play around with in Computer Lab class. It quickly went from solving puzzles to trying to knockout/kill people in the most hilarious way possible though. The ultimate sandbox game.
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Jun 18, 2017 04:04
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I picked this up from GOG ages ago but never really got into it because I couldn't work out even the basics of interaction. After seeing someone play a version of it, that got me through a few puzzles in all the versions GOG shipped with. And holy cheese, there are a lot of versions with nearly identical names. Here's what I think I've figured out about the GOG pack. Those of you who did grow up with these, set me straight if I goof:
Those last two feel like they're strict improvements over the early models, from some cursory examination.
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Jun 18, 2017 04:12
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This looks like an expansion pack to Return of the Incredible Machine Contraptions, but there's a stage select, and progress from the original doesn't seem to be importable.
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Yes. Yes. I spent so many hours just shooting lasers around a screen and spooking mandrills on treadmills with The Incredible Machine 2. I'm so happy they made another game. Might have to pick it up.
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Jun 18, 2017 04:12
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I remember mostly making elaborate death traps for the kid you can place in the contraptions. Like an elementary school Jigsaw.
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Jun 18, 2017 05:39
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I remember having the original game back in the day. The manual talked about some dude in Florida who got eaten by alligators and that's exactly what has to happen in some of the puzzles.
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Jun 18, 2017 06:31
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I had the Mac version of the original growing up. We thought it must've been a sequel because of the name, but we never did find the "original"  .FPzero posted:I actually have this but I never really played too far into it. Then again I think it was still in Early Access when I played it last so I'm sure it's much more like what I was looking for at the time. I did the same. Bought it in early access, played a bit, put it down. It's much better now that it's a full release. Also, for anyone reading the thread who might want it, Contraption Maker for some reason can only be bought in a 2-pack for $7 (currently).
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Jun 18, 2017 09:44
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ManxomeBromide posted:I picked this up from GOG ages ago but never really got into it because I couldn't work out even the basics of interaction. After seeing someone play a version of it, that got me through a few puzzles in all the versions GOG shipped with.
I don't know anything about the last two since i have them but didn't exactly get into them, but if you were wondering about the rest, you're not missing anything if you don't have 2 or the original TIM.
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Jun 18, 2017 10:18
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From what I played of them and can remember, most of the puzzles in Contraptions come from the previous game, but the puzzles in Even More Contraptions are new (tutorial might be an exception, which is fair I guess). I grew up with the very first one, and it was the best thing ever. While I played and finished the sequel as well, I never liked much the Mel puzzles, as they tend to go overly slow sometimes.
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Jun 18, 2017 11:04
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Huh, projectile motion? The screen doesn't look nearly big enough to give sweet lady gravity a chance to stretch her legs on one of those.
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Jun 18, 2017 11:43
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Cheez posted:For reference, here's the whole series: There's also Sid & Al's Incredible Toons and Incredible Toon Machine, and if we count Jeff Tunnell's other games that couldn't legally be named TIM, there's also
And an entire "rip-off" series called Crazy Machines, of which there are at least 5 instalments.
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Jun 18, 2017 13:36
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Let's not forget the Bad Rats series, clearly the best of the lot.
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Jun 18, 2017 16:27
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I used to play the ol' DOS version of this a lot as a kid.  The old cannon graphics was that of a proper ship cannon and not some dumb clown cannon though. It doesn't even shoot clowns!
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Jun 18, 2017 16:29
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ModeWondershot posted:I would agree with the assessment of "edutainment game that is actually quite fun and creative" as I did end up playing this in elementary school, since a few science teachers found it and decided it would be fun to show off as a demonstration of basic physics and engineering principles, and I would often sneak off to play it during recess. Mantis42 posted:I remember mostly making elaborate death traps for the kid you can place in the contraptions. Like an elementary school Jigsaw. I mean, as puzzles they were 100% useless but they looked very nice.
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Jun 18, 2017 18:35
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Episode #2: Tutorial Puzzles Part 2 - with guests Faerie Fortune and Quantum Fizz aka May. Wrapping up the Tutorial Puzzles and showing off the puzzle maker at the very end. I felt like getting the tutorial videos out of the way quickly. From here on out I'll post videos every few days or so. General reminder that if you'd like to send me any custom levels, feel free to post them here in the thread and I'll try them out at the end of the LP. All you need to do is go to your installation directory, find the folder marked "Homemade" and then upload the .tim files within.
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Jun 18, 2017 19:53
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I seem to remember that the homemade puzzles in the first game didn't include customizable goals as such - you'd type the goal, but it was up to the player to decide whether they'd solved the puzzle correctly based on the goal text. The second game had functions to program the components with goal conditions and would declare victory when all of the conditions were met. The two player puzzles were simple, but the idea was that the players would take turns placing parts. I think, for each turn, you could place one new part and move one part that's already in the solution. Whoever solves the puzzle wins.
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Jun 18, 2017 20:52
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I believe what you were trying to say is that the translators convert linear motion into rotational motion or the other way around.
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Jun 18, 2017 21:17
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I think it was this version but when I was a kid, me and my friend's brother was playing this and we managed to guess the final password after 2 guesses. Kind of blew our minds. It's "password"
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Jun 19, 2017 03:43
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I have this vague memory that defining the goal is done by clicking on a goal flag on the items you've placed and picking the option. Just like how resize, rotate and customize works.
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Jun 19, 2017 17:17
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Poil posted:I have this vague memory that defining the goal is done by clicking on a goal flag on the items you've placed and picking the option. Just like how resize, rotate and customize works. This is in fact how to do it, but the flag doesn't appear on locked parts and the springboard I kept unlocked can't have any goals assigned to it. So I just straight-up missed it. At the end of the next session though, I do come back to this puzzle and expand upon it using the Goal dialog properly.
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Jun 19, 2017 17:26
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All done! FP learned a lot about English food today Faerie Fortune fucked around with this message at 20:09 on Jun 19, 2017 |
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Jun 19, 2017 18:31
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gschmidl posted:There's also Sid & Al's Incredible Toons and Incredible Toon Machine, and if we count Jeff Tunnell's other games that couldn't legally be named TIM, there's also The Incredible Toons line got licensed by Capcom for an I-swear-to-god Ghosts 'n Goblins spinoff game.
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Jun 21, 2017 09:31
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Episode #3: Easy Puzzles Part 1 - with guests Faerie Fortune, QuantumFizz, and Krysmphoenix While the puzzles here are obvious pretty simple, they're also starting to use multiple part interactions more often. There's still generally one way to solve the puzzle due to the low number of parts available for us to place, but we can really get a good feeling for how the rest of the game will build on these early puzzles. Also, the sale on GOG for the game is over now but you can still get it and the other games in the pack for $10. And there's still plenty of time left to submit some custom puzzles if that's something you want to do.
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Jun 22, 2017 20:44
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Is Fae going to be in every update like she was in the Metroid Prime videos? I always enjoy her asides.
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Jun 23, 2017 03:32
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Yes, the plan is to have Fae and May in all of the videos with other guests popping in randomly.
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Jun 23, 2017 04:35
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FPzero posted:Yes, the plan is to have Fae and May in all of the videos with other guests popping in randomly.
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Jun 23, 2017 04:46
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I like how they give you some joke items, like the pinball bumpers for the blimps puzzle. It fails so obviously that you can't even be mad.
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Jun 25, 2017 19:35
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