Spacechem!

[Vivi Hill]

I don't know if we have too many programmer types, but if you are a programmer, you should totally try Spacechem out. It's like programmer candy. Really neat game. Just spent a few hours on it.

By the way, I greatly dislike chemistry, so don't think that you have to like chemistry to enjoy the game. It's more about programming than chemistry anyway.

[duck]

i personally have never seen the game, can you post some screen shots or something, also how much does it cost

[Nikki Wolf]

^ Any price you want it if you get Humble Frozen Synapse Bundle right now. (well, any price that isn't $0.00)

[Argent]

i personally have never seen the game, can you post some screen shots or something, also how much does it cost

A solution to a puzzle

This is the solution to a spacechem level, incidentally one of the TF2 bonus levels. You have two "Programming Tracks" I guess you could call them where a waldo runs along each track and performs the actions on the little circular buttons as the waldos run over them. Basically I'm taking australium atoms here in the upper-left corner, and creating the molecule Mustachium 608 and depositing it in the upper-right corner.

Puzzles is fun to crack, and the story's fairly cool if you care to read it as you progress, though it gets pretty intensely hard after awhile. I recommend it. It's $15.00 right now, but it goes on sale a lot as an indi game.

[Vivi Hill]

Sorry for not posting a picture, but I think Argent covered that. It's a very interesting take on a puzzle game. It certainly looks confusing at first. The interface isn't intuitive on its own, but the tutorial is extremely helpful and it makes sense relatively quickly. I was originally turned off by the interface, but seeing as I got the Humble Bundle so I have it anyway I figured I'd try it out. Much cooler than I expected.

Basically you control how the molecules are assembled and disassembled. Every block allows for one action so you have to line everything up properly. It tracks the time it takes to assemble something so you want to be as efficient as possible. It's really satisfying when you set up a good system and it all comes together.

And then there are production pipes, where you have to build multiple systems and have them work together. It's really a lot like writing a program--you do each separate component and make sure everything fits together properly. There's no rush either--you can spend days working on a solution if you want, all that matters is one that works quickly once it's assembled.

There is also a story thing that unlocks with each level. It's kind of a neat bonus, but it's not exactly riveting (think Fallout or Deus Ex emails, or newspapers--an interesting backstory of sorts). Overall it's a very well-put-together game (and really inspiring as it's not one of the well-worn genres).

[Vetos]

This game... I'm surprised I still have a head of hair after the second planet. You can seriously spend an hour or so trying to make a solution work and it turns out that you were way off from the start.




wtf duh i duh

[Vivi Hill]

Looks like you did a little better symbol-wise than I did:




Still, this one takes the cake (no cheating now):

[Vetos]

Looks like you did a little better symbol-wise than I did

On the contrary, I haven't even finished that puzzle. I did that while waiting for TF2 to update last night. The triple bonds between carbon atoms were no problem, but I'm having a hell of a time getting that last hydrogen bonded to the molecule without accidentally colliding them or ripping the molecule apart.

I may just steal your solution. >.>

[Vivi Hill]

Hmm, right, I didn't look carefully enough at that shot.

[HibiscusKazeneko]

I've been considering getting SpaceChem (or adding it to my wishlist) since I enjoy puzzle games, but I'll admit I'm intimidated now that you mention it's like programming. I personally am a lousy programmer (I could barely add basic ActionScript when I was a Flash artist) and I never got the chance to take chemistry in high school, so I'm afraid I'll be in over my head and you'll all laugh at me.

[Argent]

It's not like programming in that sense, it's just. You could either look at it as an exercise in flow charting, or logical series, which is what most programmers enjoy.

[Slappy]

Haven't got around to playing anything from the last bundle yet....as a programmer AND chemist, I will have to give this a try....