Recommending Zachtronics 

I'm glad I stumbled into this alternate reality with consistent Matthewmatosis content. Love your insights, man.

5:20 "Presumably you can read, if not you may want to start with a different game." :'(

I got into TIS-100 with absolutely no prior programming knowledge, and I managed to 100% the entire game. It's now my favorite puzzle game of all time!

Also, "smashing rocks to smashing atoms" was a clever line

"We now go live to me in the studio" Matthew keeps getting better with his scripts and video composition.

I'm glad Zachtornics is getting some more recognition, I hope they make a lasting impact on puzzle games as a whole.

“You then get the satisfaction of watching it do it’s own thing and even proudly show it off to other people who smile and nod politely as if they know what’s going on.” Literally the story of my life. Mathew's humor and analytic precision have always made videos satisfying. Really, just my kind of humor.

He said Hello ladies and gentlemen. HE SAID HELLO LADIES AND GENTLEMEN AT LONG LAST

This video helped me to believe in myself.

I just got into Opus Magnum and shared my solution gifs with my co-workers. I got the same polite nods.

as someone who studied micro controllers a bit, I instantly liked shenzhen io. It blew me away by how close it is to the real life alternative. The programing was on point, but also the problems were exactly like the assigments i'd get in class back in the days. I mean, they even had it down to the point of adding an oscilloscope to test your chips with and try to figure out how to plug it all together

infinifactory broke my brain faster than a lot of the others -- i think Opus Magnum is the easiest by way of having fewer limitations. Put your start and end point wherever the heck you want, use as much space as you need. spacechem i think is the hardest but i suppose i never got that far in tis-100 Actually, I haven't ever beaten any Zachtronics game (getting there in OM tho) but I'll keep buying them, because I tremendously enjoy them all the way up to the point where I can't get any further.

I'm loving the emphasis on how friendly the game is, and how late-game factorio screencaps can be frightening, etc it's insightful, in that way where it seems obvious once it's been said

The eureka moments are some of the best experiences I have in games. (Feel bad many times when I look up stuff)

And now there's 7 of these games, Exapunks and Molek-Syntez have since come out and they're wonderful continuations of the Zachtronics format - Molek-Syntez is sorta a flipped-around version of Opus Magnum that deals with drug production, you have effectively-unlimited inputs but heavily confined workspace conditions (even the instruction writing portion is super constrained), it's tough but the main puzzle set isn't too bad; the bonus puzzles are where the game _really_ bares its teeth as you probably would expect - Exapunks is a cyberpunk-esque variation on TIS-100's node system, you have these little "exas" that carry their own code between locations in the computer system, which they need to traverse to be able to access different parts of the system's data; you're not restricted on really any of the parts that're in your control either - each level has a soft cap on the total lines of code you can use, going over it only renders your solution invalid for the histograms -They also both continue a trend I think Shenzhen started of having a minigame unrelated to the rest of the game to kill time with, it's great- _I think this also does show that you really don't need to come up with a completely new set of mechanics to provide a different experience, just tweak what you have and bam_

What was the Kula World-esque game you showed at 1:16? Been itching for another game like that

Zachtronics might be my favourite developer of all time. I struggle to think of anyone else who I would blindly buy every game off as soon as it launches.

I find it fascinating how both these sorts of problem solving games and Fighting games have a lot of the same problems, and qualities as well. They are both intimidating for new time players, less complex than you might think, and satisfying when things click. At the same time, not everything is guaranteed to click, and metaphorical mental brick walls lay in the way of the majority of people who play them. I will say that these problem solving games have their own advantages as far as educating the player is concerned. By the nature of them being single player, it's much easier to make a tutorial for this sort of game. Although both games give you toolsets to deal with the problems you are presented with, at the end of the day you're only playing against the board in a single player game, and as a result there will be little to no resistance. With fighting games, you're playing a game that is tailored to a multiplayer experience. You may be quite good at using the tools given to you in training mode, but learning how to apply them mid match is a different skill entirely. All of that is to say that as someone who plays fighting games quite regularly, there hasn't been a single game to date that has provided a worth while tutorial. (People may point to SkullGirls, and the newer Guilty Gear games to having above average tutorials, but at the end of the day they do very little to prepare a player for the multiplayer experience and the mindset required to partake in it.) With how similar these problem solving games are to fighting games in that way, I wonder if one could take lessons from the other to give substantial tools for new players that are interested to get invested.

That live discussion of the tutorial makes me _very_ aware that I could sit and listen to Matthew talk about anything, unscripted as ever possible, and still come away satisfied and feeling like I learned something to boot. This goes for all of your livestreams as well, of course, but something about the simple act of explaining a feature in a game really nails that fact home.

Can't tell you how thrilled I am to hear that you will be reviewing all of Zachtronics' titles. After your 2013 video recommending SpaceChem, I've spent nearly 500 hours playing their titles. If anyone reading this ever got into building neat contraptions in Minecraft, there is a good chance that you will instantly love the Zachtronics titles.

My coding skills are high school level at best, but I can solve at least half of the puzzles of TIS-100, SpaceChem and Shenzhen I/O! Then I ususally lose my patience, take a break, and when I return I just spend a couple of hours watching my previous solutions in awe, starting up a higher level one, realizing I forgot how to do anything and backing off. But it really is fun once you get a hang of it, and reading manuals of TIS-100 and Shenzhen I/O is also surprisingly fun and adds to the atmosphere (they're parts of both the plot and the gameplay itself). Just it give an honest try, I beg you, they deserve it, and, if it's your thing after all, you could score a great many hours of unique entertainment with Zach's games.

Thank you for recommending Infinifactory. I’m too stupid to get to the later 30% of the levels, but I love replaying the others whenever I want to feel big brained. The difficulty curve is nearly perfect.

wow you're so right -- the whole "if it's there it's probably for a reason" and " if you're doing right it shouldn't be overly complex" that one saved me yesterday. I was working on a puzzle and after I almost had a solution I was like...nah this is lvl 3 -- there's no WAY it's supposed to be this crazy. I figure out a way way easier way to do it but the only way I knew it was possible was because of what you're talking about.

This channel is criminally underrated.

I already own both TIS-100 and Infinifactory, although I like both of them, neither of them really had me hooked from the beginning. After watching this video I decided I might as well give Opus Magnum a shot, and so far I'm really enjoying it. Thanks Matthew.

I came here to learn about puzzle games, and what I got was Matthewmatosis encouraging me to try things that I find intimidating and telling me he believes in me. Thank you :)

I love all forms of Matthew. Especially stuffy analysis Matthew in his little booth from a couple of days ago.

Thanks for the video! Love how you can hear your positivity for these games in your voice, I don't normally play puzzle games but I'd really like to give Infinifactory a shot.

Zachtronics is my favorite developer. I got SpaceChem in a humble bundle as a freshman Computer Science student and it really resonated with what I was learning at the time. The "puzzle" solving process in their games is so similar to breaking down a programming task. I think these games are a great way to show someone what the process of software development is like without the hastle of actually learning programming. For me though, I would say that Opus Magnum actually felt easier than Infinifactory if you're playing them all the way through. The end game of Infinifactory is especially exhausting. Really looking forward to your reviews.

seeing this 4 years later, and zachtronics is officially over

Great video. You pretty much encapsulated my feeling on the games, I played SpaceChem when it first came out and I loved the concept but from the getgo it was pretty tough and because of that, I've stayed away, but because of this the infinifactory tutorial is an aspect I never saw and honestly would have made me feel a lot better. I've been inspired to jump back in.

I actually got into TIS-100 after you tweeted about it ages ago! Thank you!

honestly i didnt think i would watch the whole video, but you really kept me interested throughout the whole video, even the infinifactory tutorial. great work!

Man I'm your exact target audience for the "here lemme show you how this isn't as intimidating as you think" pitch. Infinifactory looks so fun so I'm really glad you put this video out!

I was under the assumption something like a rubix cube is a puzzle. This seems more like an actual job.

I'm very grateful that you put your references in your description. You'd be surprised about how many RU-vidrs don't do that even to this day.

Honestly, Infinifactory was an amazing experience for me. I sucked at it. I really, truly sucked at it, but I persevered and got to the second half of the game, and some levels in, before I just burned out on it, so I never ended up completing it. I normally dislike puzzle games, but it was just such an incredibly joy to finish a level, and have something finally click for you. Only thing I didn't like, was that you can go back to previous levels with the updated blocks you get as you progress, and cut down on the steps. That skews the competition part of it, as you can't measure yourself up against "the world" or even friends who have gotten further, since everyone will have gone back and fixed up their levels with lasers and whatever else advanced tech. Other than that, it's a superb game. Even if you're (like me) not into puzzle games what so ever. I've recommended it to everyone I know.

i can't think of anything else that really replicates the feeling of going back to watch one of my old solutions to an infinifactory or opus magnum level. they really do a great job of letting you see and feel proud of the solution you came up with. everything you make seems like a real invention. and watching the solution do its work is always so aesthetically pleasing. even when the solution you came up with is totally bodged together and barely functions.

Cannot express enough how much your point on "what the designer expects of you" and what can be intuited from just the placement of the environment and certain scenes resonates.

The Bureau is one of my favorite flash games of all time. I remember thinking what a unique game it was, both in setting and gameplay.

I've been playing a lot of these problem solving games recently and I often find them very challenging at the midway point, where it feels like there's a difficulty spike that I just haven't understood

Zachtronics is one of my favorite game companies. They're consistently good for all the reasons you mentioned. Here's the cycle of what inevitably happens to me in every puzzle: 1. That's all? This is going to be a cakewalk compared to the last puzzle. I'll just... 2. Oh. This is less straightforward than I thought. How about if I just... 3. *a dozen more half-finished solutions that are cleverly thwarted by the subtle constraints of this particular puzzle, but only after lulling me into a false sense of having found a solution* 4. A-ha! Take that, you stupid puzzle! I am the god of puzzles! No puzzle would dare defy me again! 5. What the? The histogram says my ingenious solution is in the lowest quartile on every metric! Well, I guess I still have a lot to learn... Bring on the next puzzle! But the best part isn't during this cycle. The best part is bringing your understanding of the game mechanics back with you to earlier levels and genuinely coming up with elegant solutions you can put next to your original one to see the real progress that's been made. I bought Infinifactory when it was still being developed and always enjoyed it. The real fun began for me when I realized that, far from being a mechanical oversight, the fact that conveyors can move other un-tethered conveyors and blocks allowed me to imagine up and construct some insanely complex factory solutions that were a nightmare to build but a joy to watch in operation. The leap from conveyors carrying parts through a static series of assembly steps to constructing factories that feel alive, with carriages moving tools all around the product as they work and the control systems to physically govern behavior for them and for the products themselves was amazing. If you dig in at the deep end, your factories can become an elegant dance of product and assembly line weaving through and around one another to arrive at a complex goal. I'm looking forward to your take on some of their other offerings, as the only other games of theirs I own so far are TIS-100 and Shenzhen I/O (which are both great for puzzling and programming in a lightweight assembly all at once). I was never as intrigued by the other games you mentioned but now my interest is piqued.

Matthew i just want to say that even though i never really cared about the genre of games you're talking about, you're just too consistently likeable and well worded that i just have to try them. You are seriously bloody fucking awesome. (pardon my french)

Human Resource Machine is also really, really good for this sort of thing. It's easier to start and simpler mechanically than TIS-100, but some of the last few levels are definitely on par with what later TIS-100 levels ask you to do.

As someone who's become a big fan of Zachtronics because of your original SpaceChem video, I'm really looking forward to the next 5 videos.

I’m now really interested in seeing you do a factorio video

Haha, I just finished Opus Magnum. I didn't realize it was made by the same dev as SpaceChem. I knew this was a perfect game for me from the moment I started and this explains why.

I'm not the best at puzzle games and I think it's the frustration factor that keeps me coming back to them. Zachtronics games collectively rank in my top 10 games. I've spent ridiculous amounts of time playing TIS100, Shenzhen IO and ExaPunks since the programming games are my cup of tea. I wholeheartedly encourage anyone who loves puzzle games of these types to pick up the Zachtronics bundle.

I thought I have to have a computer degree to play these games, after this video I will try to play them. big thanks

I adore these games, but I have a problem with them. I start up the new one to see what it's like, fiddle around for a few hours, go "Yeah, this is just programming", remember that I have a load of stuff I could work on or investigate, and then a) do some programming for fun and profit, or b) load up a game where I shoot/stab something in the face.

Mathew: you don't understand this is not as scary as it looks. Me: It's not about that. It's about my empty ass wallet. I need money. Mathew: It will be worth your while.

Today at work I caught myself daydreaming of having a voice generator software that reads any text in Matthew's voice.

I actually bought SpaceChem expecting it to be a puzzle game about chemistry. What I got was the greatest puzzle game of all time. I'd like to add that while, you actually don't need any knowledge of chemistry, it certainly makes the game more intuitive

oh yeah, and the founder of zachtronics (zach barth) is the creator of infini-miner, AKA, *THE INSPIRATION OF MINECRAFT.*

These games look pretty cool and I'm always down for puzzles games, tho i would be lying if i didn't mention I'd probably feel more guilt than enjoyment if I played these instead of using my time and brain power just doing my regular programming assignments. Great video Matthew!

I played infinifactory before knowing that this was Zachtronics's genre of choice, and it remains one of my favorite puzzle games ever. It didn't need to have a fun creative story in addition to the incredibly well thought-out puzzles but it does, and it only adds to the incentive to keep going and keep trying. You mentioned in your spacechem video that half the fun of these games is going back and watching your completed solutions just run perfectly, and I totally did that too with my more complicated factories. Infinifactory is definitely the best choice for someone who might be put off by spacechem or opus magnum for their stripped-down presentation, since it's more colorful and appealing visually and eases you into the problem-solving mechanics of zachtronics games while still feeling a bit more like a traditional story-driven game.

Wait you can click and drag conveyor belts what

I loved the hell out of Infinifactory, for pretty much the reasons you described. It's not about finding the one and only intended solution, it's about solving a problem, and it's the first puzzle game in a long time to make me feel smart.

I really enjoyed the "from smashing rocks to smashing atoms" joke.

I've always wondered why, when I look at trophies on ps4, that like 80% of people get the first trophy in games. Why isn't it 100%, did 20% of people put the game in and not even play it to the most basic level?

If I had basic experience with programming in C++ and Ruby, will Shenzhen I/O be good for me? I know object oriented programming already, but the majority of what I've coded were simpler and less simple apps in C++ and Ruby...

I only knew about Spacechem, never knew they made 4 more!

Fascinating.... I never tried these games tbh. Maybe I might consider them. Hmm. Usually you make good videos on these sorts of underrated gems. And I have been looking for new games lately.... I'll consider it Matthew just because I feel like I can trust you as my #2 favorite Gaming Analysis reviewer. :D

Only ever played TIS-100, and loved it. Only ever beat about 7 puzzles, but each time I beat one, it's legitimately one of the most fantastic feelings in the world. I definitely need to try Shenzen I/O.

Opus Magnum is my favorite Zachtronics game. Great for beginners to their type of crazy puzzle game!

This is my favorite going to bed playlist. Especially since I love zachtronic games

My friend has SpaceChem on steam, i came here from your other video, it looked interesting when i saw i couple images of it but you are definitely right i was totally intimidated by the fact that it used chemistry, i had such a hard time with chemistry on school i decided i had no chance of doing those puzzles, now after hearing you i may try them. *Just though of something else, Infifactory seems to be a perfect intro for someone whos never played videogames, controls are extremely simple but still 3D and problem solving its a skill everyone should develop. I may use as an experiment and get some people into trying 3D games.

Watching this video as part of some extensive questline to watch the spacechem review to watch the infinifactory review

You lead notch to create minecraft

Just watched your ico retrospective again than this, top stuff!

17:49 how can the creator design a puzzle he cannot solve? In fact, how does anyone design very advanced puzzles in the first place? Must be a true art reserved only for the intelligent gods among us.

I love their games, i still mess with TIS-100 from time to time, and while having no coding background made a few of the problems harder to solve, the realisation of the things you can pull out in that game are amazing on its own. The best thing by far, is how open they are to the use of the tools, while so many games demand a single solution that might not even make sense on its context, these games actually let you solve the problem, instead of creating artificial barriers.

Wow...awesome that you do this, would never have expected this. I came across Zachtronics when they released Shenzhen I/O & bought it as soon as I saw it. I had an interest in assembler coding at that time (& still have). I badly failed at it...;) When I saw their catalogue I found it really...admirable. I mean, it's awesome what they do. What they do is more a kind of "educational software", less a kind of game. This is the real nerdy stuff.

Love that Mathewmatosis is making consistent videos. I hope SO much he makes a video on bloodborne.

opus magnum is a fantastic game. everything about it is satisfying. and it even has a pretty fun story line

To this day I feel The Witness did the best job of teaching you the game without a single prompt or on screen text.

bit late to the party but i just wanna say, the Poly Bridge series scratches a very similar niche to these games (or at least to TIS-100 - that’s the only Zachtronics game I’ve played). It’s a little less open ended than these games (you’re almost always building a bridge, and all bridges have similarities) but the progressive problem solving is there. A lot of levels look something like: build a bridge that can hold its own weight, then a bridge that can support the vehicles, then get it under budget, then get it as cheap as possible if you so desire. And some of the later levels get a lot weirder. The Poly Bridge games are a lot of fun, and I’d recommend them as a somewhat more intuitive, accessible alternative to Zachtronics games- not to say that Zachtronics games are inaccessible beasts, of course.

I was disappointed when I realized that a big chunk of the video is taken up by the tutorial I've already completed, but the announcement of your upcoming videos more than made up for it, good shit dude

Just discovered your channel researching Zachtronics. Gas to come across an Irish voice :D

Infinifactory's third dimension gives a very large advantage as many puzzles become much more open-ended because of that. Even the very first puzzle in chapter 1 that's easy to solve is very difficult to optimize once you return to the puzzle with new tools.

Infinifactory looks great. Sold me on it. Thanks Matt!

As someone who's a puzzle game fan in the most minimal possible definition, I'm not too intrigued by many of these games besides infinifactory (For some reason I'm just more intrigued by 3D than 2D), so it is a bit disappointing to me knowing that the next 5 videos will be about games that don't really interest me. Now that being said, I'm absolutely ecstatic to see you uploading so often and I'll absolutely be watching them regardless. I know there will be plenty of stuff that will interest me either way. That's what I love about your content; you can take anything and break it down in a way that teaches people something without them having to even care about what you're covering. I'd go as far as to say you've really opened my mind up to playing games outside of my comfort zone, and I've always identified as someone who will gladly give anything a playthrough so to me that's no small feat to accomplish. I really love what you do and no doubt I'm gonna become a Patreon supporter once I can afford it. I've definitely gotten something worth paying for out of your content, and I'm so glad to see you posting as often as you have been.

my favourite developer

Awesome videos man, love your content, keep up the hard work :)

Stuffy Matthew? Will Tutorial Matthew ever come back for another video?

I'll grab these for sure. I haven't gone too deep into puzzle games. I played Catherine and the witness but as far as puzzle games go that's about it. Everything else has just been puzzles within either rpgs, platformers or what have you, but nothing too hard.

I bought Infinifactory entirely based on this and I am having a blast. Thank you for this video. I'll give spacechem a chance next.

I’ve never seen another content creators comment section filled with so many requests for videos. But then I notice they are all asking for mediocre AAA games like the dead MGS and the lifeless BOTW. That must be nauseating to read through. I just want to say that your content has always been unique and polished. I have a lot of respect for you doing videos of games that grab your attention so we as viewers aren’t watching our 5 favorite creators talk about the same old Mario Zelda God of War bull crap. Thanks for blessing my feed with diamonds in the rough, I hope you still prosper.

I am eagerly awaiting your next reviews in your Zelda, MGS, and Mario series

These games are great! I also recommend Factorio. Though it is not the same kind of game, being less of a puzzler with specific goals and more about freely making up your own giant mega-factory, it does however have a lot in common in its appeal, the basic building blocks of the factory being simple logic objects that move items around and transform them, with an added RTS-like resource management side and some hostile aliens to defend your factory from. The lack of specific shorter-term goals can make it a bit more daunting to some players, but it does have a campaign mode that kind of acts as a tutorial to the real game, giving you shorter little missions with goals in which you either build a small factory or "repair" an existing one. The existing factories also do a good job of giving you examples on how to build your own factories later.

My first Zachtronics game was TIS 100. I had next to no programing knowledge but the manual explain everything well enough so I had no problem playing the game.

8:14 I'm really glad I'm not the only one that binds "use" to middle mouse.

Well, when you're right, you're right. I just sent a gif of my Opus Magnum machine out to the people on my discord server because I was a tad too proud of myself.

New video nice! The last video impressed me as usual

Rare footage of meta content

Thx Matt, Opus Magnum is a blast.

I love you Matt. I thought I was the only person on the planet who played TIS. :-)

Hello Ladies and Gentleman... I didn’t realize how much I missed it until I heard it once again

This "looks intimidating" feeling is actually the same I got while playing through Factorio lately - if you see a late game recipe in there, you see it's made from other advanced things which in turn are also made of more basic components that will, again, have to be assembled, from raw materials. But I found that building the factories by way of iterating through these steps made it very easy. I do wonder if that's a good strategy for Infinifactory too! So my question is: Can you actually take solutions or at least parts of them from early levels and implement them later, like building bricks, in Infinifactory?

Heck yea glad to see you're finally back Mathew. Might be able to get back your audience for reviews now that pudding boy is more focused on his streaming than good content. Low hanging fruit is irresistible I suppose.