Game: Machinika Museum
Genre: Puzzle
System: iOS (also on Steam, Android)
Developers | Publishers: Littlefield Studio | Plug In Digital
Age Rating: US E | EU 12+
Price: US $4.99 | UK £3.99 | EU € 4,99
Release Date: April 20th 2021
Review code used, with many thanks to Plug in Digital
Machinika Museum released earlier in the year on Steam and in April for mobile. A mystery puzzle game that is perfect for the iPad Pro which I happen to be playing it on. There is a free-to-try demo of the game which includes the first chapter in the Apple store. After you play the first chapter you have to pay to unlock all the rest of the content of the game.
Working in a Museum
You play as a museum employee who is unpacking and examining alien artefacts. You work deep inside the dusty workshop of a large museum, where you must examine and fix the technological discoveries coming from the archaeological sites of the far reaches of the galaxy. A new series of machines has arrived. But something is unusual, as you have not been given any information and this seems to be a rather urgent assignment. So nothing for it but get to work.
Each of the seven chapters come with a series of puzzles. The puzzles are mostly mechanical contraptions or various containers to study and to research, each comes with a note that gives you a little bit of information on the storyline.
Find the Clues
Most of the puzzles are pretty easy as long as you are observant to finding all of the clues available. Most of the logic puzzles are fairly straight forward as well. Play around with their mechanisms a while and you will discover secret doors and realize how things work. The solutions are readily available most of the time.
You have three tools at your disposal to use to help solve some of the puzzles. A 3D printer that can be used to duplicate objects, such as screws when you need more than one to continue. An endoscope or mini camera can be used to investigate small hard-to-access places. And finally, a magnetic screwdriver that you use to solve a mini-puzzle by adjusting the shape for each unique screw head.
Point and Tap
As with most point and click games or point and tap in the case of Machinika Museum, it’s the puzzles that are the stars of the game, and the same can be said for Machinika Museum. I found most of the puzzles to be challenging but in a satisfying way, without proving to be frustrating. The game is short, lasting around two hours of gameplay, and I was a little disappointed when the game finished as I would have liked it to be longer.
The game is inspired by classic puzzle games old and new, such as Myst and The Room, and it’s developed by Littlefield Studios. Having played both Myst again last year and all The Room games ( The Room Review here), I think it’s more similar to The Room series of games than Myst.
Visuals and Controls
Visually Machinika Museum is stunning, with slick and shiny contraptions to investigate. With the story set in a museum, the visuals replicate the feeling of being in a museum with dusty old objects around the workroom. The sound effects are spot-on, mostly of the clicks and clangs of the device you are investigating.
Controlling the game is a simple affair of swiping and tapping the screen. It all works smoothly and how it should be working, as I didn’t have any problems with controlling the game.
Conclusion
Machinika Museum is a slick and glossy puzzle game. With puzzles that are not too hard nor too easy, they offer just the right amount of challenge to the player. Price-wise, the game is cheaper on Mobile than on Steam, so if you do plan to try it out go for the mobile version.
I was disappointed that the game is quite short at two or so hours of gameplay. Maybe there might be a Machinika Museum 2 in development and this time I hope the gameplay lasts a lot longer!
Final Verdict: I Like It a Lot 