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Space Chem

blast flameblast flame
edited December 2010 in Video Games
Remember that Codex of Alchemical Engineering game? The creator is soon releasing another game for $20, Space Chem.

Comments

  • AprecheApreche
    The game is $7.50 on Steam now, so I've been playing it. I blew right through all the trivial levels and now I'm in the medium ones. I've been doing one or two a day. Anyone else? It's basically the same game as Codex of Alchemical Engineering only improved ten fold and with chemistry instead of alchemy.
  • Dr. TimoDr. Timo
    The game is $7.50 on Steam now, so I've been playing it. I blew right through all the trivial levels and now I'm in the medium ones. I've been doing one or two a day. Anyone else? It's basically the same game as Codex of Alchemical Engineering only improved ten fold and with chemistry instead of alchemy.
    Sadly it's 15€ on Steam over here in Europe.
  • AprecheApreche
    The game is $7.50 on Steam now, so I've been playing it. I blew right through all the trivial levels and now I'm in the medium ones. I've been doing one or two a day. Anyone else? It's basically the same game as Codex of Alchemical Engineering only improved ten fold and with chemistry instead of alchemy.
    Sadly it's 15€ on Steam over here in Europe.
    Whoah, way too much.
  • Natakou2001Natakou2001
    The game is $7.50 on Steam now, so I've been playing it. I blew right through all the trivial levels and now I'm in the medium ones. I've been doing one or two a day. Anyone else? It's basically the same game as Codex of Alchemical Engineering only improved ten fold and with chemistry instead of alchemy.
    Space Chem caused me to go to sleep at 4am last night. I blew through most of the levels on the first three worlds. It is a very awesome game.
  • Dr. TimoDr. Timo
    The game is $7.50 on Steam now, so I've been playing it. I blew right through all the trivial levels and now I'm in the medium ones. I've been doing one or two a day. Anyone else? It's basically the same game as Codex of Alchemical Engineering only improved ten fold and with chemistry instead of alchemy.
    Sadly it's 15€ on Steam over here in Europe.
    Whoah, way too much.
    I know, right? That's currently, like, 4 million dollars.
  • AprecheApreche
    Space Chem caused me to go to sleep at 4am last night. I blew through most of the levels on the first three worlds. It is a very awesome game.
    What kind of techniques have you developed?

    I like to do a double-loop crossover. Do an input and grab going left to right and another one going from top to bottom to get two of the input elements and do something different with each one.

    Another move I like is the moving binder. This is good when you want to bind something on multiple sides. Start with one atom, move it around the other atoms already in place while binding to get everything stuck in the right spots.

    Also, there's the classic robot/control loop. I'll have blue do nothing but issue commands like sync, bind, input, and output in a loop while red does all the actual work.
  • Natakou2001Natakou2001
    Space Chem caused me to go to sleep at 4am last night. I blew through most of the levels on the first three worlds. It is a very awesome game.
    What kind of techniques have you developed?

    I like to do a double-loop crossover. Do an input and grab going left to right and another one going from top to bottom to get two of the input elements and do something different with each one.

    Another move I like is the moving binder. This is good when you want to bind something on multiple sides. Start with one atom, move it around the other atoms already in place while binding to get everything stuck in the right spots.

    Also, there's the classic robot/control loop. I'll have blue do nothing but issue commands like sync, bind, input, and output in a loop while red does all the actual work.
    The most useful technique so far is moving the binder on top of the input. Especially in levels where more than one of the same atom is required for bonding.

    I'm always surprised by how tight i can get the loops, especially in stages with one input.
  • AprecheApreche
    Just beat the "Nothing Works" level on planet 3. Man, this game isn't even 25% over, and it's already pretty rough. Can't wait to see the kinda crazy shit on the last planet.
  • AprecheApreche
    Good god. I just looked up other people's solutions to "Nothing Works" on YouTube. Man, I suck at this. There are some real geniuses out there who should become programmers if they aren't already.

    Also, I learned something. Let's say you have an output that is supposed to output H. Let's say you have three H in three separate spots in that output area and you hit the output command. It will sit on that output command for three cycles until all three H are sent out. Granted, they will arrive on the other end in three different spots.

    I did not know this, and it was a major reason my solution was not anywhere near as good as others.
  • ChurbaChurba
    Whoah, way too much.
    Yeah, Steam, pretty good with the prices, but not always perfect outside the US - For example, Brink in the US is about 40 bucks more expensive here, for a literally identical product and delivery method. And just like the euro, the AUD is worth more than the USD. Most of the time, it's pretty good, but sometimes it's just shit for no reason.
  • PeguPegu
    Even the CAD is worth more than the USD and Space Chem is $15 here too.
  • AprecheApreche
    Does anyone know how to transfer the save game data from Space Chem? I want to put it on a USB stick so I can play on my laptop and also my desktop.
  • AprecheApreche
    Found it

    Just gotta copy the C:\Users\Apreche\AppData\Local\Zachtronics Industries\SpaceChem folder.
  • JaifriedporkJaifriedpork
    So... only three of us are actually playing this game? That's kinda sad.

    I can (generally) bang out a workable solution to all the levels I've played, but the "less than x reactors" and "under y cycles" achievements are so far beyond me it's not even funny.
  • AprecheApreche
    I can (generally) bang out a workable solution to all the levels I've played, but the "less than x reactors" and "under y cycles" achievements are so far beyond me it's not even funny.
    Same.
  • AprecheApreche
    Does anyone know if there is a game like this for iPhone?
  • DromaroDromaro
    I picked it up but haven't had a chance to play yet. I'm interested. Hearing Rym gush about how it's so close to actual coding has me a wee intimidated. I aced the 2 programming classes I took but they were not fun for me and if this game is programming....
  • JaifriedporkJaifriedpork
    If you understand the concept of an "if" statement, you know enough programming to play Spacechem. Literally every object you place boils down to "when the cursor passes this spot, do [action]." It seems to me that the challenge of this game is more about track layout and the severely constrained resources available to you than the actual programming, which is usually pretty straightforward. (Your mileage may vary for some of the more advanced levels/achievements, though.)

    And if you do want a game closer to actual coding, there's always KOHCTPYKTOP: Engineer of the People. Made by the same guy, and (assuming you somehow automatically knew to open a level, click on the "Help" tab and watch the tutorial) it's pretty fun. For a very slim range of values of "fun." Basically, you build digital circuits, starting with simple designs like AND gates and working up to memory units, counters, oscillators, etc.
  • DromaroDromaro
    If you understand the concept of an "if" statement
    I'm pretty sure I do. At least on a basic level. It's been a while since I took those programming classes.
    And if you do want a game closer to actual coding
    Not sure I do. If my professors are to be believed, I have the ability for coding but it's not fun at all for me. In one of my classes, at one point we were asking to program a simple clock, which I did on 2 iterations of the code (i'd misplaced an extra - in the code somewhere)> Upon completing the assignment the prof asked the class at large, "Who did this without even looking at the book?" In a class of about 30, I and other chap raised our hands. Prof then encouraged everyone ELSE to become study buddies with us because not only did we not have to study, we'd apparently written the best code. To this day the damned prof didn't say if mine or the other guys code was cleaner. That will never leave me....
  • JaifriedporkJaifriedpork
    After looking at a solution on Youtube and having one of those "wait, you can do that!?" moments, I figured out a 2-reactor solution to Falling at work. (If it sounds like I'm bragging, I am. Chainsaw plus epiphany equals massive ego boost.) I can now say with some certainty that Spacechem is about 90% efficient use of limited resources, 9% scripting, & maybe 1% programming. Unless something game-changing shows up in the later levels that I haven't seen yet, most of the designs are almost completely linear with only a couple workable solutions, and the challenge is more in fitting the design into a 10x10 grid. It's still fun as hell, and chaining several reactors together is immensely satisfying in a Rube Goldberg kind of way, but I find myself saying "I could solve this in ten seconds with just one conditional statement" at least twice per puzzle.
    And if you do want a game closer to actual coding
    Not sure I do.
    Honestly, I doubt you'd enjoy KOHCTPYKTOP if you don't love programming, but I figured I'd throw that out there since I only ever see people talking about Codex of Alchemical Engineering.
  • WindUpBirdWindUpBird
    I'm going through SpaceChem and aiming for the achievements. Then, C++.
  • lackofcheeselackofcheese
    I'm not buying it at $15, so I'll have to wait. The sale seems to have been U.S. only.
  • Casa VinoCasa Vino
    edited May 2011
    Just got the internet reconnected after a month. And with this new found internet access comes several belated downloads, not least among them Portal 2, and now Space Chem. Have I experienced $15 worth of enjoyment out of it? Yes x 10!
    Post edited by Casa Vino on
  • XefasXefas
    This was on sale today and I bought it. Among my many talents, intelligence is not one of them, and so this game is kicking my ass. Every time I beat a level, I feel very accomplished. =D
  • DromaroDromaro
    I have had tech issues keeping me from playing this. I even mailed the creator and he's stumped. Oh well. It'll be there for when I get a new machine/upgrade my OS or whatever
  • NeitoNeito
    edited July 2011
    I hate and love this game at the same time. I'm not even out of the basics yet and I'll just keep thinking "This is easy. No it's not. Yes it is, no it's not yes it is noitsnotyesitisnotitsnotyesitisaaaaaaaafuckyouimtrappedinachemicalfactoryhelp".

    EDIT: I also actually apparently came up with a blindingly simple solution that doesn't appear to be the one most people expected for the one where you're supposed to take the triple-bonded nitrogen and output unpaired nitrogen.

    Post edited by Neito on
  • lackofcheeselackofcheese
    edited November 2011
    I got this game with the second-last Humble Bundle and am now playing it; it is indeed pretty awesome.

    I'd like to add people who have played the game to my Steam friends to give me some scores to beat.
    Post edited by lackofcheese on
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