Crazy Machines 1.5

System Requirements Computer: 800 MHz CPU Operating system: Windows 98/ME/2000/XP Memory: 128 MB RAM Drives: 60 MB free hard disc, 2x CD-ROM drive Graphics: DirectX 8 compatible graphic card with 32 MB RAM (TNT2 or similar) Sound: DirectX 8 compatible sound card Crazy Machines 1.5 is a stand alone add-on to Crazy Machines. The original game is not required to play. It adds two new games giving you 200 new puzzles to figure out. It’s all about making contraptions out of various parts or elements as they are referred to in the game. There are different labs you can work in. You have your own lab, which you can create your own machines or experiments, plus there are mind-bending machine puzzles to complete. The two games (New From The Lab, Inventor’s Training Camp) have a little over one hundred puzzles each.

How do I play?

Each puzzle has an objective to complete such as having objects fall or end up at a certain place, or to cook a sausage etc. There’s an element bar, which allows you to use a limited number of pieces to drag and rotate into place. Then you flip the switch to let gravity do its thing and see how your idea turned out. Time bonuses are awarded if you complete a puzzle quickly.

So what do I get to work with?

There are some plain objects like wooden boards, dominos, pipes, rope, balls, crates, pulleys, buckets gears etc. Then there are some fun objects that involve fire like cannons, candles, rockets, dynamite etc. You can use other forms of energy like electricity, steam, and wind. There are over seventy gadgets all together.

Graphics

The graphics are decent in this game it's a 2D perspective rendered with polygons. The objects are 3D rendered and have realistic shadows. There are multiple backgrounds and backdrops but the colors aren’t very vivid. As you can imagine, the physics engine is pretty good. Even the slightest movement of an object will affect the outcome!

Sound

The sound is pretty good in this game. Each object has it own sound effect. There is some mumbling from a scientist. You can adjust how frequently he makes comments, or turn his comments off entirely. There are a few selections of background music to choose from, and if you still don’t like what you hear, you can use an audio CD for background music.

Longevity

There is no multiplayer in this game. There are a little over two hundred puzzles to solve and it will take you a while to go through them. There are multiple solutions and you get rewarded for not using all the pieces available to you. You can also build and tweak your own machines the only limit to that is your imagination.

Appropriateness

I was pleased to find that they removed the comment with the word da*m in it from the original game. I can now feel comfortable recommending this game to people. It is rated E, and I would recommend it to anyone who likes to tinker.