App Army Assemble: Automatoys - "Does this puzzler recreate the feeling of playing with toy mazes?"

Automatoys is a puzzle game that aims to emulate those mechanical toys where you navigate a ball around a series of traps. While it's sure to create feelings of nostalgia in players of a certain age, does it manage to recreate the tactile side of enjoying this kind of toy? We handed the game over to our App Army to find out.

Here's what they said:

I have always loved gadgets and puzzle-y toys with multiple moving parts and such as well as mazes. Automatoys is a pretty good game with a neat, simple design for like-minded gamers. Your task is simple and straightforward. Get the little ball through various physical puzzles to the final destination without losing it. The controls are quite simple thankfully as most actions simply involve tapping the screen or tapping and holding to time things correctly.

The levels are designed with a colourful palette filled with stairs, moving platforms, tilting puzzles, and almost pinball-like launching mechanisms. At first, I was a bit stressed since you are timed on how quickly you complete the level which I assume contributes to your stars earned. However, I learned to relax and simply get a feel for how the puzzles worked and the "flow" of each level.

The game offers a decent but not too difficult challenge and I hope the developer adds more levels to make the game longer. The sounds and music and unobtrusive and decent if not stellar. If you like physics puzzlers then I say it is worth a try as I found myself completing 6 or 7 levels before making myself put it down to finish doing household chores.

How to sum up this game? Great fun. I love puzzle games and this one didn’t disappoint. From the colourful graphics to the twisting, turning, and jumping, making this just a tad more difficult gameplay, it was a joy to play. It was perfect to just pick up and play and the controls were easy to master. There were occasions when timing was key but there has to be a challenge to make it worth playing. And no need to worry if things go awry because you can start over with the reset button. I don’t think there’s anything else to say about this game except that I’d definitely recommend it.

Automatoys is a very well-presented puzzler where you guide your ball through an isometric maze to the exit. Of course, it’s more complicated than that as the path to the exit is full of obstacles that you must guide your ball past, some that will send you back to the beginning of the level if you mess up or make you start with a new ball. This is where the touch controls make the game frustrating at times as some obstacles are very finicky to get past using the touch screen. Not many levels, but getting three stars on every level is going to take time, gets a thumbs up from me.

Like going to a fair and finding one of those machines where you insert a coin, and then have to use a joystick to manipulate all kinds of levers and ramps to get the ball to the end, and win a prize. It really looks and feels real, and you just want to put another coin in the machine to get that ball to the end. Brilliant design, lovely graphics, a relaxing soundtrack, and 13 stress-free puzzles where you have to get the timing right and learn where the next trap is.

The one which will send you back to the beginning. You can do it at your own pace, but if you want all three stars, you will have to be fast. And that's something very exciting to get, try, again and again, not only to get to the end but to get there on the first run, not waiting one second for some platform or lever to turn. You can try the first 3 machines for free, but I'm sure you'll want to try the other 10 for sure

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The App Store is home to some of not only the best games on the market today, but also some of the most interesting, innovative, and creative ones. Take Automatoys for example. It’s a new puzzler with these imaginatively designed mechanical machines that you push, pull, twist, and turn to get a ball from start to finish. It all took me back to my childhood, reminding me of field trips to the museum of science. The challenge here is created by various obstacles that try their best to slow you down preventing you from getting a perfect 3 stars.

However, there’s no real penalty for failing with the ability to instantly restart, which makes for a very enjoyable, stress-free experience. Automatoys seem purposefully designed for everyone to be able to enjoy. The graphics have nice bold colours which almost pop on screen with a very clean look, and the music fits the relaxed mood-changing tacks with each stage. While the game’s rather short, it’s all so lovingly crafted that it never takes anything away besides wanting more. I’d love to see the developer continue to add to what’s already here, something like a level editor where you could create and share would fit this perfectly.

This is a very cool puzzle game, involving manoeuvring a little ball through all sorts of puzzles and devices to reach the goal, the end of the level. I really liked this game for its wonderfully inventive machines. It has a very real physical sense to it. It’s easy to be pulled into the idea that you’re manipulating a real puzzle. I was very pleased with that. I did find the controls sometimes not quite as sensitive as I wanted. I found myself having to swipe with a bit of force.

But I generally made out pretty well, and if the controls were more sensitive, then precision (which is a must in this game) would have suffered. And I’ll admit to a bit of frustration a few times as a barely missed opening sent me back to the start. But that only gave me greater satisfaction in the end. All in all a very positive experience and a charming and inventive (if rather short) game. Kudos to the developer. Try the sample and get ready to download the full game.

Incredible representation of simple puzzle ideas and seeing how things are happening on the screen makes me feel like a small child. The puzzles are also sufficiently challenging where the game is too short, but give a one-of-a-kind gaming experience that you'll remember for a long time.

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