3/5 ★ – TomFaux's review of Algo Bot.

Video Review: https://youtu.be/EauNEMYzBMQ Algo Bot is a coding game without coding. Let me tell you how. By playing Algo Bot, you learn concepts and fundamentals of coding through Algo Bot, the main programmable robot. Drag and drop inputs to have Algo Bot move, press buttons, and pick up objects. Optimize these inputs by using variables and functions. This means it’s a great entry-level entry to err– beginner-level beginning to uhh– it’s uh, a programming game for not-so-smart people, like me. People with no programming knowledge, children, or even amateur programmers will find the puzzles in Algo Bot challenging, yet fair. While I may have some basic experience with coding, such as if/then statements, variables, and loops, this game still manages to challenge me. And I’m in the top 94 percentile. It’s not as intense as Human Resource Machine or any Zachtronics game, but that’s Algo Bot’s strength. For me, a Zachtronics game means a difficulty curve that goes from introduction to challenging to impossible. While I could hunker down and brain-blast my way through, after coming home from work, I don’t want to open a video game that feels like work. Algo Bot matches the level of difficulty to a daily brain teaser. You might solve it immediately, or you might not, but you’ll be done before McDonald’s calls your order number. We all know you’re playing sudoku on medium because you tried hard once and it just wasn’t worth the struggle. Algo Bot is that comfortable, medium sudoku. Algo Bot might average around medium difficulty, but the pacing of the difficulty is a bit scattered. It will go four levels in a row with no new concepts, and no real changes, and then hit you with a level that introduces a new concept and expects you to jump two mental hurdles at the same time. Then, immediately follow that with a level that reuses a puzzle from five levels ago. You wouldn’t go from racing NASCAR to Formula 1, just to go back to NASCAR. Unless you’re Lightning McQueen. A built-in hint system helps with those harder levels, but with only a single hint per level, when you’re just not seeing the solution, it can become a bit frustrating. This can require you to come back an hour, or day, later to gain a new perspective. This isn’t necessarily bad game design, with the higher-level programming games often requiring this of you, but this intensity doesn’t match Algo Bot’s target audience. Thankfully, this doesn’t happen too often. The story in Algo Bot is fairly basic, with some jokes and some “drama,” it’s enough to feel like solving each level has a purpose and it acts as a mental breather in between levels so it’s not an endless barrage of critical thinking. Similar feelings about the visuals, music, and interface. While they’re not technically impressive, they do their job by not being overly distracting when you’re deep in thought. Vengabus might be a certified banger, but I don’t want to listen to it when taking my BAR exam. Algo Bot currently sits at $10 retail and often drops to $2 on sale. With my high-level intelligence, my play time sits at 12 hours and the average playtime on HowLongToBeat is 16 hours so that puts me above the rest– what? Oh, that’s not a one, it’s a smudge? Average playtime is 6 hours? Well, these programming games are typically skewed to highly educated demographics and I uhh– idled the game. You won’t find much of a reason to check out Algo Bot if you’ve already beaten OpusMagnum or 7 Billion Humans, but those looking for an introduction to programming in a code-free environment will find a game worth gaming err– an experience worth experiencing uhh– an adventure worth happening.