Human Resource Machine is a puzzle game for nerds. In each level, your boss gives you a job. Automate it by programming your little office worker. If you succeed, you'll be promoted up to the next level for another year of work in the vast office building. Don't worry if you've nev. Human Resource Machine is a puzzle game for nerds. In each level, your boss gives you a job. Automate it by programming your little office worker. If you succeed, you'll be promoted up to the next level for another year of work in the vast office building. With WWDC just finished, I figured what better game to try than Human Resource Machine, a puzzle game with a development angle that has been available on the Mac and Windows since last Fall, but just debuted on iOS earlier this month. Human Resource starts out simply. You play Human Resource as a nameless worker.
The blue years
|Human Resource Machine is a game about programming. And developer Tomorrow Corporation doesn't even try to hide that fact, like Spacechem or Infinifactory does.
You are literally writing code, complete with loops and logic gates, to manipulate data. You've even got a little memory space to play around with, drawn out as a grid on the floor.
As such, the game can be very tricky for non coders. Which is why we've put together this walkthrough, to help you get through a tricky level. Right now, this guide only covers the main stages on the critical path up the elevator.
If you've got a better solution (that hits an optimisation challenge we missed), please drop it in the comments below!
Year 7 - Zero Exterminator
Objective: Send all things that are not zero to the outbox.
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Size only
Year 9 - Zero Preservation Initiative
Objective: Send only the zeros to the outbox.
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Size only
Year 11 - Sub Hallway
Objective: For each two things in the inbox, first subtract the 1st from the 2nd and put the result in the outbox. And then, subtract the 2nd from the 1st and put the result in the outbox. Repeat.
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Size and speed
Year 13 - Equalization Room
Objective: Get two things from the inbox. If they're equal, put one of them in the outbox. Discard non-equal pairs. Repeat!
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Size only
Year 14 - Maximization Room
Objective: Grab two things from the inbox, and put only the bigger of the two in the outbox. If they are equal, just pick either one. Repeat!
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Neither
Year 16 - Absolute Positivity
Objective: Send each thing from the inbox to the outbox. But, if a number is negative, first remove its negative sign.
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Speed only
Year 19 - Countdown
Objective: For each number in the inbox, send that number to the outbox, followed by all numbers down to (or up to) zero. It's a countdown!
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Neither
Year 20 - Multiplication Workshop
Objective: For each two things in the inbox, multiply them, and outbox the result. Don't worry about negative numbers for now.
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Neither
Year 21 - Zero Terminated Sum
Objective: The inbox is filled with zero terminated strings! Add together all the numbers in each string. When you reach the end of a string (marked by a zero), put your sum in the outbox. Reset and repeat for each string.
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Speed only
Year 23 - The Littlest Number
Objective: For each zero terminated string in the inbox, send to the outbox only the smallest number you've seen in that string. You will never be given an empty string. Reset and repeat for each string.
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Neither
Year 25 - Cumulative Countdown
Objective: For each thing in the inbox, outbox the sum of itself plus all numbers down to zero. For example, if inbox is 3, outbox should be 6, because 3+2+1 = 6.
Room layout:
Our code:
This code will complete the following optimisation challenges: Size and speed
More SolutionsYear 1 - 6 | Year 7 - 25 | Year 29 - 41