Author: David Wigram

Unstable Engineer: Extended Edition (Out now!)

The Extended Edition of Unstable Engineer is out now! It is available for Android and iOS, suitable for phones and tablets.

This puzzle game contains all the same puzzles and mysteries as the original, but with several extra features:

  • 50+ new challenging tests, including some entirely new zones
  • More secret experimental tests, including a new game mode with a different style of puzzles
  • A new character and additional questions, as well as new mysteries to uncover
  • Original music for the different zones, as well as various graphical updates.

This game contains no in-app purchases or ads of any kind, so once bought you can immerse yourself in the challenging puzzles and mysterious atmosphere without interruption.

Unstable Engineer:Extended Edition was made using Unity, and all the graphics, sounds and game design was done myself, with the help of tools such as Chiptone, Fruity Loops and Inkscape. Have fun – and good luck!

Release Schedule for UE: Extended Edition

The Extended Edition of Unstable Engineer is nearing release – I have a version for android essentially complete, and it plays really well; the touch controls in particular are more intuitive than mouse input. However, I’m having some delays with the iPhone release. (Who could have predicted that developing for iOS without owning a single apple product would lead to complications?)

So while I source a mac and complete some rigorous testing on various iDevices, this will delay my intended release date. Given that I’d like to publish both versions side by side – and not overlap with the Christmas season – this means I will be releasing the Extended Edition of Unstable Engineer in early January February (now delayed further due to illness, blargh). I hope all you out there who have been waiting patiently can rein in your excitement for a little longer!

In the meantime, here’s some screenshots which demonstrate some new features, including a grid that can be toggled on and off and which might help with your upgrade timings:

If your eyes are particularly keen you may notice some bubbles rising in the water – a minor cosmetic addition which I’m sure you’ll all agree is nevertheless a massive and groundbreaking improvement. More significantly, different zones – like this aquatic one – now have different music, which greatly adds to the atmosphere.

The music of the unstable zone is a particular favourite of mine – and speaking of which, there are now a whole new set of Spark Tests in that zone for you to puzzle through! Here’s a sample. (And extra marks if you can solve it in your head!)

And finally, here’s a glimpse of a new bonus mode, which I’ll say no more about at the moment…

A Quick Check-In

Since it’s been a while, I thought I’d keep you all updated on my activities. After a break over the Summer, I have begun work in earnest on the expanded mobile release for Unstable Engineer, which means getting to grips with Unity’s… ‘interesting’ implementations of UI layouts and touch controls. Along with the necessary tweaks to fit various different devices, I’ve added some fun new puzzles that I can’t wait for you all to try out/get stumped by/find unintended solutions for.

I’ve also made some additional music for the game, which is a relief to myself more than anything, as at least now I have more than one track cycling through my brain on loop as I lie in bed, staring at the ceiling, blueprints drifting in front of my eyes, wondering why I’ve done this to myself…

Thanks, as always, for your donations, emails and comments. WigDev out!

Unstable Engineer Update (v1.04)

Quite a lot of small tweaks in this update, mostly to certain tests. Some puzzles have been made more forgiving, others have had unintended (and boring) solutions removed:

  • Blueprint/Primary/Hard/1 – Removed possibility of hovering to central exit from left.
  • Blueprint/Aquatic/Hard/1 – Reshaped the level to make the timing more lenient.
  • Blueprint/Aquatic/Hard/3 – Fixed the release timing. (So sorry if you were stuck on this one!)
  • Blueprint/Unstable/Hard/2 – Removed unnecessary turbo upgrade to eliminate one solution.
  • Spark/Primary/Hard/3 – Alternate solution left in, but changed hint to reflect this.
  • Spark/Aquatic/Hard/2 – Moved conveyor to beneath central platform to stop step-building solution.
  • Spark/Aquatic/Hard/3 – Disabled the ability to discard hovercrafts while rising up walls.

I’ve also made some other changes, either to fix minor bugs or add requested features:

  • In spark tests, can press ‘RETURN’ to discard blueprint.
  • Arrows on conveyor belt graphics have increased contrast.
  • Elevator tracks no longer fade when near edge of screen.
  • Fastforward sound now stops when resetting test while holding SHIFT.
  • Will no longer exit office if cancelling a menu with ESCAPE.

Thanks for all your messages everyone. It’s impossible to catch everything when testing your own games – your help is invaluable!

Unstable Engineer Update (v1.03)

Some significant bug fixes in this update!

  • The data storage system has been tweaked, which should eliminate the issue some players were having where their progress would not save, or would roll back to previous saves.
  • The speed up mechanic has been overhauled so that it no longer leads to ‘unstable’ movement speeds. Now tests that rely on precise timing should be unaffected by whether you speed up or not.
  • The compression method has been changed, giving a smaller file size and better quality sound.

Thanks to everyone who messaged me with their bug reports. I hope you continue to enjoy my puzzles!

Thoughts about Walkthroughs

Given the (slightly infamous) difficulty of my puzzle games, I’m often asked whether I can provide walkthroughs, either video or simply text-based. I know how frustrated I can get at other people’s puzzles, so I understand the appeal, but I feel there are a few downsides to having an official walkthrough alongside a puzzle game:

  1. The temptation to look at it too early is overwhelming. If a walkthrough is available from the very beginning, it can be tempting to look at it for some early puzzle – and once you’ve looked at it once, it’s easier and easier to keep looking at it for future puzzles, before you’ve really thought hard about them. In the end you may look up answers to puzzles you would have been able to solve if you’d given them more time, and miss out on a lot of the fun. (I know this happens to me!)
  2. It discourages others from helping each other/creating their own walkthroughs. Although I gain some satisfaction from people struggling with one of my tricky puzzles, it may surprise you to learn that I get more satisfaction from seeing people solve them! It’s great to see a community develop, and fan-created walkthroughs are the icing on that cake! And they also lead into one last point…
  3. Without walkthroughs, people may discover unexpected solutions to puzzles. It’s inevitable that in a complex puzzle game, people may find tricks I missed. This is great! Even when they completely break my levels, its fun to know people have outsmarted me – but when a dev-made walkthrough exists, it implies there is one ‘correct’ solution to each puzzle. I’d much rather see what people come up with on their own.

Of course this is just my opinion! I don’t disapprove of walkthroughs in general, nor of looking up solutions when you’re really stumped. If you’re currently stuck on one of my puzzles and there’s no solution out there, you could always try asking me directly. If you’re playing on another site, you can message me on Kongregate or Newgrounds, or you can email me: david@wigdev.com

I cannot promise a quick reply, and sometimes I miss messages completely, but if you’re really tearing your hair out over a puzzle and are willing to be patient, I do know the intended solutions. (…If I haven’t forgotten them…)

I’ll take this opportunity to ask that if you are enjoying one of my games enough to bug me about solutions, you consider supporting me. I’m just one guy with limited time, so any donation is appreciated. Thanks!

As always, I wish you all the best of luck in your puzzling!

Unstable Engineer Update (v1.02)

Another update for Unstable Engineer! Features:

  • Step-by-step advance: When paused, press the Speed Up button (Or SHIFT) to advance all blueprints by one step. This will allow you to time your blueprint upgrades as precisely as you like, without needing to spam the play/pause button! Now you have no excuse for getting your timing wrong…
  • Tweaks to a couple of tests to remove unintended (and boring) solutions. Now they’re much harder! Yay! (Specifically: Blueprint Tests/Aquatic Zone/Hard 1, and Blueprint Tests/Unstable Zone/Hard 2).
  • For balance, Spark Tests/Primary Zone/Hard 2 has been switched with a completely different level. The original test will be included in the upcoming expanded version of the game for mobile platforms.
  • Fixes to a number of frame-precise upgrade glitches, especially on elevators. (Thanks to John & Robert for identifying most of these.)
  • A basic landing screen to deal with browser focus compatibility.
  • A few minor training dialogue updates.
  • A few minor graphical updates.

Thanks to those who sent me bug reports! It’s only slightly embarrassing to realise my challenging puzzles have a blatantly obvious solution I’d somehow never noticed…

Have fun!

Minor Update for Unstable Engineer

I’ve updated Unstable Engineer with a few minor tweaks:
– Fixed the glitch where sound might not resume following speeding up in tests.
– Corrected the majority of the sound corruption.
– Fixed the ‘floating body part’ glitch in the Office. (Despite how funny it was.)
– General stability and lag reduction.

I’ve also added one new feature: Now, when you pause during a test, small markers will appear to show the spaces each blueprint is moving into. This should help with precise upgrades, and particularly when judging discard timing during Spark Tests.

That’s all for now!

Unstable Engineer (Complete Game)

You’re an engineer hired by QTech, a secret facility developing machines called ‘blueprints’, powered by mysterious entities called ‘sparks’. As you test out their devices and earn your co-workers’ trust, perhaps you’ll uncover what exactly is going on in this strange place…

This is a puzzle game, and a prequel to Unstable, but with all new gameplay. Later puzzles are quite challenging (This is a WigDev game after all!), but hints are available in each level if necessary.

This is a limited (but still extensive!) version of the game. An extended version will be arriving to mobile platforms in the near future, full of extra challenges, mysteries, and one truly appalling pun, so keep an eye out!

This game was made using Unity, and all the graphics, sounds and game design was done myself, with the help of tools such as Chiptone, Fruity Loops and Inkscape. Have fun – and good luck!

Adventures in Data Compression

Ahh, that glorious time in a project where you have to go back and tweak everything you’ve done up until that point, because it’s all getting too big. (A known issue with Unity and WebGL, to be fair…)

So while I modify my images to make them viable for RGBA DXT5 Compression… with or without Mip Maps… whatever the target platform… (This is what you get for not planning ahead, folks…)

…Here are some more screenshots in the meantime: