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Best games by Zachtronics
15th Feb 2026
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Get ready to celebrate the cleverest puzzles and most satisfying programming challenges! This poll delves into the critically acclaimed and uniquely addictive world of Zachtronics, the studio that turned assembly language and logic gates into captivating gameplay. From the minimalist elegance of "SpaceChem" to the sprawling complexity of "Opus Magnum," we're spotlighting the titles that have kept us hooked for hours, scratching our heads, and ultimately, reveling in the sweet taste of algorithmic success. Now it's your turn to decide! Which Zachtronics masterpiece deserves the crown? Review the options, revisit your favorite levels, and consider the games that left the biggest mark on your gaming experience. Cast your vote and help us determine the definitive best games created by this brilliant studio. Don't delay; let your voice be heard!
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#12.
Ironclad Tactics (2013)
12/15
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Ironclad Tactics is a fast-paced, card-based tactics game that plunges players into an alternate history Civil War where steam-powered military robots dominate the battlefield. Its unique gameplay features rapid, simultaneous turns, masterfully blending the precision of tactics and card games with the spontaneity of fast-paced strategy. The game eschews microtransactions entirely, allowing players to unlock a vast array of cards simply by playing through the extensive campaign, which includes the 'Rise of Dmitry' and 'Blood and Ironclads' add-on campaigns and unfolds through a fully-illustrated, character-driven interactive graphic novel. Players collect cards to build their own powerful decks, engage in co-op story missions or competitive skirmishes with friends, and face online challengers, with bonus content like a digital artbook and the game's full soundtrack rounding out the package. Despite being a notable departure from Zachtronics' signature puzzle-programming genre, Ironclad Tactics firmly earns its place among their best works by embodying the studio's deep commitment to elegant system design and player-centric philosophy. Its innovative simultaneous turn structure demands a similar analytical approach and mastery of intricate rules often found in their most celebrated puzzle titles, showcasing Zachtronics' ability to distill complex strategic depth from seemingly simple mechanics. The game's strong world-building, clear progression through gameplay rather than purchases, and unique blend of genres exemplify the studio's willingness to experiment while maintaining a high standard of thoughtful game design, proving their versatility beyond pure logic puzzles.
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Opus Magnum (2017)
Opus Magnum plunges players into a world where alchemical engineering is the bedrock of civilization. As Anataeus Vaya, the newly appointed Head Alchemist of the venerable House Van Tassen, you navigate not only the intricate science of transmutation but also the perilous political machinations of the city's ancient Houses. This latest open-ended puzzle game from Zachtronics, renowned creators of titles like SpaceChem and Infinifactory, challenges you to master the physical machinery of the transmutation engine. Utilizing programmable arms, customizable tracks, and esoteric tools such as Van Berlo’s wheel and the Glyph of Animismus, you will design and build complex machines to craft everything from vital remedies and precious gemstones to deadly weapons. Opus Magnum stands out as a top Zachtronics creation due to its exceptional visual clarity, elegant mechanics, and expansive creative freedom. Its open-ended puzzles invite endless optimization, encouraging players to compete globally for the simplest, fastest, and most compact solutions, which can then be proudly showcased through animated GIFs. Beyond the main campaign's rich narrative of intrigue surrounding powerful alchemists, players can delve into an extensive Steam Workshop for user-created puzzles, even contributing their own designs, with the best featured in the Journal of Alchemical Engineering. Coupled with the engaging Sigmar's Garden solitaire minigame, Opus Magnum refines Zachtronics' signature style into an accessible yet profoundly deep experience, making it a beloved and highly replayable entry in their acclaimed catalog.
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SpaceChem (2011)
SpaceChem (2011) represented an ambitious new direction for Zachtronics, immersing players in a sophisticated design-based puzzle experience. As a Reactor Engineer for SpaceChem, the leading chemical synthesizer for frontier colonies, your primary task is to construct elaborate factories. These complex systems transform raw materials into valuable chemical products, requiring players to streamline their designs to meet rigorous production quotas and survive encounters with sinister threats that plague the company. The game features over fifty mind-bending puzzles, an original soundtrack by Evan Le Ny, and twenty challenging achievements to unlock. SpaceChem is universally acclaimed as the foundational entry that defined the signature Zachtronics puzzle genre. It introduced the core loop of open-ended, visual programming-like challenges where players are given a canvas and a set of tools to invent efficient and often highly creative solutions. This emphasis on logical deduction, optimization, and system design not only captivated a dedicated audience but also established the blueprint for many of the studio's subsequent highly praised titles, such as Opus Magnum and TIS-100. Its intricate mechanics, steep yet rewarding difficulty curve, and the deep satisfaction derived from mastering its complex problems firmly secure SpaceChem's place as a cornerstone in Zachtronics' celebrated catalog.
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SHENZHEN I/O (2016)
SHENZHEN I/O plunges players into the intricate world of electronics engineering at 深圳龙腾科技有限公司 (Shenzhen Longteng Electronics Co., Ltd.), nestled in the global electronics hub. Here, you'll design and build circuits using a diverse array of components, from microcontrollers and memory to logic gates and LCD screens. Programming these creations involves mastering a compact yet powerful assembly language where every instruction can be conditionally executed. The game comes complete with an extensive in-game manual, featuring over 30 pages of original datasheets, reference guides, and technical diagrams to guide your journey. Beyond the structured puzzles, a sandbox mode encourages boundless creativity, allowing you to design and test your own games and devices, with a brand-new twist on solitaire available for a well-deserved break from the demanding engineering challenges. This title stands out as one of Zachtronics' finest achievements, epitomizing their signature blend of deep, realistic puzzle design and immersive world-building. SHENZHEN I/O masterfully captures the essence of low-level programming and hardware interaction, offering an unparalleled experience in the "programming puzzle" genre they pioneered. Its meticulous attention to detail, from the assembly language intricacies to the authentic datasheets, challenges players to think like genuine engineers, optimizing for performance, space, and power in ways few other games attempt. The satisfaction derived from successfully debugging a complex circuit or optimizing a tight piece of code is immense, solidifying its place as a quintessential Zachtronics experience that both educates and profoundly rewards dedicated problem-solvers.
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TIS-100 (2015)
TIS-100 is an open-ended programming game from Zachtronics, the acclaimed creators of SpaceChem and Infinifactory, in which players rewrite corrupted code segments to repair the TIS-100 and unlock its secrets. This assembly language programming game immerses players in a massively parallel computer architecture comprised of non-uniformly interconnected heterogeneous nodes, ideal for complex data stream processing tasks such as automated financial trading or civilian behavioral analysis. A significant part of the experience involves exploring its printable reference manual, which meticulously details the machine's inner workings while evoking the aesthetics of a 1980s computer manual. This title rightfully belongs among Zachtronics' best for its uncompromising dedication to a raw, intellectual challenge. Players confront over 45 intricate puzzles, competing to minimize their cycle, instruction, and node counts, a hallmark of Zachtronics' deep optimization focus. Beyond the main campaign, TIS-100 offers three sandboxes, including a "visual console" that allows for the creation of new games within the game, demonstrating a profound commitment to player creativity and replayability. Its unique blend of authentic programming concepts and a compelling, mysterious narrative firmly establishes TIS-100 as a seminal work in the studio's celebrated catalog of logic and engineering puzzles.
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Infinifactory (2015)
Infinifactory is a sophisticated 3D sandbox puzzle game from Zachtronics, the acclaimed studio behind SpaceChem and Infiniminer. Players are tasked with designing and operating intricate factories to assemble products for enigmatic alien overlords, all within a first-person, fully 3D environment that often feels like "SpaceChem… in 3D!" The game challenges players to optimize their solutions to a granular level, with histograms encouraging constant refinement against community benchmarks. It features a story-driven campaign boasting over 50 puzzles and engaging audio logs, complemented by a sandbox mode utilizing a "next-generation block engine" and robust Steam Workshop integration for creating and sharing custom challenges. Infinifactory undoubtedly belongs on a list of Zachtronics' best titles because it masterfully translates their signature open-ended, engineering-focused puzzle design into a compelling 3D space. The game expands upon the foundational concepts of SpaceChem by adding an entirely new dimension of spatial construction and block manipulation, forcing players to think in three axes rather than two. This evolution, combined with the deep optimization mechanics celebrated by its predecessors and a strong community element via Steam Workshop, exemplifies Zachtronics' commitment to providing infinitely replayable, intellectually stimulating, and profoundly satisfying problem-solving experiences.
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EXAPUNKS (2018)
EXAPUNKS plunges players into the grimy digital underbelly of 1997. As a former hacker afflicted with the phage, you're forced into a dangerous bargain: one hack for one dose, with your life on the line. This open-ended puzzle game from Zachtronics tasks you with programming EXAs (EXecution Agents) to infiltrate and manipulate various networks. From tearing through bank servers to trashing files, replicating and terminating other EXAs, your goal is to leave without a trace, all while learning the ropes from the captivating, lore-rich pages of TRASH WORLD NEWS, the underground computer magazine. The game brilliantly blends its cyberpunk narrative with intricate coding challenges, allowing players to hack everything from highway signs and game consoles to the government, and even their own physical form. This title stands out as one of Zachtronics' best due to its exceptional world-building and diverse gameplay opportunities beyond the core hacking. Players can "slack off" by hacking region locks to play mini-games like HACK*MATCH or ПАСЬЯНС, or even create their own homebrew games. EXAPUNKS also elevates the Zachtronics experience with competitive hacker battles, allowing players to run their optimized programs directly against friends in a quest for efficiency. Furthermore, its robust Steam Workshop integration empowers the community to create and share custom puzzles, ensuring endless replayability. The game masterfully combines a unique, deeply atmospheric setting with the signature Zachtronics challenge of low-level programming and optimization, making it a pinnacle of their puzzle design.
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Eliza (2019)
Eliza is a compelling visual novel that delves into the complex world of an AI counseling program, the developers behind it, and the diverse individuals who seek its help. Players follow Evelyn Ishino-Aubrey, who after a mysterious three-year absence, resurfaces as a proxy for the virtual counseling app Eliza. Her role is to merely read scripts provided in real-time by the AI, raising profound questions about the nature of therapy, human autonomy, and technology's encroaching influence. As Evelyn navigates reconnecting with figures from her past and engaging with the ordinary people of Seattle who use Eliza, she finds herself caught in a moral quandary, forcing her to confront the turmoil within herself and decide the course of her own future amidst conflicting views on this technological marvel. The experience is brought to life with beautiful hand-painted art, a dozen fully-voiced characters, and an evocative original score, all contributing to a deeply immersive and thought-provoking narrative. While a distinct departure from Zachtronics' renowned programming puzzle games, Eliza unequivocally earns its place among their best titles by applying the studio's signature intellectual rigor and thematic depth to a new genre. Known for games that explore engineering challenges and the ethical ramifications of technology, Zachtronics uses Eliza to directly tackle the human impact of AI, corporate control, and the responsibilities inherent in technical skills. It presents a nuanced exploration of these concepts through compelling storytelling rather than circuit building, forcing players to consider their own answers to difficult questions such as whether AI-driven counseling truly benefits humanity. This critically acclaimed visual novel expands the Zachtronics legacy, proving their ability to craft meaningful, challenging experiences across different mediums while remaining true to their core ethos of profound technological and philosophical inquiry.
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NERTS! Online (2021)
NERTS! Online (2021) offers a thrilling, fast-paced competitive solitaire experience for you and up to five friends. This digital adaptation originated not from Zachtronics' usual design process, but from an office tradition, learned from their artist Kyle and played regularly during lunch breaks. When the team began working from home in early 2020, they developed a rough online version, which, after nine months of refinement, became this polished game. It incorporates several Zachtronics house rules, like the ability to move cards between one's Nerts pile and tableau even after "Nerts!" has been declared. The game is free, with a playful monetization strategy that unlocks additional card backs for owners of other Zachtronics titles, alongside an optional "Sponsorship Package" DLC offering a unique card back and holographic foil effects. NERTS! Online secures its place among Zachtronics' best for its unique departure from their signature programming and puzzle genres, showcasing the studio's versatility and commitment to fostering fun. It stands as a testament to their internal culture, born from team enjoyment and refined into a charming, accessible game that brilliantly captures the spirit of friendly competition. This title highlights Zachtronics' ability to imbue even a pre-existing card game with their distinctive touch, from custom rules to a witty monetization approach that rewards their loyal community. It's a delightful example of how an office pastime can evolve into a beloved public release, reinforcing Zachtronics' reputation for quality and engaging design, regardless of the game's category.
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Last Call BBS (2022)
Last Call BBS invites players to boot up their Z5 Powerlance and dial into a mysterious retro computer hosted by The Barkeep, marking the final release from the acclaimed Zachtronics studio. This digital hub is loaded with a diverse collection of eight fully cracked puzzle games, ready for immediate download and play. Engage in varied challenges such as designing efficient food factories in *20th Century Food Court*, assembling intricate robot models in *STEED FORCE Hobby Studio*, or crafting bizarre flesh sculptures in *X’BPGH: The Forbidden Path*. The collection also features two distinct solitaire experiences, *Sawayama Solitaire* and *Kabufuda Solitaire*, alongside mind-bending logic puzzles in *Dungeons & Diagrams*, circuit building in *ChipWizard™ Professional*, and a remastered, campaign-driven *HACK*MATCH*. This extensive package stands as a pinnacle for Zachtronics, embodying the studio's mastery of intricate, open-ended puzzle design across an unprecedented breadth of genres. From sophisticated factory automation and circuit engineering to unique takes on solitaire and abstract creative challenges, it offers a deep dive into the types of problems Zachtronics is renowned for. The immersive retro PC aesthetic, complete with high-resolution pixel art and an FM-infused soundtrack, beautifully frames a compelling meta-narrative that explores the sysop's story, the games' developers, and the lore of the Sawayama Corporation. Its sheer variety and the signature Zachtronics polish make Last Call BBS an essential showcase of their innovative legacy and a fitting culmination of their unique approach to puzzle gaming.
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The Zachtronics Solitaire Collection (2022)
The Zachtronics Solitaire Collection brings together eight intricate card and tile challenges, seven of which were originally conceived as beloved minigames within their 2016–2022 releases, now presented with crisp 4K graphics. Players can delve into the FreeCell-inspired Shenzhen Solitaire with its three-color mahjong deck, or the tile-matching Sigmar’s Garden utilizing alchemical symbols. Other unique variants include Proletariat’s Patience, an asymmetric solitaire, Kabufuda Solitaire with its Japanese cards and free cell mechanics, and Cluj Solitaire, offering a flexible "cheat" system. The collection also features Cribbage Solitaire, a score-driven game with a Cold War aircraft deck, a more strategic Klondike reimagining in Sawayama Solitaire, and the exclusive, extra-challenging Tarot card variant, Fortune’s Foundation. This collection stands as a testament to Zachtronics' unparalleled ability to imbue even familiar genres with their signature depth and ingenuity, earning it a spot among their finest creations. Each game here, while outwardly simple, offers the same meticulous system design and engaging puzzle-solving found in their acclaimed engineering titles. They exemplify the studio's knack for crafting elegant rulesets that invite deep strategic thought and optimization, transforming traditional card play into brain-teasing exercises. By distilling their complex design philosophy into these accessible yet profound solitaire experiences, Zachtronics showcases its mastery of game development, delivering a compilation that is both a celebration of their past work and a new frontier for logical challenge.
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MOLEK-SYNTEZ (2019)
MOLEK-SYNTEZ plunges players into the desolate future of December 2092 Cluj-Napoca, Romania, where the cold seeps through the walls and the only recourse is to keep working. The central task involves programming the MOLEK-SYNTEZ machine to convert ordinary industrial chemicals like benzene, acetone, and hydrochloric acid into various small molecules with pharmacological effects. When the molecular synthesis proves too challenging, players can unwind with an original Zachtronics solitaire game, where cheating by placing cards wherever desired is a feature, albeit one to wield with caution lest you get in over your head. This title unequivocally belongs among the best games by Zachtronics due to its brilliant encapsulation of their design philosophy. It offers deep, open-ended programming puzzles within a unique and compelling chemical synthesis framework, demanding both creative problem-solving and rigorous optimization. The ability to "SHOW OFF" by refining solutions and sharing them with the world through score histograms, friend leaderboards, and a built-in animated GIF exporter highlights the community and mastery aspects integral to Zachtronics' most celebrated works, making it a highly rewarding and representative experience of the studio's excellence.
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Ironclad Tactics (2013)
Ironclad Tactics is a fast-paced, card-based tactics game that plunges players into an alternate history Civil War where steam-powered military robots dominate the battlefield. Its unique gameplay features rapid, simultaneous turns, masterfully blending the precision of tactics and card games with the spontaneity of fast-paced strategy. The game eschews microtransactions entirely, allowing players to unlock a vast array of cards simply by playing through the extensive campaign, which includes the 'Rise of Dmitry' and 'Blood and Ironclads' add-on campaigns and unfolds through a fully-illustrated, character-driven interactive graphic novel. Players collect cards to build their own powerful decks, engage in co-op story missions or competitive skirmishes with friends, and face online challengers, with bonus content like a digital artbook and the game's full soundtrack rounding out the package. Despite being a notable departure from Zachtronics' signature puzzle-programming genre, Ironclad Tactics firmly earns its place among their best works by embodying the studio's deep commitment to elegant system design and player-centric philosophy. Its innovative simultaneous turn structure demands a similar analytical approach and mastery of intricate rules often found in their most celebrated puzzle titles, showcasing Zachtronics' ability to distill complex strategic depth from seemingly simple mechanics. The game's strong world-building, clear progression through gameplay rather than purchases, and unique blend of genres exemplify the studio's willingness to experiment while maintaining a high standard of thoughtful game design, proving their versatility beyond pure logic puzzles.
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Möbius Front '83 (2020)
Möbius Front '83 thrusts players into an alternate 1983 where the United States confronts an unimaginable foe: an America from a parallel universe, hell-bent on seizing control of the nation’s heartland. This tactical, turn-based strategy game empowers you with the cutting-edge military hardware of the early 1980s, commanding powerful tanks, swift attack helicopters, long-ranged artillery, and tenacious infantry to master a complex and rapidly shifting battlefield. Uncover the identity and motives of the invading "Americans" through an extensive single-player campaign featuring fully voiced cutscenes. Beyond the war, unwind with a unique solitaire variant, solve challenging Zachtronics-style puzzles, and delve into the U.S. military manuals that inspired the game. The experience is further enriched with a multiplayer skirmish mode and the inclusion of a Soviet Army faction. This title earns its spot among Zachtronics' best by showcasing the studio's distinct design philosophy applied to a new genre. While a departure from their renowned programming and engineering puzzle games, Möbius Front '83 retains the deep, intricate systems and demanding, open-ended problem-solving that define their work. The tactical combat requires players to master complex rules and devise clever, emergent strategies, mirroring the intellectual rigor found in their other acclaimed titles. The explicit inclusion of Zachtronics-style puzzles within the game serves as a direct nod to their roots, proving that their ability to create thoughtful, highly engaging, and systemically rich experiences transcends genre boundaries.
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SHENZHEN SOLITAIRE (2016)
"NO ENGINEERING, ALL PROCRASTINATION!" encapsulates the unexpected delight of SHENZHEN SOLITAIRE (2016), a brand-new solitaire variant originally developed as an in-game diversion for SHENZHEN I/O. Now available as a standalone game, this title presents an oddly addictive and persistently challenging experience, drawing inspiration from both Mahjong and FreeCell. Simple to learn yet deeply engaging, players will find themselves tackling a unique card-matching puzzle where over 98% of deals are solvable, promising countless hours of thoughtful play. SHENZHEN SOLITAIRE rightfully belongs on any list of Zachtronics' best games because it perfectly illustrates the studio's ability to craft elegant and deeply engaging puzzle mechanics, even outside their signature engineering simulations. While SHENZHEN I/O demands intricate circuit design, this solitaire offers a contrasting yet equally compelling mental exercise, functioning as a brilliant palate cleanser that retains the Zachtronics ethos of elegant rules leading to complex, rewarding challenges. Its high solvability rate and the drive to "Win 100 games and become immortal" echo the studio's characteristic encouragement of mastery and persistence, proving that Zachtronics' touch elevates even the simplest of game concepts into something profoundly addictive.
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EXAPUNKS: TEC Redshift Player (2018)
Dive into the world of the TEC Redshift, a fictional microdisc-based gaming handheld from the universe of EXAPUNKS. Originally launched in 1992 by electronics giant TEC, the Redshift was an underpowered flop, notorious for its gimmicky 3D mode that caused headaches. By 1997, however, this widely panned device found new life as a popular hackable platform, easily found in bargain bins. A thriving homebrew scene emerged, with hackers swapping tips and crafting increasingly clever games that pushed the hardware to its limits, though to no benefit of TEC, who exited the console market. This player allows users to experience Redshift games created by other EXAPUNKS players, even featuring its questionable 3D mode (requiring red/blue 'anaglyph' glasses), all powered by advanced EXA technology. The EXAPUNKS: TEC Redshift Player earns its place among the best of Zachtronics by extending the core genius of its parent game. Zachtronics excels at crafting intricate puzzle programming challenges within richly detailed, often anachronistic, technological settings. The Redshift Player embodies this philosophy, offering a tangible manifestation of EXAPUNKS' hacker culture and the creative spirit it fosters. It highlights the game's unique blend of historical homage and forward-thinking problem-solving, inviting players to engage with a community-driven ecosystem of content, perfectly encapsulating the open-ended design and deep systems thinking that define Zachtronics' celebrated catalog.
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