Lucid Labyrinth: Quiet Machines

About Lucid Labyrinth: Quiet Machines

Lucid Labyrinth: Quiet Machines is a calm contraption puzzle set in a cave of resonant crystals. A glass marble is released at the top of a small grid of rock and air, and a golden bell waits somewhere at the bottom. You do not steer the marble. You build its path before it moves, and then you watch.

Your tools are slate ramps, which push the marble one cell to the left or to the right as it enters them, and stones, which go on stone pads. The cave has machinery of its own. Crystals ring as the marble passes through them and flip a channel on or off, each crystal with its own shape and its own note. A pad holds its channel on while a stone heavy enough rests on it. A gate of rock slides aside while its wire is on, and until then it is solid rock that stops the marble dead. A gate may want a crystal that rang earlier in the fall, a pad that you loaded in advance, or even a channel that must be off. Reading what has to be on, and when, is the whole puzzle.

Press Run and the marble falls on its own, ringing the crystals one after another, so the fall plays a little tune. If it stops against rock or at a gate, the cave tells you which wire was dark; lift a piece, place another and run again. Watch plays the last fall slowly. There is no clock and every fall is free. Each cave has a par, the fewest pieces the game's own search proved by following the marble. There are twelve hand-ordered caves, then endless deep caves and a daily cave that is the same for everyone. When the bell rings, every crystal the marble touched chimes again in order and rings of light cross the rock. Your progress stays in this browser.

How to play

Guide the glass marble to the golden bell. Place your pieces first, then press Run and watch it fall.
Choose a tool in the tray, then tap a cell. Slate ramps push the marble one cell sideways; stones go on pads.
Crystals ring and flip their channel as the marble passes. A rock gate slides aside while its wire is on.
Tap a placed piece to lift it again. Watch plays the last fall slowly.
Par pieces earn three stars. There is no clock; every fall is free.

Controls

Tap or click a tool in the tray, then a cell of the cave — put it there; tap a placed piece — lift it
Arrow keys or WASD — walk the cave; 1 to 4 — choose a tool; Enter — put it down; Backspace — lift it; C — clear
Space or Run — let the marble fall; R or Watch — watch the last fall; Z or Undo — undo; H — a hint
P, Escape or Start — pause

Frequently asked questions

What do the pieces do?

A slate ramp pushes the marble one cell to the left or the right as it enters the cell, and then it keeps falling. A stone goes on a pad: a light stone satisfies a pad that needs one notch, a heavy stone any pad.

What do crystals do?

Every crystal rings when the marble passes through it and flips its channel, on and then off again on the next pass. Each channel has its own crystal shape, colour and note.

How does a gate open?

Each gate shows the wire it listens to. A single shape means that channel must be on. Two shapes with a plus need both, and a red bar through a shape means the gate is open only while that channel is off. Until then it is solid rock.

Where can I put things?

Ramps go in any free air cell. Stones go on pads only. Rock, gates, crystals and the bell cannot be built on.

Is anything timed or scored against me?

Nothing is timed and falls are free. Stars compare the pieces you placed with par, the fewest the search found, and a solve after a hint earns at most two.

Can I tell the channels apart without colour?

Yes. Every channel is a crystal of its own shape and a glyph of its own shape: a circle, triangle, square or diamond. Everything in the cave is described for a screen reader.

Does the game save?

Yes, in this browser: solved caves, stars, and the pieces you had placed in the cave you were working on. Nothing is uploaded.