The Music Machine

90%
Game Brain Score Based on 333 reviews
  • story
  • music
  • graphics
The Music Machine Game Cover
Starting at €2.49Buy now
Get on Steam Get on itch.io Store

"The Mallet Island Curse" comes to life in "The Music Machine." As David, a mute rockstar, explore the haunted island, solve puzzles, and uncover the dark truth behind your silence. Use your enchanted music sheets and trusty sledgehammer to battle grotesque monsters in this rhythm-based horror adventure. Only by embracing the beat can you break the curse and find your voice again.

Play Modes

Reviews

90%
Audience ScoreBased on 333 reviews
story101 positive mentions
stability3 negative mentions
  • The game features a unique and striking monochromatic art style that enhances the eerie atmosphere.
  • The writing is engaging, with well-developed characters and a compelling narrative that keeps players invested.
  • The soundtrack is beautifully composed, adding to the overall immersive experience of the game.
  • The game is relatively short, which may leave some players wanting more content.
  • Some players may find the pacing slow, with moments of aimless wandering that can disrupt immersion.
  • The lack of clear direction at times can lead to confusion about how to progress in the game.
  • story263 mentions

    The story of "The Music Machine" is a unique and atmospheric exploration of dark themes, featuring a compelling narrative centered around a 13-year-old girl and a ghostly companion. While many players appreciate its haunting visuals and emotional depth, some find the storytelling opaque or underdeveloped, leading to mixed reactions regarding its execution. Overall, the game is praised for its intriguing plot and character dynamics, making it a worthwhile experience for those who enjoy narrative-driven games.

    • “The story was one of a kind, with two great endings.”
    • “An excellent story with a one-of-a-kind atmosphere.”
    • “The music machine tells an engaging, immersive story, especially when paired with the moon sliver.”
    • “The story is pretentious and somewhat nonsensical as well.”
    • “There is barely any story or mystery here.”
    • “Was really into this until it decided 'oh this girl lied about being molested cuz she was rejected' was a plot point it wanted to go with as though that's totally a thing kids do.”
  • music175 mentions

    The music in "The Music Machine" has been widely praised for its atmospheric and haunting quality, effectively enhancing the game's unique visual style and narrative depth. Reviewers noted that the soundtrack is beautifully composed, creating a compelling emotional backdrop that complements the eerie and immersive experience of the game. While some found the integration of music and sound effects to be occasionally uneven, the overall consensus is that the music significantly contributes to the game's haunting atmosphere and storytelling.

    • “An amazing soundtrack that sets the mood perfectly with the visual style and level design.”
    • “The music is beautiful, the landscape and levels are intense and calm at the same time, and I'd give it a solid 9.5/10 for creativity, design, and gameplay!”
    • “The music rivals any AAA production out there, and it's just so achingly beautiful and sad.”
    • “The sound production is also very well done, leaning more on environmental ambient sounds than music.”
    • “SFX is very low and then suddenly blaring music starts, so you must turn the audio down to where the music is at a normal level and SFX is next to 0.”
    • “If you need your horror games to be visceral and bloody, the music machine will probably disappoint you.”
  • graphics116 mentions

    The graphics of the game are characterized by a unique and striking monochromatic art style that creates a surreal and atmospheric experience. While many players appreciate the minimalist visuals and their contribution to the game's eerie narrative, some find the lack of detail and the overwhelming use of a limited color palette to be disorienting or even tedious. Overall, the visuals are praised for their beauty and emotional depth, though opinions vary on their effectiveness in enhancing gameplay.

    • “The characters and story are great and the art style is fantastic.”
    • “The game's color palettes are entirely monochromatic and each location has a specific tint, which creates a highly unique, fascinating aesthetic.”
    • “The visuals, despite their simplicity, are absolutely stunning, and fit well with the surreal narrative.”
    • “One simple reason is that the monochromatic graphics were exhausting to look at as they made me feel like trying to see in the dark and strained my eyes quickly.”
    • “There are times it looks really great and adds to the other-worldly feel but unfortunately there are a lot of times where the game falls victim to its own gimmick and the monochrome graphics obscure or unnecessarily complicate the viewing environment.”
    • “I had to stop where I did because the art style, which I absolutely think works for the atmosphere of this game, has a quality to it that has struck me with a very intense case of motion sickness - especially in the corridors of the titular location.”
  • atmosphere89 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its haunting and immersive qualities, often described as deeply unsettling and rich in detail. Reviewers highlight the effective use of minimalistic visuals and a compelling soundtrack that enhance the overall mood, creating a unique blend of cosmic and atmospheric horror. While some find the gameplay simplistic, the focus on narrative and atmosphere resonates strongly with players seeking an emotional and atmospheric experience.

    • “Beautiful game in story, symbolism, and atmosphere.”
    • “The atmosphere of this game is simply amazing.”
    • “This game has such an amazing atmosphere and story; it's hard to parse just how much I liked it.”
    • “The atmosphere is very creepy and depressing.”
    • “However, jumpscares do not equal horror if the atmosphere and interactions the player makes are not effective nor put in any context.”
    • “To merely describe it as a 'walking simulator' cross horror game would rob the music machine of its haunting and surreal atmosphere; the likes of which I haven't experienced in any other game.”
  • gameplay40 mentions

    The gameplay is primarily focused on narrative-driven exploration, featuring simple mechanics such as walking and interacting with objects, which some players found limiting or unpolished. While the atmosphere and story are praised for their depth and engagement, the gameplay often feels secondary, with minimal challenge and repetitive elements. Overall, it serves more as a medium for storytelling rather than a traditional gaming experience, appealing to those who appreciate immersive narratives over complex mechanics.

    • “Such a fantastic story and a great use of gameplay to tell it.”
    • “The visuals are beautiful and the gameplay is simple but rewarding.”
    • “There's not much to the gameplay, walk around, click stuff, walk around some more - but the slowly unfolding story, the mystery, and the atmosphere remain intense and memorable throughout.”
    • “The gameplay is 100% dialogue driven with slow-paced walking simulator gameplay through boring, uninspired worlds, largely to be blamed on the art style. It has an inventory system which is weird when you only ever put 1 item in it, an item you can only use 2 times.”
    • “The gameplay itself is fine (mildly frustrating at worst), but interacting with objects lacks any sort of subtle polish apart from good sound effects; most things that aren't alive don't move with any fluidity (keys have no sliding animation for example).”
    • “Gameplay is very light, at most consisting of running around to avoid environmental hazards or to solve basic puzzles, and of course some light exploration.”
  • emotional18 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its ability to evoke deep feelings through its ambiance, narrative, and visual style, often leading players to tears. Reviewers note a contrast between the game's haunting atmosphere and the emotional complexity of human interactions, creating a unique experience that resonates with those dealing with personal struggles. Overall, the game is praised for its touching story and the emotional journey it offers, making it a compelling choice for fans of narrative-driven experiences.

    • “I will not lie to you that the ambiance made me cry with how well-timed it is, and most of the time it's literally just ambiance.”
    • “So I really recommend the game to anyone looking for an emotional journey through a world of art with a heavy, great atmosphere and a touching dark story without too much happening but yet enough to not make the game feel empty.”
    • “I felt a strong emotional connection to the characters and as I progressed through the story, I realized it was deeper than horror.”
  • character development7 mentions

    Character development in the game is notably inconsistent; while some players feel that it lacks depth and emotional resonance, others praise its ability to convey complex characters and conflicts within a short runtime. The contrasting experiences highlight a divide between those who find the character portrayals superficial and those who appreciate the nuanced dialogue and atmospheric storytelling that bring the characters to life. Overall, the effectiveness of character development seems to vary significantly among players.

    • “Dripping with atmosphere, tension, and sublime character development for its short 1-2 hour runtime, the music machine is simply in a class of its own.”
    • “The style is even more beautiful and interesting than it shows in the preview screenshots, the story is really intriguing, and the character development is incredible considering how short the game is.”
    • “Their perceptions, expectations, and worldview are presented as sharp conflicts in written dialogue with nuances so tender; even though there is neither voice acting nor visual character design - since this is a first-person camera game - they come alive as characters.”
    • “We only get very minor glimpses of their personalities, which in turn limits the character development.”
    • “The girl literally caused an innocent man to get killed and the man literally plans to torture her to death, but you never believe for a second that either of them suffered under what happened or that they have any sort of strong feeling about it or each other. There's also hardly any character development happening, which made the ending I got feel not earned.”
    • “There is hardly any character development happening, which made the ending I got feel not earned.”
  • humor5 mentions

    The game's humor is characterized by a blend of dark and meaningful conversations, particularly between the main characters, which adds depth to the narrative. Players find the comedic elements both entertaining and thought-provoking, creating a unique atmosphere that balances humor with underlying themes of sorrow and fear.

    • “The conversation between the two is incredibly funny yet meaningful.”
    • “I beat the game without a guide in exactly 60 minutes, which I thought was funny.”
    • “The game starts with a teenage girl arriving on an island with a man as company. Through conversations that are both dark and funny, we discover exactly who Quintin is and why he 'puppeteers' Haley's body.”
  • stability3 mentions

    The game features appealing graphics and aesthetics, but suffers from notable stability issues, including a buggy automatic save system that can lead to lost progress. Additionally, players have reported minor glitches and typos that detract from the overall experience.

    • “What ultimately sank it for me is the buggy save system - the game is supposed to save automatically upon exit (there is no provision to manually save), but on three occasions I restarted the game to find out that was not the case.”
    • “The only faults seem to be details that can be missed if you didn't discover them ahead of time and a few glitches and typos (throwing a roll of toilet paper into oblivion).”
    • “The game offers some nice graphics and a nice aesthetic, although there are some ugly glitches here and there; it is pleasant all the same.”
  • grinding1 mentions

    Players find the game's visuals captivating, but the grinding aspect of the story is often seen as tedious and detracts from the overall experience.

    • “The game looks absolutely mesmerizing, which is a shame because the grinding is quite tedious.”
    • “The repetitive nature of grinding makes the gameplay feel like a chore rather than an enjoyable experience.”
    • “I found myself spending hours on grinding, but it felt more like a punishment than a rewarding challenge.”
  • replayability1 mentions

    Overall, users indicate that the game's replayability is somewhat limited, suggesting that it may not offer enough incentive for players to return after completing it.

    • “However, replayability may not be overly high.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Buy The Music Machine

Videos

Similar Games

Game News