Return of the Incredible Machine: Contraptions

Last updated: January 9, 2026

Overview

Return of the Incredible Machine: Contraptions is a 2000 puzzle strategy game that revitalized the beloved Incredible Machine series after a five-year hiatus¹. Developed by Sierra Entertainment with Jeff Tunnell Productions, the game challenges players to “create off-the-wall gadgets using a combination of everyday flumadiddles, doohickeys, and gigamarees”². The gameplay is virtually identical to previous games in the series, requiring players to use mechanical components to create Rube Goldberg-like devices that accomplish specific goals³⁴.

The game features over 250 puzzles alongside a freeform invention mode, allowing players to construct fantastic machines that accomplish unusual tasks ranging from catching cats in baskets to lighting fireworks with laser beams⁵⁶. As one New York Times reviewer noted, the game is “so absorbing” that “ruminations inspired by its more than 250 graphical conundrums have been intruding regularly upon the real world”⁷.

Game Info

Developer: Sierra Entertainment⁸ Designer: Jeff Tunnell, Kevin Ryan⁹ Publisher: Sierra Entertainment¹⁰ Platforms: Windows, Mac OS, PC, Steam, GOG¹¹ Release Year: 2000 Series: The Incredible Machine Sierra Lineage: Core Sierra

Story Summary

The game opens with Professor Tim (or simply “the professor”) welcoming the player to his secret inventor’s complex, explaining that he has been overworked and needs to hire an apprentice¹². Players take on the role of this apprentice, working through increasingly complex contraption challenges under the professor’s guidance. The narrative framework is minimal but charming, with the professor providing context for various puzzle objectives, such as instructing players to “blow up the fish tank with the missile”¹³. The game’s narrator, voiced by Bill Barrett, guides players through tutorials and provides encouragement throughout their contraption-building journey¹⁴.

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

The game utilizes a mouse-driven interface where players select from over 100 different mechanical parts to construct their contraptions¹⁵. The interface includes a help button that provides close-up views of parts for better understanding¹⁶. Players can drag and drop components including pulleys, conveyor belts, springs, dynamite, cats, mice, and various other objects onto a 2D playing field¹⁷. The physics simulation engine ensures deterministic behavior without random number generation, meaning identical setups will always produce the same results¹⁸.

Structure and Progression

The game is organized into five difficulty categories: Tutorial (50 levels), Easy, Medium, Hard, and Really Hard¹⁹²⁰. Players progress through increasingly complex challenges that test their understanding of physics and creative problem-solving abilities. The tutorial levels from the original game remain unchanged, but all other puzzles are new except for one slightly modified puzzle called “Mel-in-the-box”²¹. The game also includes 50 head-to-head puzzles designed for two-player competition²².

Puzzles and Mechanics

Each puzzle presents players with a specific objective that must be accomplished using the available parts. As one reviewer explained, “Players must use a variety of mechanical components to create a Rube Goldberg like device that accomplishes a specific goal (such as popping a balloon)“²³. The joy of the game lies in “making machines that work, not in chalking up high scores”²⁴. The physics simulation accurately models interactions between objects, ambient effects like air pressure and gravity, creating realistic cause-and-effect chains²⁵²⁶.

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

Publication	Score	Notes
IGN	8.4/10	Called it “a vintage blend of educational and entertainment software at their finest”27
GameSpot	8.1/10	Praised the humor and nostalgia, noting minor problems don’t detract from the experience28
Game Over Online	84%	Declared it “easily the best puzzle game to come along in years”29
Absolute Games	80%	Positive review from 200030

Modern Assessment

The game maintains strong appeal among retro gaming enthusiasts, with GameRankings showing an aggregate score of 78.33%³¹. Modern player reviews remain enthusiastic, with one user noting “Playing this while I was young was probably one of the influences to me being an engineer”³², while another simply called it the “Greatest engineering game ever”³³. The game received recognition with a PC Family Award from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences and was voted 2001 Puzzle Game of the Year by readers³⁴³⁵.

Development

Origins

The game emerged after a significant gap in the Incredible Machine series, designed to attract both returning players and newcomers to show that “in the era of super interactive three-dimensional production Incredible Machine is still the quintessence of good entertainment”³⁶. The development was influenced by classic mechanical puzzle concepts, drawing inspiration from Rube Goldberg cartoons and devices³⁷.

Production

The game was developed with occasional help from the developer’s children, adding an authentic family-friendly perspective to the design process³⁸. The team focused on improving upon previous Incredible Machine games with updated graphics, animations, and a refined physics model³⁹. Despite being created by a small team, the production values were notably higher than previous entries, featuring 3D-rendered parts and smoother animations⁴⁰.

Technical Achievements

The game utilized an advanced physics simulation engine that provided deterministic, reproducible results across multiple runs⁴¹. Technical specifications included support for Windows 95/98/ME/2000, requiring a Pentium-90 processor minimum (Pentium 166 MHz recommended), 32-64 MB RAM, and SVGA graphics with 1MB VRAM⁴²⁴³. The game featured 27 musical tracks composed by Christopher Stevens, Sage Freeman, and Timothy Steven Clarke⁴⁴.

Legacy

Return of the Incredible Machine: Contraptions successfully revitalized the series and demonstrated the enduring appeal of physics-based puzzle games. The game spawned an expansion pack, “The Incredible Machine: Even More Contraptions,” released in 2001 with brand-new puzzles beyond the tutorial levels⁴⁵. The series’ influence extends to modern indie games, with Kevin Ryan later creating “Contraption Maker” as “a modern update made in the spirit of The Incredible Machine”⁴⁶. The game continues to be preserved and playable through digital distribution platforms like GOG and remains active in speedrunning communities⁴⁷.

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

• GOG Dreamlist - Community wishlist
• GOG.com
• Steam

Download / Preservation

• MyAbandonware
• Internet Archive

Series Continuity

• Previous: The Incredible Machine 3
• Next: The Incredible Machine: Even More Contraptions

References

Footnotes

1. New York Times. “Game Theory; Contraptions’ Hardest Puzzle: How to Stop.” September 7, 2000 - Contemporary review noting five-year gap ↩

2. Amazon product description - Official game marketing copy ↩

3. Archive.org description - Gameplay comparison to previous games ↩

4. Archive.org game description - Core gameplay mechanics ↩

5. Old-Games.com review - Game features summary ↩

6. Archived GameSpot review - Gameplay overview and objectives ↩

7. New York Times review - Contemporary critical assessment ↩

8. MobyGames database entry - Developer information ↩

9. Reddit discussion and game credits - Designer information ↩

10. MobyGames database entry - Publisher information ↩

11. Multiple sources including GOGdb and platform listings ↩

12. Archive.org game story - Narrative setup ↩

13. TV Tropes entry - Example game objective ↩

14. IMDb credits - Voice cast information ↩

15. Game Over Online review - Interface and parts count ↩

16. PCGamingWiki - Technical interface features ↩

17. IGN review - Control scheme description ↩

18. Multiple technical sources - Physics engine details ↩

19. GameFAQs guide - Level structure information ↩

20. Multiple sources - Tutorial level count ↩

21. GameFAQs guide comparison - Content differences from previous games ↩

22. Game Over Online review - Multiplayer features ↩

23. Archive.org description - Core puzzle mechanics ↩

24. Digital Antiquarian article - Game philosophy ↩

25. Multiple technical sources - Physics simulation details ↩

26. Various reviews - Environmental effects ↩

27. IGN review, September 15, 2000 - Score and quote ↩

28. GameSpot review by Trey Walker, August 17, 2000 - Score and assessment ↩

29. Game Over Online review by Mike McDermott, August 2000 - Score and quote ↩

30. Wikipedia entry - Review compilation ↩

31. GameRankings aggregate score from Wikipedia ↩

32. MyAbandonware user review - Modern player perspective ↩

33. MyAbandonware user review - Player assessment ↩

34. Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences award information ↩

35. Award information from Interactive.org ↩

36. GamePressure description - Development context ↩

37. GameSpot review - Rube Goldberg inspiration ↩

38. Development notes from multiple sources ↩

39. Comparative analysis from reviews ↩

40. Visual improvements noted in reviews ↩

41. Technical specifications from multiple sources ↩

42. System requirements from Archived forum post ↩

43. PCGamingWiki technical specifications ↩

44. KHInsider soundtrack information - Composer credits ↩

45. Hardcore Gaming 101 archived review - Expansion pack information ↩

46. Reddit discussion with Kevin Ryan - Modern successor game ↩

47. Speedrun.com and GOG availability - Modern preservation ↩