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[David]

@jonts26, what you are doing was my original intention for the game. During play-testing we realized it was also fun to try to find the smallest solution so I started to keep scores manually and then later I added the stars. Maybe I should start a gallery of really nicely modularized solutions to credit those as well? What do you think?

[eHalcyon]

I feel like I'm only capable of the kludgiest of solutions. Took me 14 tiles to beat lvl 48 and 16 for 49. Question for those who have efficient solutions for lvl40+ levels - do you use a lot f custom tiles? I find I don't really bother often and not sure how helpful they really are.

Also what is your methodology. I find myself, especially for the more complicated later levels, trying to think of what I want to do at each step modularly and then do it. But it's really hard to simplify the solution and allow a lot of tiles to pull double duty that way.

I've got 11 tiles for 48 but 22 tiles for 49.  No customs for either.

[-Stef-]

I feel like I'm only capable of the kludgiest of solutions. Took me 14 tiles to beat lvl 48 and 16 for 49. Question for those who have efficient solutions for lvl40+ levels - do you use a lot f custom tiles? I find I don't really bother often and not sure how helpful they really are.

Also what is your methodology. I find myself, especially for the more complicated later levels, trying to think of what I want to do at each step modularly and then do it. But it's really hard to simplify the solution and allow a lot of tiles to pull double duty that way.

I used to build huge solutions too. It took me a while to get the hang of optimizing them. Usually while optimizing the custom tiles that I used at first disappear. But building the solution first with some custom tiles makes it better to read and easier to grasp the essence of my own solution. Stripping the non-essentials out is very important. On the levels you're referring to (40-50) only one of my solutions uses a custom tile in the final solution. After that I use them more and more.

On the methodology - optimizing most of the lower solution is all about removing unnecessary turns. I try to use mirrors wherever possible (most of them also could be an arrow or turn) because the mirrors make it clear to me that this turn is somehow redundant.

Splitters that don't really split are very useful for local optimizations too. By this I mean a splitter (usually a left split or a right split) where one of the balls always goes into some wall. I just need a turn from one direction and a straight from another.

Optimizing the more complex levels is more interesting. I once was proud of my 36-tile solution to direct4, using 3 instances of my own direct2 and connecting them with a stripped-down-version of 'encode'. And then I thought of an entirely different approach, not even behind a computer. That quickly dropped it to 30 and after some more local optimizations it got to 27. Memory (lvl 50) & Storage (lvl 56) also are based on ideas that evolved while on my bike. Encode (lvl39) and Colorful (lvl38) are examples of quite the opposite: no way I'd find these without trying it out.

And then there's the really complex things that haven't been turned into a level (yet?). I made a "tree-based memory", where you can read/write any word (reds&blues) on any address (reds&blues). There 90% of the work was with pen&paper before I even dared to touch the computer. And I never bothered to optimize it. David made a prime generator, which wasn't optimized either, but quite cool nonetheless. By the time we get to a Turing machine, nobody cares about stars no more. A readable/debugable/explainable machine feels just better.

[mith]

This looks very similar to Manufactoria.

[Grujah]

Hints for 8. Please.

I'm sure there are a bunch of solutions for 8 which use the minimum number. All of them operate on the principal that 4n-1 lefts make a right. For n = 1,2...

Posted this very late at night, manage to solve it now without this hint (although with lots of parts, only 1 star ). I mainly used the subrule for n=2.

[popsofctown]

It's really sadistic how they give you something with a multiple tile solution, then immediately afterwards give you a new tile that would enable a single tile solution.

[Axxle]

It's really sadistic how they give you something with a multiple tile solution, then immediately afterwards give you a new tile that would enable a single tile solution.

Once you get to custom tiles that's every puzzle.

[sudgy]

It's really sadistic how they give you something with a multiple tile solution, then immediately afterwards give you a new tile that would enable a single tile solution.

That's the point.  You just created the tile, now you can use it whenever you want.

[sudgy]

@sudgy: I'm not following you. If you can reproduce the problem, can you be more specific about what's going wrong?

It just seems like my whole "file" is glitched.  Another bug (that may or may not be related, I'm not sure) I found is that if you go back to an earlier level, beat it, don't say to go to the next level yet, click on the most recent level, then click to go on, you kind of go to the next level.  I didn't realize anything wrong (after I clicked an earlier level) until I beat the latest level I had and the next one had an older version of the one I had just beat.

[popsofctown]

It's really sadistic how they give you something with a multiple tile solution, then immediately afterwards give you a new tile that would enable a single tile solution.

That's the point.  You just created the tile, now you can use it whenever you want.

Except your version of the tile took up a lot more real estate...

[David]

This looks very similar to Manufactoria.

Actually, that's what a friend said when I explained him my idea 1.5 years ago before I had made anything.
It's a cool game as well.

[Tables]

Here's a fun mini challenge if the later ones are frustrating you.

Balls can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

I believe the optimal solution is 3 tiles

[DStu]

Here's a fun mini challenge if the later ones are frustrating you.

Balls can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

I believe the optimal solution is 3 tiles

With colours you can do it with 2

[Grujah]

Got to custom tiles! Yay!

[Tables]

Here's a fun mini challenge if the later ones are frustrating you.

Balls can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

I believe the optimal solution is 3 tiles

With colours you can do it with 2

Really? So any colour comes from the left, same colour leaves on the right. Any colour comes from any other direction, nothing leaves?

[DStu]

Really? So any colour comes from the left, same colour leaves on the right. Any colour comes from any other direction, nothing leaves?

Assume fixed colours (without it doesn't work I guess)

a) 4 different colours: In this case, solution is possible with just 1 piece, the corresponding filter for colour from left in the middle field.
b) less than 4 colours: In this case, there is a unused colour, paint the left ball in this colour at its entrance, and filter for said colour in the middle field.

[Tables]

Really? So any colour comes from the left, same colour leaves on the right. Any colour comes from any other direction, nothing leaves?

Assume fixed colours (without it doesn't work I guess)

a) 4 different colours: In this case, solution is possible with just 1 piece, the corresponding filter for colour from left in the middle field.
b) less than 4 colours: In this case, there is a unused colour, paint the left ball in this colour at its entrance, and filter for said colour in the middle field.

That's changing the puzzle and making a heck of a lot of assumptions.

[DStu]

That's changing the puzzle and making a heck of a lot of assumptions.

Where do I change it? As far as I am, balls have a fixed colour. Might change of course...

[Tables]

My puzzle: Balls can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

Your puzzle: X colour balls enter from the left, Y colour from the top, Z colour from the bottom and W colour from the right. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

Edit: Or maybe just Balls Of a specific colour can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

[DStu]

As I said, I was under the naive assumption that balls actually have colours.  Even said so "with colours you can do ..."

[eHalcyon]

Here's a fun mini challenge if the later ones are frustrating you.

Balls can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

I believe the optimal solution is 3 tiles

Pretty easy.

It only takes two tiles, spinner and arrow, to make a "one way" gate.  Put that along the horizontal so that pieces can't go from right to left.  Then put another spinner  along the vertical to block all up/down balls.

[Grujah]

Here's a fun mini challenge if the later ones are frustrating you.

Balls can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

I believe the optimal solution is 3 tiles

Pretty easy.

It only takes two tiles, spinner and arrow, to make a "one way" gate.  Put that along the horizontal so that pieces can't go from right to left.  Then put another spinner  along the vertical to block all up/down balls.

Whaaat?

[jonts26]

Here's a fun mini challenge if the later ones are frustrating you.

Balls can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

I believe the optimal solution is 3 tiles

Pretty easy.

It only takes two tiles, spinner and arrow, to make a "one way" gate.  Put that along the horizontal so that pieces can't go from right to left.  Then put another spinner  along the vertical to block all up/down balls.

Whaaat?

I think he means like this: http://tinyurl.com/d4492sr

That's the 3 tile solution.

Side note, those one way gates have become a staple of my later level solutions despite knowing that they probably arent part of the optimal solutions.

[sudgy]

I have weird gates that do things like when it comes from up, it goes down, when it comes from left or right, it goes up, and when it comes from down, it goes left.  And for all orientations and mirrors.  They are one of the most amazing things ever.  I can't think of the last level I haven't used them in...

[Grujah]

Here's a fun mini challenge if the later ones are frustrating you.

Balls can enter from any direction. Balls from the left leave on the right. All other balls do not leave.

I believe the optimal solution is 3 tiles

Pretty easy.

It only takes two tiles, spinner and arrow, to make a "one way" gate.  Put that along the horizontal so that pieces can't go from right to left.  Then put another spinner  along the vertical to block all up/down balls.

Whaaat?

I think he means like this: http://tinyurl.com/d4492sr

That's the 3 tile solution.

Side note, those one way gates have become a staple of my later level solutions despite knowing that they probably arent part of the optimal solutions.

Nice trick, didn't do it so far, probably would have helped me much.

Now, I have a problem. I have a working solution to level 43, but when I solve it, I don't get "you solved it window" but another puzzle appears, with different input and output, and nothing gets unlocked :O

I can post solution for somebody to check or something..

Nvm, misunderstood the level.
Whole level needs to work on two modes, not each gate. Sigh.