Machinarium vs Human Resource Machine
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Machinarium
Embark on an adventure as a robot named Josef to rescue his girlfriend, Berta, who has been kidnapped by a criminal gang. Explore a unique robot city and solve puzzles to achieve your goal.
- Robot protagonist
- Story-driven adventure
- Puzzle solving
- Unique robot city setting
- Award-winning visuals
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Machinarium is the award-winning independent adventure game developed by the makers of Samorost series, Botanicula and CHUCHEL. Help Josef the robot to save his girlfriend Berta kidnapped by the Black Cap Brotherhood gang. "Absolutely Fantastic" - TouchArcade 4/4 - USA TODAY 4/4 - SlideToPlay 9/10 - Pocket Gamer Awards: - IGF, Excellence in Visual Art Award - Gamasutra, Best Indie Game Of The Year - VGChartz.com, Best Indie Game Of The Year
Human Resource Machine
Solve puzzles by programming office workers to automate tasks. Progress through levels by successfully completing jobs and getting promoted. This game makes programming accessible and fun for everyone, even those new to coding.
- Program office workers
- Solve logic puzzles
- Automate tasks
- Progress through levels
- Learn programming concepts
- Extra challenges for experts
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Program little office workers to solve puzzles. Be a good employee! The machines are coming... for your job. - Included in the 'App Store Best of 2016'. - A worldwide App Store Editors’ Choice. - Winner of Excellence in Innovation by the International Mobile Gaming Awards. Human Resource Machine is a puzzle game for nerds. In each level, your boss gives you a job. Automate it by programming your little office worker. If you succeed, you'll be promoted up to the next level for another year of work in the vast office building. Congratulations! Don't worry if you've never programmed before - programming is just puzzle solving. If you strip away all the 1's and 0's and scary squiggly brackets, programming is simple, logical, beautiful, and something that anyone can understand and have fun with! Are you already an expert? There will be extra challenges for you. From the creators of World of Goo and Little Inferno. Have fun! Management is watching. REVIEWS: “Amidst the trend of instant gratification that the internet and gaming as a whole has perpetuated, having a game that both excels in its puzzles and also challenges your wider perception of it is commendable, and makes Human Resource Machine exponentially essential.” - Touch Arcade 5/5 “Sometimes a game catches you by surprise. Be it with its ingenuity, its style, or its sense of humor. Other times a game catches you with all three, like Human Resource Machine.” - Gamezebo 9/10 "Human Resource Machine Could Be The App Of The Year” - Mobile n’ Apps
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Human Resource Machine at $4.99 against Machinarium's $9.99. Human Resource Machine also leads on review sentiment (80% vs 69%) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 12.0). On rating, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Machinarium costs $9.99 and Human Resource Machine $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for Machinarium against 4.5 for Human Resource Machine. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 992 and 416 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 69% of Machinarium's written reviews are positive against 80% of Human Resource Machine's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Machinarium | Human Resource Machine |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $9.99 | $4.99 — better |
| Rating | 4.4 (992 ratings) | 4.5 (416 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 69.3% of reviews | 80.1% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 992 — better | 416 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | Every 5 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #64 — better | #78 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 | 8.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 302 MB | 133 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Amanita Design s.r.o. | Experimental Gameplay Group |
Customer experience
Machinarium
Human Resource Machine
User reviews
Machinarium
From 992 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🎨 Beautiful artwork and graphics
- 🎶 Excellent soundtrack and sound design
- 🤖 Cute and engaging main character
- 🧠 Challenging and rewarding puzzles
- 👍 Immersive and atmospheric game world
Room to improve
- 🔍 Difficulty in seeing small details on mobile screens
- 🕹️ Clunky or unresponsive touch controls
- 🤔 Puzzles can be overly obscure or unintuitive
- 🕰️ Repetitive gameplay in some areas
- 💤 Slow pacing can feel tedious at times
Human Resource Machine
From 416 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Challenging puzzles
- 👍 Engaging gameplay
- 💡 Teaches programming concepts
- 🎨 Quirky visuals and humor
Room to improve
- 🐛 Bugs in certain levels
- 🔁 Repetitive gameplay
- 🔇 No option to play own music
- 🔀 Issues with screen rotation
Bugs and requests
Machinarium
Reported bugs
3 issues- Crashes or freezes on certain devices
- Glitches preventing progress in key areas
- Inconsistent responsiveness of interactive elements
Requested features
4 requests- Difficulty settings or customization options
- Ability to skip or bypass certain mini-games
- Improved save/resume functionality
- Expanded story or sequel content
Human Resource Machine
Reported bugs
3 issues- Level 20 expecting incorrect output
- Scrolling issues causing commands to move
- Crashing on iOS 14 update
Requested features
3 requests- More levels and challenges
- Ability to save progress across devices
- Hints or solution guides for stuck players
In-app purchases
Machinarium
No in-app purchases
Human Resource Machine
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Machinarium free?
Is Human Resource Machine free?
Which has better reviews, Machinarium or Human Resource Machine?
Do Machinarium or Human Resource Machine have ads?
Which is updated more often, Machinarium or Human Resource Machine?
Which is more popular, Machinarium or Human Resource Machine?
Other comparisons
