THE INCREDIBLE MACHINE is one of the those games whose puzzle solutions can
be most difficult to describe with words. Still, I'm going to give it my best
shot. For those of you interested in getting a hint before the proverbial
beans are spilled, I've tried to begin most of my solutions with just such a
clue.
The nice thing about most of TIM's puzzles is that many of them can be solved
in several different ways. Thus, I neither claim that my answers are the
easiest nor the most elegant. They do work, however, if executed properly. I
encourage you to use my solutions as a springboard to your own, more
imaginative Rube Goldberg contraptions.
Instead of listing all of the passwords for levels 2 through 87, I will
simply note that "GULF" is the password for level 87. Once you've entered this
password for the last level, TIM will allow you access to any of the game's
puzzles.
A word of explanation: At times, I may refer to a size "x" trampoline or
conveyor belt. Size 1 refers to the smallest (or shortest) of these objects,
size 2 indicates that the object should be one step larger, and so forth up to
the maximum size (size 4 for an incline, size 5 for a conveyor belt).
Thanks go to "\/arzil the Good" for his hints in getting me through the 3 or
4 puzzles that I found to be particularly brain-busting.
1. PUT THE BALL IN THE HOOP
This puzzle provides introductory practice to using mouse motors and belts.
The far left bowling ball should land on a mouse motor connected to the first
conveyor belt. Each successive ball should travel right bumping into another
mouse motor connected to the next higher conveyor belt. When the basketball
takes its turn on its conveyor belt, it will fall directly into the hoop.
2. MIRROR IMAGES
More tutorial. Build a machine on the right that's a mirror image of the
left. Be sure you reverse the position of the mouse motor or the bowling ball
will fly off to the right.
3. BELLOWS AND BALLOONS
Practice with bellows. Blow the top balloon into the rotating gear. Blow the
bottom balloon into the scissors.
4. FLIP, FLIP, FLIP
Practice with seesaws. Position a seesaw under each cannonball so that each
flipped cannonball will flip the next, and the next, and the...
5. PUNCH OUT
Practice with boxing gloves and seesaws. Place a seesaw under each cannon-
ball, a boxing glove to the left of the second bowling ball, and a boxing
glove to the right of the baseball. The top bowling ball will flip up the top
cannonball, which will engage the second boxing glove, projecting the second
bowling ball onto the second seesaw, flipping the second cannonball into the
lower channel so that its collision with the bottom boxing glove will send the
baseball home.
6. BOUNCING OVER TO MORT
Practice with trampolines. Here, it's important to realize that the lower the
trampoline, the more bounce (and height) you'll get out of the basketball. So
place 2 trampolines to the right of the first (and at the same level) and
place your last trampoline a few spaces to the left of Mort's cage. Make sure
the basketball falls squarely on each trampoline.
7. JACK SAYS, "HI BOB"
Practice with Jack-in-the-boxes. Connect the top mouse motor to the middle
jack-in-the-box. When the cannonball gets flipped into the air, have it hit
another mouse motor connected to the jack-in-the-box under Bob the Fish.
8. TILTING AT WINDMILLS
Practice with Windmills. Place a windmill to the right of the top bellows,
then connect it to the top conveyor belt (you'll need to reverse the windmill
in order to move the conveyor belt to the left). The baseball will travel left
and fall through the gap where you should have it land on another set of
bellows blowing another windmill connected to the second conveyor belt. This
time, the tennis ball will move right where it should fall through the hole
and land on another set of bellows blowing the bottom windmill connected to
the gear. Bye Bye Balloon!
9. LOWER ALL THE BUCKETS
Practice with scissors. Have the cannonball fall onto a pair of scissors that
you position on the first rope to the left. The baseball on the right should
fall onto the trampoline positioned immediately beneath it so that it bounces
up and collides with the scissors on the right.
10. BANG, BANG, BANG
Practice with guns. Tie a rope from the left side of the seesaw to the pulley
below and then to the bottom gun. Place a pail under the pulley on the left
and tie a rope from the pail to the pulley to a gun that you position to the
right of the pulley.
11. LIKE A HURRICANE
Practice with switches and fans. Place a trampoline under the right switch
and a fan to its immediate left. The baseball will fall on the trampoline and
bounce back up, flipping the switch, turning on the fan, which will blow the
balloon to the left so that it turns on the middle fan. Finally, position a
fan immediately to the right of the lower left switch.
12. GENERATORS AND MOTORS
Practice with...well, you know. Position a windmill to the left of the fan
and connect it to the top generator. Position an electric motor next to this
outlet and connect it to the conveyor belt (if necessary, reverse the motor so
that its belt connector is on the right; otherwise, the conveyor belt will
turn in the wrong direction). The basketball should roll right, onto the mouse
motor which you should connect to another generator to the left of the tennis
ball. Finally, place a fan to the right of the generator and the left of the
tennis ball. The fan should blow the tennis ball into the pipe hole.
13. PUTTING THE GEARS IN MOTION
Practice with gears and solar panels. Position a motor to the right of the
top solar panel (you'll need to reverse it) and connect it to the top conveyor
belt. The cannonball should roll right, fall through the gap, and onto a
flashlight which you should aim at the middle solar panel. Position a fan
under this middle outlet so that it blows the windmill which you should
connect to the bottom conveyor belt. Tie a rope from the pail to the lower
lightbulb so that when the pail falls it will turn on the light, powering the
bottom outlet, and turning on the electric motor. Lastly, of course, connect
this motor to the gears.
14. LIGHTING A FUSE
Practice with cannons and fuses. Follow the example with the first cannon and
place a magnifying glass and flashlight to the right of the middle cannon
(you'll need to reverse the magnifying glass), and another flashlight and
magnifying glass to the left of the bottom cannon.
15. BOOM, BOOM, BANG
Practice with dynamite. Tie a rope from the pail to the lightbulb. Position
your dynamite to the right of the lightbulb and magnifying glass and below
and to the left of the basketball (be sure its fuse is on the left!). Arrange
for the flying basketball to turn on a flashlight/magnifying glass combination
which you should position to the right of the bottom cannon (this magnifying
glass will need to be reversed).
16. BLASTOFF
Practice with rockets. Have the bowling ball hit a flashlight to the left of
the second rocket so that it lights its fuse (with the help of a magnifying
glass, of course). Place the lowered end of a seesaw above this second rocket
and tie a rope from this end of the seesaw to a lightbulb (which you position
to the left of the candle) via a pulley below the lightbulb. The light from
the bulb should shine through a magnifying glass and light your way free of
this level.
17. DOING SOME BLASTING
Practice with dynamite plungers. Place the upper end of a seesaw under the
falling bowling ball and tie a rope from the lower end to a pulley to the
right of the gun, then to the gun's trigger. Place a stick of dynamite on each
of the 3 brick shelves on the left of the screen. (The stick of dynamite on
the top shelf will need to be as far left as possible.)
18. SENDING MORT THE MOUSE HOME
Practice with cats and mice. Position a trampoline under the bowling ball so
that it bounces up and smashes Bob's bowl. Place a conveyor belt under Mort
and connect it to the mouse motor. Finally, place a Pokey the Cat on the
bottom brick level (facing right), far enough left that he'll chase Mort into
his hole without eating him.
19. MONKEY BUSINESS
Practice with monkeys and bicycles. A piece of cake: Tie a rope from the cage
to the left monkey's shade.
20. BRIDGING THE GAP
Practice with inclines. Reduce the size of your incline to a size 2 so that
it fills in the middle gap. Place a seesaw in the far left gap with its left
end down and right end up (the left end of this seesaw should be level with
the wooden track). Tie a rope from its left end through both pulleys to the
left end of the middle seesaw.
21. CLIMBING A HILL
This one's similar to puzzle 1. Fill each gap with a connected mouse motor
and size 1 conveyor belt. Then say "So Long" to Pokey.
22. TURN, TURN, TURN... POP, POP, POP
Okay, the tutorial's behind you...now comes the fun! The idea here is to
properly connect all of your gears. Tie the left end of the upper seesaw to
the top monkey's shade. Connect the two free gears under this monkey with a
belt. Place a gear immediately to the left of the lower-most gear so that
they're properly meshed. Connect this newly added gear to the conveyor belt
and the mouse motor to the gear at the top of the screen. Finally, connect the
bottom monkey to the gear immediately under the mouse motor.
23. TRICK SHOOTING
This one's interesting. Position a gun above and to the right of the top
seesaw and tie it to the left end of the seesaw. This gun's bullet should hit
the top baseball sending it into the container on the right. (Don't hit it too
squarely or it will bounce off the right wall and away from the container.)
Place a gun below and to the right of this same seesaw and tie it to the lower
end of the top seesaw. This gun should take care of the middle baseball.
Finally, place a gun above and to the right of the bottom seesaw and tie it to
the upper end of the bottom seesaw. Have its bullet take out the bottom
baseball.
24. SAVE THE BALLOONS
This one's a cinch. Simply tie balloons 2 and 4 together the same way that
balloons 1 and 3 are tied. Stringing the rope around the bottom of pulley 2
and the top of pulley 4 will create a sort of counterweight so that balloon 2
will pull on 4 and vice versa preventing either from floating too high.
25. POP TWO BALLOONS
The trick here is to drag the right most balloon to the middle of the screen.
Place a pulley above and to the right of the bottom left brick, roughly level
with the bottoms of the balloons. Position a balloon to the far left of the
screen at the same level as the other balloons and tie it to the balloon on
the far right via the pulley. The left-most balloon will rise and drag the
right-most balloon toward the gear, then will swing right, engaging the mouse
motor.
26. DROPPING THE BALL
The gun is what will send the bowling ball into the cave. Timing is what will
ensure that the pails are not in the way. Position the gun between the two
pails and aim it right at the bowling ball. We'll need the use of a
cannonball, so tie the lower end of the seesaw to a pulley at the bottom of
the screen to a lightbulb which you position to the right of the cannon. Use
a magnifying glass to light the fuse. To get the cannonball to fall into the
right-most pail, place a mouse motor just above the gun. To fire the gun,
place a seesaw below and to the right of the first seesaw, and tie a rope from
its lower-left end via a pulley to the gun. Finally, place a size 1 conveyor
belt just above the lower-left end of the top seesaw and another one between
the two seesaws to create a "step" that will slow down the bowling ball's
progress. The bowling ball will then hit the top seesaw (turning on the light
and setting off the cannon), bounce off the conveyor belt, roll off the right
end of the top seesaw onto the conveyor belt step (slowing it down while the
cannonball gets the pail out of the way), and fall onto the upper-right end of
the lower seesaw, firing the gun.
27. POPPING BALLOONS ON THE MOON
Plan on popping the first balloon with the left-most gear, the second balloon
with the scissors, and the third balloon with the gun. To take care of the
first balloon, use an incline to get it onto the trampoline, and another
incline above and to the left of the upper-left gear to send the balloon to
its doom. Position a gun to the right of the seesaw aimed at where the balloon
will be when it falls on the seesaw. Tie a rope from the lower-left end of the
seesaw to the pulley in the lower-right corner, and then to the gun. The third
balloon will commit suicide by teetering the teeter-totter which will fire the
gun at it. The second balloon will bounce off the seesaw where it will then
find its point in life...and death.
28. A BASEBALL IN EVERY POT
This one's simple only after you've solved it. All you need are the 6 seesaws.
Position 3 seesaws so that their lower-left ends are immediately under the 3
baseballs on the left. Position the other 3 seesaws so that their lower-right
ends are immediately under the 3 baseballs on the right (you'll have to reverse
them first, then position them under the baseballs). Then watch the bowling
ball do its thing.
29. WEIGHING THE SITUATION
This puzzle is one of my favorites. All that's needed is to set up the pails
as counterweights and time everything just right. First, tie pail 1 to pail 2
via the 2 pulleys above them. Then do the same with pails 3 and 4. Place one
tennis ball high above pail 1 and another immediately above pail 2. Place the
third tennis ball above pail 4 and the cannonball on the upper-right-most
incline. When the tennis ball falls into pail 2, it will start falling and
pail 1 will start rising. The tennis ball falling into pail 1 from high above
should stop this motion when there's enough room under pails 1 and 2 for the
baseball to roll underneath. The tennis ball falling into pail 4 will raise
pail 3. And if the timing is just right, the cannonball will fall into pail 3,
raising pail 4 when the baseball is between them.
30. POP ALL THE BALLOONS
With the help of conveyor belts and an incline, we should be able to coax the
first balloon to collide with the gears on the right. First, place a seesaw
near the bottom right corner of the screen, and Kelly the Monkey to the right
of the gears. Tie the lower-right end of the top seesaw to the lower-right end
of the bottom seesaw, and tie the upper-left end of the bottom seesaw to the
monkey's shade. Connect the monkey to the right-most gear. Place two size 4
conveyor belts immediately below the pipe (the left balloon has to float up and
stop under the left end of the left conveyor belt). Connect the left conveyor
belt to the gear at the bottom and the right conveyor belt to the middle of the
top three gears. Place a size 1 incline (pointing down and to right) against
the right edge of the right conveyor belt. Finally, place an incline under the
bowling ball. The idea is that the bowling ball will hit Pokey, who will set
off the seesaws and get the monkey to pedal. The left-most balloon will rise
and rest just underneath the left-most conveyor belt until the rotating gears
drive the conveyor belts and start this balloon moving to the right. It should
eventually bounce off the incline and down to its destruction. Of course, the
balloon on the right never has a chance.
31. PUT AWAY THE BASKETBALLS
A size 4 conveyor belt will move the balls in the right direction. Position it
several spaces below the right two basketballs. Position an incline under the
lower-most ball so that it, too, will roll onto the conveyor belt. Place the
mouse motor just above the lower-most ball so that the top ball hits it and
bounces off to the right. Connect the mouse motor to the conveyor belt and the
rest is history. (If necessary, you can place the seesaw above and to the left
of the wooden container to prevent any of the basketballs from bouncing out.)
32. FIVE GUN SALUTE
The trickiest part of this machine is the correct alignment of the four
seesaws. First, set some balloons free by having the baseball (on the screen)
hit a pair of scissors (cutting the rope under the fourth balloon), bouncing
off to the right, and hitting another pair of scissors (cutting the rope under
the fifth balloon). Use the baseball and third pair of scissors to set the
second balloon free. Now the seesaws: The first balloon should hit the
lower-right end of a seesaw whose upper-left end is tied to the left-most gun.
The second balloon should hit the lower-right end of a seesaw whose upper-left
end is tied to the gun just below the latter gun. The fourth balloon should
hit the lower-left end of a seesaw whose upper-right end is tied to the
lower-most gun and whose lower-left end is tied to the upper-most gun via a
pulley below and far to the right of this seesaw (got that?). The fifth
balloon should hit the lower-left end of a seesaw whose upper-right end is tied
to the right-most gun via a pulley on the right edge of the screen. Simple,
huh?
33. A FAREWELL TO BALLOONS
A traditional Rube Goldberg contraption where the "energy" of the falling ball
must be passed on from device to device until the objective is reached. In
this case, we'll be moving in a counter-clockwise direction, and ultimately
break the balloon with a flaming rocket. Start by placing your fan below and
to the right of the switched outlet (the fan will be partially off the screen)
where it will blow the tennis ball to the left. The tennis ball should
eventually hit and turn on the flashlight. Place a magnifying glass between
the flashlight and the candle to light the candle. Position a gear immediately
above the gear in the bottom right corner. Connect this gear to the right-most
generator, and connect the nearby electric motor to the jack-in-the-box.
Connect the upper-left motor to the left-most generator. Connect the right-
most of the set of six gears to the bottom-right conveyor belt.
34. POP GOES THE WEASEL
The motion of the mouse motor is what will turn the jack-in-the-box.
Indirectly connect the mouse motor to the jack-in-the-box using 2 pairs of
meshed gears. Then arrange for the tennis ball to fall onto a seesaw whose
lower-left end is tied to a lightbulb (to the left of the tennis ball) via the
pulley. The bulb should power a solar panel to the right of a fan that you
position to the right of the basketball. The basketball will blow off to the
left where you should arrange for it to hit a seesaw whose lower-right end is
tied to the lower-right end of the seesaw above the mouse motor.
35. WHEEEEEEE!
Line up the trampolines. Place one trampoline to the immediate left and one
trampoline to the immediate right of the bottom trampoline (creating a set of
three). Place a size 1 incline just above the right side of the lower-left
incline to deflect the bowling ball onto the first of the set of three
trampolines. Position a size 3 incline to the left of the right-most
trampoline (not the one you placed on the screen) so the ball will eventually
roll onto this trampoline. Place another trampoline immediately to its right
and a seesaw, whose left end is up, immediately to the right of this last
trampoline to keep the ball from falling beneath the pipe basket. If
everything's just right, the ball should eventually make its way into the
basket (you may have to watch it bounce for a while).
36. POKEY AND BOB SHOOT IT OUT
Once again, timing is everything. Position the scissors below the top left
pulley over the rope holding the left-most pail. Position the second bowling
ball at the top of the screen so it hits the scissors (cutting the rope), and
bounces off to the right down the channel. The original bowling ball will
follow it. You'll have to tweak the position of the bowling ball and scissors
until the timing is such that the bouncing pails and/or the original bowling
ball block the bullets.
37. MOUSE IN THE HOUSE
Keep Mort away from Pokey! Blow Mort left with a fan so that he collides with
the right edge of an incline that you position to the left of the upper piping.
Place a motor below the upper-right outlet and connect it to a generator
positioned below the gear on the screen. Place a fan immediately below this
generator to blow Mort into his house.
38. INSIDE THE WALLS
More trampoline alignment. Place a size 5 conveyor belt under the bowling
ball. Power the conveyor belt with a windmill blown by a set of bellows hit by
the falling baseball. Fill the gap in the second level of piping with a
trampoline and use one or two other trampolines to bounce the ball into the
brick basket.
39. TRAP POKEY THE CAT
The trick is to control the direction and pace of the cannonball. To do that,
we'll place the cannon a little bit above the second vertical brick wall; in
this position, the cannonball will hit the brick wall, then bounce off the
cannon which will give us a little more control over its movement. A
magnifying glass and flashlight should be positioned to the right of the cannon
(keep the flashlight as low as possible). Place the scissors to the left of
the top of the second vertical brick wall over the rope holding up the pail.
The scissors should be pointing left. Place a size 4 incline to Pokey's left.
The bowling ball should be positioned so that it first hits the flashlight
(turning it on) and then hits Pokey (without first hitting the incline),
bounces off the incline, and hits Pokey a second time putting the cat into
position under the cage. By this time, the cannonball should be hitting the
scissors, cutting the rope, and lowering the cage. If the rope is getting cut
too soon, raise the cannon slightly. If necessary, use an incline to deflect
the cannonball into the pail and a rocket to limit the pail's movement after it
falls.
40. GOING IN THE HOLE
Should be easy. Roll the top basketball left by placing a seesaw under it.
Blow both balls right with a fan next to a switch-operated outlet. The balloon
should turn on the switch, activating the outlet.
41. HELP POKEY GET HOME
The positioning of "Pokey lures" is crucial. Place a fishbowl immediately to
the right of each of the two gaps in the brick flooring. This will get Pokey
to the third level. Place a mouse on the third level to lure Pokey to the
right and a fishbowl an inch or so to the right of the third level to get Pokey
to walk off the edge. A mouse inside his house is all that will be needed to
finally get Pokey home.
42. RING OF FIRE
This may look foreboding but all you really need to do is light one piece of
dynamite. Place a size 4 incline so that its left edge is just under the
tennis ball and another incline to the left of the flashlight so that the ball
hits the flashlight, turning it on. Position a magnifying glass between the
flashlight and the second piece of dynamite from the lower right corner, and
the resulting explosion will do the rest.
43. LOWER THE BUCKET
The key is to break the balloon with a lighted candle. Extend the lower brick
floor with 3 size 5 conveyor belts to its left. Place a lightbulb and
magnifying glass to the left of the candle. Position a bowling ball so that it
falls onto the top seesaw whose lower end is tied to the lightbulb via a pulley
(below the level of the lightbulb). Place the solar panel below and to the
left of the upper most gear so that its far enough right that the outlet is
activated by the lighted candle and not by the lightbulb. A motor (with its
belt connector on the right) above the outlet should be connected to the left
of the bottom set of three gears and the upper-left gear should be connected to
the conveyor belt under the candle. The candle will then be shot to the right,
blowing out the balloon, and lowering the bucket.
44. PLAY A SET
Once you realize how to project the tennis ball to the right, the hardest
part's behind you. A piece of dynamite above and slightly to the left of the
tennis ball will do the trick. Now all that's necessary is to light it. With
its fuse hanging over the left edge, we'll be able to transport a flame to it
via the rocket. The rocket will do double duty. First, it must hit the
scissors, cutting the rope, releasing the pail, and turning on the flashlight
which you should place to the right of the magnifying glass, underneath the
pail. After the rocket hits the scissors, it should bounce left and land on a
launching pad to the left of the magnifying glass made of a horizontal wooden
block and two vertical blocks. There, it will be in position to be lighted by
the flashlight. The rocket will take off and ignite the dynamite, blowing the
ball to the right. Now all that's necessary is to elevate the ball. Place a
trampoline to the left of the "net", slightly elevated. Place a seesaw
(left-end down) between the tennis ball and trampoline. Tie the upper-right
end of the seesaw to a gun placed off to the left to prevent the seesaw from
tipping as the ball rolls up.
45. YOU GOTTA SMILE
Hope you found this easy. Let the tennis ball hit the balloon, bouncing
into a switched outlet which starts a motor attached to a gear positioned just
below the right eye.
46. SAVE BOB THE FISH
The way to prevent the cannonball from destroying Bob's home is to blow out the
bottom right section of wall so that the ball rolls out to the right before it
hits the incline to the right of the fishbowl. Place the dynamite on the small
brick shelf near the bottom center of the screen with its fuse sticking out to
the right. Place a baseball in the gap above the flashlight. Position a
magnifying glass to light a candle that you've placed on top of the conveyor
belt. Position Kelly the monkey above and to the left of the candle (Kelly
should be facing left). Tie the lower-right end of the second seesaw to the
monkey's shade via a pulley located below the monkey. Connect Kelly's bicycle
to the conveyor belt, and you (and Bob) should be all set.
47. FETCH A PAIL
The tough part of this puzzle is getting the right pail on the right side.
We'll transport it there using the conveyor belt at the bottom of the screen.
First, position a mouse motor on the right side of the screen, along with three
vertically meshed gears to its left, and two horizontally meshed gears on the
third brick shelf from the bottom right. Connect the mouse motor to the first
of the three vertically meshed gears. Connect the third of the three gears to
the conveyor belt under the right pail. Connect the second of the three gears
to one of the gears on the brick shelf. Connect the last gear to the remaining
conveyor belt. Dropping a ball on the mouse motor will send both pails off to
the left. The left-most pail should fall to the left of the brick wall and the
right-most pail should fall to the right. Place another mouse motor on top of
the left side of the second conveyor belt from the bottom and connect it to the
bottom conveyor belt. The right-most pail should strike the mouse motor and
fall to the activated conveyor belt on the bottom, throwing it right.
48. EXERCISE KELLY THE MONKEY
The object here is to hit the seesaw tied to Kelly's shade with a rocket.
Place a trampoline under the left-most cannonball, and have it bounce into a
mouse motor (the mouse should be facing right) connected to a size 2 conveyor
belt in the column under the second cannonball. The mouse motor should send
this cannonball to the adjacent column to its right where it should land on a
trampoline and bounce up and off a seesaw at the top of the column into the
next column to the right (tie the lower-left end of this seesaw to the upper-
right end of the seesaw below and to the left to prevent it from tipping). The
rest is easy: the cannonball should land on a flashlight pointed at a
magnifying glass and a rocket positioned on the piece of pipe in the lower
right corner.
49. FEELING A LITTLE OUT OF SORTS
This puzzle doesn't require so much timing as it does time. How to position
the seesaws, inclines, and such just right. Try this: Place a size 3 incline
2 spaces under the first ball deflecting it to the right. Place a seesaw 2
spaces above the wooden floor with its fulcrum lined up between the second and
third balls. Position a size 3 incline 2 spaces under the fourth ball
deflecting it to the left. Place a size 2 incline on the wooden floor under
the fifth ball deflecting it to the right. Position a size 2 incline 3 spaces
under the sixth ball deflecting it to the left. Finally, place a size 1
incline under the seventh ball deflecting it to the right. If you did
everything right, the following should happen: The third ball should be the
first to hit the seesaw. It should hit the seesaw's right side (a moment
before the second ball hits the seesaw's left side) and bounce over to the
right hole. Upon hitting the right side of the seesaw, it will flip the second
ball off to the left hole. Next, the first ball should hit the seesaw's center
point and bounce off to the right hole. Then, the fourth ball should hit the
seesaw's left side (flipping it down) and bounce off to the left hole. The
fifth ball should hit the incline on the wood floor and bounce off to the right
hole. The sixth ball should hit its incline and roll underneath the seesaw
to the left hole. And, lastly, the seventh ball should hit its incline and
bounce over to the right hole. Nothing to it!
50. POP, POP, POP, POP, AND... POP
Not as bad as it seems once you realize that conveyor belts should be
positioned under the balloons. Place 3 size 5 conveyor belts under the
balloons (leave space between the conveyor belts and the balloons) extending off
to the left. Position a magnifying glass above the middle of the left-most
conveyor belt and a flashlight to its left. Drop a baseball onto the
flashlight to light the candle that has fallen onto the left-most conveyor
belt. The ball should bounce off the flashlight to the left where it should
land onto a trampoline to the left of the left-most conveyor belt, bounce up
into the air, and onto a mouse motor sitting atop the two left-most gears (all
of this is necessary in order to stall the movement of the conveyor belts while
the candle gets lit). Connect the mouse motor (mouse facing right) to the
conveyor belt, and watch the pops.
51. REPLACING BOB'S BOWL
Bounce the cannonball over to Bob. First, place a size 3 conveyor belt under
it connected to a mouse motor situated above the balloon (mouse should face
left). Position a size 2 incline next to the incline that's below left of the
cannonball to form a "V". This will move the cannonball past the first
vertical channel. Next, place a size 1 incline (pointing up and to the right)
below and to the right of the pulley to once again prevent the ball from
rolling into the center channel. After a moment, the cannonball will "fall
through" the vertical wall under the pulley where you should arrange for it to
land on a trampoline. The ball will then bounce into the channel under Bob
where another trampoline will complete the solution.
52. TRAP MORT THE MOUSE
This puzzle requires just a little tweaking. Have the tennis ball fall onto a
switched outlet which turns on a fan blowing the ball left. Use the boxing
glove and seesaw to send the ball onto a trampoline on the floor under the
scissors.
53. RED ALERT!
A lighted candle is the trick to lighting all of the rockets. And there are
plenty of tools to work with. I placed my candle on a size 1 conveyor belt
immediately to the left of the lip on the lower brick floor. A bowling ball
falling onto a seesaw lights a bulb which lights the candle (via a magnifying
glass, of course). A cannonball falls from on high (to give the candle time to
light) onto a mouse motor connected to the conveyor belt which sends the lighted
candle to the right to create the fireworks.
54. SET OFF FIREWORKS
Speaking of fireworks, this one's a bit trickier than #53 since you have to set
off a chain reaction. Place a flashlight under the baseball to light the
rocket in the bottom right corner. The rocket should crash into Bob the Fish
which will lure the Pokey the Cat onto the level with Mort the Mouse. Mort
will run off to the left where he should fall onto a pair of scissors placed so
as to cut the rope holding up the pail. Have the pail fall onto the dynamite
plunger blasting the tennis ball up into the air (make sure the dynamite is
below and ever so slightly to the right of the ball) and onto a trampoline at
the bottom of the narrow pipe channel under the switched outlet. The ball
should switch on the outlet which should start an electric motor connected to a
generator which should power on a fan blowing a windmill connected to the
jack-in-the-box. All that's left is to have the cannonball fall onto a
flashlight next to the magnifying glass.
55. PUNCH THE BUCKET
Which balls to use? How about the bowling ball in the top right, the baseball,
and the cannonball in the bottom left. Place a seesaw with its lower-right end
under the baseball and another seesaw with its lower-left end under the
cannonball in the bottom left. Position a size 1 incline four spaces under the
bowling ball and adjacent to the far right wall. The bowling ball will deflect
to the left and land on the seesaw, flipping the baseball into the gap between
the incline and the short vertical block to the right of where the baseball
was. The baseball will roll down the lower channel onto the seesaw where it
should flip the cannonball into the channel on the left. There you should use
a trampoline at the bottom of the channel and a seesaw with its upper-right end
at the top of the channel to direct the cannonball into the boxing glove.
56. HAPPY SECOND BIRTHDAY
This solution is pretty much the same as that for puzzle #55. Have the
cannonball fall onto a trampoline and bounce into the upper-right end of a
seesaw. This should deflect the ball into a boxing glove to the left of the
pail.
57. LET MORT OUT OF THE BOX
This should be more like "Blow Mort Out of the Box." Place a trampoline under
the baseball and a boxing glove above it to deflect it right, onto a dynamite
plunger, blowing a hole in the bottom left corner of the box. The ball should
then bounce back to the left onto a seesaw whose upper-right end is tied to
Kelly the Monkey inside the box. Kelly's pedaling should then drive a conveyor
belt placed under Mort at the bottom of the box, sending Mort to the left, down
into the hole and oblivion.
58. EXERCISE ALL FOUR MICE
In this puzzle, you not only have to exercise all 4 mice but you must get them
running simultaneously. The resulting solution is a relatively symmetrical
one: Position a seesaw so that it's centered under the vertical wall
separating the two basketballs. This will cause each basketball to perpetually
flip the other into the mouse motors in the center. Connect these two mouse
motors to size 3 conveyor belts under the tennis balls and send one down the
brick chute to the left, and the other down the brick chute to the right. Send
each tennis ball down a combination size 4 and size 1 incline so that they land
right on top of a trampoline at the bottom of each pipe chute. There, the
tennis balls should eventually make there way up to the mouse motors at the far
left and right. (Make sure the size 1 inclines are adjacent to the
trampolines; this will ensure that one tennis ball doesn't stop bouncing before
the other tennis ball has reached its mark.)
59. LOWER THE BOOM
Drop the pail into the "hole" at the bottom center of the screen. You only
need to use one of the cannons here. Have the baseball fall onto a seesaw
whose upper-left end is tied to a lightbulb next to the cannon on the right.
Use the lightbulb with a magnifying glass to ignite this cannon, and position a
pair of scissors so that the ejected ball hits the bottom of the scissors,
cutting the rope, and releasing the pail. If necessary, line up a couple of
pieces of pipe to direct the falling cannonball into the pail.
60. CAT-A-PULTING
Another timing puzzle. Here, you must first lower the middle bucket with the
cannonball, then "punch" Pokey off the right edge of the brick floor. Position
a seesaw with its lower-right end just under the left edge of the cannonball.
Center a horizontal piece of pipe over the bucket that's suspended just under
the gap in the brick floor. Place a basketball to the right of the suspended
bucket in the top left corner of the screen and have it fall onto a size 4
incline. Lastly, place a boxing glove to Pokey's left. The basketball should
roll down the incline and fall onto the seesaw flipping the cannonball into the
air where it will hit the metal piping and fall down into the bucket. This
bucket will fall and raise the bucket blocking Pokey's path. In the meantime,
assuming the basketball built up enough momentum, it should bounce over to the
boxing glove, scooting Pokey off the right edge and down below.
61. PUT MORT IN PRISON
Cut the rope holding up the cage, blow up the wooden flooring, and you're home
free. You can cut the rope by positioning two size 4 inclines end to end to
lead the baseball onto a pair of scissors pointing right. A trampoline under
the dynamite should bounce and deflect it onto the wooden shelf above Mort.
Tie the gun to the upper-left end of the seesaw and aim it at the ultimate
destination of the dynamite. All that's left is to delay the bowling ball's
arrival onto the seesaw via a couple of size 4 inclines and maybe a mouse
motor.
62. ELIMINATE THE BALLOONS
A fairly simple puzzle complicated by the fact that Kelly is preventing the
baseball from directly falling onto the seesaw. So use a size 4 incline to
send the baseball right, bouncing off the tip of the cannon onto a size 2
incline, leading the ball back to the left, where it can fall onto a size 4
incline (positioned below and to the right of Kelly) and, finally, deposited
onto the seesaw. [Alternatively, you can have the baseball turn on a
flashlight and with the help of a magnifying glass, ignite the cannon
(positioning of the flashlight and magnifying glass is very tight); then use a
size 2 incline under the first gap in the wood floor to roll the cannonball to
the right, down, and to the left into the boxing glove; a pair of size 4
inclines can then be used to get the basketball onto the seesaw.] With the
help of a rope tied from the seesaw to Kelly's shade, start Kelly bicycling.
Connect Kelly to the first of three meshed gears (above and to the left of the
conveyor belt), the third of which should be connected to the conveyor belt.
This will then help convey a dire message to the balloons.
63. LAUNCH ALL THE ROCKETS
Use the baseball and basketball. With the help of a size 4 incline, roll the
baseball onto the seesaw whose lower-right end is tied via a pulley to a
lightbulb/magnifying glass combination in the bottom right to ignite the two
rockets there (the space is a little tight). Similarly, position a seesaw
under the basketball and tie its lower-right end via a pulley to a
lightbulb/magnifying glass combination in the bottom left to ignite the rocket
there.
64. FIRE THE CANNON
Perhaps this puzzle should be more aptly titled "Try Lighting the Flashlight
with the Baseball." Actually, this puzzle is not too bad. Have the ball hit
the lower-left end of a seesaw onto a mouse motor/conveyor belt combination
which should whoosh it off to the left and down. There it should collide with
another mouse motor/conveyor belt combo which should whoosh it back to the
right. Use another conveyor belt to direct the ball into the wooden channel
and onto the flashlight.
65. BREAK BOB'S FISHBOWL
Chain reaction time again. Have the boxing glove hit a mouse motor connected
to the generator which should power an electric motor connected to a the single
"free" gear. Deflect the tennis ball with a fan or two so that it falls on top
of the flashlight which then shines through a magnifying glass, ignites the
dynamite, and does Bob in.
66. KNOCK IT OFF
Keep it simple. Have the falling baseball drop onto a conveyor belt leading to
the baseball on the wooden block. Connect this conveyor belt to the mouse
motor. Deflect the floating balloon into the mouse motor with a gear
positioned against the bottom right corner of the lower conveyor belt.
Baseball in the side pocket...
67. TEN, NINE, EIGHT, IGNITION SEQUENCE START...
You may not like my solution. The puzzle goal says that you should "make the
rocket fly off the top of the screen." It doesn't actually say you have to
ignite it. Position a seesaw so that the rocket falls on its lower-right end
and the cannonball falls on its upper-left end. Flip the rocket onto a
trampoline. Up, up, and away!
68. MORT-TRAP
This puzzle's not terribly different from #61. Connect the gear to the
conveyor belt under Pokey and mesh this gear with another gear connected to the
mouse motor. Have Pokey land on a seesaw tied via the pulley to the gun.
Place a stick of dynamite under the cage to blow up the brick and land the cage
on Mort. You'll need to position an incline on the lower piping to keep Pokey
from eating his dinner too early.
69. SHEDDING SOME LIGHT
The first seesaw's connected to the...first pulley. The second seesaw's
connected to the... You got the idea. First, place a mouse motor under
bowling ball 2 (have the mouse face left) and connect the motor to a
conveyor belt under bowline ball 1. Tie lightbulb 1 to pulley 1 (the first of
the triplet of pulleys) to the right end of seesaw 1. Tie lightbulb 2 to
pulley 2 to the right end of seesaw 2. Tie lightbulb 3 to pulley 3 to the
right end of seesaw 4. Tie lightbulb 4 to the pulley in the bottom left corner
to the pulley in the top left corner to the left end of seesaw 2.
70. SAVE THE BOB SQUAD
Another simple puzzle whose layout is trying to make you think that the
solution is a complicated one. All you need to do is deflect the left
cannonball with a seesaw and cut the rope connected to the lightbulb with a
baseball/scissors combination. The worst part is waiting for TIM to realize
you've solved the puzzle.
71. THE WOODEN SHAFT
The trick here is to compress the bellows with a balloon-powered seesaw. Have
the tennis ball drop onto the upper-left end of a seesaw on the brick floor and
ricochet into a pair of scissors setting the balloon free. The balloon should
collide with the lower-left end of a seesaw (whose lower-left end is about 3/4
of an inch under the tip of the bellows). The rising seesaw will set off the
bellows which should blow a windmill connected to a generator powering a motor
connected to a conveyor belt placed under all three baseballs.
72. LAYING DOWN A BUNT
More like blowing down a bunt. Have the cannonball drop onto a seesaw tied to
a lightbulb. The lightbulb should shine on a solar paneled outlet which should
power a fan blowing the baseball to the left. Direct the ball into the bucket
with one or two carefully placed pieces of pipe.
73. A PIRATE'S LIFE FOR ME
Free the candle. Center a mouse motor (mouse facing right) on the brick
flooring directly under the tennis ball. Next, position a flashlight above the
mouse motor so that the tennis ball first hits and turns on the flashlight and
then bounces to the right without directly hitting the mouse motor. The
flashlight should shine through a magnifying glass so that it can ignite a
stick of dynamite sitting on the left side (but not too far to the left) of the
brick shelf below the candle. After the explosion (which should free the
candle but not disturb the mouse motor), the candle should fall onto a size 5
conveyor belt centered two spaces below the brick shelf where the dynamite was
sitting. There, the candle will also be lit by the flashlight. Meanwhile, the
falling baseball should hit a pair of scissors freeing the balloon so that it's
not in the bouncing tennis ball's path. Have the tennis ball bump into another
pair of scissors and bounce back to the left where it can collide with the
mouse motor. Connect the mouse motor to the conveyor belt and the candle will
be delivered to its appointed destination. (Alternate: Instead of deflecting
the tennis ball to the right and back to the left into the mouse motor, use a
series of seesaws to delay the cannonball's collision with the same mouse motor
connected to the conveyor belt.)
74. CHASE AWAY THE MICE
I found this one to be especially mean. That cannonball has to perform three
tasks: turn on the fan, start a conveyor belt, and set off some dynamite.
Use a block to fill in the gap to the right of the upper mouse. Place three
size 4 inclines to create a path from the opening in the sidewall (below the
tennis ball) up toward the mouse motor. Position a size 5 conveyor belt to
Pokey's left, connect it to a gear (placed beneath Pokey's wooden perch) meshed
with a second gear connected to the mouse motor. Have the cannonball flip on a
switched outlet powering a fan blowing at Pokey. The cannonball should then
bump into the left side of the gun (placed above the mouse motor pointing
right), bump into and set off the mouse motor, fall onto the triplet of
inclines, roll into the sidewall gap, where it should fall onto a dynamite
plunger (blowing up the horizontal brick lip on the left center side of the
screen), and, finally, roll off the side of the screen. Meanwhile, Pokey gets
thrown to the left toward the mouse and the two of them subsequently fall
through the hole in the flooring. Position a size 4 incline under the dynamite
wiring allowing enough room underneath it for the mouse to sneak through but
not enough room for Pokey. (For an even greater challenge, skip this last
incline and try to get the cannonball to arrive in the bottom left corner of
the frame about the same time that Pokey and the mouse do. Then the cannonball
can intercede between Pokey and the 5 mice.)
75. BLOW UP
This solution is similar to puzzle #28. Place a seesaw beneath each of the
three inclines under the bowling ball. Each of the three seesaws should have
its left-end down and their fulcrums should be lined up directly under the
bowling ball. Place two more seesaws between the inclines on the right so
their left-ends are pointing up. Place a sixth seesaw below the lower-right
incline so that it's upper-left end barely lines up underneath the upper-right
end of the bottom seesaw on the left. At this point, if the solution is
started, the bowling ball should hit each seesaw and, finally, set off the
boxing glove. Once this is in place, position five pulleys just under the
lower end of each of the first five seesaws. Tie the lower-ends of the first
five seesaws via their corresponding pulleys to the top five guns. Tie the
upper-end of the sixth (lower-right) seesaw to the sixth gun via a pulley
positioned under pulley 5. Now as the seesaws are flipped, the guns will be
fired and the first six sticks of dynamite set off. Place a magnifying glass
and lightbulb to the right of the candle. Tie a rope from the lightbulb to a
pulley beneath the brick flooring (yes, it can fit) to the lower-right end of
the sixth seesaw. When the sixth seesaw flips (firing the sixth gun), it will
also turn on the lightbulb, lighting the candle, which will set off the last
stick of dynamite after being hit by the boxing glove.
76. BALLOONS IN DANGER
The trick to this puzzle's solution is understanding that a balloon will not
only break upon being hit by a flying bullet, but that it will also prevent
that bullet from hitting anything else. That said, place a balloon to the
right of the third gun as close to the brick wall as possible. Position the
scissors over the rope tied to the third gun, and place a second balloon under
the scissors. This balloon should hit the scissors (cutting the rope) and be
deflected toward the first balloon positioned above. The first balloon will
stop the first balloon, the second balloon the second, and the third gun will
never fire.
77. GETTING THE BALLS TOGETHER.
This can be pretty sticky until you figure out how to have the basketball both
nudge the bowling ball off the edge and follow it. The trick isn't to put the
basketball on the incline but rather to place it above and right of the bowling
ball's center. Then, the falling basketball will knock the bowling ball off,
bounce to the right onto the incline, and then roll off itself. Position a
mouse motor against the wooden wall one space below the bowling ball and
connect it to a size 5 conveyor belt positioned several spaces below the
baseball. After the bowling ball hits the mouse motor, have it flip a seesaw
whose fulcrum is 1 diagonal space away from the bottom left corner of the
mouse motor. Place a trampoline just above the incline at the mouth of the
hole to the right of the balloon. Both the bowling ball and basketball should
bounce off the mouse motor, onto the seesaw, bounce onto the trampoline, and
into the hole. Position a magnifying glass and flashlight to the right of the
cannon fuse. Place a stick of dynamite on the wooden flooring above the
flashlight, and a gun to its left, tied to the lower-right end of the seesaw.
When the bowling ball lands on the seesaw, the gun will be fired, exploding the
dynamite, and providing a path for the baseball to fall down onto the
flashlight setting off the cannon.
78. FREE POOR POKEY THE CAT
This is another puzzle whose solution can be elusive. The trick behind raising
the cage is dropping the cannonball into the bucket. And the trick to flipping
the cannonball off the seesaw is to tie a balloon to the seesaw's lower end.
First, the easy stuff. Position a size 1 incline (pointing up from right to
left) with its bottom point directly on top of the right balloon so that the
balloon bounces off the third mouse motor into the second mouse motor. Tie the
bucket to the cage via the two prepositioned pulleys. Finally, don't have the
cannonball fall onto the prepositioned seesaw...it's too low. Instead,
position another seesaw whose lower-right end is immediately under the
cannonball and tie that end to the balloon in the lower-left corner. Use a
size 1 incline to bounce this balloon off the side of mouse motor 1, then let
it rise and pop the cannonball off the seesaw and into the bucket.
79. PUT THE BALLS INTO THE BASKETS
Figuring out where to position a seesaw tied to the right balloon in order to
activate the lower mouse motor is the secret here. Place the seesaw just above
the opening to the smaller wooden basket and tie its lower-left end to the
right balloon. Then connect the lower mouse motor to the conveyor belt under
the basketball. Connect the upper mouse motor to the upper conveyor belt
(under the bowling ball) via a pair of meshed gears (in order to reverse the
direction of the conveyor belt). Also, place another seesaw so that its
lower-left end is adjacent to the lower-right corner of the vertical piece of
brick that's roughly center screen. This should deflect the bowling ball into
the taller basket.
80. BASKETBALL ON THE MOON
A jack-in-the-box will perform the foul shot. Place it immediately under the
basketball and connect it to the left-most gear. Connect the meshed gear to
Kelly's bicycle which you should locate just below the gears. Tie Kelly's
shade to the cage and blow up a stick of dynamite placed under the cage using
the flashlight, magnifying glass, and baseball.
81. BREAKING DOWN THE WALL
The title says it all. But how and where to position the dynamite? My idea is
as follows: Position the trampoline so that it is adjacent to the brick wall
and its legs are level with the cannon muzzle. Position the dynamite just
above the trampoline. The bowling ball should fall onto the seesaw whose
upper-right end pulls on a lightbulb located just to the left of the highest
piece of brick (above and to the left of the trampoline) and whose lower-left
end turns on a lightbulb (via the lower pulley) located to the left of the
cannon. The lightbulb by the brick should light the dynamite (via a magnifying
glass positioned close to the lightbulb) and, naturally, the other lightbulb
(and magnifying glass) should light the cannon. Tweak the positions of these
various objects until the cannonball safely makes its way into the bucket.
82. BOUNCE, BOUNCE, BOUNCE GO THE BALLS
It's all in the positioning. Place one trampoline at the bottom of the far
right well (under the basketball). Place another so that's it level with the
top of the adjacent well to the left. (Deflect the basketball to the left of
the first well by placing a size 2 incline high above the first well so that
half of the incline is off the top of the screen.) Then play with three more
trampolines. I put one just to the left of the bottom of the wells, a second
above and to the right of the pipe basket, and a third just to the right of the
pipe basket.
83. LIGHT MY FIRE
Light the rocket and fly it sideways! Have the cannonball fall onto the left
side of a flashlight and bounce to the left. The flashlight should light the
candle via a magnifying glass; the cannonball should bounce onto a size 2
conveyor belt and then land on a mouse motor (the conveyor belt prevents it
from landing on the mouse motor prematurely) connected to the gear above and to
the left of the candle. Mesh two more gears to the right of this gear and
connect the third of the three to the lower-right conveyor belt (under the
rocket) and the second of the three to one of the pair of gears above the
rocket. The second of the pair of gears should connect to a size 5 conveyor
belt positioned immediately under these two gears. Thus, the candle is lit,
then shifted right on the conveyor belt to light the rocket which takes off and
hits the upper conveyor belt moving it to the left. Use a size 4 incline, then
a pair of unpowered size 5 conveyor belts following by another size 4 incline
to continue to move the rocket to the left lighting the four candles sitting on
the brick pedestals. The candle that originates in the top left corner (the
last one to be lit by the rocket) should fall onto the upper-left end of a
seesaw whose lower-right end turns on a lightbulb (via a pulley beneath the
brick flooring). This lightbulb in conjunction with a magnifying glass can be
positioned near the bottom-left corner to light the remaining two candles.
84. REMOVING THE PATTERN
Perhaps this one should be called "Tweak till Your Blue in the Face." I placed
a pair of scissors pointing left just above and to the right of the the
farthest right pulley (in the cross). I placed one cannonball so that it
dropped immediately into the left bucket and the second cannonball above the
right bucket and just under the top piping. This way, the second cannonball
falls into the right bucket at exactly the same time that the bucket itself
bumps into the scissors cutting the rope (don't let the cannonball hit the
scissors and bounce away from the bucket). Then it's a matter of watching the
puzzle unravel.
85. PUT THE CAGE IN THE HOLE
Swing your cage to the left, then promenade back to the right. Tie a rope so
that the falling bucket fires the gun at the cage and the bucket hits the mouse
motor. The cage should be tied to the hook under its wooden base. Place a
size 3 conveyor belt just above (but not right on top of) the wooden flooring
at the bottom of the screen so that the right edge of the conveyor belt lines
up with the hook. Place a size 5 conveyor belt right on top of the wooden
flooring at the bottom of the screen so that its left edge lines up with the
scissors' red handles. Fill the gap between the wooden incline and the brick
with a size 3 conveyor belt. Now wire it all up. Connect the mouse motor to
the far-right gear, the far-left conveyor belt to the far-left gear, the lower-
middle conveyor belt to the bottom gear, and the lower-right conveyor belt to
the third of the top four gears. The cage should be shot off the side of its
wooden base, and land on the first conveyor belt. It should then fall off the
right edge of this conveyor belt and just hang there by the rope until the
baseball hits the scissors and cuts it free. The cage should then fall onto
the lower conveyor belt, move right, climb the incline onto the last conveyor
belt, and be dumped into the hole.
86. SAVE MORT FROM THE CATS
This one's nothin' compared to the last few. When Mort falls through the first
gap, have him bump into a mouse motor (mouse facing right) and fall to the left
toward the gears onto a size 4 conveyor belt whose left edge is immediately
above the far right gear. Connect the conveyor belt to the mouse motor, and
Mort's problems are behind him.
87. UP, UP, AND AWAY
Lots of options and lots of red-herrings. But when you figure that all you
need is for the lower baseball to fall onto the flashlight, the problem gets
easier. Keep the cannonball from blocking the gap by placing a size 1 conveyor
belt immediately below it. Roll the baseball left by placing a seesaw
immediately below it. The baseball should land on a size 5 conveyor belt
connected to a mouse motor (mouse facing right) off to the left. The rolling
basketball should hit the mouse motor before the baseball rolls off to the
left. Once the mouse starts motoring, the baseball will get thrown to the
right, down the hole, and onto the flashlight. Then all you need is a
magnifying glass, and patience while you wait for "More Incredible Machines"
coming to a store near you in early '93.
THE INCREDIBLE MACHINE is published and distributed by Sierra On-Line.
This walkthru is copyright (c) 1992 by Larry Schneider.
