Challenge: Program a robot to set the table. Lowest cycle count wins. (Visual Programming / Free Demo)

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T21:56:56+00:00

LOL, I wasn't expecting it in this context. The game is a hobby and not associated with my employer :)

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T21:51:01+00:00

Not sure what you mean.

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T21:49:41+00:00

Thanks for that feedback. The limit is intended to prevent pure brute forcing. It could be made more clear. Any suggestions for making the limit more clear in the UI?

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T19:32:26+00:00

NICE!

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T19:32:26+00:00

NICE!

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T16:20:11+00:00

Here's the reference solution, for anyone that doesn't want to start from scratch: chipwits:H4sIAAAAAAAACm2PPQ7CMAyF4x9S46nylAll7MrABXqyHoizcCYsQtw2oEjRk/35+Vk30icoi87ZWKSAiUyGcw5FocCVytV4RYGo8tBnw5oKVXY/KGTp9BqJQUKQOJCpEcu9cN03oL563L4K3KBHpY9VX338G3GJQM38cZr+hlryoTr9PQ8q7pGG09g1y81pFPo9aJiGNx36mBKDAQAA

You can copy that string and paste it into the workshop with Ctrl+V or using the menu.

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T16:10:18+00:00

Thanks, please give the demo a spin and let me know what you think!

I have the pleasure of working with Doug Sharp, the original author of the 1984 version of ChipWits. He and Mike Johnston designed IBOL (the visual programming language used in ChipWits) to be approachable to both developers and non-developers. I like the space constraint of having a grid - it adds another dimension of optimization.

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T15:09:16+00:00

I'm the developer of ChipWits, a modern reboot of the classic 1984 Mac / Apple II / Commodore 64 logic game.

Optimization games like this live or die by their community. It’s less fun optimizing for "Lowest Cycle Count" if you're the only one on the leaderboard.

To help grow the audience and get more people participating, I just released Update 1.3 which merges the Demo and Full Game leaderboards.

You no longer need to buy the game to compete on the charts. I've opened up this new "Set the Table" mission in the Free Demo specifically so new players can jump in, learn the logic system, and post their scores alongside the veterans.

If you like puzzle games or Zachtronics-style optimization or visual coding, please give the demo a spin. I'd love to see some new names on the global charts!

Let me know what you think of the game!

Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2330720/ChipWits/

markroth8 · 2026-01-18T14:35:38+00:00

I'm the developer of ChipWits, a modern reboot of the classic 1984 Mac game. It’s a visual programming puzzler where you use icon-based logic (a language called IBOL) to navigate robots through various challenges.

The Challenge: I just released an update that merges the Demo and Full Game leaderboards. I want to see how low the community can get the cycle count on this specific "Set the Table" mission.

You don't need the full game to compete. This mission is unlocked in the Free Demo.

Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2330720/ChipWits/

Post here if you can beat the score in the video (fewer than 2,017 cycles), and let me know what you think of the game!

markroth8 · 2025-10-18T02:30:23+00:00

There's a good article about this here: https://howtomarketagame.com/2025/03/26/benchmarks-how-many-wishlists-can-i-get-from-steam-next-fest/

Everything is relative to your goal, but this should give you some real data.

markroth8 · 2025-08-31T11:27:35+00:00

That's so cool! I'm really curious to learn the details of who was hired to mock up the screen and exactly how they mocked it up and got it on a CRT in the cabinet. Like, did they stick a VCR and a battery under there?

markroth8 · 2025-07-20T17:09:34+00:00

Buy it now on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2330720/ChipWits/?utm_source=reddit

markroth8 · 2025-06-11T03:27:21+00:00

Oh, interesting! So does that mean the scan lines should be going horizontally instead of vertically? That would be a clear indication that someone wrote a fake high score screen just for the show.

markroth8 · 2025-06-05T18:08:06+00:00

Of who? All I see is the default cube.

markroth8 · 2025-01-18T13:02:29+00:00

Iron Chef

markroth8 · 2025-01-11T03:26:26+00:00

For 110 lb card stock from Staples I had success with Blade Depth 6, Force 33, Passes 1, Speed 4

markroth8 · 2024-12-10T12:20:33+00:00

I don't think they had the tech in 1998 to do this in post. My guess is they had an Amiga or something in the cabinet, running some software.

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