Alright, here goes nothing. I’m diving into the wild ride of Mashina, and honestly, I somehow ended up here after clawing my way through Donkey Kong Bananza. Oh boy, 2025 is shaping up to be the “year of the hole.” Seriously. I mean, digging in games? It’s the new thing, apparently. Three games, no wait — four, kinda missed Rusty Rabbit there for a sec. Whatever. Point is, Mashina has joined this trend like right at the perfect time.
Mashina is this game from a duo called Talha and Jack Co. They’re still experimenting with stop-motion animation, that artsy, quirky thing where you feel like you’re moving clay with your mind. Anyway, there’s this egg-shaped robot, on a big mission to, you guessed it, save her world by digging. Yep, digging. A lo-fi chill-out fest, sort of a break after the loud noises of Donkey Kong’s ecosystem-wrecking ways. Maybe I needed that. Or maybe it was just a reason to procrastinate. Who knows?
Kinda feels like Steamworld Dig, if you’ve played that. You jump into this 2D mine, drilling and hunting for minerals like a treasure seeker with a severe caffeine addiction. You cram ‘em into your inventory — that weird grid thing they always show, no idea why it’s so fun — drop ‘em off at base, earn yourself some skill points. And there are these friendly robots on the surface with the kind of quests you do for fun little rewards. Better drills, teleporters, you get the idea. Kinda hooked me in like a cute bot commune.
Digging’s got its own vibe though. Building tunnels is like weaving a chaotic spider web underground — oddly satisfying until, boom, you hit the clunky walls of a not-so-perfect building system. Mineral-transporting conveyor belts? Not as breezy as it sounds. Grind-heavy third act? Hit me harder than I expected. But, there’s something about Mashina, this messy charm in its landscapes and its primitive stop-motion scenes. Reminds me of some funky album art. Sloppy? Maybe. But it mirrors its quirky visuals perfectly.
Claymation, right? It’s magic in that you can feel the humanness, the fingerprints left behind, the scrappy crafting. Mashina is kind of thumbprinted like that, you can almost see the hands working behind the scenes. Oh! And let’s not miss the weirdly captivating moments. Like digging with some crackling radio tunes — felt like driving a truck cross-country at 3 a.m., staying awake with whatever the FM waves will throw at you. Mashina’s story might not win awards for depth, but for night owls, it’s like a quiet little nod. A small applause for those keeping things running when the rest of the world is snug in bed.
