I'm a long-time fan of Zachtronics as a developer.

For people that know Zachtronics:

This game feels like a cross between TIS-100 and Opus magnum - it has all the vibes and feel of the TIS-100 computer programmer, with all the puzzle solving of Opus magnum. You get all the usual histograms and statistics. This game has a particularly nice addition of a "top percentile" bracket, so you can compare yourself against the top 10% or top 1% if you enable it in settings for your best solutions. Somehow, it still lacks a little polish, but it has the regular quality of any Zachtronics game.

For people that don't know Zachtronics:

If you like statistics and puzzles, along with constantly trying to get a more efficient solution, you have struck a goldmine. Have a look at all the games Zachtronics have to offer though before you buy MOLEK-SYNTEZ! I cannot recommend his games enough, which is why I'm reviewing this game on release day - specifically Infinifactory, and SpaceChem.

If you're familiar with Zachtronics games, you already know what this game is by the description.... a cross between Opus Magnum and Spacechem, with appealingly ugly TIS-100 type B&W graphics.

For those not familiar with Zachtronics.... These are puzzle games. HARD puzzle games. This is for people who like their intelligence challenged. This is for people who love staring at a screen for 2 hours, trying to figure out a problem. These games are punishingly hard. I own all of the Zachtronics games... and I've only 'beaten' 2 of them... But i keep playing, because it's a good kind of pain. I won't google a guide.... i'll keep staring at that screen, and when I win, it is soooooo sweet.

It's always a risky thing to review a Zachtronics game. Their games cover such a range of puzzle difficulties and mechanics that you run the risk of evaluating them too early. That said, we have some points of comparison here that allow us to say things about MOLEK-SYNTEZ.

Other reviewers have described this as a cross between TIS-100 and Opus Magnum. I believe the TIS-100 similarities are largely just on the surface - the UI, the color palette, the very oblique story. In terms of game mechanics, comparing this to Opus Magnum is on point - I'd say "Opus Magnum crossed with SpaceChem" is more accurate. The "waldos" you use in this game have a slightly different set of operations. Unlike Opus Magnum, the arena in which you operate is finite, which certainly increases the difficulty level.

I'm enjoying the game, but - as with SpaceChem - at this point I can already see the point where it will become too difficult for me. I have a friend who, when I suggest Zachtronics games to them, demurs with "I already have a job." I think that's a fair response. I love their games; if you're not sure if you'd like this, I'd suggest start with Opus Magnum first and then decide.

If you know you already like their games, well then, what are you waiting for?

I don't really hesitate before picking up a new Zachtronics title. SHENZHEN I/O, Opus Magnum, and EXAPUNKS are some of my favorite puzzle games of all time. Even TIS-100, as minimalistic and esoteric as it is, was interesting to play.

This game has none of the elements that made those previous games good.

There's nothing about this game that's obviously bad, but there's also nothing really interesting about it. The result is that MOLEK-SYNTEZ just ends up feeling boring. The puzzle mechanics are quite limited, with most puzzles just having you do the same thing over and over. It ends up feeling like a repetitive chore. I've had to force myself to open up the game and do some more puzzles to see if maybe it gets good later. It doesn't.

After having not played the game for a few weeks, I feel zero desire to pick it up again.

Presentation wise, the game resembles TIS-100: extremely minimalistic. It's just a grayscale UI for selecting puzzles, really. There is no story, or any sort of window dressing for that matter.

One positive note: the drone-like ambient music is some of the best in any Zachtronics game. I've always found the puzzle music too intrusive in previous games (looking at you, SHENZHEN). You need something calm if you're going to do some thinking, and the music in MOLEK-SYNTEZ is perfect for that.

Vague story? Check!
Wonky mechanics? Check!
Something something chemistry? Check!
Solitair for some reason? Check!
Hexagons? Check!
Everybody else is always better at this? Check!
____________________________
The whole Zachtronics Experience? Check!

P.S.:I swear, this is a positive review!

If you know zachtronics, you know what you're in for

I'm a simple man. I see a new Zachtronics game, I buy.

I'm not far in yet, but early on, it's a tough call for a recommend. If you are a Zach fan, you'll get it anyway. If you're not, this one doesn't quite have the magic to pull you in. There's no real explanations, not even a PDF like with some of the others, and I find myself floundering a little.

So yeah, what everyone else said- lo-fi reboot of Opus Magnum. Instead of placing arms in the field you're acting on the field from the perimeter only. And instead of simply saying "bond" or "de-bond", you have to finagle chemical reactions by throwing hydrogen around.

Unfortunately it has the particular quality that Opus Magnum has that makes it less satisfying to me. While in SpaceChem or Exapunks, every solution feels like a triumph, in Opus Magnum and this one, you can kind of brute force any ugly solution and move on. Sometimes I'm embarrassed and I'll go back to improve them, but sometimes, I just leave a mangled Frankenstein and advance.

I know it doesn't sound like I'm recommending it. But it's a Zachtronics game- a programming puzzler of consummate quality and innovation. This one just happens to not top my list. But it's still among the best in a growing sea of Zach-like clones.

As I spent my last 4 years majoring in analytical chemistry I decided I'd pick up this gem.

As with organic chemistry I have a love hate relationship with this game. The stylistic choice of working from the cold monotone computer screen throughout the game, while the protagonist monologues to themselves, was interesting and adds to the gameplay. However, there is no introduction to the game or tutorial which is a bit jarring so experimentation with the game mechanics is necessary for progression.

Bar the annoying start, the mechanisms of molecules within the game are realistic and the puzzle solving is rewarding.

Read the full review (with animations) here: https://saveorquit.com/2020/01/01/review-molek-syntez/

Although with the real chemical symbols, one might think SpaceChem, the parallels to Zachtronic's previous Opus Magnum are clearly overwhelming. This is essentially Opus Magnum in monochrome without the endless grid, the infinite instructions to give widgets, or the infinite widgets to place. The restraints in some ways make the game much easier, as you no longer have to make mind-bending 50+ widget contraptions that run on intricately-timed tracks, nor program a single simple swing arm to perform 100+ instructions to minimize on costs.

That said, I still think Opus Magnum was Zachtronics's magnum opus, and the 80's mainframe and film noir aesthetic of MOLEK-SYNTEZ aren't as edifying as the colorful steampunk pistons of Opus Magnum.

Also, unlike SpaceChem, this game is strict about the exact positioning of individual atoms that, chemically speaking, describe the same thing. A benzene ring with the double bonds oriented the wrong way will be rejected. Actual chemistry buffs will be highly annoyed. (Although they'd have to have already looked past the sub-atomic-scale hydrogen-atom-firing tractor-beam operating robots you program to worry about that...) Prepare for frustration as the game's archaic and obtuse order of operations for ion bonding priorities ruins perfectly good solutions.

Regardless, if you loved Opus Magnum, or maybe wanted something just a liiiittle bit simpler, this is probably on your level. If you run in terror of games that challenge your mental order of operations problem-solving... well, run in terror of this game.

Zachtronics's engineering puzzle games have two main flavors: The programming sort, like TIS-100, SHENZHEN i/O, and EXAPUNKS. And the mechanical sort, like Opus Magnum, Spacechem, and Infinifactory.

MOLEK-SYNTEZ is of the mechanical engineering axis, with a drug-addled cyberpunk dystopian aesthetic. It has a simple verb set and a quick difficulty ramp up, so you'd benefit from experience with any of the previously mentioned games.
Very good puzzles. Optimizing for any of the 3 measured metrics tends to lead to wildly different solutions (if you can puzzle out any solution at all).

Highly recommended for fans of Zachtronics, but probably not the best entry point for a new comer.

My recommended Zachtronics play orders for the smoothest difficulty ramp.
Mechanical: Infinifactory, Opus Magnum, Spacechem, MOLEK-SYNTEZ
Programming: EXAPUNKS, TIS-100, SHENZHEN I/O
Although I've not completed it yet, I also recommend "Eliza" for an entirely different sort of game that still looks at the world through an engineer's eyes. Review on that to come in the future I'm sure.