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Submachine 3: The Loop is a point-and-click game of exploration and puzzle solving created by Mateusz Skutnik and hosted by Arcade Town. As the intro so cleverly notes, there are no items to collect, no diary to keep, no trash bin to check, and no spoon to, er, bend. It's just you, the machine, and an infinite metallic world to explore one screen at a time.
Each level is structured in similar fashion with puzzles to solve that unlock the main exit button. You'll usually find a map in the room to your right as the level begins, and it marks the location of clues you'll need to help you figure out how to unlock the exit. A coordinate system helps to navigate the massive world, and without it you could literally move from room to room until you passed out from exhaustion. The coordinates actually play a big part in solving the game's riddles, so if you're stuck, just look at the room number.
Puzzles range from simple to moderately complex, but none of them are utterly impossible. That wouldn't make for much of a game, would it? Nothing is ever spelled out for you, so you'll need to rely on your own powers of observation to progress. The vast, empty world free from hand-holding and lengthy tutorials reminds me somewhat of Myst, as do the machinery-related puzzles and slide show presentation. Although the visuals are extremely simple, they certainly are effective and let you focus on solving the puzzles and progressing further into the game.
The game uses passwords to save your progress, so check the top of the screen as you begin each level for the code. Also, keep a piece of paper handy to jot down notes or draw maps. Submachine 3 almost requires note taking.
A note for Windows users: in addition to playing this game online, you can also get a downloadable version to play offline. Simply check the bottom of the page at Arcade Town for the link.
Cheers to Stephen, Tom, and Robert, all who suggested this game while we were writing up the review. =)
Still not Submachine satisfied? Play the entire Submachine series...Outside the main storyline, and yet still another great Submachine, is a game created for the band Future Loop Foundation:
- The original Submachine
- Submachine Zero: Ancient Adventure
- Submachine 2: The Lighthouse
- Submachine 3: The Loop
- Submachine 4: The Lab
- Submachine 5: The Root
- Submachine: Future Loop Foundation
Submachine 3 walkthrough now available!
Comments (may contain spoilers)
Hmmm. That's weird--I'm signed in with TypeKey, have the 'Thanks for signing in' message...and *still* get the 'Thanks for commenting, have you considered signing up for Typekey?' message when I hit post. :-/ I've got 'Remember Personal Info' checked, but it becomes unchecked the next time I try to comment. I'm using Firefox, but definitely *not* clearing cache or cookies between posts (and I know it retains cookies on other sites). I *do* have AdBlock installed, but not sure if that would be affecting this or not.
As a side note, the TypeKey login claims the cookie lasts for 2 weeks.
Okay i totally dont get the 3rd level with the four panels of four numbers.
WHAT DO I DO?
Three won't work for me! I

Ah, finally finished. Didn't take too long, not enough levels, puzzles not nearly hard enough!! Lack of plot continuation!! All in all, kinda disappointing. I hope the lab tells us more about what's actually going on in the submachine.
To all still confused by lvl 3:


Yeah, having no real plot continuation is a bummer.
Chris - the very first time you comment with a new TypeKey account, your comments are still held for moderation until I add your TypeKey account to my list of "trusted" commenters. Your account was added on Sunday, so your future comments should show up immediately. This is entirely different from the comment preview problem that I was able to fix with yours and Amor Lassie's help last week. So thanks for that! =)
And you're right about the cookies. The "Remember personal information" on my site's cookie saves the info for a year, however the TypeKey cookie is saved for only 2 weeks.
I guess it doesn't make any sense for me to keep it around for a year if it has to be refreshed every 2 weeks. =/
The intro LIES! There IS an item!
where is the leaf at level 11, i can't find it.
Room upon room...one puzzle after another. There is no turning back. There is no end in sight. The only way to win is to not play the game. But you like the game...don't you?
Great game. The second ending was lame, but the game as a whole was alright. Not as good as the previous submachine games, but alright. And I've played all three of the original submachine games. The main thing I didn't like, though, was the lack of plot. This seemed more like a standalone game. I expected SM3 to wrap up some of what SM2 left hanging. For instance...

So the plot sucks. And it's easy, and kinda boring. But overall, it's average I guess. It's just another image on a computer screen... ;-)
P.S. Does anyone here play ARG's? This series would make a great ARG, dontcha think? *Hopes Mateusz Skutnik is reading this*
The second ending was lame. Think this will be the end of the Submachine series?
jesus!!! what's wrong with mur????.... i'f he didint die beacuse he couldn't scape i'll kill him by my self!!! who joins me?!?!?!.... lol...
pretty nice game =) i´m hoping that mur gets the idea to trap us in the lab for another sm jojoo...
but why i died for dehydration??... and... what if i go up and up and up... its endless???
that is such a pain to read. =p
An interesting note re: the two endings:

It seems if you pick up the leaf, you can't try to complete level 11 through the puzzle. You have to find the pedestal.
Funny, but I collected the leaf, and solved the puzzle. Same boring ending though.
You explanation for level 10 makes no sense. I cannot get past this level. The colors on the board should be B, P, Y, P, P, B - correct?
God, I don't understand.
No, Shane, the colors are randomized. every game.

wheres the leaf in lvl. 11???????????
Great series of games! A little too easy in my book, but definitely better than the games that are insanely difficult.
The 'good' ending indicates that it is all a experiment in cyber-space (virtual reality). This was hinted at in the 2nd game where you found out everything was on a computer screen. It also why there isn't a beach or a computer or anything like that.
This game is one of the coolest games on the internet! It's the kind of thing that really isn't fun, you just get hooked. It's so cool!! I really love that it had to endings. it was really cool. one of them, the one where you die, was quite mean, I think, but the other one was ok. I really loved the music in this part. it's way better than in the part 1. Everyone should try this!!
please help me! i hav tried all of everyones tips and i know it sounds silly but i STILL can't get past level 2. i don't understand what you have to do. please can sum1 explain it more clearly cus it sounds real clear when you've done it, i'm sure, but when your stuck, or if your me, it sounds like gobbly gook. please help me figure out what to put on the timers and where cause this is a real good game but it is boring when u r stuck on 1 level for 30 mins.
OMG!!! I love these things. I've played submachine 1-3 and sub-zero, Are there any others like this?
PLEASE!!!!!! I need help with level 11!!! someone help me!!!
All level passwords. If you ever want to replay a particular level.

UGH! I've been through all 11 levels or so and I haven't selpt for a while!!! on level 11 did anyone read the note by the passage machine?
please help me on level 11!
the letter-number pairs are BPY=355 and RGB=106
but the colors of the bars dont match the letters
so acording to the bars the letter-number pairs should be BPG=355 and RYB=106!
how do i fix this?
Level 11:


No spoon, no items, no letters, no trash bin....They totally forgot to mention, no plot, no story, no atmosphere then follow it up with we lied there are actually two items, one in the first level and one in the last. It had nice puzzles that did not make me feel stupid but it failed to captivate me like the others. At this rate will submachine 5 be called limbo and have us floating in an endless sterile void of nothing.
I miss the subtle but creepy plot from the first two.
Upon completion





The leaf is located

Neionix,

I've

I've beat the game twice but if you have problems on
level 8 like I did here's what you do
What was that ending??? i wanna know what happens to the crazy guy that lost his arm!!!
Whole game walkthrough




BTW, this game is a GREAT puzzle type game in my opinion!
If he makes a four, I hope it is harder then submachinezero.
Its a fun game but nowhere near as good as 1 or 2
I BEAT THE GAME!!! here are the endings:


The Best Walkthrough SubMachine 3: The Loop
1st Level
Just click all of the levers
2nd Level
Start at room 1,1 click the device then go to that room. Then click that device, then go to the room that comes up, comtinue untill you have done it six times
3rd Level
There are four rooms where you can change numbers on a panel, but on each panel one number can not be changed, and they are in a different spot on each panel. Change the other panels so they all have the same numbers.
4th Level
In each of the rooms that has a device you will see little dots above the big circle, just find the one that has one dot and click it, then two dots, then three dots and so on.
5th Level
Assign each letter of the alphabet a number. So A=1 B=2 C=3 and so on. Then find each room with a device and change the letter to correspond with the room number. So room 1,2 will be A,B
6th Level
The room -1,0 has the main device in it. Find the other rooms that have a device in them and they have a number and a symbol. Make a note and go back to the main device. Number the spots left to right and change the shapes until it matches the one that was in the room. Do this for all six shapes you find. Then click the little button on the floor on the left hand side of the room that has the main device.
7th Level
Go to room 0,-1 click the lever in the lower right. This turns on the projector in room 0,1. THis is the solution to the puzzle. Write down which way the slashes go. Then start in room 1,-1 and click the bars so that the green lights will make the slash you need. Now go to the next room to the right and do the same thing. After you have done the six rooms and they all match the slashes, go to room 1,1 and click the device.
8th Level
the main device is in room 0,-1 find the devices in the other rooms and make note of what room they are in. Then go back to the main device, put in the room number of one of the devices. Click the lever on the pedistol of the main device and it will open the device in the room that you put in. Go to that room and click the levers, do this for all the devices.
9th Level
There is a room right above the start room and one right below the start room. One had letters one has colors. If the far left letter is orange and the button below it is black that means you cant change that letter, but you can change the color in the other room to orange. If a color has a black button under it that means you cant change the color but you can change the letter. So if the color is yelloe, you need to change the letter to Y. Once you have matched all these up click the big button below the color device.
10th Level
There are two maps, one is clickable. Make the clickable map just like the real map. Then click the lever at room 0,-1. Thats it.
11th Level
Go to -1,-1 and get the leaf there then go to -12, 9 and drag the leaf on top of the gold stand there to finish the game with out dieing!
What? i don't get this game. my game ended on level 7 ?!?!?
ITS SO IMPOSSIBLE!
The first's ok but this!!!
in my opinion, Mateusz Skutnik ranks right up there with Hideaki Anno in terms of how he keeps us hanging with an incredible, involving plot with logical mysteries and excellent intrigue, and then wraps it all up with a stupid, uninteresting final act that resolves exactly NOTHING and doesn't answer any of the questions that have been keeping his audience interested all the way through.
The first two games were logical steps and had a fascinating atmosphere that kept me interested. The puzzles (at least most of them) in the first two games fit into the story (as opposed to most point-and-click Flash mysteries which make the mistake of doing it the other way around), and the story was INCREDIBLE then, involving and intriguing, I was almost literally salivating to find out what happened next in the games.
Then Mur throws us for a "Loop" (hardee har har) and in Submachine 3 he drops us in the middle of exactly nothing. The game advertizes "there is no diary page, there is no spoon," et al, but fails to mention that there is also no plot, intrigue or atmosphere either. Weren't we waiting to learn what happened to the man who lost his arm? Mur seems to have forgotten all about that, and makes only the barest mention of the lighthouse at the end of this game, with no mention of the fate of the man who wrote the diary.
The puzzles are completely sterile, with no relevance to the plot, and are way too easy. This is something that the first two Submachine games simply did not lead to. If this had been a standalone game I would probably be much happier, as a standalone it would probably be pretty good and it's certainly plenty creepy, but when compared to the first two games the scare in this one comes across as completely superficial.
This is the Neon Genesis Evangelion of flash games, where Mur draws us in with an incredible, involving and intriguing first few acts, then deliberately tortures us with the most outrageous letdown he can possibly imagine for the finalé.
*takes a deep breath and calms down*
On the other hand, there's no rule that says this has to be the last act. If Mur will do a 4th act, and at least resolve SOME of the mystery he ignored in the third act, this one can be excused as just an annoying interlude.
It says on Murs official website that submachine 4 will be released in march... i can't wait!
As awesome and trippy as the first 2 games were... this one is pretty crap. Roll on #4, let us all in the REAL #3, and burn this Abomination unto the gods!
Ok i know this wasnt exactly as good as the others... but i don't think it sucked. No it didnt have a plot, but that was kinda the point. You were removed from reality (or the reality the computer created to keep you busy) so techinachly the game could've just been 0's and 1's. I thought it was fun and simple. And some of them were hard. I mean unless you looked at the walkthroughs. *couph* *couph*
Help please I'm stuck on level 2!! and I dont understand that hint you gave about going first on room 1-1
At last after 10 min. of playing I have finally finished the game!!!
Julirose
Is this the level where you click on a "thing" and a 2 digit number lights up in the middle of it?
I'm sorry but this is just stupid. blindly click and go from room to room with no goals, no hints, no idea which way to go or why? No thanks.
I can't pass level 3 I have no idea what the walkthrough means all numbers can be changed!!
Neat-Nit
Have you tried to change all 4 numbers on each panel? If you have, you may have noticed that 1 number on each panel will not change. The unchangeable number is in a different position on each panel. So

Neat-Nit
Like jan.jan's example
This would be it: 67 67
81 81
67 67
81 81
I am stucked at level 3, hard to deal with the numbers!
sigh~~
it could have been a worse ending... but it's really a great game! all 4 are great games.... WANT MORE pleeease gimme more ;-)
I think there's a level left out in the walkthrough. The level with the unchangable number is after another level, which requires you to change the dial of a wheel with numbers on them.
I think this level, with a map of 25 rooms in a 5x5 format, is the actual level 3. The level 3 in the walkthrough is really level 4.
In the 25 rooms, each one has a level/dial that changes to seemingly randomised numbers. Somehow, if you get a particular number or combo, the computer will turn from red to blue in the top left hand corner. But if you change other numbers in the row, it seems to change back to red.
The most I have gotten is 2 blues, and needless to say, I couldn't work out that level's puzzle.
This level occurs between the walkthrough's 2nd level and 3rd level. If you type the level 2 password, you should be able to find that level.
Please can someone work out what's going on? I've tried, and it hasn't worked for me, and quite a few more other people out there.
-an*
Does my most recent post help at all?
Score! I


You don't want to exit the submachine
green leaf in hand...why is that so intensely addicting. finished that one quickly. 34 min or less. Hmmm I think I will be better with arrays for it. ;) peace Vdst
Hey. This is for -an*

In the last level, I cannot get the second ending to work. No matter how many times I try to turn the levers after setting the colors to the appropriate values, the central lever still won't unlock. Why is this?
im stuck on the second level.... dont understand....
ohhhhhhh..........
submachine 4 is m0re cool to play than 1-3
Hey I need help really bad.What are the numbers for level 3?
Hey,How do you do the 2nd level?I can do the rest of the levels but the 2nd is the hardest(to me anyways).
Geez,I don't know why some of you don't know how to finish level 3,It was one of the easiest in the game,although it did require a minute of thinking for me.O_o
Ok..For the 2nd level you start at room 1,1 click that device,2 numbers will show up..lets say 54,it means go to room 5,4 and click the device and so on(I hope you know what I mean).
Sometimes i wonder how you all get trouble with Lvl 10, its really simple...

This game is a real pain. I mean I can't even get past lvl 2!!! I can't believe it's the only submachine I have'nt beat. What's the problem with this game?!?!! I've beaten submachines 1,2,4,future loop foundation, and ancient adventure. How come I can't beat this one? Even the walkthrough for it is messed up!!! Start at room 1,1 makes sense but when it says click the machine then go to that room click that device then go up then click that machine then do it five more times it just gets confusing because when it said go to that room after 1,1, which room? Left or right it's to confusing!!! Way more confusing then the 4 digit code on submachine 2!!!!! Forget this I'm going just play all the other submachines.
Nevermind I used the level password. Now the only one thats tough is submachine extended version. That one is sereasely hard. I can barely beat it! Oh well.
Hey! I'm still on level 1 and I can't find the last lever... can someone please help me with the coordinates?
Ok, on level 3, I definitely followed the directions exactly in the spoilers, and when I go back to 0,0, I still can't go on to the next level. All the numbers match up in each room. Is there *anything* else they're not saying besides "make sure all the numbers match"? Are there any green lights going on, any levers, anything?
I give up on level 3 ;_; None of the clues helped. I don't have the patience or obvious brain power to complete it. .sa.
Beautiful game! Loved the concept and the originality.
However, I felt it lacked a progression in difficulty. The hardest one by far was 3, while the two at the end were blow-through easy. Maybe I'm just strange...
Also, it didn't seem like it was a true sequel. As has been said above, it didn't relate to Submachine 2's endgame at all. (Maybe this game would be better as a 2 1/2?)
Looking forward to playing the Lab!
answer of level 3

Uggggg! My password won't work! I logged out and put it in, but it never works! Help?? T_T
I see the resemblance to the cube films but i still thought this was a darn good installment to the submachine series. it wasnt as good as #2 plot wise but it was just as taxing perhaps even more so if you dont count the darn e=mc^2 puzzle lol. oh well onto #4.
For all who need help...
...the maps are a key and they are always in the room to the right of the 'transporter'. Also on the map, "x" marks the 'transporter' to the next level.
Goodluck.
Level 1:- password:


Level 2:- password:

I had lots of trouble with this one until

Level 3:-password:

the hints to this puzzle were also confusing to me when i read them but then i got it thus this...

eg.
_1_/_5_
_0_/_2_ lets say that 5 cannot change, then it
needs to be in the top right corner for the other three rooms.
i found it easier to make the other numbers 0 before entering the correct number (once i found it)
Level 4: password:-

This one is simple

Level 5: password:-


Level 6: password:-


Level 7: password:-

in this one the map is broken but

Level 8: password:-

ok in room 0,-1 there is a device with 4 buttons and two numbers.

Level 9: password:-

in this level the map has been ripped off the wall entirely.

Level 10: password:-

in this level are two maps

Last level, Level 11: password:-

There are two ways of going about this level.
1:

-1,0 and go to the room mentioned by mur.
2:

this means r=red=1, g=green=5, w=white=1 then go to rooms -1,1 and 1,1. make the levels of the colours = to the amount given ie. red=1 part red in the tube etc. etc. Lastly go to rooms 1,-1 and -1,-1 and click the bars.
i can't find the last lever on the first level i found all of them except 1 someone please tell me were all of them are!!!
That was a really good game. I took the leaf way, and it was kind of creepy once I finished. Still, I think that it was a great game.
Ha Ha Ha!!! Amazing the puzzles were GREAT (took me a while to figure out the 2nd puzzle though)... Anyone who played this has to play SM4..its way cooler ... Looking forward for sub machine 5 .... :D
What does the game mean by "You don't want to escape from the submachine"?Its kinda creepy and wierd....
Ok.I know some are having trouble with lvl 2 because of the vague walkthrough..So heres a quite clear one. Level 2 : You start at room 1,1.Click the device.2 numbers will appear,those "2" numbers are actually COORDINATES so..Exp : If the numbers 54,its means go to room 5,4 and click the device for 2 more numbers and follow it.
Another walkthrough on lvl 3 Level 3 : If you checked the map,you will see that the machines are positioned at NW,NE,SW,SE side around room 0,0.Have you noticed that the way the machines are positioned where the locked numbers are? Exp : A machine is positioned at the NW side,and the locked number on that machine is on the NW side?Ok,lets say the locked number ( NO "S" ) on the NW machine is 3 , NE=4 , SW=6 , SE=9 so,this is how it should go........ 34 69 Set LIKE that to every panel and turn the device beside them and your way is open to lvl 4.
there are actually 7 submachines
sm0 ancient times
sm1 normal
sm1 extended version
sm2 the lighthouse
sm3 the loop
sm4 the lab
sm flf futre loop foundation
cu l8ta
I win all the games
submachine 0
submachine FLF
submachine
submachine 2
submachine 3
submachine 4
covert front
covert front 2
I can't wait for others
All those games are created by Mateusz Skutnik
I win them by using the Walkthrough.
Is there a connection between SM2 and SM3?Cause the ending of SM2 just said that it is looking at a computer screen...But then again,the note on Lvl 11 said that its the worst place to be teleported to from the lighthouse...Im confused D=
Walkthrough for the most confusing levels in the game Level 2 - There are many devices things.Press a device,2 numbers should pop up,these are actually coordinates like the number is 23 means go to room 2,3. Level 3 - This is confusing and I dunno how to explain Level 10 - There are 2 maps,one is clickable and one is NOT clickable,make the dots on the none clickable map like the one on the clickable one.
My theory on the SM2 ending: It was merely a hallucination brought about by the teleportation. It did seem a bit more powerful than the short-distance warping you do in Submachines 3 and 4.
Also, a little help for anyone still stumped by Level 3:

If, for example, in one room the upper-right number won't change from a "3", you'll need to change the upper-right number in the 3 other rooms to "3". Do the same with the other 3 numbers.
EXAMPLE:
-1,1: Upper-left panel is stuck on 4
1,1: Upper-right panel is stuck on 2
-1,-1: Lower-left panel is stuck on 8
1,-1: Lower-right panel is stuck on 7
SOLUTION: Make all 4 panels read:
4 2
8 7
The last 2 "green lights" should be a little easier for you. :b
YAYY!! I did it!!
Ok, I'm officially addicted to the submachine, all the games & puzzles are amazing (I mean, in the original, zero: ancient adventure, and 2: the lighthouse).
I had most trouble with level 2... couldn't get it, so I had to resort to the walkthrough :S
This is an excellent game to relax and get away from studying XD
I finished... and died... o_o'
but I'm still confused about the plot... how did I get here after SM2?...
sy-lo-caaat!... hmmm *sighs*
I loved this game!Its much easier for me than the other sunmachines, altough I thought I'd never end it!Now that I've finished, It seems kinda easy!
(I just started the submachine games today, great plot line!)
These are the Submachines I know right now
------------------------------------------
Submachine Zero : Ancient Adventure
Submachine
Submachine : Extended Version
Submachine 2 : The Lighthouse
Submachine 3 : The Loop
Submachine 4 : The Lab
Submachine Future Loop Foundation
Submachine 5 : The Root [Coming Soon I Think]
level 11 wont work for me, and did everything!
I take back my negative comment about the storyline, since I didn't realize this wasn't going to be the final act. ^_^;
how the heck do I solve the 11th level.
none of the other explanations really help me!!!!!!
How do you save a game in Submachine 3? I see the passwords at the beginning of each level but I don't see how to save a game. When I exit and go back and type in the password nothing happens.
i dont get it...when i click the levers i dont see any numbers
HELP!
there is a bug in level 7... i can't get pass it!!!
the lights won't turn green!!!
sucks!
Why is it that when some people can't figure out games that require a little thinking instead of just blowing things up for countless levels, they tend to leave comments stating how stupid a game is, or how much it sucks?
The Submachine series is EXCELLENT.The puzzles in "The Loop" are NOT random. If you think they are, then you aren't going about them correctly.
If you are a critical whiner, do the rest of us a favor...don't post comments!!!
this is my favourite subamchine!
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Walkthrough Guide
Walkthrough
1st Level
2nd Level
3rd Level
4th Level
5th Level
6th Level
7th Level
8th Level
9th Level
10th Level
11th Level
Posted by: sgtsuperman | August 4, 2006 12:00 PM