Hello. I'm rvnhao and would like to say a few things first before continuing. First and foremost, MachineCraft is all about patience and knowing more (and further looking other guides) means less things to do and being able to do a lot more possibilities. Next is that this guide only covers what I think are basics or are needed. Advanced topics will not be included. Lastly, this is my first try to make a guide here so if you have thoughts that would like to share then feel free since I might have missed them and this is still an incomplete one.

Please read: MachineCraft is a free to play game but there are more cool things not included unless you support the game by getting the DLC (downloadable content) or also known as Premium. Some few of those sleek features are the following: Smoke Effect (leaves a trail that traces its path), Threads (for making detailed Main Battle Tanks) and Stamp Parts (if I'm not mistaken this allows one to include small details like a complicated magic circle, navigation display in an aircraft's cockpit, etc. with the use of importing images), Flamethrower effect and last but not the least: Camouflage - for further adding a unique appearance to a machine through blending colors. *Note: the above info may be inaccurate since I am a nonprem user but plans to get them in the future.

More tricks and advanced techniques (which really helped me) were tackled by Also a Steam guide. It made me learn about a lot of things (like compression and couplers). In it are also the video tutorials that are very easy to follow.

Guide created on: 03.14.17
MachineCraft version: Ver.0.233

The links below are guides that I think are from the official website (EN) & (JP).
Please allot a small time to read them as they give a lot of basic information.
http://hrpbk2.wixsite.com/machinecraft-e
http://hrpbk2.wixsite.com/machinecraft

Gamepad Support section added which involves using a third party program. Optional to use it when playing the game but provides fluid game experience and is quick and easy to do.

Parts Details added to further elaborate.

A screen will welcome you with text boxes and buttons.

- by default this text box will have Guest. This is the player name other people will see in-game. Change this for everyone's convenience.

- this contains NewMachine by default and changes whenever loading saved machines or modifying it. This will be displayed to other people similar to player name.

- shows your saved machines or built-in ones included in the game to start right away (More may be added with updates. Helpful for learning how different parts work.)

- this makes a duplicate of your current machine (uses the original name with _1 added and the number increments with more copies.)

- start here to make a fresh machine from scratch. Change its default name for convenience.

- removes your current machine

- this is where you go to modify your current machine

- loads a map and your current machine to use or test it. You can remove or add the default A.I. enemy, change map type (land, sea, field, hills, etc.), Show the keybindings or controls of your current machine while testing and more.

- Lets you join a server Online and meet fellow MachineCraft players. Rooms appear in Individual (server hosted by other player) or in a region like JP. Take note of 4 things, first is the program version besides the room's name (if they are color red it means they are not matched and won't allow access to it and restart game if there's an update). Second is the Limits imposed (maximum number of parts like boxes, movers, weapons, etc. on the right side). Last are the Room Type that shows what mode it is in (Meeting, Team Battle, Race) and comment by the room host that will specify rules or other limits shown on the leftmost side.

- used for changing configs like video (set it for performance) and an important one is Expert Mode will appear and be available when the required steps are done.

- the current version of the game is on the rightmost bottom side. (this tutorial is about Ver.0.233)

- press this if you can't see your current machine's appearance

- these are important buttons which contains the tutorials about the game. It is recommended to watch them (although it is advised to watch, there is a very high chance you won't understand them right off the bat so finish this guide first).

Aim the cursor for a part's coordinates (bottom left).

There are different modes under Build Mode:

(Mode Name [Key shortcut])
- allows adding objects from Parts List [Q], removing existing parts with right mouse button [RMB], copying existing parts (and their configs) with middle mouse button [MMB]. [Alt + RMB] will delete all joined chunks. [Alt + MMB] changes a hinge's position.

- (without Expert Mode type of change can be shifted with mouse scroll [MS]) if the topmost right side icon got one white triangle, left mouse button [LMB] adds a point to a Chassis, right mouse button [RMB] removes a point and middle mouse button [MMB] reverts to default. In Sculpt mode you remove or add points to a chassis to make different shapes. If you press shortcut key [2] again (Expert Mode needed to be ON) you will shift the type of change that will be done (indicated by the topmost right side icon). If four points are white, [LMB] will compress the Chassis in half backward, [RMB] will push the Chassis forward to half (the compressed half can be placed in the middle with pushing and pulling) and [MMB] is unchanged . A third and fourth type of modifying is by holding [Alt]. Under the single point editing, holding [Alt] then a mouse button will change all Chassis connected together in that point (so unlike one Chassis four will lose their points or restored). With the four point editing holding [Alt] plus [RMB] pushes the Chassis to the space in front of it. Its original position will be indicated by a black star (with the white color pointing where it went). The pushed Chassis must connect to a Chassis that isn't pushed from its place or else the change won't appear since it didn't got hold. Holding [Alt] then [LMB] pulls the pushed Chassis to its original position or puts it to a space in its back.

- [Q] while in paint mode will make the Color Selection appear, you can choose colors and with left mouse button to put it on one part or hold [Alt] then [RMB] to paint a large chunk of Chassis connected to one another. [MMB] will copy the color of a Chassis or part targeted by cursor. A trick used in hiding Chassis and parts is by using black color (RGB value of 0,0,0) and then setting the Translucent to ON which will make it not appear but still connected and working. Emissive is making parts glow a color even if it is dark. Translucent is used for making Chassis (and some parts except Shaft) see through or tranparent.

- used on parts that are not Chassis and Core by left clicking [LMB] to modify behaviors through simple programming. A dialog box will appear on the right side and this is that part's listed actions. Putting Neutral and a value will make it active all the time while assigning a keybinding to that action will make it only activate as long as that key is being pressed or hold (unless toggle mode is ON from Assign which will only need a single press to switch between using and not). If Neutral is added twice in sequence to the part (with different values) it means the two different action will be executed one at a time, alternating between one another with equal duration. (Adding Spring with higher value will make it move fast or act bouncy on impact). Noticed the color coding between special functions of a part? They denote if it is something that affects all actions under it or if it is global (meaning its placement doesn't matter since it will affect everything). Parts also have a second behavior other than a value which is by setting them into lowest and going further (so make the value zero then cilck the left arrow) and vice versa.

- by default all Chassis and parts are grouped as white or 0. Pressing [Q] will show a dialog box of different groups. If a chunk of Chassis are grouped differently, they will not connect to another group. (useful for making sliding components or opening and closing chunks) Making a chunk into a Dummy group will make them into: Chunks that are for decorations only and don't have weight, will not touch other parts and they will move through them. Remember to check groups color if they match or not whenever a part or Chassis does not appear since only matching groups connect unless joined by a rotator, hinge part, etc.

New modes (They are new to me and their use is pretty straightforward. They probably came from update.)

- shows all parts of your machine

- toggle to hide or unhide Chassis (including invisible Chassis)

- only shows the top 6 parts and Core (Rotator, Hinge, Piston)

While in Build Mode the following key shortcuts are:

- move forward

- move left

- move backward

- move right

- go up

- go down

- speed up moving

- this lets you create a chassis or part in front of you (very handy if you want to start in the center of your workspsace or just don't want your new chunk to touch other chunks)

- if you continue holding the same shortcut and move your cursor to a different place, you will see lines and if you click left mouse button once more, a big chunk of chassis will form (useful for making big machines in one move)

- moves the chunk of Chassis aimed by cursor forward (useful for aligning things or moving a mirrored design to left side to make another copy to right side)

- shows the Parts List of Sculpt mode and the Color Selection of Paint mode

- combine all parts and show what your machine will look like

- middle mouse button is a handy shorcut for: copying existing parts in Form mode, copying color in Paint mode, copying configuration of a part in Setup mode (useful in doing a trick where mirrored parts are inverted and you copy the config of a separate part in the middle area that were not mirrored and you correct the other side with it) and reverting modifications done (returns Chassis to its default shape) under Sculpt mode. Cuts & Paste under Programming Mode.

- pulls back a pushed Chassis to its original position under Sculpt mode.

- You can change the sound of thruster in (None, Jet, Rocket) or increase / decrease the Speed Limit (default is 500 up to 2k). With Tab you can see Errors & Splits or parts that are not connected to the Core (and will not appear or work). Errors are parts like rotators that are connected but won't work because there is something that obstructs its way. Splits will shine slowly while Errors will blink very quickly. Tab got a useful command and it is Mirror. The letters will determine if the copy will be from left to right (L/R) or from front to back (F/B) or up and down (U/D). Undo & Redo are for reverting or restoring changes made. (Max of 10). Flip and direction changes the position of the machine to the other side while TurnL/TurnR changes where the machine face. In Tab the Test / Practice mode is accessible to debug possible errors and check modifications with the machine. Assign is where the keybindings used to control the current machine is listed. If you want for an action to be only pressed once (Toggle mode) check the box besides the action (so when firing you don't need to hold fire button but just press once) There is a special behavior that involves the Mover part. If a mover is connected to the machine, Shift and Spacebar will change the altitude of the machine (up to 100 value) so remember this when wondering why a machine is moving weirdly. (ex. Spacebar is assigned for boost but there's a Mover)

You can change the type of map with World and Area. Remove the enemy which is there by default with Load Enemy -> None or practice with an enemy again with Load Enemy -> _samples -> Ai Trainer.

[Tab] - gives access to useful commands while in-game under Test mode.

[Usage] - shows the assigned keys (they differ based on the current machine)

[ Z ] - adjusts your machine automatically to default position while being hold

[ C ] - reposition camera to face forward

[F1] - shows help

[F2] - spawns a drum canister shaped object

[F3] - rain

[F4] - changes time to night or day

[F5] - switches to the enemy machine (you can load your own created machine as enemy)

[F6] - switches which damages will be displayed (Take = damage received & Give = damage dealt)

[F7] - activate script (by default it will return "AutoPilot(script) not found.")

[F8] - reset machine position (useful in fixing overlapping parts)

[F9] - stop machine movement

[F10] - show / hide logs

[F11] - show / hide GUI

[F12] - take a screenshot (change the default destination of Steam folder for convenience)

[Alt + F1] - another help dialog (by default machines only have 16 maximum attacks simultaneously while machines with BOSS_ characters at the beginning of their name have 64 max attacks and double their HP.

[Alt + F2] - spawns a ball shaped object

[Alt + F3] - snow

[Alt + F4] - obviously this will close the game

[Alt + F8] - reset (in Play mode this is self-destruct for respawning)

The available Memory size in units of MB is shown at the topmost left side of the screen

There are six categorized group of items that can be added to create your ideal machine.

The shortcut keys differs slightly from Test mode when in-game Play mode.

[F1] - brings up help which shows the shortcut keys in-game

[F5] - switch between displaying player name, machine name or both

[F6] - switch display of damages

[F8] - reset machine to default state

[F9] - toggle stopping and unstopping movement of machine (this also disables Attack so if you can't see your HP or can't deal dmg go to Tab and enable Attack) *Note: this command completely stops all actions (including moving parts) except firing weapons and lamps.

[F11] - hide/unhide GUI

[F12] - take screenshot

[ Z ] - reset position of machine

[ C ] - reset camera to face forward

[ X ] - stick to other player's machine

[ MS ] - mouse scroll to zoom in and out

[Alt + MS] - show and navigate chat history up and down

[Alt + machine action] - makes the action to toggle even if it is not defined as toggle in Assign (press the action again without the [Alt] to stop toggle)

[Alt + X] - unstick from other player's machine

[Alt + F4] - closes the game

[Alt + F9] - similar to F9 but allows movement of moving parts

[Tab] - same as in Test mode but with extra features

[C + MS] - change the position of camera in its Y axis (up / down). This also works when spectating other players.

[Tab] + [LMB] a player's name - makes your and the chosen player's machine to pass through one another and receive and deal no damage to one another. This is also know as Blocking.

[Tab + aim cursor to a player's name] - this will make your camera focus and follow that player's machine for spectating

At first this might look like an advanced topic but it is not. The reason is simple. Couplers have a very handy use in doing complicated functions or designs and yet using it is way too easy. (it is less hassle than setting up connectors or troubleshooting problems from machines) Why I made myself suffer more and not make my life easier by using it at first is because of two things: I didn't bother looking it at all. Lastly, I just thought that all it does is to move paired couplers even though they are far from the main body.

It is normal to make a machine right away and test the waters than looking at what can be done on it beforehand. That's why I will try to explain how couplers can be used in this section.

The machine below is a copycat of an F-22C Raptor II from the game Ace Combat 3 Electrosphere (PS1):


Do you see the couplers?



Let's dissect it for now.







The colored objects you see that are on the center of the workspace and at the joints that should be connected with the main body are the couplers.



Here on the nose of the aircraft it is used to add as many small Chassis as much as possible (Chassis that are on the middle are not supposed to be duplicated and therefore were not placed on the side since they will be mirrored)



Aiming the cursor will show a line that points to the coupler it is paired.



Couplers were heavily used on parts that are on different positions like the wings. Even the vulcans and machine guns were placed inside with them.



And lastly the moving parts of the main wing.

*Note: One behavior I've noticed with couplers is that there's a restricting limit on using where they will face. You can only set one. If you try to set it to face two directions (ex. face left and face up), it will reset the other value to zero while you are modifying the other axis so keep in mind on how you place (and where they face) the separate chunks.

Some advanced tricks and techniques not covered (but not limited to) the following: compression, stabilizing weapons w/ pistons, map making, weapon configs and many more. (They are in tutorial videos or guides about advanced techs.)

And... that's it for this tutorial. I hope this helped.

My other works.

Using third party programs may harm your computer so only download from trusted sources and be responsible! I am merely sharing what works with me and not liable to what happens to your PC.

This section will not use the built-in support for joystick and instead will rely on a third party program.

Download and install Antimicro from the official download page:
https://github.com/AntiMicro/antimicro

Windows binaries are in this link:
https://github.com/AntiMicro/antimicro/releases

When you see the shortcut icon on desktop after installation, start it then proceed in configuring your gamepad. Here XInput is used (there is a toggle switch in my gamepad with labels X and D which change the mode used and the program detects those). The working gamepad in game used is Logitech F310 which is wired. If a gamepad button is pressed, the corresponding UI button will change color.

Make sure the gamepad is connected to the computer for it to be detected. When finished, click Save As and put a name to your config. Don't close the program since it needs to run in the background. You can hide it instead with [Ctrl + H]. An option is available in settings to make it run at startup.

This method is easy and fast to complete but remember that possible future patches can make this less powerful or convenient and isn't a sure replacement for the built-in one therefore the choice is ultimately yours.

25 Key Map Example for an ideal aircraft:

Note: Alt or Modifier Key when combined with a non toggle action will enable temprorary toggle. Just press the toggled action again without Alt / modifier key to untoggle it.
The assigned keys here are just an example. You can use your own customized mapping. Like changing Tab to Show Damage instead. Since this is for an aircraft, you will use A and D for barrel rolls.