Machinarium 2 announced: Amanita Design’s robot Josef returns

The Czech studio Amanita Design, led by Jakub Dvorský, has announced Machinarium 2, a sequel to its most successful game. Seventeen years after the first game’s release, the charming robot Josef is back on screen, and with him comes the studio’s biggest bet for the coming years.

The original Machinarium came out in 2009 and is still the studio’s best-selling title across all platforms: computers, consoles and mobile devices. Ten years ago Amanita officially cited four million copies sold, and sales have undoubtedly grown noticeably since then. That is why Josef has long been the studio’s unofficial mascot.

“We’re not getting any younger, and the world seems to be heading toward its end, so if we’re going to make Machinarium 2, it’s now,” admitted Jakub Dvorský, head of Amanita Design. The developers decided to keep the recipe that made the first game a success and add new ingredients. The game will again do without text: puzzles will be solved through comic-style thought bubbles with symbols. A new feature is the ability to switch between controlling Josef and his girlfriend Berta.

The visual style also remains the studio’s trademark: every rusty pipe and peeling wall is drawn by hand, and the design draws on the drawings of old masters and Renaissance landscape painting. According to the authors, the robots move, react and frown, bringing something unexpectedly human to a world of rusty machines. The music is, as before, by Tomáš “Floex” Dvořák.

Amanita Design is one of the most respected independent studios in the games industry. Its games, including Machinarium, have won five “independent Oscars”, the prestigious Independent Games Festival awards. In recent years the studio’s revenue has been roughly 50–80 million crowns. Its best-known projects include Samorost, Chuchel, Creaks, Pilgrims and the recent Phonopolis, made entirely “out of paper”.

The release date of Machinarium 2 has not been announced yet, but the game can already be added to your wishlist on Steam. For Czech game development this is one of the most anticipated releases: a studio that built its fame on handcraft and a distinctive style is betting on a proven hero.