Turing Complete
Hacker ApprovedRanked 9 of 78 video games by recommenders
A puzzle game where you build a working computer from logic gates, praised for teaching how CPUs and assembly work in a fun way. Critics say it is buggy, still in early access, and does not cover other processors in depth.
A puzzle game where you build a working computer from logic gates, praised for teaching how CPUs and assembly work in a fun way. Critics say it is buggy, still in early access, and does not cover other processors in depth.
23 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 22
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 96%
Recommended in 7 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 22 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 22 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 7 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Teaches how computers really work
“felt like a years worth of computer engineering class packed into a week’s worth of well designed gameplay”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I made a game where you build a CPU from logic gates” “Turing Complete taught me how to build a computer and how assembly programming works”
Comment from 27 Jul 2026 in “PGSimCity - How PostgreSQL Works” “It teaches you how to build a fully functional computer from scratch.”
Comment from 15 Aug 2026 in “Need Help Learning Assembly” - Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I made a game where you build a CPU from logic gates”
Fun, well designed gameplay
“felt like a years worth of computer engineering class packed into a week’s worth of well designed gameplay”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I made a game where you build a CPU from logic gates” “just think the game is great and his dedication to it deserves respect”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I made a game where you build a CPU from logic gates” “Challenging game for sure, but very, very rewarding.”
Comment from 17 Jul 2026 in “The Zilog Z80 has turned 50” - Comment from 22 Jan 2026 in “EmuDevz: A game about developing emulators”
- Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I made a game where you build a CPU from logic gates”
Recommended alongside Zachtronics games
“played the heck out of Turing Complete and Zachtronics' Engineer of the People”
Comment from 4 Apr 2026 in “Show HN: A game where you build a GPU” “is also a game along the same lines and really fun”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “I made a game where you build a CPU from logic gates”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Buggy and awkward in places
“I wish Turing Complete wasn't quite so buggy or awkward”
Comment from 5 Apr 2026 in “Show HN: A game where you build a GPU” Early access with rough edges
“Sadly stuck in early access since forever with some very rough edges”
Comment from 4 Apr 2026 in “Show HN: A game where you build a GPU” Lacks depth on other processors
“felt that it didn't go in depth enough + didn't cover other processors”
Comment from 4 Apr 2026 in “Show HN: A game where you build a GPU”
Other video games people recommend
The four most recommended other video games, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helldivers 2 | 50 | 34 | 60% | 10 | 1.9 yrs3 owners | — |
| GPU building game | 49 | 16 | 75% | 2 | — | — |
| Triple-A Minesweeper | 40 | 25 | 62% | 1 | — | — |
| Quake II | 33 | 8 | 80% | 10 | — | Approved |
| Turing CompleteThis page | 22 | 1 | 96% | 7 | — | Approved |
What people said
16 of the 24 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I was also heavily inspired by the Steam game 'Turing Complete'”
“Great game, too, with some truly surprising features (like Verilog export)”
“It teaches you how to build a fully functional computer from scratch.”
“My 14 year old son went further in the Turing Complete”
“just think the game is great and his dedication to it deserves respect”
“it's absolutely marvelous”
“felt like a years worth of computer engineering class packed into a week’s worth of well designed gameplay”
“is also a game along the same lines and really fun”
“Turing Complete taught me how to build a computer and how assembly programming works”
“Challenging game for sure, but very, very rewarding.”
“I wish Turing Complete wasn't quite so buggy or awkward”
“Sadly stuck in early access since forever with some very rough edges”
“played the heck out of Turing Complete and Zachtronics' Engineer of the People”
“felt that it didn't go in depth enough + didn't cover other processors”
“even video games like Turing Complete and Logic World”
“I find turing complete (game) to be really fun too.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.