I am Just a Broken Machine [Factory Builder Apocalyptic LitRPG]

Information

Status

Hiatus

Year

2022

Author

Kris Webb

• Book 2, Chapter 2
  Feb 28, 2023
• Book 2, Chapter 1
  Feb 23, 2023
• Interstitial
  Feb 9, 2023
• Chapter 45
  Feb 7, 2023
• Chapter 44
  Feb 3, 2023
• Chapter 43
  Feb 2, 2023
• Chapter 42
  Feb 1, 2023
• Chapter 41
  Jan 31, 2023
• Chapter 40
  Jan 30, 2023
• Chapter 39
  Jan 27, 2023
• Chapter 38
  Jan 26, 2023
• Chapter 37
  Jan 25, 2023
• Chapter 36
  Jan 24, 2023
• Chapter 35
  Jan 23, 2023
• Chapter 34
  Jan 20, 2023
• Chapter 33
  Jan 19, 2023
• Chapter 32
  Jan 18, 2023
• Chapter 31
  Jan 17, 2023
• Chapter 30
  Jan 16, 2023
• Chapter 29
  Jan 13, 2023

Reviews

Community Reviews(10)

• TheLeakingPenRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Just recently I have seen more System stories investigating the idea, "What if the System WASN'T good?"  This story takes that concept perfectly and gives us the bog standard System Integration, with a twist. Many SysInt novels have a concept that the integration that comes to Earth has come to many other worlds first. In this story, its the SAME integration. It comes to a new world after somehow DESTROYING its last integration iteration. And now Earth is next.
  This is underscored constantly by notes left in system prompt boxes by the people who have already gone through it, creating a constant vague sense of horror that strikes wonderfully.
  The main character, Placid, is not a loser, but not a winner. They are down on their luck, smart and hardworking, but have found themselves... not enough. A position we can all commiserate with, I am sure. They find themselves not just Integrated, but CHOSEN.  Given a path because those who came, and died, before, think they are what's needed to maybe break the cycle. Not just because of their engineering knowledge, nor their work ethic. No, Placid was Chosen because they CARE. A LitRPG MC that I can really feel for and root for.
  The system itself has its own logic and feels well built and developed. The crafting aspects are a bit more plug and play than I generally like, but considering that the holographic crafting that takes place was based in large part on Satisfactory, I can understand that.
  Characters have their own voices to an extent, you can generally tell who is talking at any one time, although our characters are still a bit few, in terms of major speaking roles.  You won't find yourself having to double back and check on who that comment was from.
  Warning. The main character is non binary. There is a lesbian couple, a lesbian polycule, and another non binary character who come in fairly quickly once the story moves past a solo MC vs Nature to a character vs character story. If you're the kind of weird bigot who doesn
• CKJ5Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Overall 5/5
  Overall the story is very good so far. It's a little stat sheets and menus heavy for my tastes so far, but I think that's because Kris is establishing the world and the System. I'm excited to see what happens next.
  Style 5/5
  The story is first-person and, like many stories in the System genre, starts with the main character alone. Rather than exposition, we see who Placid is through his actions. The environments and actions are described with just enough detail. Everything moves along at a nice pace, and I didn't have to reread for understanding.
  Story 5/5
  Placid Wainwright failed out of college and was (probably) beginning his journey of self-discovery and purpose in life when the world ended. After System integration he starts exploring his new interface but gets an error message. He's rudely interrupted by a monster before he has time to "debug" the issue. The start is similar to other System integration stories with a fascinating twist that I'm excited to see develop.
  Grammar 5/5
  This story's writing is good. During my read, nothing jumped out and distracted me from the reading experience.
  Character 5/5
  Placid has a backstory many can relate to and is a bit of a blank slate at the start of the story. So far, so good.
• Evelyn AdelbergRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  [writathon 2022]
  This story is the perfect mixture between one of my favourite literary genres, and all of my favourite video-game genres. And yet, it's one of the most original LitRPG stories I've read so far.
  It could fall into the 'kingdom building' category, as the MC needs to amass resources to build a device that would 'harvest magical energy'. It reminds me a lot of those games like subautica where you have to build a base, and harvest resources.
  Another fun element is the "notes" left in the system window. There's definitely more to that, as (without going into spoilers), it seems another summoned person left them there.
  I'd recommend this story to anyone looking to read a fresh take on the LitRPG and progression genre.
• Kit MonsterRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  From the very first chapter I have been absolutely hooked. The first day I binged all the chapters that were out and was extremely upset to have to wait.
  The author's style is phenomenal, with each sentence weaving together to create this amazing world and plotline. Every chapter leaves me wanting more, and our main character is someone I'm really able to identify with. The world feels real and solid, and how information is presented comes along naturally.
  The mystery behind the System and the Great Game have me on the edge of my seat. I can't wait to see more of the author's world building.
  The grammar is really good, but with the occasional wrong word used or slightly off sentence structure. It's nothing that's impossible to read, and can be easily fixed by a once over. It definitely doesn't distract from anything, though looking "a gift horse in the mouse" might make you laugh at an awkward time.
  The main character, Placid, is extremely relatable, too. Almost too relatable. They feel like someone I grew up with, or like they could be myself in another life. I can easily see where they're coming from and why they do the things they do, and I empathize with them heavily. I've only just gotten to a point where other characters are being introduced, but they're both so different from our MC that I'm certain the author knows what they're doing.
  Over all? If you've read this whole review you need to read this story.
• KrakensilverRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Not much here yet, but I am enjoying what I'm seeing. So far it's a enjoyable system apocalypse, but there's definitely more going on.
  Grammar and spelling are good, and the prose is very understandable and not dense.
  I hope to update this review in the future once more is written, and good luck with the Writathon!
• neoweaselRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I am an unabashed fan of the fic so far.  The overall theme of "build a community to survive the apocalypse" is one that I am a massive fan of, and I'm so glad to see something that isn't just "hard men making hard (but inevitably selfish) decisions while the numbers go up". Big fan of the representation.
• Zero747Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I had to go for the obvious pun
  A litrpg apocalypse without obvious gods/overlords rubbing it in, but instead ominous messages hacked into the system by long dead civilizations, bringing mysteries to uncover
  Join Placid, Factory Manager (and kindhearted eng student) as they play with experimenting, creating, crafting, and the seeds of automation (at time of writing). Plus of course making allies and rescuing people, collecting a wonderful queer cast along the way.
  The factory must grow
• TwistedToasterRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I've really enjoyed the story.  It's from the perspective of what would normally be typical MMO support class.   I always loved playing these and the story has really drawn me into the world.
  I'm looking forward to the mystery of the system and the MC disovering new folks to help and build a community with.
• The Seriously ShallowRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  This story is probably the first time a system apocalypse has impressed me.
  The mysteries are still unfolding, but this story seems to genuinely ask about the origin, purpose, and function of a system that travels between worlds.
  But this story does more than just deconstruct the premise, it also deconstructs the general plot beats in a way that I really appreciate. This isn't a story about conquest and domination, but rather about trying to survive together. The main character, Placid, is neither the strongest nor the one with the greatest potential; they're just the team crafter. If you want more details on what that entails, read the story :P
  The style is also great, feeling very grounded in the world that it describes without being flat. It is descriptive without being overly florid. The character voice is solid and the style adjusts in the smallest of ways to better convey the tone of any given scene.
  The occasional typo does marr the earlier chapters and confuse meaning on occasion, which can at times be distracting, but I think that it generally holds up and conveys the story rather well.
  The characters are relatable and realistic; they're not hypercompetent badasses or valiant ubermensche; they're everyday people thrust into a crazy situation and doing their best with that. Their personalities and histories definitely feel everpresent in a shockingly realistic way. It takes a short while for other characters to join the story, but the growing bonds once they do are fun to watch.
  In conclusion; Read the damn story!
• BullerRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 4.5

  No, I didn't misspell the title. Stop asking.
  The story is pretty neat. Standard litrpg progression premise, even if the system messages seem mildly concerning. I wasn't actually sure what the title was supposed to lead the reader on about until I started reading the actual fic. Makes more sense now.
  Grammar brings the story down a notch but it's otherwise great. I recommend it, at the very least. 4.5/5