Yeah, I've always been fond of Game-Maker. It's a weird system, no doubt, but designing a game in this feels somewhere between snapping together Lego bricks and fiddling with the level editors in Lode Runner and Excitebike. Except it's for a full game.
I think that game-like tone to the design process is something sorely lacking in other GCSes I've toyed with. It's just no fun to use most of them! It's like they're more focused on the destination than the journey -- which is kind of a turn-off to me.
Just a little while ago I began to whip together a simple game for my daughter. It's a little too hard, though, so I'm going to insert some early stuff to shallow out the curve.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hk3jkyQU0M
Gemini, if you ever track down your games I'd love to take a look at 'em!