It seems TIS-100[0] would fill that gap pretty nicely (I've heard good things from friends). It's by the same author[1] that introduced the concept of block worlds (that Minecraft used for example).
There is a similar type game called Human Resource Machine[1] which I can also recommend. It's made by the same people who made Little Inferno.
My one gripe with it however is that it takes the middle ground between teaching assembly to people unfamiliar with programming and those who already have some knowledge, and doesn't quite satisfy either.
[0]: http://www.zachtronics.com/tis-100/ [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zachary_Barth