Heist in Venice is included in our recommendation guide for Tabletop Escape Games. For more of the best remote escape games in this style, check out the recommendation guide.
Don’t shuffle in this casino.
Location: at home
Date Played: September 15, 2018
Team size: 1-6; we recommend 2-4
Duration: 60 minutes
Price: $10 per box
REA Reaction
Heist in Venice delivered fast-paced gameplay through aha puzzles. In one moment we were trying to figure out what was going on; in the next moment we’d solved that puzzle and moved on to the next one. That frenetic gameplay mixed with a the casino-heist theme and some unexpected plot twists created a fun at-home escape room.
We found Deckscape’s penalty system frustrating. A few puzzles felt either deliberately obtuse or accidentally underdeveloped… which was also how we felt about the previous two installments from Deckscape.
Over all, we recommend Heist in Venice. We found it slightly less interesting than Deckscape’s Test Time, and a lot better than The Fate of London. We look forward to Deckscape’s next edition.
Who is this for?
- Families
- Puzzle lovers
- Tabletop gamers
- Story seekers
- Any experience level
Why play?
- Lots of puzzles
- Some inventive puzzles
- Low price
Story
A mysterious stranger had blackmailed our retired heist crew into one final job. We had been summoned to Venice, Italy and forced to break into a casino vault to steal a €1,000,000,000 poker chip.
Setup
Heist in Venice followed Deckscape’s card-based and puzzle-centric gameplay, a structure established with their earlier games. We solved cards sequentially until the game instructed us to split the deck into multiple piles where each pile could be solved concurrently.
Playing Deckscape games doesn’t require players to write on or damage any components.
We detailed the structure in our previous Deckscape review:
Gameplay
Deckscape’s Heist in Venice was a puzzle-centric tabletop escape game with a varied level of difficulty.
Core gameplay revolved around puzzling and making connections.
Analysis
+ The mix of puzzles was fairly varied. Heist in Venice included inventive puzzles.
– Like with the previous Deckscape games, we found a couple of puzzles to be unfair.
+ Deckscape games tell a cohesive story. Heist in Venice followed suit.
+ Heist in Venice delivered playful art, story, and gameplay. The gameplay never felt dire; it didn’t take itself too seriously. Even the challenging puzzles felt approachable.
– As with the previous games, the penalty system felt punitive. It diminished the fun of the experience. There were a few gotcha moments that made us roll our eyes. Had we taken them seriously, they would have pissed us off.
+ There was a structured, self-service hint system with 1 hint for each puzzle. This worked for A Heist in Venice because most of the puzzles were aha puzzles. Normally I’d like to see more granularity in a hint system, but the 1-hint system felt fine for this game.
– Heist in Venice presented us with a blind choice; I wasn’t impressed with the pay off. This choice created a clash between the setup of the game and its conclusion.
+/- The character cards added an interesting twist and an unusual way to handle the problem of outside knowledge. Some of these interactions felt great; some seemed more flimsy.
+ The climax was amusing… and completely unexpected.
+ It’s easy to reset Heist in Venice to share it with other players. Nothing gets destroyed while playing. Resetting only requires stacking the cards in numerical order.
Tips for Playing
- Make sure that your deck is in sequential order and all cards are present before starting (especially if you’re playing with a secondhand copy).
- Don’t take the penalty system too seriously; you’ll have a more fun.
Purchase your copy of Deckscape’s Heist in Venice, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.
