Room Escape Artist

Box Two is included in our recommendation guide for Tabletop Escape Games. For more of the best games in this style, check out the recommendation guide.

How do you follow Box One?

Location:  at home

Date Played: November 23, 2024

Team size: 1-2; we recommend 1-2

Duration: about 2-3 hours

Price: about $35

REA Reaction

Box Two is not another Box One… but it will surprise and delight whoever you gift this beautiful box to.

The sequel named itself, but it needed to be a stark departure from its predecessor, Box One, which leaned hard into a particular premise, to great success. For this next tabletop escape game, creators Neil Patrick Harris and Theory11 could not deliver more of the same. They found a new conceit, and new ways to hide magic in a boxed product.

The production value was outstanding. Everything about this product felt premium, from the package design to the props inside, to their depth of purpose. Everything within the box was high quality, and fun to interact with. The ahas abounded, and the magic delivered.

Box Two relied heavily on an online chat interface to accompany the box, and this could be frustrating. It put the solving on tight rails, and slowed down the pace of gameplay for experienced puzzlers. It wasn’t adaptable enough to live up to the personality within the gameplay. Even for novice puzzlers who need the guidance, the lack of chat flexibility will feel stifling.

Play Box Two for the innovative and beautiful box and prop design, and the magic these hold. We especially recommend Box Two for those newer to tabletop escape games. If you’re looking for challenging puzzles, or solving for speed, this won’t be your box. To enjoy this experience, you have to let the game choose the pace of play.

You can play Box One and Box Two in any order, and if you’re new to both, I’m inclined to recommend playing Box Two first. Neil Patrick Harris and Theory11 had an impossible task on-hand making a sequel to such a beloved game. Box One stands comfortably in the pantheon of top tabletop puzzle experiences, and nearly none of what made it special was replicable. Box Two is impressive as a beautiful game in its own right, but also in the simple fact that it exists and has a completely different identity from its predecessor.

All in all, we enjoyed an evening just the two of us and Box Two. Box Two was light, playful, and joyful.

Who is this for?

• Puzzle lovers
• Magic fans
• Scenery snobs… which for a boxed game, means beautifully crafted materials
• Fans of Neil Patrick Harris
• Any experience level… but designed for a novice, not an experienced puzzler

Why play?

• The magical reveals within the box
• The craftsmanship of this mass-produced boxed game
• The voicing of Neil Patrick Harris was legit

Story

We’d been sent one of these confounding boxes. Thus, we were going to complete in the Planhart Challenge, an exclusive puzzle competition founded by Eriick Planhart.

Setup

When we opened the box, we knew immediately that it was more than just a box. We read the letter that explained how to begin, picked up a beautiful, custom key, and made the choice that would start our game. The box’s mysteries would be revealed as we played.

An internet-connected device was required for the gameplay. We played on a phone, which worked fine.

Gameplay

Neil Patrick Harris’ Box Two was a less challenging play-at-home escape game that leaned into magic.

Core gameplay revolved around searching, making connections, solving puzzles, and communicating through an online chat interface.

Analysis

➕ From the moment we opened it, Box Two looked and felt premium. The box itself was high quality, and it revealed well-crafted props with surprising heft and depth. By the time we’d unlocked all of the mysteries of Box Two, we were astounded that it retails for only $35.

➕ Box One was a hell of an act to follow. Built around a particular premise and reveal, almost nothing from Box One could be replicated in a satisfying way for a sequel. To be a successful sequel, Box Two needed to be very different… and it was. It had the same aesthetic and quality of materials, but otherwise, it stood on its own.

➕ While Box Two pretended to be focused on the puzzle solving, it was most impressive as a collection of magic tricks – as an experience full of magical reveals that will surprise and delight (as long as you haven’t seen them before, and perhaps even if you have.) Both Theory11 (the company that produced Box Two) and Neil Patrick Harris are known for their interest in magic, so this design decision felt appropriate, and on brand.

➕The puzzles were approachable. Box Two would be perfect for the novice puzzler.

➖ One puzzle was tedious to solve, and the solution proved additionally frustrating. There was an obvious reward for putting the pieces together, but the format made our tech struggle to complete this simple action.

➕ While not especially challenging, the gameplay had depth. It had an unusual approach to layering.

➖ The online chat interface was the weakest component of Box Two. It couldn’t adapt to the player. It refused to let skilled solvers make connections more quickly. We kept having to wait for the game to catch up with us. It would be easy for experienced puzzle solvers, or anyone who likes to solve for speed, to get frustrated with Box Two. (However, we have been told to expect improvements on this front).

➖ Furthermore, the online chat interface wasn’t flexible enough for the variety in regular chat communication. It had almost no tolerance for typos. If we tried to be at all funny, quirky, or not quite by the book, it couldn’t handle the response. The gameplay elicits personality, but the interface stymies any attempts at this. The chat interaction somewhat undercuts some of the magic of the game. (Again, more improvements are likely).

➕/➖ We were not especially enthusiastic about an early game mechanic with a bumpy flow, but its payoff was… legendary.

➕ Since reviewing Box One in 2020, we’ve gotten to know Neil, through our mutual love of escape rooms. We can attest that the voicing was on point.

➕ We’ve never been so impressed resetting a game. The reset mechanism was its own magic trick. Plus, it’s added value that nothing was destroyed in playing the game, and we can give it to someone else to enjoy.

Tips For Players

• Space Requirements: a small table
• We suggest playing this game at home. You will need a few standard household items that aren’t immediately apparent until you are deep into the gameplay.
• Box One and Box Two can be played in any order. They are completely separate games, and you don’t need knowledge of either one to play the other.
• Box Two is designed to be played by a solo player, similarly to Box One, however, we found it played just as well as a team of two players. If you have a bigger group, this isn’t for you.
• As with its predecessor, it’s best not to explore this box too deeply. Just follow the path set by the game, and you’ll find all the secrets you seek.
• Box Two can be reset for another player. It doesn’t require any refill pack. You have everything you need in the box. Check the email you received after you finished playing the game for a video on how to reset the box.

Buy your copy of Box Two, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Disclosure: Theory 11 is providing a sample for review… but it hadn’t arrived in time for the 2024 Holiday Gift Guide, so we purchased this one.

For more on Box One, check out our interview with Neil Patrick Harris on REPOD: