Room Escape Artist

Editor’s Note: Since REA reviewed Find Atlantis, the price has changed and the game is now free. This review is based on the price at the time we played.

Finding Atlantis is an light online puzzle hunt created by TreasureQuesting.

Format

Style of Play:

• Light puzzle hunt
• Includes video segments

Who is it For?

• Newer puzzlers

Required Equipment: computer with an internet connection

This game requires outside knowledge. The game is upfront that using the internet is fair play, however it requests that players not use AI.

Recommended Team Size: 1-2

Play Time: 45-90 minutes

Price: $12.99

Booking: purchase and play at your leisure

Description

This is a light puzzle hunt-style online game. You purchase and play the game on their website. Some of the puzzles require you to google search or use other online tools (for example when encountering an unprompted Caesar cipher or looking things up on a map). The answers are submitted on their website alongside some video segments in between puzzles.

Joel Smileypeacefun Reaction

In an old library, you discover something that could lead to the lost city of Atlantis. But getting there is not as easy as it seems.

At its best, there were some whimsical illustrations. A progress bar always showed me how far along I was in the game. As far as puzzles go, one or two logic challenges toward the end were fun to figure out.

At its worst, the instructions were confusing. They don’t want you to use AI tools to solve things, but since it’s treasure hunt adjacent, some internet sleuthing using programs like decoders was most likely needed to progress. What I like about escape rooms is how self-contained all the info that you need is. But since this was not an escape game, it came with annoying things like a riddle whose answer seemed far-fetched, a math puzzle (which I usually like) with no tie-in to the story, and guessing a word where multiple answers would have been plausible.

Overall it felt like this was not a game for me. Someone else might enjoy such a puzzle approach, but I found it to be too shallow to justify spending money on it.

Brett Kuehner’s Reaction

• + Animated video sequences and voiceovers are high-quality
• – A couple of the puzzles are clued poorly and not well-constructed, which is a particular problem in a game with so few puzzles
• – Some puzzles seem to involve guessing of anagrams or words to find the solution the constructor had in mind
• – Several of the puzzles would benefit from more signposting and clearer goals/ instructions
• + Several puzzles have custom interfaces that are well-designed and pleasant to use
• +/- There are a variety of puzzles, but the difficulty levels are uneven and none of the puzzles have a sense of progression
• +/- Instructions mention that internet searches are allowed, but in some cases it is difficult to know when a puzzle needs external information
• + Hinting is good and progressively detailed, so you can get just the hint you need
• – Game seems short for the cost, with only 9 actual puzzles

Ryan Brady’s Reaction

Finding Atlantis is a light, linear puzzle hunt woven around the player’s quest to find the lost continent of Atlantis. The story is told in short, lightly animated videos with a gorgeous art style. The puzzles, in contrast, are presented very simply. The puzzle interfaces are technically well done, and I particularly appreciated the tools in a puzzle that involved a map.

I found myself wishing there was some more storytelling around the puzzles. The videos move the narrative along but afterwards players are simply immediately presented with a puzzle, with little or no framing, as the next challenge.

I might recommend this game for beginners, but as it’s on the short and easy side; I would expect experienced puzzlers to blow through it.

As Treasure Questing’s first offering, I think Finding Atlantis showcases a good foundation, and I look forward to seeing where they can go from here.

Disclosure: TreasureQuesting provided the Hivemind reviewers with a complimentary play.