Sinfully Entertaining
Location: at home
Date Played: April 12, 2020
Team size: we recommend 2-3
Duration: more than 60 minutes, length of play depends a lot of your play style
Price: about $130 plus shipping for the US; more internationally
REA Reaction
Root of All Evil delivered deep dark storytelling, beautiful props, ciphers, and an atmosphere reminiscent of the movie Seven, if it had been set 70 years earlier. Playing it felt like we were unearthing something that had long been buried.
This was a game world worthy of exploration. While it had a lot of written materials, we were eager to read them because the writing captured our attention. This so rarely happens in the puzzle gaming world.
Root of All Evil culminated in a climax that was truly worthy of the experience. It was strange and bold.
I’d love to see Crack a Nut Mysteries build a far more robust self-service hint system to couple with this experience. This would ensure that everyone gets everything that this experience has to offer.
Root of All Evil was a high-commitment game. It was noticeably more expensive than many play-at-home game, but for the price point, it delivered a lot of value that players can sink their teeth into over time.
Who is this for?
- Adventure seekers
- Story seekers
- Cipher breakers
- Collectors of beautiful objects
- Players with at least some experience
Why play?
- Fantastic writing
- Gorgeous and aesthetically compelling
- There was a lot of depth
- Surprising moments
Story
We’d received a cryptic wooden crate filled with evidence of a series of unusual murders. We had to unravel the string of religion-fueled slayings.
Setup
Root of All Evil was a detective game.
The crate of evidence was filled with articles, journals, and physical evidence to examine, interpret, and decipher.
A lot of the magic of this world came from the objects. They were beautiful and felt like they truly belonged.
Gameplay
Crack a Nut Mysteries’ Root of All Evil was a story-driven, puzzle-based mystery game.
It was more challenging than a boxed escape room game, but not as challenging as a typical puzzle hunt.
Core gameplay revolved around searching, observing, making connections, reading, engaging with the story, and deciphering.
Analysis
➕ We enjoyed reading a lengthy journal in Root of All Evil. There. I said it. The writing was honestly compelling. The more we read, the more we were drawn into the story.
➕ Crack a Nut Mysteries hid a lot of secrets in Root of All Evil. We found some of these immediately. We really had to work for others. The payoff was worth it. They hid some brilliant reveals that we wouldn’t have expected from a boxed play-at-home game.
➕ The gameplay was woven around a narrative. Each solve and each reveal made sense in the game world… especially as we read more of the journal.
❓ Root of All Evil relied heavily on ciphers. Your enjoyment of the puzzles will depend on your interest in deciphering.
➖ Root of All Evil needed a stronger, tiered hint system. It’s currently presented as a mystery that you more or less solve or don’t. It would be a better experience for more people if it allowed them to engage on whatever level they wanted.
➖ Additionally, Root of All Evil would benefit from a dedicated website (beyond the Facebook page linked to below) that sets expectations clearly for the subject matter, content style, and commitment level.
➕ The late-game interactions and ultimate conclusion were intense and creative.
Tips For Players
- Space Requirements: a table… small will work ok, but you might prefer larger
- Required Gear: pen and paper. We also recommend a computer for quicker deciphering.
Buy your copy of Crack a Nut Mysteries’ Root of All Evil, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.
Disclosure: Crack a Nut Mysteries provided a sample for review.
