Sleuth Kings – Case 033: Death of a Stuntman (Review)

June 24, 2020June 24, 2020 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ Leave a comment

Location: Your Home!

Players: We recommend 1-4

Price: $29.95 per box

Sullest just can’t catch a break…

Theme:

From the Sleuth Kings website:

John Malvone is dead and his killer is ready to strike again. What was supposed to be a harmless murder mystery dinner has turned into a deadly party. Nobody knows what the killer wants, but one thing is clear: if they don’t play his game, Sullivan and Celest are next. Can you help Sullivan and Celest put a stop to the twisted party before they end up dead?

First Impressions:

Though this is a Sullest case, furthering the whirlwind romance of Sullivan and Celest that began with Case 011: Midnight Secrets, I’m taking back over the reigns for reviewing this one from Kara, which is a shock I’m sure! I’ve enjoyed the evolving meta story between these two, and am glad to see that they still can’t manage to stay out of trouble, even during their pending nuptials!

High Points:

We always enjoy Sullest cases, and Death of a Stuntman is no exception. While a self contained mystery on its own, it furthers the interweaving story line, and gives some interesting updates on the characters; one especially shocking! The story was great, including some fantastic characterization, as well as some new revelations on a particular, sometimes contentious relationship, and the ending presents a great twist! In fact, some veteran players will no doubt enjoy some of the subtle foreshadowing that precedes the ultimate climax. This case does a great job of “inviting” players to the murder mystery/engagement party while still presenting an interesting, high stakes case to solve. The props are great, and fit in with the theme of a murder mystery dinner party well, and the tactile nature helps players feel more involved with the story. Certain bits of the game that generally remain constant from case to case are excellently changed up in order to fit this game’s more personal theme, and touches like these are always exciting to see.

The puzzles are fantastic, and I really enjoyed how the game started off with a somewhat easy, but supremely creative, win. The solution was elegant, and involved a little bit of thinking outside the box to determine the correct way of looking at things, leading to a great ah ha moment to get the ball rolling, from there, the game flow is mostly smooth, with one speed bump that was compounded by our overthinking, which I’ll talk about more in a minute. As we worked through the clues and uncovered new bits of information, we were able to intuitively put together the pieces as we moved through the linear game flow, and though we short circuited one part, we do see what that particular part of the game was going for. The difficulty curve is good, and directs into some really interesting challenges towards the end, and I think even the most hardened Sleuth Kings veterans will find an excellent challenge within this case.

Low Points:

One clue is a bit unclear, leading us to jump directly over a specific step. This led to us solving one of the final puzzles the hardest way possible, and while we were able to crack that particular nut, it would’ve been somewhat easier had the cluing been clearer, directing us along the game path. This is partially our fault, as we probably should’ve realized that this particular level of difficulty probably wasn’t intended, but it does give us dubious bragging rights for solving this one on an unintended hardcore mode! We went back to the puzzle we skipped in order to see what we had missed, and the set up for this logic based puzzle was somewhat confusing, which may have exacerbated things somewhat. One particular puzzle will look familiar to veteran Sleuth Kings detectives, but we haven’t seen this one in a while, and it is tweaked slightly to keep things relatively fresh, so it is a minor point.

Verdict:

The wedding bells for Sullivan and Celest are ringing louder and louder, but the mysteries don’t let up! We loved working through this case’s creative puzzles and uncovering the excellent story within. Though long time sleuths will get the most out of the meta story, this is still a great mystery for newcomers, and I recommend it fully. You can purchase this and other previous cases from the Sleuth King’s archives here, and if you’d like to subscribe to upcoming adventures, you can use the promo code ESCAPEADVENTURE to get $5 off your subscription here! You can also read the rest of our Sleuth Kings reviews here!

8.5/10 (Great)

Full Disclosure: Sleuth Kings provided a complementary box.

Sleuth Kings – Case 032: Two Ring Circus (Review)

May 20, 2020May 21, 2020 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ Leave a comment

Kara’s Note: This review was brought to you by me! 🙂

Location: Your Home!

Players: We recommend 1-4

Price: $29.95 per box

Are those… bells?

Theme:

From the Sleuth Kings website:

Sullivan’s office has been ransacked and one thing is clear – the Moretti crime family is behind the break-in. The thieves were after a diamond and found one – just not the one they wanted. Instead, they stole a wedding ring that once belonged to Sullivan’s late mother. Worse, before they could sell the ring, they managed to lose it. Can you help Sullivan race against the Moretti family to get his mother’s ring back?

First Impressions:

FYI, Though I’ve attempted to be vague, there may be some potential, unintended (but hopefully harmless) meta-spoilers. Read at your own risk. 🙂

While waiting for Brandon to set up the box and email Sullivan, I decided to take a quick skim of the “Investigation Report”. I immediately noticed “ring” and “keep this from Celeste” and became SUPER excited about the not-so-subtle implications! I’ll let you draw your own conclusions, but do humbly propose to all Sullest fans: do this box ASAP as this is an ultra-important case! 😊

Brace yourselves, this is the most important case you’ll have solved to date!

High Points:

This was such a fun and light-hearted story! It’s pretty obvious that I particularly enjoy the Sullest boxes and am (perhaps unusually) very invested in their relationship, so it’s no surprise that this is one of my favorite boxes of late.

Sleuth Kings is fantastic at story continuity as well as character consistency. It always gives us some chuckles to see Sullivan’s consistent character among the cases – in this case, his hilarious attempt at being mysterious, (for a detective, he’s not the best at keeping secrets – at least from us.) A seemingly small thing, but I was also happy to see that Celeste’s contribution to the case, (via her hint system,) was updated to reflect how she can still be involved while still being kept in the dark. I was also delighted to be instantly gratified with the epilogue for this case – and that’s all I’m going to say about that. ^_^

Also, it’s very amusing to me to think of the big bad crime family of the case figuring out how to code their secret messages into such family friendly material. We inadvertently guessed what the answer to the final solution of the case would be as a joke, and were pleased when that turned out to be right!

Storyline aside, the box itself was a fun and smooth experience. It was probably one of the fastest boxes we’ve solved. Overall, I really appreciated how the puzzles were set up. One puzzle in particular was structured in an extremely helpful way. When we first started solving it, I was concerned that there would be multiple possible answers, leading to a guess and check situation. However, I was happy to have worried for nothing!

The box was enhanced by its cute and well-designed props. In addition to being visually exciting, it also made it easy to find and link together props and clues. Even though some clues and solutions were exclusive to a single prop, they inter-wove with the other material as the puzzles built upon each other in pretty straightforward and linear fashion. It’s amazing how multi-purposeful everything can be.

Pondering Points:

We did end up bypassing one of the puzzle interactions by accident, and it was very clear to us that we missed something. After we solved the case, we used Celeste’s hint system to help us backtrack and figure out what was supposed to happen. It was certainly an interesting puzzle and subtle by nature. I’m not sure if this means the puzzle was hackable and/or the clues weren’t strong enough for us, (though honestly, we could’ve misinterpreted the puzzle/clues completely.) However, I suppose this can also be a good sign, (in a way,) in that clearly the solution makes sense! In retrospect, I do think we would have easily solved it the right way had we looked at the Clue Analysis or Celeste’s website though, and would highly recommend them if you’re stuck.

While we found the puzzles to be overall fairly easy, it’s very possible the clues to the final puzzle need to be stronger or contain more direct hints for newer players who don’t have a puzzling background, (I certainly would’ve never thought of it before playing these boxes with Brandon.) The method of solving this puzzle is likely either to be something you know or don’t know. Seasoned players may find the in-puzzle hints to be enough, but newer players may need to utilize the hint system more or possibly do some internet searching.

Verdict:

This box is one of my personal Sleuth Kings favorites, and I would highly recommend it. I think it’s a great introduction to puzzling for newer players, and would also be a fun adventure for veteran sleuths. I’m also super stoked to see what’s next for Sullest! You can purchase this and other previous cases from the Sleuth King’s archives here, and if you’d like to subscribe to upcoming adventures, you can use the promo code ESCAPEADVENTURE to get $5 off your subscription here! You can also read the rest of our Sleuth Kings reviews here!

8/10 (Great)

Full Disclosure: Sleuth Kings provided a complementary box.

Sleuth Kings – Case 031: Dark World

April 30, 2020April 30, 2020 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ Leave a comment

Kara’s Note: This review was brought to you by me! 😀

Location: Your Home!

Players: We recommend 1-4

Price: $29.95 per box

Someone will die… of fun!

Theme:

From the Sleuth Kings website:

Jack Hill, the owner of Dark World – an interactive sci-fi museum – has gone missing. Sullivan is afraid he’s been murdered, but Jack’s wife believes that the museum holds the key to bringing her husband back. With no other leads, Sullivan’s last hope is to search Dark World for any trace of Jack’s whereabouts. If Jack really is still alive, Sullivan is afraid he’s running out of time. Can you help Sullivan navigate Dark World’s six kingdoms and bring Jack home?

First Impressions:

Potential murder? Bringing Jack back at the museum? I did not know what to expect with this box, but I was excited to dive right in and find out!

Also, are interactive sci-fi museums actually a thing? Because that. Sounds. Awesome! 😀

High Points:

As can always be expected with Sleuth King boxes, this one included great puzzles with props that were multifunctional, layered, and well themed. For the most part, all the pieces of the box really worked well together and built on each other effectively to create good suspense for the final puzzle.

There were a couple of moments that made us appreciate how well thought out and intentioned the design was. We initially got concerned with one of the puzzles when we noticed that it did not follow the traditional way of being solved. However, we soon became impressed with how seamless the answer appeared by using the small, but highly effective, clue we were given. Additionally, I appreciated how clear it always is to figure out which clues go together, as the props tend to serve multiple purposes.

We also had some good a-ha moments brought on by the creativity of the puzzles. It is not the first time that we have appreciated their meaningful use of space. In instances like these, I find myself having fleeting thoughts of – hey, that seems weird – and then finally having that lightbulb moment. Some moments come more quickly than others. J

I usually find that the Sleuth King Boxes have their own character to them, which is in large part due to the great theming and creative prop/design choices. It is always fun to be in the Sleuth Kings universe, and we certainly appreciated the apt references to someone whose name may or may not rhyme with Mowie.

Low Points:

The penultimate puzzle was a bit confusing for us. There were multiple parts to it, and while it was not hard to figure out what you needed, it was confusing how to intuitively put together what to do with them. While we were able to stumble into the answer after pushing through with a logical leap, a little more direction would have been helpful.

While the story had an interesting premise, we were left pondering about some of the plot aspects, which made it slightly harder than normal to become fully immersed. Of course, this was not enough to detract from our enjoyment of the puzzles and it certainly helped keep the theme family-friendly, as Sleuth King’s is so great at doing. Sometimes you’ve just got to go with it.

Verdict:

Despite its name, the Dark World was a fun and interactive box to solve. For the most part, we found it very fluid and it seems like we blew right through it. I think that this box would be good for beginner/intermediate puzzlers, but still enjoyable for more seasoned players as well. You can purchase this and other previous cases from the Sleuth King’s archives here, and if you’d like to subscribe to upcoming adventures, you can use the promo code ESCAPEADVENTURE to get $5 off your subscription here! You can also read the rest of our Sleuth Kings reviews here!

7.5/10 (Good)

Full Disclosure: Sleuth Kings provided a complementary box.

Sleuth Kings – Case 026: Sparky (Review)

November 13, 2019November 14, 2019 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 4 Comments

Editor’s Note: Today’s review comes from my wife Kara, who has been on a roll with reviews lately! Thank you, Kara!

Location: Your Home!

Players: We recommend 1-4

Price: $29.95 per box

Mascots are creepy.

Theme:

From the Sleuth Kings website:

Celest St. Claire never expected that she’d be targeted by a dangerous stalker dressed as a giant mascot. Little is known about the stalker other than the fact that they’ve put multiple people in the hospital. With only three days to play their game and meet them face-to-face, Celest needs your help before she becomes their next victim. Can you help Celest and Sullivan find the stalker and put an end to their masked mayhem before it’s too late?

First Impressions:

Okay, so I have been low-key shipping Sullest St. King (Celevan St. Clair?!? Eh, I’m working on it!) since the beginning and ~spoiler alert~ WE FINALLY HAVE OFFICIAL CONCRETE EVIDENCE THAT THEY’RE ON THE SAME PAGE AND ARE AN OFFICIAL COUPLE. SULLIVAN HAS FINALLY CAUGHT UP WITH EVERYONE ELSE ON THIS: CELEST, PSYCHO KILLERS (remember the Cupid Killer?) – EVERYONE!

Needless to say, I was excited to do another box that involved the both of them. It’s been months! Unfortunately, Celest has once again become tangled up in some creepy guy’s sights. And stalkers are never something to be taken lightly. But, I have full confidence in the power of love! And our ability to solve puzzles. Love and puzzles!

High Points:

One great effect of the Sleuth Kings’ design is that you are instantly immersed into the story. This box was no different, and the invitations from both Sullivan and Celest made me feel like I was a valuable member of the team.

In fact, Sleuth Kings always does a great job in building characters and giving them clear, consistent voices. Be it the main/reoccurring protagonists, such as Sullivan and Celest, the side characters that pop up every so often, or the antagonists that are only there for that one box. Here, Sleuth Kings builds a deluded and egotistical stalker who is definitely disconcerting. Without giving too much away, Sleuth Kings adds some nice touches to the story that keeps Sparky’s character consistent and believable. Additionally, I was very happy with the ending, which ends on a cliff hanger that’s (thankfully) readily resolved with the epilogue, which really captures the spirits of our favorite Sleuth couple and their partnership with one another.

I always enjoy the visual nature of the Sleuth Kings boxes and how well the details reflect the theme. I imagine that in Sparky’s mind, the messages he sends Celest are meant to be cute, but they, of course, end up being as twisted as the pictorial clues he chooses. Each interaction is meaningful, well-themed, and satisfying to solve. There was a lot of connectivity among the puzzles, which were pretty intuitive to figure out once you have the right pieces. Also, one type of process puzzle that I usually do not prefer was pretty seamless in this box, which was a relief to me!

Low Points:

I don’t have any clear cons for this box. We did put one of the end puzzles together successfully, and were surprised when we only were able to decode 60% of it. However, it wasn’t too long before we realized what we were (admittedly quite obviously) overlooking. This is definitely more on us, but – just putting it out there – perhaps there is a purrrfect clue at the beginning that could be used in a similar fashion here to help players like us. 😊

Verdict:

I am always excited to find out more about Sullest (and of course, do some puzzling!), and this box did not disappoint! It’s always a pleasure when Celest is a more active character, and I look forward to seeing her again! You can purchase this and other previous cases from the Sleuth King’s archives here, and if you’d like to subscribe to upcoming adventures, you can use the promo code ESCAPEADVENTURE to get $5 off your subscription here! You can also read the rest of our Sleuth Kings reviews here!

9.5/10 (Excellent)

Full Disclosure: Sleuth Kings provided a complementary box.