Photo above is property of Andrews McMeel Publishing
Company: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Game: Escape Book: The Cursed Temple
Country: USA 🇺🇸
Language: English
Type of Game: Puzzles By Mail 📬
Genre: Adventure, Kids
Date Played: January 2, 2022
Difficulty (based on 2 players): 3/10
Size of Team: Unlimited (Recommended Ages 8-12)
Time: Unlimited
Price: $9.99
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A mysterious, cursed temple has emerged from the sea. Based on the characters from the book series “Diary of an 8-bit Warrior”, you, as Runt, learn that your friend Breeze was sent to investigate the temple and has not returned. Heading there, you must find your friend and discover why the temple is cursed and how to escape.
Video above is the property of Andrews McMeel Publishing
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This is your standard hardcover novel book with artwork that you would recognize if you have read any “Diary of an 8-bit Warrior” books. Inside there are excerpts that are numbered with some drawings peppered throughout.
Photos above are the property of Andrews McMeel Publishing
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Opening the book, you simply need to start reading and the book will take you on your journey. This was a nice combination of Choose Your Own Adventure books with escape room style puzzles. At certain points in the story, you will be directed to look at entry X if you want to explore this room or you will have to solve a puzzle that results in a number and that will be the entry that you will need to go to next. You will also need to keep note of items that you pick up along the way.
The hint system consisted of the appendix in the back that you could check out with the corresponding number. There were also times you could combine certain items (sword + potion) or items and events (shield + monster attacking) together and referencing the chart in the back, you could then continue the story. The first few times you did it, the book guided you to the chart but as you advanced further into the story, you will have to remember that you can combine items.
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Reading this with my 8 year old son, the puzzles were the right amount of challenge for him. None of the puzzles stumped him but you can see the gears turning as he attempted to solve each of them. The puzzles contained a mix of logic puzzles, mazes or following cryptic instructions. There was also a good puzzle to story ratio as we were not bogged down with either or. The puzzle setup reminded me of the old dungeon exploring video games and how we had to investigate and search different areas to find an item to be able to access other areas. One small tip, there is a page in the back of the book that will need to be torn out so make sure to photocopy it if you would like to keep your book intact.
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This is the first book in this Escape Book series and we will definitely be trying out the others. If you need a gift for a kid who is a fan of Minecraft and puzzles, this is a winner right here. If you were like me growing up, remember to keep some bookmarks on hand or have your finger hold onto the previous pages because you never know when you take a wrong turn and might want to rewind the story a little. This took us about 1.5 hours to complete. Sitting on the couch, reading through the book, my son was completely engaged and captivated the entire time. Even as an adult going through this book, I found I was drawn into the writing and light storytelling and loved spending time together doing something we both enjoyed.
(If you do decide to try this game, give us a shoutout or tag us on social media so we know you heard it from "ESCAPETHEROOMers"!)
Disclosure: We thank Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing us with a sample of their game. Although a complimentary experience was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.
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