Photos above are the property of Rita Orlov & Jack Fallows
Company: Rita Orlov & Jack Fallows (Published by PostCurious)
Game: The Light in the Mist
Country: USA 🇺🇸 & United Kingdom 🇬🇧
Language: English
Type of Game: Puzzles By Mail 📬
Genre: Mystery
Date Played: September 23, 2021
Difficulty (based on 2 players): 6.5/10
Size of Team: 1-4 Players (Ages 14+)
Time: Approximately 5 Hours (pending on hint usage)
Price: $32
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Your friend mysteriously disappeared. The only clue she has left for you is a deck of tarot cards. You might want to get a little more help before entering that dark forest surrounded by the creepy thick mist...
Video above is the property of Rita Orlov & Jack Fallows
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The Light in the Mist came in a beautifully illustrated small box that's quite easy to carry if you're considering a game for the road. Inside you'll find a small booklet (containing the instructions on how to play, storyline, card reference chart and a solution index), 78 tarot cards (in a card box) and a journal/backpack pad.
Photos above are the property of ESCAPETHEROOMers
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Prior to game play, it's best to set up the cards in the right piles. The "Major Arcana" consists of 22 cards which are labeled 0-XXI. The "Minor Arcana" are like playing cards which consists of 4 different suits. Each suit pile consists of I-X, a page card, a knight, a queen and a king. There are 56 cards total in the "Minor Arcana".
"Major Arcana" cards are puzzle cards that need to be paired with various "Minor Arcana" cards (which are like clue cards). The major card will indicate how many minors it will need by the amount of fruits on the top of the card. If you want to verify if you have the right cards, you can go to the card reference index in the booklet. Each "Major Arcana" card is also paired with a passage in the booklet. Often times the clues to how to solve the puzzles will be imbedded in there so make sure to read those carefully. The solution to each puzzle is a English word. Once you think you solved the puzzle, you can go to the solution page and it'll award you with a page number in the booklet. The more puzzles you solve, the more stories you'll be able to reveal and piece together.
The beauty of this game is that you can play these cards in any order (except one card needs to be played as a final card for the meta puzzle). Sometimes the solution will lead to multiple paths. So even if we are playing the same game, what we learned about the character might be different from you. The conclusion will always be the same.
One thing that we really liked about this game (coming from an escape room enthusiasts background) is the usage of the journal and the backpack. We were able to collect items and store them in our "inventory". It felt like in order to unlock something we would need the right "key".
Photos above are the property of ESCAPETHEROOMers
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When we solved the first puzzles rather quickly, we thought, this might not actually take 5 hours. Wrong again! The puzzles quickly showed us variations in difficulty level and style. We decided to let fate choose which "Major Arcana" we would play next and that was a great way to bring the element of surprise into the game play.
We were amazed by the details in the illustrations. Normally Brandon would always have an issue with seeing dark or small print items but he didn't have any with this game. The vibrant colors and intriguing images on the cards made us lose the sense of reality. We were fully immersed in this magical world.
The thing that really blew our minds was how the tarot cards were able to interconnect with each other. Each card had multiple purposes yet you as a player can easily identify what piece of information is needed and what is perhaps for another puzzle. The cluing in the storyline was spot on. It was just enough for us to start paying attention to what's important but not enough to reveal the solution.
If you get stuck, there are nudging hints on their website. It's quite easy to use and we really love the incorporation of photos in hints/solutions as it definitely makes the explanation a lot clearer.
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We've played several card type of tabletop games by now and this is definitely our favorite. The stunning artwork, smooth game flow, clever puzzle and unique storyline really made this game unlike any other we've experienced before. Since you're able to pick different routes, you might want to replay this game to see what you've missed the first time. It was like watching a movie with alternative endings. I have to know all of them! I would totally watch a great movie over and over again, wouldn't you?
Check out our interview with the creators to understand more on the development side of the game:
(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 Rita Orlov & Jack Fallows 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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