Photo above is property of Bluefish Games Company: Bluefish Games Game: The Case of the Curiously Correct Blueprints Country: USA 🇺🇸 Language: English Type of Game: Tabletop Game 📬 Genre: Comedic M ystery Date Played: March 1, 2025 Difficulty (based on 2 players): 5/10 Size of Team: 1+ players (Ages 14+) Time: Unlimited (Approx. 2-4 Hrs) Price: $39.00 🆃🅷🅴 🆂🆃🅾🆁🆈 The SHhhh, We're Reading Book Club in Hincksville is abuzz with excitement…and it’s your turn to read the hotly anticipated new Ells and Ernie mystery! But tragedy (or at least mild inconvenience) strikes: your copy has taken a dive into a vat of candy. Luckily, the ever-resourceful Mr. Hincks has concocted a plan to save the day! He’s recorded an abridged version of the book, supplemented with some peculiar “reference materials” to help you reconstruct the mystery before the book club meeting. But there’s a twist…book club rules say no spoilers allowed! How can he retell the story without giving away its biggest surprises? With his cryptic reference materials to guide you to resolve each of the book’s cliffhangers, Mr. Hincks has set the stage for a delightfully tangled literary adventure. Can you unlock all the audiobook segments and piece together the story before the club convenes? 🆃🅷🅴 ❞🅻🅾🅾🅺🆂❞ From the moment you lay eyes on the box, it’s clear that the signature Bluefish Games whimsy is in full effect. Playful flavor text sets the mood before you even start, and the design stays true to the signature Hincks aesthetic: bright, clean, and full of charm. This is primarily a paper-based game, with high-quality printed materials that make the experience feel polished. You also receive a keepsake pen and bookmark (perfect for preparing for your next book club meeting!). Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers 🆃🅷🅴 🅶🅰🅼🅴 🅿🅻🅰🆈 The unusual game structure alternates between audio segments (3-12 minutes each) that end in a half-finished cliffhanger sentence and an envelope of puzzles you solve to discover the end of that sentence. The playful tone throughout is what you’d expect from Bluefish. You'll need internet access to listen to the audio clips and check your answers. While there are audio transcripts provided, trust us, you want to listen! The voice acting is top-notch, delivering just the right balance of humor, mystery, and theatrical flair. The narrative itself is a joy, full of Hincksian absurdity, though it’s more of a delightful bonus (and adds a deductive mystery component). The content itself isn’t required for solving the puzzles though the structure of the final cliffhanger sentence can be helpful. Overall, though, no need to take notes during these interludes - just sit back and enjoy the story! Each of the five envelopes is packed with multiple “reference pages” that ultimately lead to a single answer. Since every envelope is self-contained, you can pause between sections… in theory. In practice, we found ourselves saying, just one more envelope! Each section takes about 30-45 minutes, but the format makes it easy to play at your own pace. You’re specifically provided with a place to record your answers for each of the five envelopes, leading us to expect a final meta puzzle…but, alas, no. (Unless we have somehow missed it…) Mr. Hincks left us wanting more (as usual). You can play without destroying anything, so the game can then be shared with others. Photo above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers 🆃🅷🅴 🅿🆄🆉🆉🅻🅴🆂 No big “reveals” or 3D elements here…this game is all about clever wordplay, lateral thinking, and some well-placed logic. It’s a pure paper puzzling experience, but one packed with variety. As is typical for Bluefish, the puzzles are also clearly very well play-tested, cleanly designed, and well signposted. We didn’t always know what to do immediately, but we were always sure once we had it! They are self-contained, without need for outside knowledge. Within each envelope, some puzzles do build off of others. So, if one puzzle has you stumped, try another! That one might provide the info you need for the first. However, each envelope in all stands alone. We didn’t need any hints (though one puzzle did require an overnight break), but we checked out the hint system after the fact and it provides well-structured, tiered hints, with full solutions available if needed. While the game is very approachable for enthusiasts (with perhaps easy to moderate difficulty levels), it’s not necessarily the best starting point for absolute beginners. If you haven’t yet played The Curious Elevator of Mr. Hincks, we’d recommend starting there. Photo above is property of Bluefish Games 🅲🅻🅾🆂🅸🅽🅶 🆃🅷🅾🆄🅶🅷🆃🆂 Bluefish Games continues to prove why they’re one of our favorite puzzle companies. Their clever, clean puzzles are top-tier, their humor is refreshing, and they know exactly how to craft an experience that feels fresh, fun, and delightfully quirky. This light-hearted game is packed with wordplay and that signature Hincks charm, while adding in the novel audiobook and deduction elements. While The Curious Elevator of Mr. Hincks still holds the top Bluefish spot in our hearts, this was another great time in Hincks universe. Best suited for puzzle lovers rather than those looking for elaborate reveals, ephemera, or 3D puzzles, it’s a perfect date-night activity and also family-friendly for older kids. Did we want more? Always. Did we laugh and grin our way through every moment? Absolutely. Highly recommended for anyone who loves their puzzles with a side of whimsy. Check out our interview with the creators to understand more on the development side of these 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 Bluefish Games 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. #KristaJones #AtHomeGames #TabletopGames #PuzzlesByMail #SubscriptionGames #Comedy #Mystery #BluefishGames #USA

LOCATION: Toronto, Ontario, Canada Photo above is property of Escape Manor Toronto Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers 📝    ETR DECODER 🔑 GAME : Darts Reimagined 📅 DATE PLAYED : March 13, 2025 🎬 GENRE : Darts 👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS : Up to 6 ppl 🕒 LENGTH OF TIME : 60 Mins. 💰 PRICE : CAD $10.00/ pp ☎️ BOOKING TYPE : Public 🎭    THE EXPERIENCE Located in the core of downtown Toronto, we knew Escape Manor for its escape rooms, but we discovered it offers much more. Most of the escape rooms are in the basement, with a couple of exceptions. On the main floor, there’s a lounge with a small selection of games, cozy couches for relaxing with some cocktails and appies, and tables for enjoying a full meal. The second floor features axe throwing and an intriguing experience we had never heard of before, " Darts Reimagined ". We were brought upstairs to our designated dart lane and given a quick introduction to the game, including how to use the touchscreen to enter names and different gameplay modes. A nearby table allowed us to order food to keep our energy up while we played (The pizza and nachos were our choice of snacks with no regrets). Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers The first thing that caught our attention was there was no need to figure out where the darts landed and try to do the math in your head. Through some magic and wizardry, the game automatically tracked our scores. We would simply throw the darts and retrieve them for the next player. " Darts Reimagined " offered several game modes, including Fill’er Up, a beginner-friendly take on classic darts without the double-in, double-out rule, and Monster Mash, which turned darts into a strategic territory control game. One of the highlights came at the end of Fill’er Up when the system captured and replayed the winning throw. " Darts Reimagined " took everything we love about darts and automated the things we don’t, like keeping score and tracking turns, so we could focus on simply having fun. The touchscreen was intuitive, the environment was safe, the variation of games kept things exciting and the whole experience was so memorable. Honestly, after trying " Darts Reimagined ", I can’t imagine playing darts any other way! Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers ℹ️ ADDITIONAL INFO Paid public parking nearby Near public transit Food and beverages served, alcohol, you can even have drinks ordered to your room! Check out our YouTube video for a sneak peek of the location, an interview with the floor manager, the room(s) (no puzzle spoilers) and more: Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers (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 Escape Manor Toronto for comping our tickets for this game. Although complimentary admission was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever. #MatthewLui #IRLescaperoom #ImmersiveExperiences #EscapeManor #Darts #Toronto #Canada

LOCATION: Orlando, Florida, USA Photo above is property of Escape Artists Orlando Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers 📝   ETR DECODER 🔑 GAME : Ninja 📅 DATE PLAYED : February 15, 2025 🎬 GENRE : Mission 🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 2 ppl) : /10 👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS : 2-6 ppl 🕒 LENGTH OF TIME : 60 Mins. 💰 PRICE : $44.00/ pp (2 ppl), $40.00/ pp (3-4 ppl), $36.00/ pp (5+ ppl) ☎️ BOOKING TYPE : Private 🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED? : Yes 📖 THE STORY A mysterious master swordsman, believed to be a ninja dispatched by your foes, has emerged in town. Your task: penetrate his fortress, seize his sacred ninja hood, and present it to the Shogun to expose his betrayal. Master Saki is a lethal adversary, so employ stealth and cunning to outsmart him and protect your town. Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers 🎯    HIT THE BULLSEYE Upon entering the room, we immediately experienced a sense of tranquility. We appreciated the authentic Japanese elements integrated into the game, such as the ninja star, scrolls, and tea ceremony. It is evident that the game designers invested significant effort in researching the daily lives of ninjas. The physical challenges we encountered were highly enjoyable, as they mirrored the obstacles a ninja would likely face to pass their tests. We were particularly impressed by the incorporation of Japanese cultural characters into the puzzles, which enhanced the feeling of being in a traditional Japanese village. One puzzle reveal included an element that felt "magical," which we found to be a brilliant addition to the theme. 🧩   MISSED THE MARK The finale appeared somewhat hurried and could benefit from a more celebratory atmosphere. We were unable to physically place the crucial item needed to trigger the conclusion, yet it prematurely indicated our escape. The Game Master mentioned that proximity was sufficient, but this diminished the sense of completion. 🏹 TAKE A SHOT? If you're eager to unleash your inner ninja and see if you have what it takes, this room is the perfect place to make that dream a reality! Get ready to be challenged on your physical agility and your cleverness in solving puzzles. Japan is an incredible country, and I'm absolutely captivated by its culture. If you're curious about our adventures across various Japanese cities, you can dive into our journey HERE . I was thrilled about this theme even before diving into the game. Escape Artist has done an amazing job of bringing to life what they imagine a ninja's quest is to be. Are you ready to channel your inner ninja and successfully complete this mission? Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers ℹ️   ADDITIONAL INFO Free parking in the back Metered parking available in front Lobby area with seating available Merchandise and beverages available for purchase Plenty of shops in the area Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers Check out our YouTube video for a sneak peek of the location, an interview with the owner, the room(s) (no puzzle spoilers) and more: Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers (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 Escape Artists Orlando  for comping our tickets for this game. Although complimentary admission was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion of the review whatsoever. #CiciCao #IRLEscapeRoom #EscapeRooms #EscapeArtistsOrlando #Mission #Florida #USA

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