The Room Two

Developer: Fireproof Games | Publisher: Fireproof Games | Release Date: 2016 | Genre: Adventure / Indie / Puzzle | Website: Official Website | Purchase: Steam

The Room might originally have been an iOS title, but a lot of effort clearly went into enhancing it for its PC debut. The wait was worth it though, as the PC version retained all the best elements of the original game while also polishing everything to a fine sheen. The developers used the same approach for The Room Two, which follows directly after the events of part one. Your character is still following the cryptic letters of the scientist who got him embroiled in the mystery, but this time it is a quest that takes you beyond the creepy mansion.

One of the most noticeable changes in The Room Two is the fact that you now actually have a whole room full of puzzles to solve. In the original game the puzzles were focused solely on a series of mysterious boxes, but this time the rooms have multiple points of interest. This gives you a bit more space to breath and to take in the visuals, but the larger scenes unfortunately also means more pixel hunting.

Players who are unfamiliar with the first game will probably be mystified by the enigmatic storyline, but the gameplay is very straightforward. Your character finds himself locked in a series of rooms and the only way out is to solve all the puzzles. The puzzles are all centered around certain objects in the room, for example, a model of a ship and a treasure chest on level two. Each object must be carefully examined to find the hidden compartments and drawers that contain the dials, switches, keys or components that are required to continue. Because The Room Two isn’t as hyper focused on individual objects as the original game, it does lose that feeling of getting drawn deeper and deeper into the intricacies of the object. However, it does mean that the puzzles are a bit more varied and each room are radically different from the last.

Your quest in The Room Two will take you through everything from an ancient tomb and ship to a Victorian séance room and laboratory. The game is viewed in first person, but despite the larger areas you still cannot move around freely. Instead, you use the mouse to pan around the room and then double-click to zoom in on areas of interest. Compared to the iOS version the environments are much more detailed and new high definition textures were created for all of the assets in the game. The lighting for the PC version also looks much improved and contributes to the polished feel of the game.

The game is completely mouse controlled and retains the tactile feel of interacting with objects. Keys are dragged over keyholes and then rotated to open the lock while drawers must be pulled back to open. These actions feel a bit more interactive than simply clicking on things to perform actions and also makes the experience a bit more immersive. In addition to the manipulation of physical objects, your character still has the mysterious viewing lens that he acquired in the previous game. Activating it enables you to look for hidden clues and messages that are not visible to the ordinary eye.

Although the playing area feels a bit larger the puzzles in The Room Two are still very linear. This can be a bit confusing at times when you solve one puzzle and then have to search what changed elsewhere in the room. Puzzle veterans shouldn’t have any trouble completing the game in one sitting, but players who struggle can make use of the hint system. Like the first game, we recommend turning off the hints as the game is quite short and solving the puzzles without help is much more satisfying. The clues, which start out vague, but eventually provides the full solution to whatever puzzle you are struggling with, does mean players of any skill level will be able to complete the game.

The storyline in The Room Two is revealed mostly through notes and letters left behind by “A.S” and definitely has some Lovecraftian undertones. While there are no jump scares or any real danger to your character the audio does a great job of keeping you on the edge of your seat. The moody tunes playing in the background add immensely to the creepy atmosphere of the game and will leave you feeling uneasy a lot of the time. The audio is rounded out even further by the vivid sound effects. Ambient noises, such as the creaking of the ship and waves lapping against the hull on level helps to make each of the detailed areas even more interesting.

As with the first game the biggest problem with The Room Two is that it is such an engrossing experience that you’ll easily find yourself completing it in one sitting. The average playtime appears to be about two to three hours, but the game makes up for this with its reasonable price tag. Players who enjoyed the first game will love this sequel, although the room sized locations does change the puzzle dynamics a bit. Overall we enjoyed every minute of The Room Two and can only hope that it doesn’t take as long for part three, which is already out on iOS, to appear on PC.