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 original game’s best elements while 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 that you now 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 the rooms have multiple points of interest this time. This gives you more space to breathe and take in the visuals, but the larger scenes, unfortunately, also mean more pixel hunting.

The enigmatic storyline will probably mystify players who are unfamiliar with the first game, 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 particular objects in the room, such as a model of a ship and a treasure chest on level two. Players must carefully examine each object to find the hidden compartments and drawers that contain the dials, switches, keys, or components required to continue. Because The Room Two is less hyper-focused on individual objects than the original game, it does lose that feeling of getting drawn deeper and deeper into the intricacies of the object. However, the puzzles are a bit more varied, and each room differs radically 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 you still cannot move around freely despite the larger areas. Instead, you use the mouse to pan around the room and 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 mouse-controlled and retains the tactile feeling 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 gestures feel more interactive than simply clicking on things to perform actions, making the experience more immersive. In addition to manipulating physical objects, your character still has the mysterious viewing lens he acquired in the previous game. Activating it enables you to look for hidden clues and messages that are not visible to the naked eye.

Although the playing area feels a bit larger, the puzzles in The Room Two are still very linear. This can be confusing at times when you solve one puzzle and then have to search for 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 relatively short, and solving the puzzles without help is much more satisfying. The clues, which start vague, eventually provide the complete solution to whatever puzzle you are struggling with. This means players of any skill level can complete the game.

The storyline in The Room Two is revealed mainly 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 game’s creepy atmosphere 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 one of the levels, help 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 engaging 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 do change the puzzle dynamics a bit. Overall, we enjoyed every minute of The Room Two and can heartily recommend it to fans of the original.