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The Room - BAFTA Award Winning Puzzle/Adventure Game Series

Started by St_Eddie, April 16, 2019, 06:29:35 PM

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St_Eddie


(Leave your Tommy Wiseau jokes at the door please.  Ta)

I just recently finished playing The Room trilogy for PC.  I went into it not expecting too much but came away blown away.  This series of games is now within my top 20 adventure games of all time and I heartily recommend it to anyone with an interest in puzzle/adventure games.

The best way that I can describe the experience is to liken it to solving the Lament Configuration puzzle box from the Hellraiser films, crossed with the feeling of exploration and pseudo-archeology of the Indiana Jones movies.  It's simply a joy to work your way through the many contraptions and puzzle boxes presented to you throughout the world(s) of the series.


The puzzle design, rigging and animation of the various puzzle boxes is sublime.  I would hug the developers if I could.  As I said, there are three games available for the PC but they were initially made available for the iPhone format.  I cannot stress this enough; do not let that put you off.  The fact that these games started off as mobile games is in no way whatsoever indicative of the quality, nor depth, of the games themselves.  There's a very good reason as to why these games won a BAFTA (among a multitude of other awards).

The series progresses in complexity from each game to the next (which also serves to make the trilogy feel like a single whole experience, especially considering that each game picks up where the last one left off).  The first game is one giant intricate puzzle box within a single room but by the time you reach the third game, you'll be exploring a vast location and solving interconnected puzzles within multiple rooms.  Similarly, the narrative starts off rather bare bones but grows in complexity as you progress throughout the series.  There are also inventory puzzles and a neat mechanic involving an eye piece which allows you to see hidden messages and enter otherworldly areas.


I cannot recommend this series enough.  Please give it a go, if you haven't already.  There's a fourth game available for iPhone and hopefully that too will be ported to PC in due course.  Whichever format you play this series on, just make sure that you play it, for it is wonderful.  No, not just wonderful; stellar (in more ways than one).

Sin Agog

I love all the Lovecraftian stuff that steps up with each game.  Wanting to catch glimpses of some vast, empyrean otherworld really got me twisting those nobs lickety split like.

St_Eddie

Quote from: Sin Agog on April 16, 2019, 06:41:38 PM
I love all the Lovecraftian stuff that steps up with each game.  Wanting to catch glimpses of some vast, empyrean otherworld really got me twisting those nobs lickety split like.

Aye, it's great.  I also love the way that the story is drip fed to you through mere suggestion and scraps of parchment, as opposed to the developers hammering it into you with a big narrative mallet.  The developers respect the intelligence of their audience and I, in turn, respect them for that.

holyzombiejesus

I've only ever played this on my Sony phone but agree that they're excellent. Best sound design of any phone game I've played (which admittedly is very few).

Jerzy Bondov

Yep, great games. I thought The Room 3 got a bit complicated (it has multiple endings and secret bits) but loved how it used Fonthill Abbey, which I've had a bit of a fascination with for a while. Old Sins, the fourth game, was brilliant though, probably my favourite. Hope it comes to PC soon. There's something extra satisfying about playing it on an iPad though, sliding the various bits around. So engrossing.

St_Eddie

Quote from: Jerzy Bondov on April 16, 2019, 09:19:10 PM
I thought The Room 3 got a bit complicated (it has multiple endings and secret bits)

Indeed.  Being a competitionist and wanting to see the whole story, I naturally felt compelled to unlock the various endings (I really appreciated that the developer didn't force the player to restart the game from the beginning to do so - instead allowing them to pick up just prior to the ending) but those extra endings were very difficult to achieve (and hints are disabled for them), so I must confess that I resorted to an online guide a few times for that last stretch.

Those alternative endings aside, it's a testament to the main experience and how well designed the puzzles are that I rarely ever used the in-game hint system to progress.  In fact, I only did so a few times throughout all three games and only ever to read the stage 1 hint, in order to nudge me in the right direction of where I should be looking/concentrating my attention.

Quote from: Jerzy Bondov on April 16, 2019, 09:19:10 PMOld Sins, the fourth game, was brilliant though, probably my favourite. Hope it comes to PC soon.

Gah!  I want to play it so badly, dammit!

Quote from: Jerzy Bondov on April 16, 2019, 09:19:10 PMThere's something extra satisfying about playing it on an iPad though, sliding the various bits around. So engrossing.

I can imagine.  Though it must be said that the developer did a grand job of translating that tangible feel of interaction to the PC's mouse.  It works surprisingly well.  I should imagine that's why the conversion of all three games took multiple years to reach PC; because the developer wanted to do it properly and avoid a cheap and nasty port.  That's also undoubtedly why the fourth game has yet to reach PC.  *heavy sigh*  Good things come to those who wait, I guess.

Mister Six

Just bought the first one for my mobile phone thanks to St Eddie's enthusiasm. Only 99 cents from the Google Play store - though the later entries are a fiver each, so clearly it's a cunning trap to lure in suckers like me.

St_Eddie

Quote from: Mister Six on April 16, 2019, 11:42:21 PM
Just bought the first one for my mobile phone thanks to St Eddie's enthusiasm. Only 99 cents from the Google Play store - though the later entries are a fiver each, so clearly it's a cunning trap to lure in suckers like me.

I'm thrilled to read that you've taken my recommendation to heart, Mister Six.  If just one person was encouraged to give this masterpiece a go, then my job here is done.  I hope that you love the game as much as I did.  If so, then please do play the sequels.  They greatly expand in depth and length as the series continues, more than justifying the increase in price.

St_Eddie

By the way, Mister Six, I recommend turning off the hint system.  I think that this is a game which is far more rewarding when played without hints.  If you find yourself getting stuck for an extended period of time, then you can access the menu, turn hints on, read the hint and then disable it again (that's how I played).  That way you'll be less inclined to cave in and hit the hint button whenever you get stuck (which can be the death of an adventure game - so much of the joy in genre comes from that magical 'a-ha' moment, when you finally figure out how to progress).

Having said that, should you use it, the hint system is very good; a three step hint for each puzzle, with a timer on when each step will unlock, in order to prevent the player from hammering through to the final solution.

Mister Six

Only on the second box but enjoying it so far. I wonder if this is better played on a PC or tablet though - spending a lot of time squinting like crazy to spot an out-of-place pixel that might clue me in to a hidden panel or something. The touchscreen stuff is lovely and tactile, mind, so tablet seems the way to go.

St_Eddie

Quote from: Mister Six on April 17, 2019, 03:49:27 AM
Only on the second box but enjoying it so far. I wonder if this is better played on a PC or tablet though - spending a lot of time squinting like crazy to spot an out-of-place pixel that might clue me in to a hidden panel or something. The touchscreen stuff is lovely and tactile, mind, so tablet seems the way to go.

Well, it was designed for mobile platforms, so you should be fine.  I wouldn't say that there's any pixel hunting, as such and remember that you can double tap to zoom in on any area of interest, so don't strain your eyes too much (though obviously you should be keeping an eye open for any discrepancies in the puzzle box's design).

I could well imagine that a tablet is probably the ideal platform to play the game on.  The PC version is ace too, mind; as I said earlier, the tangible feeling of interaction translates surprisingly well to mouse control.  It's a good port.  A mobile phone is probably the least ideal platform but it should play fine all the same, I think.

I'm glad that you're enjoying it so far.  Please keep the thread updated with your thoughts.

Mister Six

I'd be interested to know how the four balls puzzle works on PC since on mobile it involves tilting your phone to rotate them.

St_Eddie

Quote from: Mister Six on April 17, 2019, 05:27:55 AM
I'd be interested to know how the four balls puzzle works on PC since on mobile it involves tilting your phone to rotate them.

I just looked up the puzzle in question as a refresher and now it makes sense to me why I didn't understand how I solved that puzzle at all, or what the logic behind it was (the only time throughout the trilogy that this happened to the best of my memory, to be fair).  You hold down the mouse button and move the board around by moving your mouse.  I did just that and within seconds I had "solved" the puzzle, without knowing how or why.

I think such puzzles are few and far between though, as there weren't many moments that seemed out of place on the PC across the three games.  In fact, I can only think of one other moment that was almost certainly a tilting puzzle on mobile devices (within the third game), so it's not a major issue with the PC port.  Still, I guess that's another reason why a tablet would be the ideal device to play these games on.

I hope that doesn't put off other potential PC players though!  It's a great game regardless and again, I cannot stress enough that the PC port is exemplary and about as far removed from a quick and lazy port as one can get.

madhair60


madhair60

Cheekiness aside. I liked the first and second games on mobile, didn't finish either. Might grab the PC Ports if cheap. Really felt rewarding and satisfying

St_Eddie

Quote from: madhair60 on April 17, 2019, 07:51:28 AM
What do you get when you open the box? Skins?

A muzzle for a certain cheeky pooch.

Quote from: madhair60 on April 17, 2019, 07:55:05 AM
Cheekiness aside. I liked the first and second games on mobile, didn't finish either. Might grab the PC Ports if cheap. Really felt rewarding and satisfying

On Steam, the first two games are £3.99 each and the third is £4.99.  For around 12 hours of gameplay across all three games, £12.97 seems a reasonable price, especially given how great the experience is.

Sin Agog

IOS brings them all down to 99 cents on the regular.

Timothy

How is the story? That's the most important part of an adventure game for me.

St_Eddie

Quote from: Timothy on April 17, 2019, 08:50:57 AM
How is the story? That's the most important part of an adventure game for me.

Ehhh.  It's not the focus, to be honest.  It's there, in the background and waiting for you to piece together if you're willing to put your mind to it.  However, if it helps persuade you, then narrative is one of the main things that I too look for in an adventure game but the puzzles and atmosphere in this game are second to none.  I usually don't dig these kind of non-narrative focused adventure games at all but it's just done so damn well in this case.  I'd suggest at least giving the first game a go (given that it's quite cheap) and if that hooks you, know that the narrative comes much more to the forefront in the following sequels.  The first game is kind of like a glorious extended tutorial for what's to come, whilst still being a great game in its own right.

Pseudopath

These are indeed fantastic games and probably my favourite gaming experiences over the past five years. That said, I was quite disappointed by the new one (The Room Old Sins) as it's both easier and shorter than Three and drops the multiple endings (which I loved). Don't get me wrong - it's still a great game, but it felt like a huge step backwards.

madhair60

Just bought the first two of these. If they're shite I'm comin for ya.

St_Eddie

Quote from: Pseudopath on April 18, 2019, 07:51:56 AM
...I was quite disappointed by the new one (The Room Old Sins) as it's both easier and shorter than Three and drops the multiple endings (which I loved). Don't get me wrong - it's still a great game, but it felt like a huge step backwards.

I don't mind the idea of the fourth game being easier because I thought that the third game was perhaps slightly too complicated at points.  I also don't mind the concept of dropping the multiple endings, as I generally prefer my games to have a definitive ending.  That's all in theory though of course because I can't play the bloody thing until its ported to PC.  GAARRRRRR!!!

Quote from: madhair60 on April 18, 2019, 08:22:26 AM
Just bought the first two of these. If they're shite I'm comin for ya.

This whole thread has been an elaborate ruse by myself and other posters to trick you into spending your money on garbage and you only went and bloody well fell for it!

Ferris

Just bought this on your (St_Eddie's) recommendation. If it's shit, I'll be after the money back from you personally.

Incidentally, have you played Device 6? Neither have I, but Mrs Ferris raved about it. Must be worth a go.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Device_6

St_Eddie

Quote from: St_Eddie on April 18, 2019, 01:16:52 PM
I don't mind the idea of the fourth game being easier because I thought that the third game was perhaps slightly too complicated at points.  I also don't mind the concept of dropping the multiple endings, as I generally prefer my games to have a definitive ending.  That's all in theory though of course because I can't play the bloody thing until its ported to PC.  GAARRRRRR!!!

Crikey!  Near enough two years on and I am extremely happy to report to my past-self and others that the fourth game in the series, The Room: Old Sins, has finally been ported and released for the PC!