Puzzle Post: The Secret Set (Play at Home)

All the fun of a festival, without the mud!

Word’s going around about a secret set, and it’s not on the official schedule. It’s all whispers, but one thing is clear, only a few will get in – and only if they can solve the hidden puzzles scattered around the festival grounds.

It’s a race against time to unravel the cryptic clues, solve all nine puzzles, and break into the online vault before the final song ends. Will you make it in time, or will the secret set remain secret?

Puzzle Post was one of those games that appeared about midway through the lockdowns in 2020, and we loved it. Their first game, The Missed Flight, was a small envelope, posted directly to the recipient, and the final solution unlocked a personalised message from the sender. The whole thing, from the game itself to the personal message, was absolutely lovely. They still have this game, and other personalised experiences, like The Dupe, but in 2021, Puzzle Post branched out a bit by introducing a line of games that they class as Dinner Party games.

Our first foray into the world of Puzzle Post’s dinner party games was with The Scandal, and we found it thoroughly enjoyable. The personalised experiences and the dinner party games are essentially the same, although the dinner party games are physically just a little bit bigger. But the key difference between the two is the lack of personalisation, making it something you didn’t have to send out to someone, but rather something you could just pick up and enjoy a few puzzles with friends.

Which made Puzzle Post’s newest dinner party game, The Secret Set, the perfect thing to pack for a recent trip abroad. Thanks to the compact design, it was easy enough to slip the envelope into a backpack, and what better way to pass the time on the Eurostar with friends than with some puzzles? As the train pulled away from Brussels to return us to the UK, we pulled the tab on the envelope, and prepared to enter the world of The Secret Set.

CONCEPT/EXECUTION

The concept is simple here: you have an envelope, and it’s full of puzzles. Then solve these puzzles to reveal the message/story. There are loads of options out there for this style of game, but to us, Puzzle Post will forever remain in our heads as one of the first, if only for the simple fact that it was one of the first that we played. The items contained within the envelope are always completely on theme, and in the case of Puzzle Post, actually manage to create a fictitious world within those components.

Puzzle Post games have always had a quality feel to them, thanks to their attention to detail and the quality of the materials they use, and Secret Set was no different. The puzzle components were printed on quality paper, and card stock, making them feel like the real items they’re meant to be. The Secret Set contains everything, from tickets to festival maps, and schedules to line ups, and all of these things helped bring the Meadowlands Festival to life.

The best part of the Puzzle Post dinner party game style is the fact that they provide duplicates of all of the items. Unlike other play at home puzzle games, this makes the Puzzle Post options much better suited to larger groups, as players can collaborate on the same puzzle without having everyone hunched over the same tiny business card or A4 sheet of paper. Of course, players could still choose to investigate things independently, which is what we did, but the point is, we didn’t have to.

Due to the nature of the game, the puzzles are totally non-linear, and you can choose to solve them in any order, as long as you figure out the correct order to input them into the website for the finale. Players can skip from one to another, solve each as a group, or everyone can tackle their own puzzle. The non-linear design does mean that there isn’t a strong narrative that progresses, but rather just the end goal: finding the stage hosting that elusive Secret Set.

PUZZLES

I’ll be honest, the puzzles in The Set aren’t especially taxing for experienced puzzlers, and keen puzzle people and escape room enthusiasts are likely to have seen some variation on their themes throughout their travels.  But part of the reason the puzzles aren’t overly difficult for those that have played a fair few puzzle games is that all of the challenges are well telegraphed, with clear signposting, and it’s very easy to see what you need to do… provided you know how to connect the dots between things. The excellent signposting makes solving the puzzles immensely satisfying, but also totally accessible for players new to the world of escape rooms, whether they’re live or in an envelope.

The puzzles in Secret Set were varied, fair, and logical in their execution, and even better, not a single one of them is reminiscent of those rather annoying “puzzles” that are always popping up on Facebook. As with many tabletop games, the key thing here is observation. Noticing the tiny details of an item is often the difference between having a fantastic moment of realisation, or needing to consult the clue system.

CLUE SYSTEM

If you’ve ever played any sort of tabletop puzzle game before, you’re likely familiar with how the clues work for all of Puzzle Post’s games, as it’s pretty much the standard for clue delivery across the industry.  But if you haven’t played a game of this style before, then rest assured that if something doesn’t click for you with The Secret Set, then help is at hand.

If you need clues, you will need to be able to access the internet, but since the final solution needs to be verified on the website, hopefully you’ll have that anyway. In the case of The Secret Set, clues are presented as a series of subtle nudges, guiding you towards the right things to look at. And finally, if you’re really stuck, you can always get the answer, along with an explanation of how you were actually meant to arrive at it.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Puzzle Post consistently produce games filled with quality components and decent puzzles, and The Secret Set is another excellent addition to their line up. Whether you’re a veteran puzzler, or this is your first foray into the world of tabletop puzzle games, you won’t be disappointed with The Secret Set.

TOOLS REQUIRED

• Pen or Pencil
• Phone
• Device with Internet Access for Solution Verification and Clues

Final Rating:

Team: 3 players

Time Taken: 50 mins

Website: https://www.puzzlepost.uk/

*Disclaimer: we weren’t charged for this experience, but this has not influenced our review.