This is what we were waiting for
‘Marvo Archives’ is an Online Escape Room Adventure Series. It is a brand new story to complement our physical Escape Rooms and is designed as the prequel to one of our future games! You will need to explore, find clues and solve puzzles using all of the resources available to be able to complete your objectives!
We played M.A.R.V.O Archives Phase One and thoroughly enjoyed the concept, but felt like it was over far too soon, and looking back we still feel that way. The concept that Marvo had created was wonderful, beautiful, and at times, hilarious. But, just as we were getting going, it was over.
We’d been hearing chatter about how Phase Two was a chunkier beast and was taking people much longer to complete so we had high hopes that these rumours were true.
Marvo haven’t followed the herd with their online games and have really taken their time to produce something that will stand out from the crowd. We played this game on two devices and had no issues at all. Although only one person at a time can interact with the main screen, there are still other things that you can look at independently when required.
CONCEPT/EXECUTION
When we reviewed Phase One we waxed lyrical about how different it was and how Marvo had created something that was beautiful to play and interact with, those statements remain for Phase Two.
In its simplest form I guess you could class this as a bit of a point and click adventure, but that would be doing this game an injustice. The team at Marvo have, I can only assume, spent many sleepless nights making this game and finding ways to bring everything together into one seamless experience, and it shows.
While Phase One took place solely within the environment of the game’s interface (plus some PDFs), Phase Two takes you on more of an adventure to find information you need in order to complete your mission(s) which gave it more or a real-world feel.
PUZZLES
The main complaint we had with Phase One was that it was over too quickly and that there wasn’t enough puzzles to really get your teeth into. Phase Two went to the other extreme and when we thought we had finished we found even more puzzles!
The puzzles in Phase Two were a world apart from Phase One both in terms of quantity and quality. If I had to describe these puzzles I’d say they were as if an engineer designed them. You’ll find a fair amount of maths involved, some observation and unlike the first game, some internet sleuthing.
Generally the puzzles were logical and made sense, although some were more long-winded than others. Personally I have no problem with that, it’s nice to get a mixture of quick wins and long puzzles in one game just to keep you on your toes. One puzzle particularly stumped us for a while because we missed one key bit of information, but that was just us not being overly observant.
CLUE SYSTEM
If you get stuck at any point while playing this game then help is always on hand. A detailed clue system that offers gradual hints and then finally the solution will ensure that you can experience the entire game.
Seeing the lengths that Marvo have gone to with this game, it would have been wrong to have placed the help system somewhere detached from the game. Having it accessible at all times, and fitting in with the story makes perfect sense.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Phase One lacked puzzles and felt like a warm up act for something bigger. Phase Two was the headliner, and delivered on the earlier promises.
At the time of writing, Phase One and Two are available to purchase as one game which will save you £5. If you’re willing to spend £25 on a game then we’d recommend you play them back-to-back.
TOOLS REQUIRED
- Desktop/Laptop
- PDF reader (you’ll probably have that anyway)
Final Rating:
| Puzzles | |
| Concept/Execution | |
| Clue System | |
| Value for Money | |
| Enjoyment |
Team: 2 players
Time Taken: 65 minutes
Website: https://www.marvomysteries.co.uk/
*Disclaimer: we weren’t charged for this experience, but this has not influenced our review.
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