Swamp Motel: The Mermaid’s Tongue (Play at Home)

Next level stuff from Swamp Motel

Discover it… before they do.

Your help is needed to track down an ancient lost artefact. Thrown into a murky underworld, you’ll have to hack into CCTV, outbid a high-end art dealer, and decipher messages from beyond the grave.

Every click will immerse you deeper in the mystery. What is the Mermaid’s Tongue? And who are the dark forces who will stop at nothing to beat you to it?

Let the hunt begin…

We played the first game from Swamp Motel, Plymouth Point, and despite being a bit confused by what we had just experienced, we thoroughly enjoyed it. So when the team behind Brit of an Escape Habit invited us to play the new Swamp Motel game, The Mermaid’s Tongue with them (and Deadlocked), it was a no brainer and we instantly signed up.

I still don’t know how to explain this game, so reviewing it is a bit tricky, but if you take anything from this review it is that we thoroughly enjoyed this game. Why didn’t we rate this a five? That is simply on the price point, at £15 per person it feels steep for an online game that isn’t technically a live avatar game. If this game was a little cheaper then it would have easily been a five from us.

Before you join your call you will be asked to enter your mobile phone number, make sure you enter this as it will make your experience 100% better. Swamp Motel are sticklers to time keeping so make sure you’re not late for your appointment. At our appointed time, we clicked the link in our email and joined our art class…

CONCEPT/EXECUTION

The Mermaid’s Tongue is different to anything else we have played (except, of course, Plymouth Point), and it’s a hard one to classify. This is a game that really gets the adrenaline going and that lasts throughout the entire experience. Swamp Motel have mixed an online scavenger hunt with an immersive theatrical experience, and boy have they done it well!

If there was one area we felt this game was lacking, it was the ending, or rather the bit after the ending (the ending was great). Once it was over we were just kinda left waiting around in the room until something popped up saying ‘the room is being closed in 60 seconds’, I’m not sure how they could improve it, but it was the only low of the entire experience.

As with Plymouth Point, the less we say about this game, the better it will be for you. Just go into this game expecting mystery, intrigue, sleuthing, and twists and turns a plenty.

PUZZLES

Observation and internet research are the main skills you will need in this game. This is not your typical escape room where puzzles are laid out before you, you are presented with information and then it is up to you to work out how you use that information. People who prefer hardcore puzzle experiences should not be put off by this game, the way you find information and interact with this game really do take it to the next level and solving/finding the information you need is extremely satisfying.

The most challenging ‘puzzle’ we found was communication with our team. If one person on your team solves something it is very easy for them to just plough ahead and play the entire game by themself. Fortunately we had a great team and when anything was solved it was explained to the rest of the team so we were all caught up and could proceed together.

CLUE SYSTEM

Although this game didn’t have the traditional gamesmaster for assistance, I am confident that there was someone in place who would be able to guide you without breaking the immersion. As it was, the ‘interactions’ that we had with all the key characters were good and it was well put together.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Swamp Motel do things differently and it’s hard to explain how enjoyable this game is without giving away too much detail. Suffice to say that everyone on our team loved this game and would have no hesitation in recommending it to anyone looking to play our your own murder mystery/adventure/thriller experience online.

This narrowly avoided a five from us simply because of the price point they have chosen, but if you’re splitting up the cost among friends, then perhaps £15 per person won’t bother you. If that’s the case, you’re in for a treat.

TOOLS REQUIRED

• Internet
• Pen and Paper (for note taking)
• Phone – capable of making/receiving phones call and text messages from UK

Final Rating:

Puzzles
Concept/Execution
Clue System
Value for Money
Enjoyment

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Team: 6 players

Time Taken: 44 minutes

Website: https://www.plymouthpoint.co.uk

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