Last month, I posted several guides/walkthroughs for
Factory96, an escape room puzzle game that specializes in escaping from
Factory rooms. I know, that doesn’t sound like the best game in the
world, but it is a pretty neat game that works well for what it does. It
never tries to be anything more or less, and that’s what makes the game
so accessible to new players.
Developers Virtual Vinyl mixes things up really well as the levels progress. In the first few levels, you only have to find the not-so-hidden 3-digit numbers on the wall or door to escape. However, after a while, they introduce new mechanics to shake things up. For example, you then have to pick objects up from the ground and use them from your inventory on the walls or doors or windows to reveal the hidden numbers. After that, the later levels require you to shake your mobile device to drop something that you can use or reveal a loose tile. Towards the end, certain levels even force you to practice Math and solve Anagram
I have to admit though, that some of the answers to certain levels are totally unthinkable! I would spend hours staring and clicking around to no avail. In times like these, you just want to put down your device and never look at it again. Then, the next time you find yourself with some spare time, the curiosity and need-to-know feeling kicks in again and you find yourself staring at the same picture for hours. Because of this, the satisfaction that you gain from solving a difficult level is tremendous, and that is what draws me into escape room games these days.
The graphics are excellent, with still pictures of factory rooms setting the mood that is expected of the title of the game. Because these are real pictures, the lighting is realistic (duh!) and makes you feel immersed in the game, like you are actually trapped in there. Unfortunately, the music is almost non-existent or forgettable, and only serves as background noise while you think about where you haven’t clicked.
Overall, the game is okay. If you have a low-end device with time to spare, this is one among hundreds (maybe thousands) of similar escape room games that are out there in the Play Store. Since this is free, give this a try. There are only 25 levels, so you’ll probably be done in a few days. Then uninstall it and move on to the next game
