Lockout

Recently I've been realizing that reviews mean different things to different people, and that everyone has different criteria for what they value in games. So I've been reading this author's reviews of other games to see what they consider important for success in a game and what scores should mean for a game, and this review and rating is calculated relative to that standard.

This is a classic puzzlebox. You are on a ship (I believe a submarine) and have gotten stuck in the control room due to an emergency. The door is locked, the alarm is blaring, and you have to find your way out.

This progresses in escape-room like fashion. Many of the puzzles present you with challenges that hint at a solution which you have not yet found, which is nice and lets you strategize. Finding numbers and codes is essential, as is carefully exploring and reading the text closely.

I only found one error ((Spoiler - click to show)typing ENTER (the correct code) ON THE KEYPAD gives an error implying that that didn't work, but typing CODE (the correct code) does work. The game does tell you to use the second one, but it's odd the first one gives a message implying the number is incorrect.). The relative lack of errors is remarkable for a first-time author, especially given the complexity of the game. The coding is very impressive.

As for the story and writing, the situation is presented as an important and dangerous one. The background for the ship, mission and crew is less present, however, mostly told through logs that describe events in methodical language. The ending is quite abrupt as well. As a first game designed to make a polished, puzzle-dense experience, I think it succeeds, but I think that it lacks a certain narrative element that I'm confident can be provided in the next game by this talented author.