A point & click adventure in boardgame format, what more could you want?

Table of Contents

Location: Home

Date Played: May 2023

Team size: 1; we recommend 1-3

Duration: 5-6 hours

Price: ~S$45 on Amazon

Premise

In "The Cantaloop Trilogy - Book 1: Breaking into Prison," players assume the role of Oz "Hook" Carpenter, a small-time criminal seeking revenge against a powerful adversary who forced him into exile. To achieve his goal, Oz must assemble a team of skilled individuals. The game is the first part of a trilogy, with future books focusing on the heist itself. Gameplay is reminiscent of point-and-click adventures and is structured like a board game.

Components


The game comprises a substantial book, a postcard with locations to visit, a red decoder for viewing text, a trigger sheet to track actions, a poster for identifying item interactions, and a deck of 60 cards.

Gameplay

The first location you'll visit

The game unfolds across 20 different locations, each featuring groups of letters and numbers. Players interact with these combinations using item cards from the deck.
Some of the cards in the game
Aligning item cards with location digits/letters generates a 4-character combination, which is then decoded using the red decoder on the left page of the current location.
 
The postcard is used to identify which locations you can visit in the game itself. Some locations are locked till you unlock a specific trigger.

 Summary

➕ Well-Designed Puzzles: The puzzles are sensible and thoughtfully constructed, avoiding unrealistic or far-fetched solutions.

➕ Engaging Story: The immersive narrative encourages players to continue with the trilogy, piquing their interest.

➕ Humorous Elements: The game incorporates humor and meta-jokes that add to the enjoyment. Players may find themselves laughing at absurd moments.

➕ Resettable: The game components remain unaltered, making it suitable for gifting or passing on to others.

➖ Hint & Solution System: While the hint and solution system is helpful, identifying exactly where you're stuck may require comparing your trigger sheet with triggered events, which can be time-consuming and inconvenient.

Verdict

"The Cantaloop Trilogy - Book 1: Breaking into Prison" offers an engaging point-and-click adventure experience in board game format. With a compelling story, sensible puzzles, and humor, it provides an enjoyable way to spend a lazy weekend. Highly recommended for those seeking an immersive, real-life point-and-click adventure.

Rating: 5/5

★★★★★

You can buy their game here