Escape from Mystwood Mansion Review

I really love escape room games and have done so ever since they first appeared in the ancient times of Flash game myth. As such, I have found myself trying out several modern interpretations of the genre, ranging from the short and sweet to the cooperative and lengthy. What originally drew me to Escape from Mystwood Mansion, however, was a promise of both a story and a singular shifting puzzle instead of the level-by-level that is more prevalent for similar games.

So, about that story. There really doesn’t seem to be one, at least not in focus. We start off as a package delivery person doing what our working title would infer. As we deliver the package inside, the door locks behind us and we’re informed that we must now escape. All in a day's work, I suppose? Though the plot does pop in every now and again to remind us about how someone is orchestrating this and that we are not the first to endure these trials, it is not really much of a presence unless you actively seek it out. I’m as thick as a bucket of cement, so most of it flew right past, but I did enjoy the subtle “mouse in a labyrinth” feel the setting conveys. I also enjoyed that the game lets you give the parcel being delivered the Ace Ventura treatment.

The puzzles are fun and involve both hunting for clues and some problem-solving, which is a good mix. The different areas of the mansion are filled with plenty of items to make it feel lived-in (you’ll find a lot of tea cups, for example) and even though there are “fluff” items to pick up and look at, most things are not interactable, making it much more pleasant to both search and find the many puzzle items. Though a lot of the puzzles either require or result in a key of some sort, both the areas and the challenges themselves are varied enough not to become boring. My one complaint is the lack of an inventory, as running each piece of a puzzle to the designated solving area can be a bit of a chore.

The progress through the game is also very linear, with one area needing to be “solved” before the next is unlocked, though some areas may be split into multiple rooms. The complexity of the puzzles increases with each area at a pleasant pace, though, as always, puzzle difficulty is very subjective; you’ll probably fly through some of the puzzles that had me stumped for ages. Thankfully, the game has a dynamic hint system, offering suggestions for the current conundrums while adding more as you progress. The hints are given in order from subtle and general to more specific, allowing players to pick how much of a hand they want. Some of them can be a bit annoying, however, in that they don’t seem to address the issue you are having. But, to be fair, this may be more of a dumb-user problem than anything else.

In terms of visuals and audio, Mystwood Mansion does a fine job. The mansion itself is stylised and feels like a place of living more than a place of puzzles, with interactable elements being more-or-less clear. I did miss a few items here or there, but once I opened up a hint, it was pretty clear sailing. The background music does its job of filling the silence while not being distracting and nothing else popped out as sounding “off”.

I enjoyed Escape from Mystwood Mansion. It’s not very long, clocking in at about a few hours, but it doesn’t need to be long to work. You get some fun puzzles, interesting environments to comb for loose post-its, and there’s even a classic “find all the clues to reveal the hidden ending” thing for those looking for completion. You can even deliver the package! If you want a snacky little brain teaser, give it a go!