Nautilus (Game duration 60 minutes)
Fury team: Nush Krasteva, Ivan Minchev, Alla Danabasheva, Gencho Danabashev, and Nadezhda Danabasheva
Date: May 13, 2024
Fury team time: 43:52 minutes
I love games based on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. I know the theme isn’t always a favorite among players, since it usually involves similar tasks—fix the submarine, fix the oxygen, fix the torpedoes, fix the navigation. But for me, these games are clear and enjoyable. There’s a clear progression, constant feedback (this works, that needs attention), and I love structure. Plus, anything steampunk is totally my vibe.
This game had a similar setup. But apart from puzzles that looked familiar, MindMaze put a twist on them—they felt fresh and even challenging. In Nautilus, we embarked on a journey guided by the eccentric Professor Baron Emmanuel von Katzenstein und Kartoffelberg (😂). The adventure takes place across three distinct environments: the professor’s study, a meticulously crafted submarine, and a mysterious island. Each setting was richly detailed, immersing us in a narrative that blended science, exploration, and magic.
If I have one remark about this work, it would be the final puzzle. Killing the monster made sense as a natural ending, but the interface for the puzzle was frustrating. I wasn’t sure what I was doing wrong—or right. It didn’t take me long to solve, but to this day, it feels like an orchestrated solution, and I don’t feel like I actually did it. This game deserves a WOW ending, and unfortunately, this wasn’t it.
After the game, we had the privilege of meeting the owner of the room. It’s always a pleasure to sit and talk about escape rooms. We wanted to play another game, and he very graciously made it happen for us at their other location. We even took the GM with us (great girl—thank you for sticking with us and changing plans on the fly!), and off we went to the magical world of mirrors.
