Escape Tales: The Awakening is a story driven escape room in card game form, with immersive exploration, no time limits when solving puzzles, and a collection of tough choices that will captivate and immerse you deeply. As for the story, here's the set-up:
Players take on the role of Sam, whose daughter has been in a coma for over two months and whose doctors still cannot explain how this happened or what caused it. According to them, everything is fine with the girl; she's healthy and shouldn't be in this condition. Sam is desperate and looks for answers everywhere he can, which leads to a weird meeting with Mark.
Mark's son was once in a similar situation, and his father was able to help wake the boy up. He has given Sam a scary-looking book and said that inside this book he will find a ritual called "The Awakening". But Mark warned Sam that he needs to prepare himself mentally since this ritual will transfer him into another dimension, where he should be able to find his daughter and understand what is the cause of this state. If Sam's lucky enough, then he will be able to wake her up as well. Sam has held onto the book for more than a week. Finally, he's ready to go into the basement and perform a ritual. Are you ready, too?
Content warning: suicide
- Original, fresh puzzle design and app integration
- Presents engaging, high-quality puzzles with good puzzle density
- Story element can feel slow or bleak for some players
- Some players may feel the story slows puzzle progression
- Grim, somber escape-room experience with a narrative focus
- Dark, ritualistic world connected to a father's struggle after his wife's death
- Story-driven with a bleak tone and puzzles integrated into the world
- unlock! (puzzle pacing
- other escape room games (puzzle density and app integration)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Cooperative teamwork — Solving puzzles requires collaboration and clear communication.
- puzzle gating and secret mechanics — Puzzles unlock gradually; players can choose when to reveal or explore story elements.
- puzzle-solving via app-assisted clues — Embedded puzzles track progress, with some hints and puzzle counts accessible without revealing everything.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's a wonderful game
- it's so simple in terms of the turn that you take you just place two camels
- there's a fair amount of blocking in the game
- the puzzles in this game are great
- the story didn't massively work for me
References (from this video)
- interesting take on escape room games without a timer
- story-driven design that can pause and resume
- puzzles can be challenging and may frustrate some players
- story-driven puzzle solving
- escape room-inspired mystery
- mystery thriller
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Puzzle solving — puzzles drive progression without a strict time limit
- story integration — narrative elements tie puzzle outcomes to the plot
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's one of those games that can be played by anyone
- it's basically Taboo but trap words
- one of the best-looking covers of a ball game I've ever seen
- a dynasty of games that feels different to anything else
References (from this video)
- engaging puzzle experience without time pressure
- story integration is appealing
- puzzle difficulty may be variable for players
- puzzle-focused with story
- escape room-inspired adventure
- puzzle-driven, suspenseful
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Puzzle solving — puzzles drive the narrative progression
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's one of those games that can be played by anyone
- it's basically Taboo but trap words
- one of the best-looking covers of a ball game I've ever seen
- a dynasty of games that feels different to anything else
References (from this video)
- thematic depth and puzzle variety
- campaign-style feel with puzzles to solve
- puzzle-heavy; can be challenging for casual players
- story-driven puzzle solving
- Escape room-inspired puzzle adventure
- immersive and puzzle-first
- Exit: The Game
- Deck Scape
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- puzzle-solving with story hooks — Long-form puzzle solving with narrative elements and cooperative play.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- this is from I games in Ukraine and this is from one of the designers of mysterium
- we had a lot of laughter with this one
- surprising amount of skill to hitting that Tower
- this is a reversed dungeon cruel
- I had loads of fun with it last night