Dragon’s Secret

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Vertigo Games has a welcoming, gorgeous exterior, with its large, end-to-end windows decorated with crisp and interesting decals. The lobby is spacious, with seating and tables spread across the entire room, and an air hockey table by the side. The walls of the lobby and doors were painted beautifully with shapes and patterns that reflected the theme of the company’s name. The room’s premise was what could’ve used the most improvement, with a basic story that did not carry over into the experience and could’ve done more to pique our interest.

Like all of Vertigo’s rooms, Dragon’s Secret has some very well engineered props. Vertigo foregoes a reliance on lock-and-passcode puzzles in favour of secret compartments or self-unlocking doors. Vertigo also seems to have a very talented artist in their arsenal; upon entering the room, players are greeted with beautifully hand painted murals. Unfortunately, the decor was not consistent and while the murals were beautiful, many other parts of the room were bare. Some of the engineered props looked amazing, and others looked lacklustre. As a consequence of having large windows that faced the setting sun, (but perhaps befitting of the room’s name) Dragon’s Secret was very warm. If you are sensitive to heat, I suggest bringing in a water bottle and dressing in layers.

While Vertigo Games clearly did their research for this room, the immersion fell short. Some of the puzzles fit in with the theme of the room splendidly, with the research of the genre shining through, but other puzzles and some of the decor were jarring and seemed out of place. Certain puzzles could have been better integrated into the theme of the room, and parts of the setting were confusing through sections of the game. The linearly structured game-play offered the possibility for great story-telling, but unfortunately it was a missed opportunity.

The puzzles of Dragon’s Secret were plentiful and adhered to a very linear structure, which at times was to the detriment to the room. When we solved a puzzle out of the intended order it ended up confusing us for many minutes of the game since we did not realize it was already over. While several of the puzzles were creative and offered a fresh take on the theme, many puzzles would have benefited from having additional steps involved or use more problem solving from the players. The size of the puzzles are good for multiple players, though everyone had to work on the same puzzle at one time. Larger groups will likely find it hard to all participate at once.

Players who enjoy rooms that clearly progress from one stage to the next may enjoy this room. Most of the puzzles in this room were fairly enjoyable and thematic, although a bit simple and straight forward. Dragon’s Secret may not be Vertigo’s most refined room in terms of atmosphere or puzzles, but will be a decent experience for first-timers to enjoy.