Unlock!: Short Adventures – The Secrets of the Octopus

Artwork 9 Fun 9 Game progression vs. time 10 Mechanics 8 Packaging size 10 Quality 10 Replay appeal 9 Set-up time vs. playing time 10 Theme 9 ----------------- Rate 9.33 ==========

The best of the short adventures; if only the others were nearly this good! Fun puzzles, good story, and nice use of the app on several of the challenges.

(Hard - 50 min) This Short Adventure features many enjoyable mechanics and clues, none of which really felt too far-fetched. Only one clue was so difficult to spot that we couldn’t find it even after revealing the hints. What we didn’t expect, however, was the inclusion of supernatural elements in the story—which would have been a turn-off had we known beforehand. More adventures like this, but with a clean theme and story, would be wonderful to see.

Recalling [b]The Tonipal's Treasure[/b], this is a thematically rich adventure with a length and challenge that rivals a full "Unlock!" adventure, despite only having half the cards. The story is interesting, the puzzles are clever, and the usage of the app (the spyglass) is immersive. This is one of the best "Short Adventures".

I enjoyed playing this whole series a lot, and will happily play the last one I have not yet played – The Awakening of the Mummy - if I can get my hands on it (or any future releases if they make more – I did see there’s one more available in French already). This is one of my favorites in the series.