Inspectors' Review:
Map is quality laying material.
Crosswords are hard for me...I think it's the lack of opposable thumbs by idk.
People need to clean bathroom...I highly recommend getting a pawrent to do that.
Avoid the soap...it hurts my sensitive noes!
Such quality people in this town!
Boss would not let me eat the keychain - very disappointing.
Quality sleeps were had during this game.
Boss' Review:
Hawthorn Junction is a premium experience by the company, Hunt a Killer. It is a single “box” experience compared to their monthly box experiences. Admittedly I have not tried Hunt A Killer’s regular subscription yet (just their Empty Faces series) but if they are anything like Hawthorn Junction then I thing you’re in for a treat if you like hunting serial killers!
The story for Hawthorn Junction is quirky and strange but I thought that was great! You have recently moved into this town and receive not only your welcome letter but also a postal delivery bag filled with papers that didn’t manage to make it to their intended recipient. As you begin to read through the documents you find out the simple disappearance of a local boy seems to stretch back far longer and have much darker and sinister meanings…
This game requires both deductive reasoning and cipher solving. You are attempting to identify the killer and must collect a list of suspects and begin whittling it down. Secret messages hidden across the game provide special clues that will help break open the case further. This game also utilize digital elements in the form of websites as well a tangible written components. You receive some physical items (a bag, hat, dvd, and really REALLY strong smelling soap) but they appear to be more thematic rather than providing any clues. Also, there is an online copy of the video on the dvd on the hint site if you require it. I found the ciphers to be good. There generally use traditional ciphers but the twists and connection the story made them work and make sense. I personally love ciphers so it was fun unpacking these! Other than three puzzles (some of are longer than others), the rest of the game consists of deduction and finding hidden things across the site.
The hint site for this game is quite minimal for the puzzles but it has a solution pdf that will unpack each component and conclude with the killer. I would have loved a bit more of a satisfactory “aha” moment of solving it (ie. Logging into a locked website with the name of the killer) but that is me just nitpicking. I still immensely enjoyed the game but I would have like an epilogue.
I have no experience with their customer service personally. I did join their facebook group dedicated to this game and I could see they took the time to provide help to everyone posting questions and I admit to using those comments as my hints. If you require hints for the puzzles, the facebook group is your best bet. Hunt a Killer looks like good people to me but this game was gifted to me by a friend so I had no personal dealings with the company.
Overall, I enjoyed the murder mystery. The puzzles gave me a bit of a challenge and as I translated them it built the tension and strangeness of the story (you should see my chat log with my friend as I updated her!). If you enjoy deduction based mystery with a bit of puzzling this is a great option!
If you are interested in checking them out, their website is here.
This game sells for $99.00 on HAK's website but my copy was gifted to me by a friend.