Inspectors' Review:
Teddy bears with lasers???? What kind of business are they running here?!?!
I'll leave all the electrical work for you mom. Wouldn't want the static in my fur, would it?
I always told you those nutcrackers are suspicious folk! They act so wooden around me :P
I'll just stand behind the screen...you know, out of the line of fire from the toys that have been possessed with evil Christmas spirit.
Don't worry! You got this! (I hope...)
Boss' Review:
Mission: Elfpossible is an online holiday puzzle experience created by the company Puzzling Pursuits, who have games like Blackbrim: 1876 and La Famiglia. After playing the last two games I saw great promise in this company that when they reached out about their holiday experience I was excited to try it out for myself!
Story:
The premise of this game follows the evil twin of Santa plotting to overthrow the North Pole. Unfortunately, no one saw it coming and the North Pole has been besieged! Pip and a small group of elves were able to escape but now are in desperate need of assistance to stop this evil Santa from ruining Christmas. They have sent out a signal that has reached your humble inbox and now it is up to you to save the North Pole!
I personally found the story to be short and sweet. There isn’t a lot of intricacies to the storyline and instead there is a focus on the puzzles. That said, my favourite element to this story was that you get to interact with different elves with distinct characterization that benefit your puzzling experience. This isn't something I have seen before and it does a great job engaging players in the world and theme a bit more. I found the focus in this game was on creating a really sweet holiday theme and the set design, characters, and components of the puzzles worked well to create a something whimsical and bright, with a splash of chaos, which is perfect for the holidays. Also the little easter egg in the game was delightful!
Puzzles:
In terms of puzzles, there is quite a selection with riddles, pattern recognition, logic, ciphers, and observation. I recommend having a friend or two to play with as some of these puzzles can be a little tricky. A pen and paper is also key for some puzzles that require tracking. I found the puzzles to be fair; we ended up using no clues but there were a few times where it took a little bit to figure out the point of a puzzle. There are quite a few puzzles where the trick is to figure out what the puzzle is actually doing (which can involve some playing around) before you can even attempt to resolve it. There was an element of progression as each puzzle got more complex that helped introduce this to players that I appreciated. Now, while the theme is quite light in order to fit a family-friendly theme I will say that younger puzzlers will need a bit of help in the second half of the game.
Customer Service:
For customer service, I feel Puzzling Pursuits is a very approachable company. They engage with the community are are showing a lot of growth in their puzzling. The hint system was pretty straightforward to follow through with a staggered series of clues ranging in amount, depending of the complexity of the puzzles. I always like companies that don’t insist on only three hints as some puzzles need that further breakdown to help players and Puzzling Pursuits does that.
Conclusion:
Overall, Mission: Elfpossible is a playful puzzle experience infused with a truly chaotic and wonderful Christmas spirit for all to enjoy. The puzzles are increasingly challenge and, as they are the center of this game, I felt that to be appropriate. I loved the artwork and the characters in this game. I would say if you looking for a digital puzzle focused holiday game for a good price that can provide an hour or two of gameplay that this is a good choice. This game lends itself to be a bit more challenging than other family experience but the good hint system and some more experience puzzlers to assist I feel children will have no issues saving Christmas.
Check out Puzzling Pursuits' website here.