Location: Ultimate Roomscape, Malaga, Perth, WA, Australia
Date completed: January 2017 (3 players). Succeeded escaping!
Creativity: 7.5; Difficulty: 7; Atmosphere: 8; Fun: 8
Requirements:
- Intermediate English
- 3-8 players
When an archaeologist brings to light strong evidence that the scepter from Tutankhamun actually exists, you and your team of fellow explorers decide its time to venture inside the famous pharaoh’s tomb and look for the artifact.
However, you soon realise that there was a reason for all the legends of curses and magic surrounding Tutankhamun’s rest place. There is something mysterious in the air, and every new clue will bring answers to the questions buried for thousands of years. Differently from games which define the minimum number of players for business cost reasons, The Lost Scepter of Tutankhamun really requires at least 3 people to be solved. This room can please families looking for a fun time together, beginners and experienced players alike.
From the entrance, we noticed the decor of this room. It was very well done, in tones of beige and well lit. Interestingly, it was completely different from other Egyptian-themed room we played in Perth, in Realmz. For players that enjoy this kind of theme, it is great to be able to experience good and diverse styles of games.
We were sure that our team was bound for success finding The Lost Scepter of Tutankhamun when we faced a wall full of hieroglyphs and started making sense of it right away. But apparently the message was not “bird-head dude loves his noodles” (at least that what one of them looked like), so we had to put more effort into it. The early game has a good sequence of observation puzzles (one of them elegantly creative), mild search and some decryption, all embedded in the environment of the tomb around you.
The puzzles also involved tasks described in ancient Egyptian legends, so players who are familiar with them may solve some challenges quicker. External knowledge, however, is not mandatory to solve anything. Pay attention to all props you find along your exploration, as they can become handy further ahead.
A central area of a room has a concentration of puzzles, and if you are having trouble with them, try to think what would be the simplest explanation. Do not overthink it! There is subtle tech and some interesting interactions with room elements.
While most puzzles will revolve around association and observation, teamwork will become essential to solve the presented puzzles in the later parts of the game. Apparently, the tasks demanded by the Egyptian gods are too big for a single human, so be prepared to work closely with your friends. It is actually physically impossible to solve some of them alone. We enjoyed the fact that this happened more than once along the game, and is not an isolated “team bonding” moment. For one of them though, we were not skilled enough and had to use one of our two hints to summon the gamemaster for some help. We understood what had to be done, just could not get it right.
While The Lost Scepter of Tutankhamun is apparently the simplest of the four Ultimate rooms, it is also the one that is, in our view, the most consistent in terms of story, difficulty and immersion. If yo are intending to attempt more than one room at Ultimate, this is a good one to start and get a feel of the game designer’s style.
At Ultimate, we also played Viral Outbreak, Kidnapped and Pipline – Red vs Blue.
Out of the room
Service: Ultimate has lockers for player’s belongings and water available in their colourful reception area. Our gamemaster did a brief and professional introduction.
Communication: Ultimate gives you a walkie-talkie that you can use to summon the GM into the room. It does break the atmosphere, however our GM tried to be as quick as possible. The first two hints are “free”, if you need more, some time is added to your final escape time. We actually needed her physical help on the last puzzle of this room.
Surroundings: Malaga is 20-minute drive North from Perth CBD. Ultimate is located in the Malaga Markets shopping area, with plenty of fast-food options, such as McDonald’s, Red Rooster and Subway. There is also ATMs and lots of parking spaces.
Lock Me If You Can 