rooms: the main building - a sliding adventure
Posted by debbie on August 11th, 2008
Rooms: The Main Building is actually a sequel to a free game released in 2006. In it, you are stuck in a mysterious town with lots of locked doors. Your only hope of escape is to play slider games, and win objects and keys. If you can find the 4 puzzle pieces hidden in the rooms, you can escape the town.
The sliding puzzles are clever. You have to get from where you are placed to the exit door in a set amount of time by sliding squares around a board. The only clue you have is in the background of the puzzle - if the background looks correct, you can get from one room to another. There are obstacles: you need to go up and down using ladders, and there are blocks on some of the pieces. But you also get a few nifty helpers, such as a teleporter and a wardrobe that switches squares.
As you solve the sliding puzzles (80 in all) you also collect items that will help you solve the other part of the game. This is the adventure mode. The street you are on has locked rooms. Once you get the keys to the rooms, you must solve a small adventure-like puzzle (use inventory object A on B, etc.) to find the puzzle piece you need to escape. Both parts of the game are a good mix - challenging and fun, but not too frustrating. The sliding puzzles go from very easy to harder as the game progresses.
One nice feature is there is an option to make your own level or to add a level from someone else. If enough people play, this could lead to a fun extension of the game, and a chance to be creative with a level.
The production values are good on this game. The audio is very good, with a haunting soundtrack. The video is very nice, although a little dark. The game is made by a Korean company, HandMade Games, and that adds the only flaw to the game: the English translation is a little off, so there are some phrases that took me out o the game. Other than that, however, the overall look and feel of the game is great.
Overall, I liked this game, both because it is different from other games and for the nice way it is set up. Download a free hour trial of Rooms: The Main Building or buy it for only $19.95.
The original game (called Rooms) is freeware. It is short, and the production values aren’t as good, but it is a good way to extend your sliding game fix. if you want to download it, click here. Be prepared for a sort-of slow download.