RATING: 5 Keys          RESULT: Win           REMAINING: 16:00

If our agent knew what awaited him back in 2020, he’d beg to be left in 1933

The Mystery of Santos Dumont is a remote play version of an existing, physical escape game at the venue’s brick and mortar location – retrofitted to be offered as a live, online experience. Although altered slightly to better flow in this new medium, the game is, at it’s core, essentially the same as what guests will find should they visit BH Escape in person. To read our Pro-Tips on how to best enjoy this new Remote Play genre, click here.

After some calculation errors, our temporal agent was trapped in 1933. Exploring a little, he discovered that this is the home of the most renowned Brazilian inventor: Alberto Santos Dumont.

We managed to contact him via the latest technology and established communication between you. Help him to explore the home of the great inventor and use his inventions to be able to energize his machine and return to our time. Remember: If you can’t do it in an hour, the machine will collapse, forever damaging the time fabric.

Take a step back in time to visit the peculiar home of a famed Brazilian inventor – Santos Dumont. This genius of a bygone era filled his workshop with all sorts of gadgets and gizmos. From the wonder of manned flight to the futuristic magic of creating energy, Santos Dumont was completely enthralled by pushing the envelop when it came to developing new ideas.

Unfortunately, the time travel machine that our friend used to hop back to 1933 – futuristic in it’s own incredible ways – has short circuited and lost its power. Patching in via remote video conference, the support team must work their way through all of the hidden mysteries in Santos Dumont’s home in order to find a way to re-energize the time travel machine and allow for a safe return to 2020 (on second thought, maybe we should tell our friend to just stay in 1933).

The remote team makes contact with the time traveler while he is in Santos Dumont’s study. This split level space is a large, open area with items of interest lining all four walls. The center of the room is divided by a banister and small step up.

Aged hardwood flooring, antique pieces, and large ornate furniture make it believable that this is not a modern day home. Each area of the space showcases at least one historical invention that was important in progressing society. Photos of several early aviation wonders – from rigid airships like the Hindenburg to some of the first manned airplanes – line one wall showing the curious inventors intrigue with flight. An old projector sits atop a desk as a nod to Santos Dumont’s love of recording important moments.

Of course a brilliant inventor like the one who used to live here would hide many secrets to be uncovered. Hidden compartments, surprise reveals, and an entirely secret laboratory of sorts wait to be discovered by the time traveler.

Santos Dumont’s latest works are kept locked away in his aforementioned laboratory. He opted to use a steampunk inspired aesthetic in this space with lots of metal, pipes, gears, and well… steam.

Appearing as a logical progression from his early workspace to his more technologically advanced lab, the scenic in The Mystery of Santos Dumont helps to build the narrative while immersing time travelers in a uniquely intriguing environment.

All good inventors implement some form of protection to keep their creations hidden from prying eyes until they are ready to unveil them to the world. Santos Dumont was no exception.

He was hard at work developing civilization changing technologies – be it new means of travel or perpetual energy creation. In order for time travelers to get their hands on his latest devices they must solve a series of puzzles to gain access to his laboratory. Manipulating items in the house will lead to a surprising series of events.

With many great “ah ha!” moments throughout, the puzzle track in The Mystery of Santos Dumont is sure to keep adventurers entertained.

Several physical tasks allow time travelers to interact with items both large and small in satisfying and immersive ways… apparently Santos Dumont was keen on bike riding and used that to his advantage. Now it is up to people from the year 2020 to get inside the mind of a genius inventor to figure out just how he planned to create energy.

BH Escape has introduced their take on a time travel themed game to the world via remote play, and it works quite well. With a solid storyworld that is enhanced by the intuitive puzzle track, decade hoppers are given a logical reason as to why they are there and what their goal is. A nice mix of mechanical puzzles, tactile challenges, and hidden technology creates several memorable moments. The narrative is further driven by the progression in scenic design throughout Santos Dumont’s home.

This online remote play experience utilizes an inventory system and 360 degree photos that open in a separate tab or browser. While these tools are certainly helpful when searching and solving, they can become a bit distracting if teams are not used to switching back and forth. Thankfully in the case of The Mystery of Santos Dumont, the logical tasks and the presentation by the game hosts mitigate any issue that may arise. Acting as if they have never seen the space before, the “avatar” becomes a quick witted and fun member of the team.

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Venue: BH Escape

Location: Remote online play at home, broadcast live from Belo Horizonte, Brazil

Number of Remote Games: 1

GAME SPECIFIC INFORMATION:

Duration: 60 minutes

Capacity: 6 people

Group Type: Private  / You will not be paired with strangers.

Cost: $40 / per group

We thank BH Escape for inviting us to play this game. Although complimentary admission was generously provided, that in no way impacts the opinion included within this review.