I love a good mystery game. There is something so satisfying about processing the information that comes in, rejecting the red herrings and following the clues to the natural result. There have been a number of different small box ‘escape room’ style games over the recent years, but I find myself coming back to the UNLOCK series again and again.

The most recent offering from Space Cowboys, the Heroic Adventures box, features three different games all together. You can pick your adventure based on the theme you want to explore or the difficulty you want to take on for your game night.

Due to the nature of these games, I won’t reveal too much in this article. However, if you want to go into the UNLOCK Heroic Adventures box with zero information, then read no further. 

Insert Coin is the first and easiest rating in the Heroic Adventures box. You are sucked into an 8-bit style video game where you’ll have to complete a number of levels before a showdown with the big boss. Like the other scenarios in the UNLOCK series, you use a free app on your phone to enter codes, use machines, and get hints. However Insert Coin takes it to a whole other level with the use of its app. I was super impressed with how it worked. Despite being the lowest challenge of the three in the box, it was still tough to get through Insert Coin. You’ll have a lot of fun with the game, but don’t be surprised if you have to use the hints a few times to get through.

The medium level challenge in the game is Sherlock Holmes and the Scarlett Thread of Murder. Somehow a Sherlock Holmes themed game seems like the perfect fit for this series. A man, has been murdered and it’s up to the world’s greatest detective to solve the case, with a little help from you of course. As you travel around London you’ll meet various witnesses and suspects, and the details of the crime start to fall into place. Keep track of everything that people say and above all, make sure to look closely at the cards. Sometimes the smallest details can be important.

In Pursuit of the White Rabbit is the toughest rated game in the box. It’s an Alice in Wonderland-themed mystery that takes you with helping Lewis Carroll finish his manuscript for his famous children’s book. It is definitely tricky and the last chapter provides a difficult challenge. This entry also features my favourite artwork of the three different adventures. Mahulda Jelly doesn’t try to recreate the etchings from the original Wonderland books, rather they create a new and engaging world that still feels like a storybook, but one of their own making.

I’ve talked about my love for the UNLOCK series in the past, and this new iteration lives up to the fun and mystery of the previous games. I think the thing I like the best about the Heroic Adventures box, is that it has allowed me to play out three different games at my own pace. On a given game night, you can pull one out and play it and you have two more waiting for you in the box. 

Check out the Heroic Adventures box or any of the other UNLOCK games if you’re looking to give your brain some exercise.

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Thanks to Space Cowboys and Asmodee USA for providing a media copy of UNLOCK Heroic Adventures for this article.