Prague, Aug 2023
Every spaceship develops potentially catastrophic problems at some point in its journey, and every spaceship can be fixed by sufficient fiddling with electronic panels and screens. That, at least, is what I’ve learned from escape rooms. In Galactic Pioneers you’re on an interstellar ship with the last remnants of humanity, en route to find a home on a new planet – but not only do you have to find a suitable destination, you also need to make some urgent repairs.
This is a game with distinct stages, and I found each stage delightful in a different way. One highlight was when I thought I knew how we were going to solve something, and the solution turned out to be something entirely different and cinematically satisfying. The feeling of being stars in a space movie continued through to the end, which will be particularly satisfying for anyone who’s ever wished they could get on board the starship Enterprise.
The largest part of this game, though, is an out-and-out puzzle fest. If you were actually on a broken spaceship you might expect to be surrounded by a cavalcade of problems all blinking warning lights and all needing fixing at once, and that’s the feeling achieved here – though mostly in a well-lit and comfortable environment.
Much of the game is also very non-linear. That could make it well suited to a larger team – but of course with the potential downside of your teammates solving puzzles before you even get to see them, and possibly finishing the room overly quickly. We played as a pair, and were entirely happy to have done so.
The style of puzzle reflects the theme, and might be too heavily based in screens and buttons for some tastes. But for me it was a delightful blend of puzzle solving and space opera role-play, with a lot for the two of us to do and a triumphant finale. 
