Lucardo: Space Evader

The other game we’d come to Lucardo to play on this occasion was Space Evader. This spaceship game is not about saving the space craft but rather scavenging all the fuel rods you can from it, in another variable score room with a highly parallel structure. In this game each puzzle resolves to a numeric code which you must enter into the correct keypad; finding the right keypad could be a recipe for frustration, but each is marked with a symbol that matches it to the relevant puzzle, and in almost all cases we had little trouble finding the right one first try.

Like Derailed, Space Evader is divided into two halves. In this one though, each half has a similar play style – collect as many fuel rods as you can, with typically each puzzle granting you one. And again, you’ll be moved on from the first part of the game to the second half when thirty minutes are up, with no option to tarry a little longer in that area.

Collecting the lot is again possible, more or less; we managed it, though with a little hinting on the last one or two. This was a game we played mostly in grim silent determination, each knocking down as many puzzles as we could, then regrouping to confer, triage the ones remaining, and deal with those as efficiently as possible. Playing that way didn’t exactly make for the most social escape room, but divide and conquer is essential to maximise progress.

The puzzles aim for quantity first and foremost, and there are plenty which are fairly straightforward – rightly so I think, since that keeps a high-energy feeling of activity. They do run the gamut of puzzle styles though, including some that use the monitors and panels of the spaceship decor. The decor is very effective too, creating a convincingly gritty broken spaceship environment. The place to deliver your collected fuel rods is also a nice touch, giving a gratifying sense of progress as each new rod slides home.

I had a great time playing this game. I’m sure it helped that we were in the flow for it and came out with a full set of fuel rods; if we’d missed some I’d probably be much more inclined to gripe about small things, and would probably be much less comfortable with the mid-game transition from one section to the next. As it was though, I found it an atmospheric and high energy puzzle-fest, and I’d happily recommend it to enthusiasts eager for a challenge.