Cryptology Nottingham – Cypherdyne v1.5

Cryptology Nottingham – Cypherdyne v1.5.
Location: Nottingham
Game Date 20/02/2018.
Team: Amy & Ian

We had played the original Cypherdyne almost 18 months previously (here) and due to a building move, (to a fabulous new premises), we were invited by Mark at Cryptology to give Cypherdyne v1.5 a test run ahead of the grand opening. This review is of a game in testing, and whilst the game was 99% ready, there may have been some tweaks since opening.

So, would we be re-hired by Cypherdyne, or would we become obsolete… read on to find out!

Theme:
“It was an offer you couldn’t refuse

You and your team have been selected to take part in a legendary Cypherdyne interview. A challenging and disarming hour long test that is rumoured to not just separate the wheat from the chaff but discard the chaff entirely.

Unsure what to expect, the promise of a great job in this dire economy is enough for you to face whatever challenge the CEO has set for you, your career may be about to explode with opportunity!

The bright lights are clinical, the desk pristine, but something is odd… this isn’t just an office.

Can you become part of Cypherdyne’s elite security team? Or will you bomb and be swept aside just before the next candidates arrive?”

A lovely, big and airy space that was just an office on first impressions, but developed to something more sinister as the game went on. A neatly decorated space, with nothing erroneous and nothing to be constiuted as red herrings.
The lighting was excellent, at no point it was too dark or dim to work effectively. The space is more than large enough to accomodate the max team size of 6.
There are some lovely hidden layers in the decor in the room, I reccomend you have a good look at the decor and see how many pop culture references you can spot! It’s a lot of fun and adds a sense of fun to the office theme!

Game Play:
A fairly open game that allows the team to split, but then brings them together at critical moments. Logic, knowledge and observation are the mainstays of this game (with some nice physical puzzles thrown in) – the game relies heavily on teamwork, especially in the later stages of the game, and this is to its success. The team work elements are very well thought out, and lend themselves well to the game play and ramp up the tension & excitement at the late stages of the game.
The puzzles were all perfectly logical, whilst not all were instantly obvious they made you work for the ah-ha moment and when you got there the parts came together and seamless led to lovely fun answers.
One stand out puzzle was something we had not seen before, and whilst it takes a little bit of time, is SO much fun and such a voyage of discovery that it almost comes as a relaxed moment in an otherwise busy and frantic game.
The flow was good, there was plenty to do and I can see a group of 6 never having one person stood around doing nothing, the open nature of the game means there is always something to be getting on with for ALL team members.
A great game which will appeal to all team sizes, and abilities. (Please be aware that this game is similar to the old version, v1.5 is a more open game, with a few more puzzles and tricks!)

Clue System:
Clues were delivered via a screen, which was themed to e-mail! Along with some delightful “you’ve got mail” sounds each time a clue was delivered.

Game Host:
Mark was our game host and was excellent, friendly and welcoming. He delivered us clues when we really needed them, but also left us to discover and come to conclusions on our own. Great gamehosting.

Did we escape?
Well… We completed all the puzzles, and were seconds away, BUT SOMEONE GOT SNIP HAPPY (and it wasn’t me) and we were… fired.

Website: https://cryptologyrooms.co.uk/
Price:
2 Players £50 (£40 on weekdays)
3 Players £57
4 Players £70
5 Players £80
6 Players £90