Ada’s Study (Sherlocked) // Review

Ada’s Study is an app-based puzzle adventure from world-renowned immersive experience creators, Sherlocked. It’s their first venture into the mobile escape game space, with previous projects focused on real-world escape rooms, city hunts and tabletop games.

Players: 1 // Age: 10+ // Playtime: 45 mins+

What you need:

Story

“Ada’s Study offers a ‘snack-sized’ experience set in Victorian London. The game invites you to investigate the last known study of Ada Lovelace, the visionary behind modern computing, and uncover a hidden mathematical secret of epic proportions. Fans of The Room and The House of Da Vinci will likely appreciate its beautifully crafted 3D visuals and intuitive touch interactions.”

First impressions

I went through a phase of being completely obsessed with the Room series from Fireproof Games. These are a collection of escape-room-style games that can be downloaded and played on a phone or tablet. They use 3D rendered environments, mysterious settings and layered puzzles to hold the players’ attention. I find this style of game to be perfect for the bus commute to work or a lazy morning in bed!

When I discovered that Sherlocked, best known for its award-winning escape rooms, had created its own mobile game, I had to check it out. I paid £0.99 for my copy, which was a bargain!

Gameplay

The game begins with the arrival of a mysterious telegram. You’ve been invited on a journey to prove your worth for being inducted into the clandestine Society of Crossed Keys. To join their ranks, you must complete the enclosed assignment, which consists of a series of puzzles. Once you’ve solved them all, you’ll be accepted into the Society and its secrets will be unlocked.

Throughout the game, you will collect journal pages that contain important information for solving puzzles. They also slowly reveal more of the narrative in a way that feels appropriate for the time period. I did experience some minor issues around navigation, but nothing that ruined the gameplay itself. Having a ‘handwritten’ journal that you can flick through with the swipe of a finger is a nice touch. I also appreciated the option to view the cursive in a more readable format, which is accessed using the magnifying glass icon.

Puzzles

The puzzles were satisfying to solve and involved interacting with the environment in various different ways. Some require that you collect items that can be used to unlock new areas, while others involve utilising key information from the journal. You’ll need to use your maths knowledge and observation skills to tackle a few of the puzzles.

A tiered hint system is available if you get stuck. I didn’t find the difficulty level to be too high, so I didn’t need to rely on using the hints too much.

My main takeaway from the game is that, while very enjoyable, it was more akin to a demo in terms of length. The price point isn’t high, so I didn’t feel cheated. In fact, I was left wishing that the experience had continued, as I was just getting into the flow of the game. As a prequel to a ‘full’ game, it functions brilliantly, and I would definitely be willing to pay more for a lengthier experience.

Verdict