First Class Escape: The Train of Thought
- September 17, 2021
- 0 Deer Soft
- 6h median play time
Get on Steam"First Class Escape: The Train of Thought" is a narrative-driven puzzle game where players embark on a mysterious train journey. They must explore the train cars, interact with objects and NPCs, and solve challenging puzzles to uncover the truth behind their strange predicament. With its rich storytelling and immersive atmosphere, this game offers a unique and engaging escape room experience.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features challenging puzzles that are rewarding to solve, providing a satisfying experience for players.
- The cooperative gameplay enhances the experience, making it fun to play with friends and encouraging teamwork.
- The graphics and atmosphere of the game are well-designed, creating an immersive environment for puzzle-solving.
- Chapter 4 contains a particularly difficult puzzle that many players found frustrating and tedious, detracting from the overall enjoyment of the game.
- The game requires a lot of reading and searching for hidden items, which can lead to feelings of frustration rather than accomplishment.
- There are issues with controls and mechanics, such as the lack of an inventory system and the need to drag items, which can make gameplay cumbersome.
- graphics42 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the clean art style and beautiful visuals, particularly the depiction of the luxury train. However, some players find the graphics monotonous and lacking distinctiveness, leading to a sense of boredom over time. Overall, while the graphics are considered good for the price, they may not stand out significantly in comparison to other high-end games.
“The rooms themselves look nice and the art style is very clean.”
“As far as graphics go, this game looks great; the train is beautiful and it truly feels like you are on a real luxury train.”
“Overall, the game was enjoyable... graphics are nicely done and the puzzles for the most part were not overly difficult.”
“The visuals are outdated and pretty monotonous, and nothing really stands out in this game.”
“This one, although graphically beautiful, was just a let down.”
“Graphics are nice but eventually get boring.”
- story42 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The game's story is widely criticized for being minimal and lacking coherence, with many players noting that it feels almost non-existent despite the presence of collectible notes and letters. While some appreciate the atmosphere and how puzzles relate to the narrative, the overall consensus is that the story is secondary and fails to engage, leaving players wanting a more substantial plot.
“The objective of the game is to gather information to get further, while also having a kind of story that follows you through the game.”
“I felt the puzzles fit well with the story too.”
“I pay to be bewildered by the creations and quirks of a giant puzzle room that builds a pace and atmosphere which unravels into a story.”
“The story is essentially non-existent; there are numerous notes and letters you can find to read but the 'lore' never culminates in anything.”
“The only thing I don't like about the game is that the story isn't particularly interesting; there hardly is one.”
“I've read every note, and what I've pieced together of the story is that there essentially is none.”
- grinding32 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The reviews highlight a significant issue with grinding in the game, particularly due to tedious puzzles that often feel unnecessarily complicated and time-consuming. Many players express frustration with the excessive difficulty and the need to perform repetitive actions, which detracts from the overall enjoyment and engagement with the game. While some puzzles are praised for their creativity, the overwhelming sentiment is that the grinding aspect leads to boredom and a loss of interest in continuing to play.
“You figure out what needs to happen to solve the puzzle, realize it's too much work and look up the solution. The solution to one puzzle is 5 paragraphs long and involves you walking up and down a train without a run button. This game is easily defined with one word: tedious.”
“The chapter completely killed my interest in continuing the game because it all made it into one big, slow and tedious puzzle (this is an understatement) instead of an interesting escape room.”
“But the puzzle machine with the math problem is incomprehensible and even with a walkthrough is tedious to the point of boredom, and for me, has killed any incentive to keep playing.”
- gameplay28 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The gameplay features a mix of unique and familiar mechanics, but many players find the intricate and often frustrating puzzle designs detract from the overall experience. While the game encourages thorough exploration and problem-solving, some mechanics, particularly the rotary combination lock, are seen as clumsy and unintuitive. Overall, the gameplay can be enjoyable for those who appreciate complex mechanical puzzles, but it may feel tedious for others.
“Certainly, the room with the mechanical boxes was less logic and more fiddling, but it didn't ruin the entire experience for us.”
“When it comes to gameplay, I'll say that this game is great at combining puzzle solving and also having to look around quite a bit for items and such that are hidden.”
“I actually did enjoy the game's mechanics compared to other puzzle games, but the puzzles themselves weren't my favorite.”
“However, this one in particular underscores one of the least fun aspects of 0 Deer Soft escape rooms, and that's the 'fiddly machine with 8 different things that have to be aligned perfectly with 8 different buttons that each control different random sets of those things' mechanic that is reused especially liberally in this one.”
“The mechanics are somewhat frustrating and unintuitive, and the puzzles are either quite on the nose or ridiculously intricate.”
“Even after figuring out all of the mechanics of each of the machine puzzles, you still have to actually solve them which is just a chore and not fun at all.”
- music10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The music in the game is highly praised for its quality, complementing the stunning graphics, and enhances the overall experience, particularly during interactive elements like the piano puzzle. Players appreciate how the music adds to the atmosphere while engaging in gameplay.
“Ok, first of all, the music and graphics are absolutely wonderful (especially the graphics).”
“My fiancé was just playing songs on the piano as I was trying to solve puzzles.”
“Personally, I last left off at the 'music' related car with the piano puzzle.”
“The music in the game is quite distracting, especially when trying to solve puzzles.”
“I found the piano songs to be more of a nuisance than an enhancement to the gameplay.”
“The music doesn't really fit the atmosphere of the game and often pulls me out of the experience.”
- atmosphere10 mentions
- 80 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised, with many users highlighting its excellent design and immersive qualities that enhance the storytelling experience. However, some players noted that the tight hallways can lead to issues with player collision, which detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the game successfully creates a captivating environment that draws players into its intricate puzzle-filled world.
“This game has an excellent atmosphere.”
“I pay to be bewildered by the creations and quirks of a giant puzzle room that builds a pace and atmosphere which unravels into a story.”
“Atmosphere is great, albeit there shouldn't be player collision given how tight the hallways are.”
- replayability8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 13 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game has been criticized for its lack of replayability, with users noting that it is very short, consisting of only five levels, which limits the incentive to play again. Despite some claims of infinite replayability, the consensus leans towards a significant absence of replay value.
“Infinitely replayable.”
“Infinitely replayable.”
“Infinitely replayable.”
“The game is also very short, with 5 levels to complete and almost no replayability.”
“Warning: there's no replayability to this game.”
- optimization4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the game suffers from significant optimization issues that require urgent attention, despite some users suggesting it is well optimized in certain areas. Overall, the consensus leans towards a need for improvements in performance.
“Well optimized”
“I think it's safe to say that there are optimization issues that desperately need to be addressed.”
- humor4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players noting a decline in comedic elements, particularly criticizing the shift from engaging puzzle humor to lengthy text reading. However, the wordplay related to painters in the final chapter was highlighted as a standout moment of humor.
“The best part about the game was the funny word plays for the painters in the last chapter.”
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is generally enjoyable for cooperative play, but it suffers from significant bugs that impact its stability.
“Pretty fun co-op game for the price, but it's way too buggy.”
