Over the weekend I obsessively played LOCK, a game made by Pixel_Gorilla in Dreams. I first heard about it when one my favorite Dreams streamers, DaniKaka0092, played it on Twitch. The game touted the exact experience I enjoy: a challenging series of puzzles. I managed to avoid spoilers while lurking in Dani’s stream, so LOCK was the first game I booted in my next Saturday Dreams stream.
“Solve your way off this mysterious island in a mind-breaking puzzle game. Can you discover all the secrets? Can you solve all the mysteries? LOCK is a full length and challenging experience. Please enjoy.”
800PixelGorilla (Pixel_Gorilla) – InDreams description of LOCK
When I started LOCK, I planned to only play for a little while and switch to other Dreams creations if chat recommendations came in. I ended up playing nonstop for FOUR HOURS. I told myself I’d wait to play more until my next stream scheduled a few days later; instead I held impromptu streams two more days in a row because I couldn’t wait to finish the game. Total time playing was about 11 hours.
Things I love about LOCK:
- The puzzles, obviously! There is a ton of variety and fantastic progression between phases of the game. Pixel mentioned that the MIT Mystery Hunt was an inspiration for the game design. Saying anything more than that would be a complete spoiler!
- The creator. Pixel put an incredible amount of work into this creation, and it shows. I feel very honored that Pixel has been watching my Twitch streams and giving me a nudge here and there!
- Atmosphere. As someone who loved the original Myst games, I’m a sucker for the “puzzles on an island” setting. The fantastic voice acting by Impy-award winning voice actor KeldBjones contributed greatly to the mysterious setting!
- Twitch support. It was fun working through the puzzles with the chat. Sometimes folks at a similar point in the game would pop in to collaborate and make progress on their own runs.
Cartography room, which holds a map with a bookshelf behind it. 
Art room, which has various pictures and sculptures. 
The Study, which has a desk and a clock puzzle.
I absolutely loved my experience playing LOCK. After reaching the end my brain is totally fried (in a good way), and I feel relieved enough to finally get a good night’s sleep. This game set a high bar in Dreams for a feature-length experience. If you enjoy puzzle games then I highly recommend you check out LOCK for yourself!
Weekend Play is a weekly Monday post sharing about what I played over the weekend. Each post is a 5-minute read that covers one game. Follow me on Twitter or Subscribe to this blog (Home page) to receive notifications of new posts!
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