The Temple

Our light flickers into a once-lost Crusader temple as we slop into its forgotten halls. Our partner team advances from another angle, with only a misbehaved radio to connect us. What secrets of belief and ritual await us within these presumably silent halls?

With The Temple, a bit of patience is in order. It wasn’t clear what we were getting into. The rather mundane start doesn’t fully set up the rest adventure. There is an emerging story, with increasingly dark aspects. It deserves a bit more flair at the start.

The room uses a tablet to communicate with our other team, which is a series of prerecorded videos. Though it’s a bit theme breaking, and one of many things to carry around, the tablet was used to decent effect. It increased the overall atmosphere and told most of the story.

With the puzzles merged into the scenery, I found the room conveyed a strong feeling of being a part of the environment. Our hands, arms, and at least once an entire body became a part of the solution to the puzzle. I’d still consider it mostly intellectual puzzles, but it was nice to be a part of the adventure. Though confused a few times, we found overall the flow was good.

I’d say the overall scenery had plenty to look at, and nice things to discover. They lacked a bit of immersion though, without the completeness needed to hide the physical room. It evoked a few moments of awe, and as said, it supported the puzzles well, so I still think it’s good overall.

Despite a few minor technical faults, and perhaps slightly inattentive game masters, The Temple was fun. It captured a sense of exploration and discovery. The twists, turns, and intertwining puzzles make it worth stepping into.