The House of Da Vinci
Genres: Puzzle, Escape Room, Horror, Point & Click, Atmospheric, Adventure
Play modes: singleplayer
Release Date: 24-11-2017
Rating: 4.5/5
Developer: Blue Brain Games
Our verdict
8/10
- Difficulty: Medium
- Players: 1
- Playtime: 6–10 h
The House of Da Vinci is a 3D puzzle adventure from Blue Brain Games in the style of The Room. You play Leonardo's apprentice in 1506 Florence, searching his workshop for clues to his disappearance. Progress means opening lockboxes and contraptions based on his inventions, with a gauntlet that lets you see hidden mechanisms and glimpse past events. It suits solo players who enjoy tactile mechanical puzzles.
Reception is very positive, with about 82 percent of 3,000 Steam reviews recommending it. Players praise the detailed Renaissance machines and how satisfying it is to crack them, and some find it a little harder than The Room. Most reviews compare the two, and critics say it falls short on story and atmosphere.
The most common complaints are about handling: point-to-point movement with slow transitions, fussy hitboxes and awkward camera angles. Several players also say the hints only tell you to keep looking, and that later chapters feel more random and repeat puzzle types. Expect six to ten hours. Fans of The Room should buy it, ideally on sale; players who hate fiddly controls should skip it.
Pros
- Lockboxes and devices modelled on Leonardo's real inventions
- Gauntlet reveals hidden mechanisms and past events
- Six to ten hours of puzzles, longer than most in the genre
Cons
- Fiddly hitboxes and slow, fixed-point movement
- Hints often say little more than look around
- Later chapters feel more random and repetitive
About
Enter The House of Da Vinci, a new must-try 3D puzzle adventure game. Solve mechanical puzzles, discover hidden objects, escape from rooms and dive into the authentic atmosphere of the Renaissance. Use all your wits to find out what's behind your master's disappearance.
You are Da Vinci’s most promising apprentice. Your master, Leonardo, has disappeared. You have no idea where he’s gone or what has happened. So you begin your quest, your search for the truth. However, Leonardo's workshop is full of puzzles, inventions, escape mechanisms and objects hidden in all corners of beautifully decorated rooms. You’ll need to use all of your brain cells to find out what’s really going on! We’ve applied our own imagination to the story of the world’s greatest inventor, Leonardo da Vinci, providing players with unique special abilities throughout gameplay. We allow you to warp back into your early days as a young apprentice, exploring the 16th century world around you, peeking into Leonardo’s mechanisms, puzzles and devices, as you eventually become powerful enough to control time itself and learn the secrets hidden in the past.
Many challenging puzzles are inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci's real inventions and ideas. Mysterious locations were created based on original artworks and the wonderful Florence, Italy of 1506.Features
- Single Player Puzzle game
- Average duration: 8 hours
