You stumble into a dreary, derelict mansion. Cold winds compliment a creaky foundation. But you’re not alone. The ghosts of those who were here before materialize to paint you a picture, one piece at a time. It’s up to you to learn the truth and to save what spirits you can. How can you do that? By solving arbitrary puzzles, of course!
The 7th Guest VR is a haunted house-style puzzle game re-built for VR. Anyone old enough to remember the ’90s might recognize the name. This is a VR remake of a classic PC puzzle game from before the turn of the century. It follows the same plot, characters, and setting as the original, now with some new features exclusive to VR. And though you don’t need to be familiar with the source material to get the most out of this game, it does pay some clever homages.
The first thing that caught my attention was the overall atmosphere. The 7th Guest VR’s Stauf Manor is perfectly spooky, with cobwebs and rotten fabric paying the perfect compliment to the washed-out and cold-hued air. But that’s – quite literally – only half of it.
From the beginning, I was equipped with a magical lantern. This either revealed information about a puzzle or reconstructed a lost or broken item. But that’s not the cool part. When it illuminates an area, it reveals the way the mansion used to look. Floors are cleaner, colors return, and once broken and dusty shelves are sturdy and fresh again. This gave the entire mansion a fascinating ‘two-worlds overlapping’ feeling. At least, it did until I completed all the puzzles in that room. Then, the entire area was restored to its fresh look.
With the stage set, it was time for the plot. Under the guidance of a butterfly spirit, I arrived at a dilapidated mansion owned by a toymaker named Henry Stauf. Upon entry, I encountered ghostly ‘flashbacks’ of a sort, where I learned that Stauf had invited six people to his home to solve his puzzles and earn a prize: their greatest desires. As hostilities grew, things took a turn for the supernatural. It was fairly predictable, and I wasn’t exactly riveted, but it was cohesive and engaging enough to keep me going.
More interesting than the story itself was how the game tells it. Cutscenes were presented through a series of volumetric videos intertwined with the game world. Scenes of live-action characters play out right in front of you, and if you walk to the other side of the room, you’ll see the other side of each actor. With any potential flaws hidden by the ghostly special effects, it made for some of the most realistic human characters I’ve ever seen in VR.
But special effects and a sufficient narrative are all side dishes to the main course of any puzzle game. In the grand scheme, it’s all about the puzzles.
The 7th Guest VR does a good job with its puzzles. The context for each puzzle was generally easy to surmise, so it felt natural to grasp the rules for each. While some were referential to the original game, others were completely reimagined to best utilize the unique perspective of a VR game. Each one was engaging, without being too easy or too difficult.
There’s a hint system available that can nudge you in the right direction, or just outright give you the answer, though I never found myself in need of them. So if you’re someone who likes a real challenge when approaching puzzle games, this one might feel a bit too easy.
I was particularly dissatisfied with the final puzzle. Without outright spoiling anything, it’s a boss fight of sorts, where I played out a game of Sorry/Trouble (you know, roll dice to move pegs and knock a piece back to the start if you land on them). Having the entire game be logic-centric puzzles, only for the final encounter to be something so dependent on random chance, really diminished the sense of grandiose conclusion it could have been. Not to mention how long it took to play out.
The puzzles do deserve some commendation for their relevance to the overall narrative. The puzzles found in each room were wonderfully on theme for said room. The financially distraught Edward had puzzles involving balancing numbers and running calculators, while the alcoholic had puzzles about overconsumption. Some were more on-point than others, but I certainly appreciated the parallels that can be found.
While none of the major aspects of the game are particularly extraordinary, The 7th Guest VR does everything right. The setting, story, and puzzles are enjoyable and cohesive, while small details like the reality-shifting lantern view and the volumetric video cutscenes help it stand out from most VR puzzle games on the market. You might not be amazed by anything in particular, but you certainly won’t be disappointed by any of it.
Reviewed on PC (SteamVR)
Score: 4/5. A copy of this game was provided for the purpose of this review.
