The Evolution of Play: Rediscovering Fun in a Modern World

17th January

Greetings and welcome back to our regular feature where we share a bit about some of the games we’ve been enjoying this week. This time, we’ve barely managed to escape the Sims character creator once more, and let’s not forget the home decorating aspect; we also explored another puzzle game to challenge our minds; and we’ve joyfully reached the end of Animal Crossing.

What have you been playing lately?

Catch up with the previous installments of this column in our What We’ve Been Playing archive.

Escape Academy, Xbox Series X

After finishing my puzzling adventure calendar – which was actually an escape room with chocolate rewards – I found myself missing the thrill of having a daily puzzle to solve. Thanks to Eurogamer reader themightyant, I have since discovered a fix in the form of Escape Academy.

As the name implies, Escape Academy immerses players directly into a school focused on escape rooms, and I certainly have been escaping. So far, I’ve managed to break free from the head teacher’s rather luxurious office, which was often filled with gas, climbed my way out of a flooding maintenance room, and completed a set of courtyard graffiti (at the request of my teacher – don’t worry, no pointless vandalism here), to name just a few.

The puzzles – at least for now – have been wonderfully balanced. They aren’t ‘a walk in the park easy’ by any means but aren’t so impossibly tough that they make me want to throw my controller at the TV. There has also been a decent variety of puzzles, so each new room feels fresh and unique, and never overwhelming. I’ve still needed to jot down pages and pages of notes, however – got to keep track of what’s going where and why!

Meanwhile, the Escape Academy team has incorporated a sense of urgency through deadlines for each of the game’s, um, let’s call them missions. While these can be a bit frustrating, I mostly don’t mind them. They enhance the fun, and these timers are really just there as a sort of placebo; there isn’t any real penalty if you don’t ‘escape’ in time (although, as someone who can be a tad competitive, it’s always nice to).

Overall, if you’re looking to enjoy an escape room-like experience from the comfort of your own home, Escape Academy perfectly fits that bill. It’s clear the game has been crafted with a great deal of love by fellow puzzle enthusiasts, and while it may not exactly replicate an actual escape room due to obvious reasons, it comes remarkably close. If you enjoy puzzle games, you really should give this one a shot.

-Victoria

Animal Crossing, Switch

The inevitable has occurred – I’ve completed the art gallery. This was the thread that kept me coming back every day since the game began, and now – with the acquisition of a Bruegel – I’m finished. I certainly saved one of the most stunning for last – the Hunters in the Snow or whatever it’s called is a painting I’ve adored for years, likely since I first read Michael Frayn’s Headlong – but now is it really completed?

I’m unsure how you might respond to this. However, I find it somewhat bittersweet. Back when I first encountered Animal Crossing on the GameCube, it seemed like a game you could never really finish since it didn’t ask you to do much other than just experience it. I could easily log in daily simply because that’s what you did – it was life happening in there, not a game. However, the series’ desire to maintain engagement, which was always subtly present, came more to the forefront with each new installment, and by the time we arrived at the Switch, I was all about that art gallery. Although I knew that completing it would indicate finishing the game.

Anyway, I must rush for a bus, so I’ll conclude this now. Just to say, thank you Animal Crossing. I’m sorry our time together has ended, but I’m sure I’ll log in every now and then to check on Spike. And to have another look at that Bruegel, which is truly something special.

-Donlan

The Sims 4, PC

It has been years since I played The Sims 4 and, to be honest, I’ve missed it. It took me a moment to remember