The whole premise behind Selfdefiant's escape game Arendel is that you and your friends thought it was a swell idea to go inside an abandoned asylum late at night, so I'm not entirely convinced you didn't deserve it (or at least a Darwin Award) when the doors slammed shut and trapped you inside. Now you're surrounded by a bunch of glowy purple orbs and enough locked doors with colour-coded keyholes to make me think you've been captured by an Umbrella Corporation villain, so if you want to find your way out, it's time to get to puzzle solving. Don't mind the skeleton hands, they're here to help. To play, just click to interact when your cursor changes, and deposit items in your inventory at the bottom of the screen to pick them up, or click an icon again to hold an item for use. Once you have something to hold them in, the purple orbs can be gathered to purchase things from the shadowy figure at the front desk... just, uh... maybe don't sign any contracts it offers you. Don't mind the timer... it's just there to keep track of how long it takes you to find a way out.
Selfdefiant is easily one of the most prolific escape game developers out there, with often multiple game releases in a week, and the main reason they aren't featured here more often, despite frequent requests and submission, is that they typically feel a little rough around the edges. Arendel's user interface is a bit clunky, with navigation feeling unnecessarily circuitous, and items tend to blend too well into the frequently gloomy backgrounds. It is, on the other hand, a really ambitious game, with a huge map, a great atmosphere, and a solid balance of item usage versus puzzle solving. Two of the items you can purchase from ye olde orb merchant are actually optional and help streamline finding your way around a little, but you'll need one of them to find your way out for good. Don't expect a story or much fanfare around the ending, but despite its bumpy spots, Arendel is well worth a look if you're already a fan of the developer's, or have been wanting to see what all the fuss is about. And for goodness' sake, take it as a cautionary tale. "I went into this dark abandoned place for no good reason" is how approximately 99.9% of those torn, faded, desperately scrawled notes you find in horror games begin, right after the ones about the veracity of baked goods.
Walkthrough Guide
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Walkthrough
Getting the sacred jar (for collecting orbs)
Go up. Get the sponge from the door that's ajar on the left.
Go left. Wet the sponge in the mop bucket. Get the crowbar from the left side of the stage.
Go right, up, and left. You should be in a room with old TVs piled on a table. Use the crowbar on the grating on the right; get the green key.
Go right, down, and right. Open the doors using the green key.
Use the wet sponge on the mirror; note the code.
9966
Go left and down, so you're back at the start. Use the code from the mirror to open the box on the left. Get the silver key.
Go up three times; open the doors with the silver key.
Go up and right. You should be in a room with two armchairs and a pile of rubble. Get the sledgehammer from the window ledge between the two armchairs.
Go left, down, and left, to the bricked-up fireplace. Use the sledgehammer on the fireplace and get the sacred jar.
Getting the map
Collect the orbs from the room you're in, then go right, down, and down, collecting orbs on the way. This should get you to the room with the shopkeeper with at least 25 orbs on your person. Click the shop (the counter at the back of the room), then click the map to buy it.
Woo-hoo, a map!
From here on out, I'll refer to rooms by their letter on the map. If you're lost, just click on your map; you're in the room with the big red dot.
I expect you to collect orbs as you go.
A
Use the crowbar on the post in the middle of the room; get the white gem.
B
Click the ashtray behind the chair near the stage. Get the matches.
D
Flip the lever on the right wall. Note that there is something in the sink drain, but the crowbar is too big to remove the cover. Also note the letters on the cabinet around the mirror: "buy aet"? I see an anagram in your future...
F
Note the code on the door frame.
34 7 19
E
Flip the lever on the right wall.
I
Flip the lever. Note the numbers above the fireplace.
Top = 1, left = 3, right = 4, bottom = 2
O
Note the panel on the right wall with four colorful dials.
N
Click the table and note the colorful chips. Count the number of chips of each color.
6 blue, 7 red, 9 green, 11 yellow.
M
Light the candle in the window and get the purple key. Flip the lever to the right of the window.
O again
Use the colored chips code to open the panel on the wall; get the red key.
The top dial is yellow; click it 11 times. The next dial is green; click it 9 times. The next dial is blue; click 6 times. The bottom dial is red; click it 7 times. Click the switch at the bottom when you're done.
K (use purple key)
Click the panel on the right wall. Use the code from the doorframe in F to open the combination lock.
Left 34, right 7, left 19.
Get the flashlight.
G (use red key)
Note the word "DECAF" on the wall. Get the screwdriver from the radiator under the window on the right.
H
Flip the lever on the wall on the right. Use the clue from G combined with the clue on the piano to play the keys in the right order; get the blue gem.
The piano says "OPAIN", which is an anagram of "piano". What is "decaf" an anagram of? Click the piano and play FACED.
D again
Use the screwdriver on the drain to get the yellow gem.
C
While you're in the vicinity, you should now have enough orbs to purchase the magic crystal. This lets you click rooms on the map to go to them. (You can only use this to visit rooms you've already visited the "hard way".)
L
click the basket on the wall to the left of the window. Use the code from above the fireplace in I to get the pink gem.
Click the ends of the cross in this order: top, bottom, left, right.
There should be a glowing yellow star in the middle of the floor; if there isn't, go check if you missed a lever somewhere. Click the star to go to Q.
Q
Use the flashlight to find the gold key (check the bottom left corner).
S (use gold key)
Nothing here except some orbs.
T
Check the medicine cabinet in the back corner. Move the prescription bottles to find the green gem.
R
Check the drawers; the far left one has the purple gem.
U
Click the box on the nightstand to the left of the bed. Figure out the correct anagram of the code from D and use it to open the box.
BEAUTY
Get the red gem.
C
If you don't have at least 50 orbs at this point, go back and collect some more. Buy the magic book from the shop. Put your gems into the cover of the book (arrangement doesn't matter).Open the book and flip through it until you find the rusty key.
Exiting
Go to A and go down. Use the rusty key to open the door. You're outta there!
Guide to item locations
Matches
B
Screwdriver
G
Flashlight
K
Levers
D, E, I, M, H
Gems
White = A
Yellow = D
Blue = H
Pink = L
Green = T
Purple = R
Red = U
Posted by: Reka
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August 15, 2014 3:25 AM