Do you like a good story? Do you possess good logic and observational skills? Do you like to solve puzzles and play games? If you have answered yes to the previous questions, maybe you have what it takes to be a Distraction Agent.
You probably have no idea what we are talking about, do you? Have you ever heard of a Distraction Agent on the news on read about them in the newspaper? No, we doubt you have as they are part of a very secret organisation. Well, we have been authorised to tell you a little bit about them.
Actually, The Distraction Agents from Third Angel is a game, a challenge, a puzzle and a story in a box. You receive your game package through the post, your instructions via email and online films, and let the Agents guide you through the challenges, tackle the tasks and reveal the code to unlock your prize!
You caught our attention. You are special.
We’re looking for people who see the world in a slightly different way. People who notice things others don’t. And we think that might be you. We just need to, well, get to know you a little bit better. See where your strengths lie. You could be a great asset to us. And we could change your life.
The Department of Distractions, a clandestine organisation that claims its job is to plant stories in the world “to make life more interesting”, is on the search for new recruits… and they think YOU might be just what they need.
What do you think? Could you be a Distraction Agent…?
When a mysterious black box arrives through the letterbox, the information above is what you will become aware of. If you have bought this for yourself, you will also receive an email with instructions. If you have bought this as a gift for someone else, then they will also receive a letter explaining why they have received this mysterious box and what is required. This is just the beginning of hours of fun and brain-teasing puzzles to solve to gain a code to open the padlock to gain your prize. An intriguing puzzle.
The box will give you instructions to watch a series of videos, opening the numbered envelopes in the box when instructed to, following the clues as well as the distractions, and solving all the puzzles contained to get your series of numbers to open the padlock.
Overall, we absolutely loved this puzzle game, although it does make it a hard review to write as we don’t want to give anything away. The way it is presented in the box with mysterious letters, clues to decipher, videos to watch, garnering as much information as you can is just brilliant. And if you get stuck there are ways to get help but I am not going to spoil how you go about that that.
The puzzles to decipher include logic puzzles, observation skills and map reading / plotting skills and have been designed very well. The quality of the components are high quality and the substance of the 13 videos that you need to watch are filmed well, acted well and make a very good story.
The Distraction Agents is an excellent immersive, fun and entertaining, brain teasing puzzle game for you on your own or as a group to work your way through and will take a few hours to complete (you don’t have to play it all in one sitting). You will need an internet connection and something to watch the videos on (we recommend a bigger screen like a tablet rather than a phone, especially for any videos that require attention to detail and observational skills). You might also want some notepads and pencils (definitely pencils rather than pens).
We found The Distraction Agents to be an excellent puzzle game, a fun piece of interactive theatre that puts brains to work. We think that this would make an excellent last minute Christmas gift, something fun to whittle away the dead time over the Christmas holidays. It is recommended for over 14+ but we think that 10+ could play with some pointers or maybe as part of a team (you might want to read through the components of the box to decide if some of the themes that reference drugs, crime and violence would be suitable for your child – although most things contained within the stories are family friendly).
If you like puzzle and logic games, then The Distraction Agents is definitely a fun game to play. It should take 2-3 hours to play (unless you second guess yourself and make a silly mistake or misunderstand something). We thought the whole experience was put together extremely well, and the use of video, a strange glove making website and email make it quite exciting.
At only £17 (including delivery) it is definitely a game that is value for money. Just note, it is only a one use game.
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £15 (plus £3 UK postage)
For more information or to buy, visit thirdangel.co.uk.
