Summary: 4.5/5.0
The Mystery Experience Company is a mystery-themed monthly subscription service. Each box is its own mystery, so there's no need to wait several months to build up enough clues to solve anything (and inevitably forget the one small detail that will tie everything together). The box contained a surprising amount of content, and the process of sorting through the information, solving the puzzles, and finding the digital counterparts was a great experience. I found the solution to this particular one a bit underwhelming, but overall I would absolutely recommend this box as a worthwhile investment.
WARNING: light SPOILERS BELOW
Unboxing
My first box was The Lost City. I was immediately taken aback by just how much was in this box. In addition to letters, puzzle sheets, pictures, a map, and a newspaper, there were small artifacts, a telegraph, a journal, and a necklace (some assembly required).
There was more material in this first box for Mystery Experiences than several months worth of my last mystery subscription box. One sheet in particular captured my attention right away-- one with Mayan numerals on it, which I already knew how to read (thank you, Nancy Drew). There was a well-balanced variety of puzzles, reading material, clues, and "set dressing" items that contributed to the theme without being vital to the solution.
Puzzles
The puzzles in this box were fun to solve, and when any puzzle required you to go out of the box, it was intuitive to figure that out. Several puzzles specifically resulted in a URL with additional material and clues. Others were more subtle, but I was able to find the necessary information by exploring the website and Facebook page.
There was also a good balance in terms of puzzle difficulty. There was one puzzle that was a bit tedious and time-consuming, but not so frustrating as to break the immersion of the experience. The others were engaging and light enough to keep me occupied for a bit without slowing my momentum. There was one point at which I had to pick up a phone and call the number that I'd just decoded, which was a really creative, immersive way to the deliver information.
Each puzzle also felt meaningful. They weren't puzzles for puzzles sake. I knew there was value in what I was doing, and that each puzzle would lead to more information that would help me solve the case. They were a way to collect additional witness statements, letters, etc.
solution
There was a lot of information to process for this box, which I loved. I actually wished I did have a cork board and some red yard to map everything out. I separated out all the suspects and their respective motives and considered who might have been conspiring together. I reread everyone's statements and marked up the map to visualize everyone's alibis.
In the end, it was the absence of any information regarding a specific suspect that gave it away, and I want to stress that point. They gave it away. I didn't get a satisfying "Aha" moment at the end of this box. I got an "Oh, the writers are trying to tell me it was this person" moment, which was disappointing.
I hesitated when I found the solution, because I thought it was too easy. I wanted to be faced with several potential solutions, find the crucial detail, and have that "Aha" moment. Instead, it was a simple elimination game where the solution was assuming that each pair who alibied each other weren't in cahoots. There was no payoff for paying critical attention to detail; when I read the solution, I didn't quite believe it due to the lack of information I had about that suspect. Even for a cold case that took place in the jungle, it just felt like the writers were trying to pile on so much information about everyone else that you forgot about one suspect, all for a cheap "gotcha."
Conclusion
I got this first box as a gift from a family member, and I'll definitely be continuing the subscription on my own based on my experience with this first box. Despite an underwhelming solution, the amount of quality content and the experience of unraveling the information were both impressive and I'm looking forward to next month's Jack the Ripper mystery!