The mystery game Boxes: Lost Fragments, while successfully enthralling the player with its beautifully designed three-dimensional mechanical puzzles, does this at the expense of the overall narrative. Its core gameplay loop alternates between narrative cutscenes and mechanical puzzles, as the player gradually uncovers clues about the previous inhabitants who designed these intricate mechanisms. The tutorial successfully sets up the premise: the player is a thief who has infiltrated a luxurious mansion at the behest of someone named Aurora but gotten sealed inside after triggering an intricate mechanical booby trap, so they have no choice but to go on and solve more mechanical puzzles to find a way out. The puzzles are very well designed, combining a wide range of visual motifs from ancient civilisations such as Chinese, Egyptian and Mesoamerican with a distinctive science-fiction aesthetic to create fascinating 3d objects, and using colour, texture, and other details to guide the player towards the correct interactions. The hint system is diegetic, as the player holds up a mechanical mask and looks through its eyes to see the next puzzle element highlighted with a glowing circle. The main background music is quiet and foreboding, with satisfying sound effects such as whirrs and clanks when the player successfully figures out the puzzles and activates the mechanisms. However, the challenge and appeal of the mechanical puzzles draw most of the player’s attention toward problem-solving, leaving the narrative of the thief and the mansion’s previous inhabitants largely in the background. This past narrative is gradually uncovered through cards and notes the player discovers alongside some of the mechanical puzzles, though they are unrelated to solving the puzzles and activating the mechanisms. Nevertheless, these fragments produce a compelling situation and build toward a plot twist: Aurora is actually an extremely powerful AI robot created inside the mansion but later contained and deactivated after becoming too dangerous. By solving the puzzles, the player inadvertently reactivates Aurora, only to discover that she has been guiding their actions all along. The mechanical mask used in the hint system is actually Aurora’s “face” (the piece that completes and activates her dormant mechanical body), serving as a subtle indication of her lingering presence. The game’s open ending encourages the player to think about the relationship between humans and AI and ties into themes of curiosity, discovery, and the uncertainty created by advanced technology that are so pertinent to present times.
However, as a mystery game, Boxes: Lost Fragments struggles with the genre-wide problem of balancing puzzle difficulty to ensure players remain challenged without feeling overwhelmed, and this issue is especially problematic for players with disabilities. Although the hint system can help players locate puzzle elements, it may not provide enough guidance, especially for players with visual impairments. Because the game dynamics rely heavily on identifying fine visual details and precise manipulation of small objects, players with visual or motor disabilities may face barriers. While features such as adjustable interfaces, high-contrast options, and customizable controls might improve accessibility, it would be difficult to implement these changes while maintaining the game’s core puzzle experience.
