Black Lake Facility – The Research Lab
Date: 11th November 2020 Players: BHox, Garflow, Midori, Slow, xtanha1rrmx
Note: We have played all four rooms at SDC. This is one of two rooms that we were invited to playtest.
Welcome back to another review of Black Lake Facility’s rooms! Back at the media preview, Research Lab was touted as an example of a room suited for families or groups looking for a less intensive experience. This was an accurate description; Research Lab is, for the most part, much brighter and less intense than its counterparts, while still offering a solid range of puzzles for your buck.
The strongest point of Research Lab would be the range of puzzles offered; split across the various segments of the room, we encountered puzzles that tested a wide range of senses and skills alike. One puzzle might test players’ observational and searching skills, while another might require more listening and attention to details. As a whole, the room flowed quite smoothly from one set of puzzles to the next, and we didn’t encounter any significant leaps in logic when working out solutions. Throughout these, BLF put in another solid performance in building an appropriate setting and atmosphere; Research Lab felt more like an investigation of the scientists/staff of the facility as we went through different parts of their workplace. As a result, there was much less emphasis on the horror aspects teased in the briefing video.
For all its strengths, however, Research Lab remains lacking in a few key areas. The wide variety of puzzles offered came at the expense of overall difficulty; most of the puzzles might not be enough to satisfy groups who prioritize puzzles over other aspects of a room. In addition, if a less foreboding trek through the scientists’ workplace was meant to create a more relaxed environment, this succeeded at the expense of connections to the overarching narrative across BLF’s rooms. While the location was in the briefing video and there were links to characters mentioned or shown elsewhere, what plot details we could discern by the end of the room felt more like a sequel hook than a resolution of outstanding mysteries. This is hardly a fatal flaw, of course, and opens up possibilities for refreshing the range of offerings in future.
Overall, Research Lab offers a decent experience for casual groups with a wider range of puzzles to engage different skill sets, though more experienced players or those seeking difficult puzzles may not enjoy the room as much.
-Midori
Rating:
Flow – B Logic – C Immersion – A Intensity – E Intuition – Low/Med Tediousness - Low/Med Searchiness – Low Apprehension – Low Novelty – High Variation – Med Dexterity – Low Strength – None Agility – Low Branchedness – None Teamwork – Low


















