Ukiyo Melbourne: The Crumbling Prince
ROOM INFORMATION
Location: Brunswick, MelbourneTheme: Fantasy
Advertised difficulty level: N/A
No. recommended escapists: Can have groups from 2-4 people
Website: https://www.ukiyo.com.au/
OUR THOUGHTS
Ukiyo - The Crumbling Prince is a Japanese, Studio Ghibli inspired, narrative driven experience with puzzles, and certainly not a typical escape room. The proposed scope is impressive, with a total of five episodes, comprised of ten acts in total, planned in the adventure. Each act allows approximately 75 minutes of ‘game’ time meaning that, by the time we reach the conclusion (roughly 2-3 years according to the creators) players will have experienced nine hours of content. If you’re as impressed as we were after Act 1, you’ll wish the whole story was available now. For anyone worried about the ability to sustain a high level of narrative quality via this medium, we’re told that the broad story beats are outlined with only the details and implementation specifics to be determined. In other words, the creators know where this story ends and, largely, how they’re going to get there. Also, there is currently no point at which the early acts will become unavailable. The creators intend to have all parts of the story available so, if you feel inclined, you could wait a few years and complete the entire story in a short period of time.
Before entering the room, each player picks one of four masks. Each mask provides the player with a unique ‘ability’ which determines their role within the experience and how they interact with the room. Whilst each mask’s ability is useful, some are more practical and essential than others. For example, one mask bestows the power of light, essentially acting as torch. As Ukiyo is an episodic, story driven adventure, we expect that some masks will play a more central role in some episodes than others.
The staff who get you set up for your experience are also the creators and makers of their rooms. Not only are they amazingly friendly but the passion that they have for their project is obvious. This helps after completing the room when all you want to do is word vomit about what went on in the room. Given the mystery involved, chances are that you’ll want to ask a lot of questions and have plenty of things on which to speculate.
Beyond the standard experience of solving puzzles, you'll need to regularly engage with the Prince, Kuebico himself and speak to him not as someone trying to 'win' or escape, but in a way that builds rapport and trust with him. This ensures that you aren't simply focused on your destination, but also the journey. There is a lot of lore involved in Ukiyo, and a rich background which is revealed throughout your time playing. It is mysterious and engaging, and will keep you wondering from start to finish, even after. Most of the story is revealed through conversation with Kuebico and you'll sometimes find yourself lost in conversation rather than merely probing for clues about what to do next.
As a narrative driven experience, Ukiyo's main focus is less on puzzles and more on actualising the experience through immersion and discovery. To that end the puzzles are more a vehicle for delivery of the story and revealing the world of Ukiyo. But, if you're a keen puzzle enthusiast, there is still enough here, combined with the overarching story, to keep you engaged. The puzzles require abstract thought, keen auditory and visual senses, and some good old symbol decoding. This episode of Ukiyo is fairly linear in terms of puzzles and story, meaning you will almost always know what to do next and the puzzles themselves are of average difficulty. You certainly won't be completely stumped for minutes or needing help. This brings me to my next point: there is no external avenue for clues, no walkie-talkie, and no interaction with staff during the experience. But, you can ask The Prince himself, and interaction with him is one of the keys to progression. Time will also not be a factor; we finished the experience in roughly 40-45 minutes so there is no real chance of failure. You will see the 'ending' of the room.
You would be forgiven if you forgot what your purpose was when you enter the garden of Kuebiko, the Crumbling Prince - if that purpose isn't just to sit under the cherry blossoms and ponder the meaning of life for an hour. Every detail that has gone into making this room is perfect and the result is beautiful. If you have chosen a mask which also lets you hear elements of the room, this will definitely add to your immersion level, but even without it, this room would still 101/100 on the immersion scale.
Being able to play a unique role ensured everyone in our group had something to do as well as giving us each a very individual experience. This really was enhanced by the different skills of each mask. Ukiyo can be played with 2-4 people but given that four roles are available and some roles make for a quite different experience, we recommend getting a group of four together to see and hear everything the room has to offer. Some elements of the room are also more manageable with four players. Overall, we were all fully engaged in the experience from start to end.
A QUICK TIP
Up until 25th September you can get 20% off Episode 1 at Ukiyo Melbourne. Just use the code "POORFRIEND" and enter "Sibel S" when prompted.
FOR THE POST ROOM DEBRIEF
Dexter - bookings highly recommended
Coburger - conveniently located directly across the road from Ukiyo
Go next door and treat yours to the Deep Space escape room by the creators of Ukiyo!
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