Indie publisher Ratalaika Games, joins together with Brazilian Studio Fractal Projects, in announcing Save Room out on the 11th November 2022 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Microsoft Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch, priced at $4.99 EU 4.99. If you ever played Resident Evil 4, you may notice some similarities.
This Puzzle Inventory Management challenge has drawn inspiration from a giant of a game and has been acclaimed by a number of media for its simplicity, inventiveness, addictiabilty and above all fun!
Fractal Projects, who have released a number of puzzle games, explained that this was created by their programmer who focused on the Resident Evil 4’s inventory system as his main inspiration. ‘Everyone that played RE4 remembers how fun it was to organise your items to fit in your suitcase. So I imagined that a short game with that mechanic could be a good project. What makes the game unique is this nostalgic feeling. The goal/aim is to make all the items fit in your inventory, while your guns are loaded and your life is not too low.’
When you enter a ‘save room’ you know you are safe, no danger can come to you, you can relax. Take advantage of this short period of time to organize your inventory, heal your wounds and reload your weapons. Can you make all the items fit in your inventory?
40 levels make up the game and the objective is really simple, you just need to arrange the items you are presented with and then fit them into your inventory space. You can move, rotate and combine the items. Also, all your weapons need to be reloaded and your life can be in a dangerous state so keep your eye on the screen!
The difficult curve is progressive, so in the first ten levels the player only needs to fit the items and reload their weapons. At levels 11 to 25 the player will have to use and combine healing items to keep the health metre away from the danger state. After that, a mechanism of combining gunpowder to create ammunition is presented. In the final levels………… (surprises!)
As the developer explained, ‘The gameplay mechanics are introduced at a pace that is easy for everyone and players who are familiar with RE4 find them very intuitive. When someone gets stuck on a level he just needs to restart and try to organize the items in a different way.’
There is no timer at all, and as many gamers have found out from the successful PC release, Save Room has a relaxing approach that is very calming, so the player can just relax and solve the puzzle at his own pace. Each level must be completed to unlock the next one, and the game has many achievements that encourage the player to complete levels and try new things.
Save Room blends puzzles within its puzzles, like when you begin crafting: using different vials of gunpowder to fashion specific ammo types, combining herbs to make healing items. The developer expanded on this, ‘As in Resident Evil games it’s common to combine herbs and gunpowder, I figured having some mechanics like that would bring back a lot of nostalgic memories. So, in Save Room, the player will need to combine herbs to create potent healing items and mix the right gunpowders to create specific ammunition. And when you combine items, you create more free space in your inventory, which is the key to solving some levels.
