A Fisherman’s Tale is a Meta Puzzle with a Mystery!

Innerspace VR and Vertigo Games’ A Fisherman’s Tale is a mixed first and third person puzzle game where you become a galoshes, cap, and beard wearing puppet fisherman who lives in a lighthouse. This fisherman has weathered many storms but this one turned his everyday routine upside down.

Like any other day, Bob the fisherman wakes up alone in his cabin by the sea. He gets up and brushes his teeth like the rest of us and gets on with his day. The thing about Bob is, he’s a rigid routine guy and kind of a loner.

Using the miniature version of his cabin and lighthouse that’s in the middle of his room, you’ve got to help him listen to clues, make connections, and solve puzzles to unlock each room and chapter.

I found that my arms, which are extendable like shorter go-go-Gadget arms, were handy in reaching for items and objects that I could not get to naturally. This was especially helpful for giving myself items as my mini, giant, and regular form as well as to use tools and place items found around the room.

Helpfully, the mini version of the cabin and lighthouse is malleable and so is the gigantic version. Take the roof off and you’ll take the roof off the giant’s version. Stick your arm in the mini window and drop things in to drop larger versions of objects into your world, or look for miniature items and make them big. Play with this, it will help you.

Each room is uniquely set up with its own hidden items to be found and used right away or for later on. A Fisherman’s Tale feels a lot like a meta escape room, except without the feeling of being locked in. There are doors to unlock and chapters to progress to so you’re working towards an objective the whole time. Not once did I ever feel like giving up!

Any time you get stuck there’s a loop of hints that plays out, just wait patiently and listen carefully. As a single player, I also really enjoyed that I wasn’t alone the entire game. Bob is a hermit but he’s got companions that pop up and need his (my) help. This might also be a sign of Bob’s cabin fever. When you see it, you’ll get it. I don’t want to spoil these!

A Meta VR Puzzle Game!

This game is a puzzle within a puzzle within a puzzle. I felt very incepted, except A Fisherman’s Tale didn’t play out as a nightmare. This puzzle game actually tickled my funny bone, passed the time quickly (I passed 3 Chapters in 1 hour), and although I was playing a preview version, made me want to keep playing to see what I had unlocked.  

Overall, amazing audio design with great narration and storyline. Awesome puzzles! My only pain point was that after playing 3 chapters and solving each puzzle section the preview ended after I finally unlocked a door to the next chapter. I was so bummed that I didn’t get to play it. Which really says a lot about how fun and creative A Fisherman’s Tale is.

It made me think outside the box, literally, and dove me into Bob’s life and storyline to the point where I really connected with him and wanted to break him free to help out his fellow fishermen. I’m looking forward to playing the rest of A Fisherman’s Tale when it gets released in January 2019 (Vive, Oculus, Windows Mixed Reality, PSVR) and finally finding out what happens to ol’ Bob. Till then, I’ll have to wait to unlock the mystery.