Cici Cao
- Oct 8, 2020
- 4 min read

Neil Patrick Harris (Manufactured by Theory 11) - "BoxONE"

Updated: Aug 16, 2021

Photos provided by Theory 11

Company: Neil Patrick Harris (Manufactured by Theory 11 )

Game: BoxONE

Country: USA 🇺🇸

Language: English

Type of Game: Puzzles By Mail 📬

Genre: Mystery, Adventure

Date Played: 10/5/2020

Difficulty (based on 2 players): 5/10

Size of Team: 1 Player

Time: Unlimited

Price: $29.95

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From the brainwaves of Neil Patrick Harris comes an interactive challenge. Use your wits and decode each layer of BoxONE.

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Since this game was manufactured by Theory 11, we expected no less than luxury. The beautiful gold, brown, red and black colors used on the box really brought out a level of elegance like no other. In the center of the box, NPH is peeking at us through a keyhole. This definitely created a mysterious feel along with just a tad of creepiness. As we opened the box, all we saw was a notepad, a pen with NPH's initials on it, a box of challenge cards and a small black envelope (which could be easily overlooked since it was camouflaged nicely with the black felt).

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Seeing that this game was meant for one player, we played the game separately. As I followed the instruction sheet and started on the first step of the game, I thought to myself, this is going to be easy. There was not much to do here besides finishing the challenge cards in the box. Boy was I wrong! There were so much more to be discovered. We played the game in different ways. Brandon was always the curious one and if he could skip over all reading and just dive into the puzzles, he would. So he "discovered" as much as he could from the box right from the start. I am a rule follower so I only revealed items when the game instructed me to do so. There's really no right or wrong way to play the game but if you revealed things too early, you might not know what to do with them and this might confuse the game flow. Since we can't reveal too much about the game (as we don't want to ruin the surprises for you), all we can say is that, there's so much more to what we were able to show in our unboxing video (below). Ok, ok, I'll spill just a tad more...you'll be "traveling" outside of this box for certain missions.

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Since we played the games separately, this game really showed us our strengths and weaknesses. Brandon is great at trivia so he took much less time than I did with the first part of the game. As the plot thickened, puzzles started to take forms in logic and decryption. I would say I had a slight advantage over him on those. Normally when we play together we would use the "divide and conquer" method but with this game, we were on our own. I quite enjoyed not having to fight over game pieces with him for once. Overall the puzzles were not considered difficult for experienced puzzlers but some parts could be challenging for beginners. If you do get stuck, there's a weblink that'll take you to a hint page. If you still need help, you can email NPH or if he's not available, feel free to email us. Although this game could be done around an hours time for experienced players (under normal circumstances), there was a puzzle that may lead you to not be able to complete it until the next day. But be patient and you shall be rewarded...

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Throughout the game, we probably said "wow" and "oh, that's what it's used for!" numerous times. There were moments when we felt like this was a magic box and other times when we thought it's an escape room in a box. We don't know how NPH was able to pull this off but he's brainwaves is definitely on another wavelength. We enjoyed the backstory as much as the game play. The build up was intense and the main character (plus the special appearances by NPH myself) really portrayed the urgency of the mission. Comedy is something NPH tries to include in everything he does and we definitely had our share of laughter. Although I know this game is supposed to be for "ME TIME", it's definitely playable as date night, family night and group puzzle night. Just remember to cover NPH's eye if you decide to "cheat" because he's watching your every move...

Neil Patrick Harris's acceptance speech for "Best overall Table-top Game" on our Bullseye Award show!

Unboxing "BoxONE" by Neil Patrick Harris:

(If you do decide to try this game, give us a shoutout or tag us on social media so we know you heard it from "ESCAPETHEROOMers"!)

Disclosure: We thank Neil Patrick Harris & Theory 11 for providing us with a sample of their game. Although a complimentary experience was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.

Other recent creations (Children's magic books series) by Neil Patrick Harris

The Magic Misfits

$17.79 (Hardcover) - Purchase Here

$7.24 (Paperback) - Purchase Here

The Magic Misfits: The Second Story

$13.77 (Hardcover) - Purchase Here

$7.99 (Paperback) - Purchase Here

The Magic Misfits: The Minor Third

$13.74 (Hardcover) - Purchase Here

$7.99 (Paperback) - Purchase Here

The Magic Misfits: The Fourth Suit

$13.88 (Hardcover) - Purchase Here