Underground Blossom

About Underground Blossom

Underground Blossom was released on 27 September 2023 by Rusty Lake, the studio behind the Cube Escape series, Rusty Lake Hotel, Rusty Lake: Roots and Rusty Lake Paradise. It returns to the Vanderboom family at the heart of that series, this time following Laura Vanderboom through her life.

The game is built around a metro line. Every stop is a station that stands for a piece of Laura's past or a possible future, with names like Crib Station, Child Lane, School Street and Sorrow Cross. At each one you look around a few hand-drawn views of the platform, collect objects, talk to the people waiting there and solve puzzles. Each stop ends the same way: work out when your train leaves, get a ticket and board it, a routine that marks the passing of Laura's years. The store gives the travel time as about two hours across seven stations, and HowLongToBeat puts the main story at the same.

Its horror is the quiet, creeping kind Rusty Lake is known for. The stations look tidy and almost cheerful, with tiled walls, a trumpeter busking on one platform and a ticket clerk behind bars, but the people stare, memories twist and the dark corruption of the series waits underneath Laura's life. Reviewers at Room Escape Artist found it less openly macabre and more heartfelt than most of the series, which makes it an easy start for players new to Rusty Lake. The soundtrack is by Victor Butzelaar.

There is more after the credits: hidden secrets and achievements lead to a harder bonus challenge, and some of the deepest ones need clues from outside the game. A free demo is on Steam and itch.io.

It suits players who enjoy logic and item puzzles with a strange story, and fans of the Cube Escape games who want to see more of the Vanderboom family. It is sold for Windows and Mac on Steam, GOG and itch.io, and as a paid app on iPhone, iPad and Android.

How to play Underground Blossom

1. Buy it on Steam, GOG, itch.io, the App Store or Google Play, or try the free demo first.
2. Look around each station by clicking the arrows at the edges of the screen.
3. Click on people and objects to pick up items and open close-up views.
4. Combine and use items from your inventory to solve each station's puzzles.
5. Find out when your train leaves, get a ticket and board it to travel to the next memory.

Tips

• Check the people on each platform more than once; what they need changes as you solve puzzles.
• Write down symbols and numbers you see; codes are often spread across a station.
• There are hidden achievements in the stations, so look closely before you leave one.
• Watch the credits through to the end; reviewers say the patience is rewarded.
• Play with headphones for the soundtrack and sound cues.

Questions