Boxes: Lost Fragments Game Review

Boxes: Lost Fragments is a casual puzzle game created by Big Loop Studios and released by Snapbreak in February 2024. It’s available on mobile app stores and Steam and offers a free demo that allows you to play the first two chapters (about 10 puzzle boxes) for free. 

I was drawn in by the look of the game — it seemed mysterious and beautiful, so I decided to give it a go. I wouldn’t say that I’m much of a puzzle game player (enjoyer?), but I really had a ton of fun with this one. 

Overall, this is a perfect quick and fun game to play on a lazy afternoon. It’s equally challenging and pretty, and it will give you some head-scratching puzzles to solve. Check out my full thoughts below. 

The Puzzles

There are two types of puzzles in Boxes: Lost Fragments. For one, you have the main puzzle, in the main room of each chapter. They are pretty simple and get solved relatively easily (depending on the room). But in order to solve them, you need to solve the boxes which you enter through enchanted doors (?). Now these are more challenging. 

Each box has puzzles on each side of it, and they’re all intricately connected. You’ll have to take a look at all of the sides and attempt to solve the mini puzzles in order to figure out which one is the first and how they all connect. Once you solve the box, you’ll have to solve one final (more complex) puzzle that will give you a fragment that plays into solving the main room puzzle. 

Once the main room is solved, you move on to the next room. 

Throughout this process, you get to use an unlimited (I think? I needed them rarely) number of hints. You can also skip the puzzle, which will solve it for you immediately. I only used this option once, on the checkerboard puzzle because it truly irritated me. 

But other than that, I don’t believe that hints or skips are needed. While the riddles do get challenging, they’re solvable, and the satisfaction you get after solving something is worth it. 

I will say that the puzzles get a bit predictable the more you play. Not in the sense that you’ll get bored and solve them easily, but more that you’ll figure out the pattern and know immediately where to go and what (approximately) to do with a box. It’s a bit more fun (though frustrating) when you’re not sure what’s going on. 

Storyline

In Boxes: Lost Fragments, you play as an expert thief, lured into a mansion for your next job, only to realize that this is not an ordinary mansion. You end up getting trapped inside, the only way out being through solving a series of puzzles, while at the same time trying to find answers. 

Given the simplicity and length of the game, the storyline is quite good and generally interesting. I find that the story often tends to overwhelm the gameplay or is just too tiresome to follow (or is trying too hard). I normally forget to keep track of it or have zero interest in doing it (mostly in mobile games). But in this case, it was genuinely interesting and sprinkled in in a way that was enjoyable to follow.

Graphics and Audio

I didn’t expect much from the graphics when I started playing Boxes: Lost Fragments because it’s a relatively simple, short game. But I was pleasantly surprised. The graphics are truly stunning, including all of the animations. Even the hints are done beautifully. It has a wonderful steampunk vibe, and it’s slightly dark too. The animations are cinematic and delightful too. 

Normally, I keep the volume low or completely off on games when I play them on my phone because it gets annoying after a while. But in the case of Boxes: Lost Fragments, I would recommend keeping it on. All of the clicks, mechanism sounds, and the eerie background music felt a bit like ASMR. It’s not obnoxious at all, and only adds to the experience. 

Is Boxes: Lost Fragments Worth Buying?

Boxes: Lost Fragments offers a free demo version which you can play before making a decision to buy the full game. It won’t push the full version on you at any point — the first time the option appears is once you complete the free chapters (and on the main page, which is not annoying). Everything else in the game is completely free (including hints and puzzle skips), and there are no in-game purchases at all. 

While I recommend playing the demo before you make a decision for yourself, if you like these types of games, then I think it’s worth buying. The puzzles are challenging and fun, the interface is clean and truly beautifully crafted, and I think it has replay potential. Granted, you have to let some time pass between those replays to give you a chance to forget. 

Final Thoughts

Boxes: Lost Fragments is a great game if you need something relaxing yet challenging. I would definitely recommend it, though it might be a bit pricey for the amount of content you get. Definitely give the demo a go before you make a purchase. Personally, I found it enjoyable and well worth the money. 

And while I love how contained and tied-with-a-bow in the end it feels, I do hope that they expand at some point and add more puzzles to it.