History VideoGame / CubeEscape

* AchievementSystem: Finding all the Easter eggs in a game, which are marked off in the game’s menu. Sometimes they unlock a SecretEnding, as in ''Roots'' and ''Underground Blossom'', while other times it’s purely cosmetic.

** The Eilander family, as their surname is homophonous to "islander" which is what they are.

** In ''Case 23'', a detective named Dale appreciates [[Series/TwinPeaks a damn fine cup of coffee]]. The influence of ''Twin Peaks'' on the series becomes even more obvious with [[spoiler:the murdered blonde woman's name turning out to be Laura]] and ''Paradise'' showing the statement "THE OWLS ARE NOT WHAT THEY SEEM" on a wall.

* {{Expy}}: Characters named Laura and Dale play extremely similar roles to characters with those same first names in ''Series/TwinPeaks'', an obvious (and openly acknowledged) massive inspiration for the series. There's also a character named Robert who was Laura's boyfriend [[spoiler:and initial suspect in her murder]] in both cases, although the similarities between the two aren't quite so pronounced.

* SurpriseCreepy: With the exception of ''Case 23'', which opens on the detective investigating a murder scene, all of the games in the series start off as cheerfully illustrated, well-made but standard {{Room Escape Game}}s. And then things get increasingly weird and dark as you piece the puzzles together.

There are also five pay-to-play installments, which are set in the same universe as the free-to-play games but are lengthier and more difficult (or, in TWD's case, more narrative-focused); these games typically serve to fill in the backstory of the series, as well as make sense of some of the more MindScrew-y aspects of the series. The paid entries are also available on Steam.

** Also, nearly all members of the Vanderboom family also have these. Some are ironic, though.
** Dale has this as well, as his surname Vandermeer means of the ''lake''.

* OutlivingOnesOffspring: Emma Vanderboom in ''Roots'' loses her son while he's still very young [[spoiler:and only learns of his actually being alive after she kills herself from the grief]].

* AlchemyIsMagic: [[spoiler: Alchemy is used to create the Elixir that grants enlightenment and makes people immortal.]]
* AmbiguousSituation: [[spoiler: Even as things become clearer, there's still a lot that remains unknown, including how much of what the player sees is even real (as opposed to an elaborate metaphor).]]
** [[spoiler: ''Hotel'' in particular is ambiguous. How aware are the animals of their [[LetsMeetTheMeat intended fates]]? Are they [[SelectiveObliviousness oblivious]], or [[DeathSeeker do they want to end up on a plate]]? Their hedonistic behavior and pompous attitude (in keeping with high-society guests in a luxurious resort) suggests the former, but they also each keep lethal weaponry nearby and don't react to Harvey's usage of said weaponry. Heck, Ms. Pheasant even [[DrivenToSuicide does the deed herself]] (along with possibly Mrs. Pigeon and Mr. Rabbit).]]

* BigScrewedUpFamily: The Vanderboom family in ''Roots'', although most of them would probably have been fine if not for [[spoiler:Albert]].
** The Eilander family of ''Paradise'' aren't much better, having formed a cult of sorts involving Rusty Lake and [[spoiler: HumanSacrifice]].
* BilingualBonus: In ''Theatre'', the writing that gradually appears on the pictures are the Sanskrit words for the six realms of existence in Buddhism: [[spoiler:"Hell realm" on the forest picture, "hungry ghost realm" on the Corrupted's picture, "animal realm" on the fish's picture, "human realm" on the woman's picture, "demi-god realm" on Mr. Crow's picture, and "god realm" on the ? picture.]]

* BlueAndOrangeMorality: [[spoiler:Mr. Crow and Mr. Owl.]] It's difficult to say what they even ''are'', let alone why they do what they do. In ''The Mill'' it is revealed that [[spoiler: they empower the lake somehow by crafting the cubes from human memories. Mr. Owl seems to prefer that they use good memories due to the dangerous side-effects of using bad ones. Good or bad, however, the memories still have to come from [[HumanResources dead human bodies]].]]

** ''The Cave'' finally reveals much about their motivations. [[spoiler: They were once humans who [[ImmortalitySeeker drank the Elixir of Life and Death]]. However, the elixir appears to wear off over time. Making the cubes from memories, including a new type that apparently can change the future, is implied to be part of their plan for gaining access to "the full Elixir".]]

* CoinsForTheDead: You have to do this while searching [[spoiler: James']] corpse in ''Roots''.
* ContinuityNod: Several newspaper articles in ''Roots'' report on the events that happen in ''Hotel''.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: ''The Lake'' was the first created game in the series, and it's much more simplistic and (relatively) less surreal than the others. In addition, it doesn't specify a year or viewpoint character like later games almost always do (although WordOfGod and evidence in later games suggest that [[spoiler:you play as Laura, the same woman from ''Seasons'', and the game takes place in 1969 at the same time as ''Harvey's Box'']]).
** Also, Harvey's appearance in ''Seasons'' is different from the ones in all later games.

* ImmortalitySeeker: James in ''Roots'' tries to create the elixir of immortality in his later years. [[spoiler:He successfully creates it, but the elixir has a 50% chance of causing instant death instead of immortality. His dog takes it without any ill effects, (it actually becomes immortal as it is seen still alive and well under the care of James' granddaughter Rose, and even later in the events of ''Cave'', which take place after his great-granddaughter Laura has reached adulthood) but James himself is not so fortunate.]]
** [[spoiler:This is also a case of [[HistoryRepeats his family history repeating itself]], as his uncle William also died this way. William's brother Aldous was luckier, becoming Mr. Crow instead]].
* InsaneEqualsViolent: ''Seasons'' heavily implies that you're playing as a mentally disturbed person who [[ReluctantPsycho tried to undergo treatment]] but eventually snapped and killed someone. [[spoiler:Possibly ''yourself''.]]
** Arguably {{Subverted| Trope}}. [[spoiler:Most of the evidence suggests that the player character--The Woman--committed suicide, shortly ''before'' the Fall memory. And then DoubleSubverted since her Corrupted Soul stabs Harvey while visiting the Fall memory.]]

* MeaningfulName: The fictional painter Lacus Fleo is probably named after Lacus Flevo, a lake which once existed in the Netherlands. The series' publisher, Rusty Lake, [[CreatorProvincialism are based in the Netherlands]].

* MoonLogicPuzzle: A number of puzzles operate on the bizarrest stretches of dream/nightmare logic. For example, good luck figuring out in ''Case 23'' just what you're supposed to do with the fishbowl and flies without extensive TrialAndErrorGameplay.

* MouthStitchedShut: [[spoiler: Mr. Crow's disguise as an old man. Given that cutting the stitches immediately causes him to shed the disguise altogether, it is possible that this was a means of securing him inside the suit against his will.]]
* MultipleEndings: In ''The Lake'', you can get a different ending if you played ''Seasons'' and remember a certain code from it.

* MysticalPregnancy: [[spoiler:Emma Vanderboom in ''Roots'' becomes pregnant from the seeds of a magical flower, causing her to give birth to her son Frank]].

* OnceMoreWithClarity: ''The Mill'' replays a phone conversation you had as the detective of ''Case 23''. It doesn't ''entirely'' clarify things, but it does show you who was on the other end, and the plot events the conversation set into motion.

* PlotTriggeringDeath: ''Seasons'', ''Case 23'', and ''The Mill'' all center around the mysterious death of a blonde woman.
* PoweredByAForsakenChild: [[spoiler:Both black and white cubes are created from the brains of deceased individuals. Unlike their white counterparts, however, the creation of black cubes reanimates their donors as violent shadow monsters, known in-universe as Corrupted Souls.]]

* SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong: The ultimate goal of ''Seasons'', although it's not fully clear just how much your actions were able to change the past.

* TimedMission: The ending of ''Case 23'' is timed, unlike the rest of the game. Better get that elevator working fast...
** The end of ''Harvey's Box'' has a short one of these as well-- if you don't [[spoiler:figure out how to ward off the Corrupted Soul in time, it'll grab and kill you.]]
* TomatoInTheMirror: [[spoiler:In case you can't figure out from the get-go that something is seriously wrong, once you open the clock in ''Seasons'' you are left with no doubt.]]
** [[spoiler:In ''The Mill'' you are Mr. Crow, engaging in putting the woman's memories into the lake and [[{{Callback}} talking with Dale about Fate]].]]
** [[spoiler:In ''The Cave'' you are once again Mr. Crow.]]
** [[spoiler:In ''Paradise'', the game ends with the protagonist becoming Mr. Owl and Paradise Island becoming the site of Rusty Lake Hotel.]]

* VisualGag: [[spoiler:Following a surreal journey inside his own severed ear, Van Gogh encounters a puzzle involving a hammer, a drum, an anvil, a stirrup, and a cochlea, all structures found inside the ear.]]

* WasOnceAMan: ''Seasons'' hints and ''The Mill'' confirms that [[spoiler:the shadowy {{Humanoid Abomination}}s are dead people who were corrupted by Mr. Crow's memory-extracting machine, or by some other method of removing their memories, as shown in ''Theatre'']].