By PETER HOSKIN FOR THE DAILY MAIL

Published: 07:52 BST, 18 April 2025 | Updated: 08:02 BST, 18 April 2025

Blue Prince (PlayStation, Xbox, PC, £24.99)

Verdict: All-time great

Rating:

(FIVE STARS)

Welcome to the Mount Holly Estate, site of a mansion that was previously owned by the enigmatic — and now very much deceased — Herbert S. Sinclair. 

This mansion has 45 rooms. But there’s a secret, a secret that Sinclair kept even from his servants: there’s a 46th room too.

It’s up to you, as Simon, Sinclair’s great-nephew, to find that hidden room. Your inheritance rests on you doing so. So how do you go about it?

Could Blue Prince be one of the greatest games of all time? Pay a visit to my dead uncle's mansion, take a peek behind every one of the 45 (or is that 46?) doors, and see for yourself¿

Could Blue Prince be one of the greatest games of all time? Pay a visit to my dead uncle’s mansion, take a peek behind every one of the 45 (or is that 46?) doors, and see for yourself…

Welcome to the Mount Holly Estate, site of a mansion that was previously owned by the enigmatic ¿ and now very much deceased ¿ Herbert S. Sinclair

Welcome to the Mount Holly Estate, site of a mansion that was previously owned by the enigmatic — and now very much deceased — Herbert S. Sinclair

The answer constitutes Blue Prince’s gameplay. 

You start one morning in the hallway of Mount Holly with three doors leading elsewhere in the mansion…

The twist is that you chose what type of room lies behind each door — and then behind each subsequent door. 

Some rooms contain puzzles; some have equipment and supplies; some are just plain… strange. You’re building the mansion as you go.

You get so many turns at this weird form of architecture each day — and then you’re done. You have to return the following morning and start again. 

Literally, start again. The mansion has erased itself overnight. All that work… for nothing?

Except it’s not for nothing. Blue Prince doesn’t want to frustrate its player. It’s challenging, yes. But not impossible.

Every time you return to the mansion, you are more its master. You know more of its secrets.

Some rooms contain puzzles; some have equipment and supplies; some are just plain... strange. You're building the mansion as you go

Some rooms contain puzzles; some have equipment and supplies; some are just plain… strange. You’re building the mansion as you go

You get so many turns at this weird form of architecture each day ¿ and then you're done. You have to return the following morning and start again

You get so many turns at this weird form of architecture each day — and then you’re done. You have to return the following morning and start again

And what secrets there are! The 46th room? Pah! I found that ages ago. 

And yet I’m still playing, hours on top of hours, to uncover more about this house, its former occupants and the fantastical meta-story behind it all. 

I’ve even started a notebook for it. Not that I’m obsessed or anything. But if I am, it’s a glorious form of madness.

And I can’t see myself leaving Mount Holly any time soon. Game of the year? No, Blue Prince is beyond that. It’s one of the greatest of all time.

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Could Blue Prince be one of the greatest games of all time? Pay a visit to my dead uncle’s mansion, take a peek behind every one of the 45 (or is that 46?) doors, and see for yourself…

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