39 Days to Mars Small Image

39 Days to Mars Available Now on Xbox One

Pack your tea-cosy, oil your Penny-Farthing, and hold on to your Top Hat, because: 39 Days to Mars is out now on Xbox One!

It’s been a long journey to get to this point, and after five years of development, hundreds of hours of play-testing, and thousands of hand-drawn sketches, it’s unbelievably exciting to see 39 Days to Mars launch on Xbox One. In celebration, I thought I’d talk briefly about three of my favourite parts of the game.

At its core, 39 Days to Mars is a game about co-operation and about communication. It’s not surprising then that one of the most polarising games in the puzzle is also the one that requires you to work the most closely together. Despite the comedic and slightly mouth-watering veneer, the scone puzzle is one that tests friendships as you work frantically together to make a scone while the ship falls apart around you. (No real explorer would ever attempt to solve problems on an empty stomach).

While researching this puzzle I found out that where you grew up in the UK influences how you pronounce the word ‘scone’. According to The Great Scone Map by the University of Cambridge, folk from the north are more likely to say “skoʊn” (to rhyme with gone), while those from the south prefer “skɒn” (to rhyme with tone). This found its way into the voice acting for 39 Days to Mars – and if you listen carefully to Albert and Baxter in the game, you’ll be able to tell where they’re from.

39 Days to Mars

As you step into the shoes of Sir Albert Wickes and The Right Honourable Clarence Baxter, and help them pilot their ship the HMS Fearful on its maiden voyage to Mars, you might notice that the ship looks a little dilapidated and haphazard. In fact, if you compare it to your friends HMS Fearful, you’ll notice that the layout and construction of the ship is completely different! Although it’s subtle, many of the elements in 39 Days to Mars are randomly generated, including the answers to numerous puzzles and the location of things on the ship. This means that when playing through the game a second time, you won’t be able to rely on your solutions from earlier.

My other favorite part about the game is that there’s a Giant Space Kraken.

39 Days to Mars is available now on Xbox One and can be purchased on the Microsoft Store. Click here for details.