Cantaloop: Prequel
Cantaloop: Prequel Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
About This Version
You can choose from two different official versions: the "clear text" version and the "hidden text" version. The hidden-text version is the original Cantaloop experience, where all the text you shouldn't see from the beginning is covered with colored scramble text, requiring a red foil to read. The clear-text version, transcribed here, has all text readable right from the beginning — players using it should try not to read anything by accident, as this would include potential spoilers.
Assembling the Print & Play Booklet
As printed on the file's cover sheet:
This is one of three files you need to print out and assemble in order to play the Cantaloop Prequel: the Booklet, the Cards, and the Poster.
The booklet pages show the pages of an A5 booklet containing a small tutorial, the code, and the dialogues for the game. Each A4 page shows the front and back side of a sheet of paper in the booklet. Fold each A4 page along the dashed line and glue the two halves together. Then use adhesive tape or a springback binder to collect the pages into a booklet (or use them loosely). The pages are numbered.
Tutorial
The booklet's own printed introduction and tutorial, as it appears on the first page of the booklet:
Take a look at the poster: it shows an illustration of a yacht whose owner — a shady businessman called Feynman — is throwing a party for his associates to celebrate a successful "business" year. In this story, you take the role of "Hook," a thief who has gathered a crew of professionals to steal a valuable item that is supposed to be on the yacht.
There, you can see various objects that you can interact with by combining them with item cards you gain during the course of the game. Occasionally, you may be asked to cross off one of the boxes at the top right of the poster.
IMPORTANT! Do not look through the deck of cards. Only take cards from it when instructed. When searching for a card, look only at the reverse sides showing just a number.
To get started, take card #24 from the deck. This is an item card that represents you — the main character, "Hook." Let's find out how to use items.
Combining an Object and an Item
The objects you can interact with have a so-called code banner. Item cards show two code banners, one on each side of the card.
Each banner comprises four rows, of which three show a two-character code and the remaining one an arrow. To combine an object with an item, place the item card to the right of the object such that the item's left banner and the object's banner align. The arrows will then point at a code in the respective other banner. The two codes combined (top left + bottom right) will result in a four-character code. Look up the resulting code in the CODES section of this booklet (pages 5–9), using the red foil, to find out what the combination entails. If you cannot find the code, the combination failed.
IMPORTANT! Read only text that you are allowed to, e.g., codes that you created by combining an object and an item.
Components
The Print & Play package consists of three files, printed and assembled separately:
- The Booklet — the A5 tutorial, code, and dialogue book described above.
- The Cards — the deck of item cards.
- The Poster — the double-sided illustration of the yacht used as the game's map and inventory tracker.
Official FAQ
Published by Lookout Games on the game's official product page.
OK, let's be honest: Is this just another escape room game?
No. While the game mechanics certainly could be used to create an escape room style game, "Cantaloop" is not doing this. The game is more like a classic "Point & Click" adventure, known from PC.
Why are there no rules to download?
"Cantaloop" is an interactive book and so are the rules. The introduction of the book teaches you all rules on the fly so that studying the rules is not necessary!
Product Information
- Age Rating: 16+
- Play Time: 60 min.
- Player Count: 1–2