- Primary Objective: Investigate the locked-room murder of Captain Magnus Mortuga aboard his submarine in the mermaid mask sfb games.
- Core Investigation Loop: Search rooms for 3D clues, rotate objects to find hidden details, and present evidence to suspects.
- Puzzle Mechanics: Solve visual and mechanical challenges like the switchboard, typewriter rings, and compass alignment to unlock progression.
- Suspect Interrogation: Confront the eight crew members, identify contradictions in their statements, and complete personal investigations.
- Achievement Goal: Unlock all 21 Steam achievements by completing the story and solving every optional room puzzle.
the mermaid mask sfb games: Submarine Locations
Welcome to the official investigation guide for the mermaid mask sfb games, the hand-painted submarine murder mystery developed and published by SFB Games. Released on July 16, 2026, this detective adventure tasks players with solving the mysterious death of Captain Magnus Mortuga. Accompanied by your sharp-witted partner Sally Spears, you must explore the depths of the Mortuga submarine, inspect fully rotatable 3D clues, and dismantle the lies of an eccentric eight-member crew.
The submarine is a complex, multi-layered structure where rooms open gradually as you uncover key evidence. Navigating these locations and understanding their layout is essential for establishing the timeline of the crime.
| Room | Accessibility | Key Clues | Main Puzzle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parlor | Available from start | Glowing buoy, Warning | Pink flame lever |
| Mess Hall | Available from start | Cookware, Cards | Snake cabinet dials |
| Illusion Theatre | Available from start | Sail cloth, Cauldron | Chalk outline deduction |
| Child's Room | Chapter One | Portrait cards, Newspaper | Doll portrait lenses |
| Control Room | Chapter One | Submarine blueprint, Log | Switchboard cables |
| Women's Bunk | Chapter One | Photograph, Inn Deeds | Pink pig safe |
| Men's Bunk Room | Chapter One | Locked phone, Letter | Typewriter ring code |
| Dream Chamber | Chapter One | Hex bottle, Fog ball | Bottle cap matching |
| Cargo Hold | Chapter One | Silkwirm map, Pinboard | Crew location layout |
| Engine Room | Chapter One | Broken compass, Merchandise | Four compasses puzzle |
| Airlock Grotto | Chapter One | Diving helmet, Grotto gear | Pipe dial rotation |
The Illusion Theatre serves as the central crime scene. Because the theatre was sealed from the inside, your initial investigation must focus on establishing how anyone could have entered or exited without being seen.
Step-by-Step Prologue Walkthrough
To begin your journey in the mermaid mask sfb games, you must complete the Prologue sequence, which transitions from the Stonetop Inn to the interior of the Mortuga submarine. This sequence introduces the core mechanics of movement, observation, and deduction.
Stonetop Inn Setup
Begin by reviewing the initial case details. Inspect the red Case File lying near Sally to read the locked-room murder summary. Next, examine the book titled The Hex of the Helmsmen to understand the supernatural maritime lore surrounding the case. Interact with Sally to wake her up and initiate the journey.
Town Square Arrival
Arrive at the Town Square to locate your transport. Inspect the glowing green light in the square, the central fountain, and the surrounding signs. Speak with Sally after examining the unusual illumination. Wait for the Mortuga submarine to surface from the depths, then board it from the Fore Deck.
Fore Deck and Parlor Exploration
Once aboard, inspect the glowing carved buoy on the Fore Deck. Enter the Parlor and have Sally pull the lever to light the pink flame, restoring the interior power. Read the warning note attached to the Control Room window. Note that both the Control Room and the upper decks are locked.
Mess Hall Cabinet Puzzle
Proceed to the Mess Hall. Inspect the cards, cookware, and the locked cabinet. To unlock the snake cabinet, treat each shape on the lock as its corresponding number of sides. Set the four displays to: Triangle (3), Square plus Pentagon (9), Triangle plus Square (7), and Square (4).
Illusion Theatre Investigation
Enter the Illusion Theatre to inspect the crime scene. Examine the ragged sail cloth connected to the Stargazing Girl display, the upside-down illusion poster, and the chalk outline. Inspect the ancient stone cauldron, checking every highlighted point on its surface before opening the deduction screen.
First Case Conclusion
Open the deduction interface. Select Magnus Mortuga as the individual who unlocked the cauldron, and conclude that he was killed by whatever was kept inside it. Confirm this deduction to complete the Prologue and officially begin Chapter One: The Curse in the Cauldron.
| Location | Action Required | Target Item / Trigger | Next Destination |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stonetop Inn | Review Case File, wake Sally | Leave the inn | Town Square |
| Town Square | Inspect green light, talk to Sally | Submarine surfaces | Fore Deck |
| Fore Deck | Inspect carved buoy, enter Parlor | Pull pink flame lever | Mess Hall |
| Mess Hall | Solve shape-side math puzzle | Open snake cabinet | Illusion Theatre |
| Illusion Theatre | Inspect stage, poster, and cauldron | Confirm opening deduction | Chapter One |
If you cannot leave a room, open your notebook and ensure every highlighted object has been clicked. Sally will often offer a contextual hint if you interact with her when stuck.
Chapter One Puzzle Solutions
Chapter One introduces the bulk of the mechanical and visual puzzles in the game. Solving these puzzles rewards you with critical progression items and key documents.
Critical Story Puzzles
The table below outlines the exact solutions to the mandatory puzzles required to advance the main story of Chapter One.
| Puzzle Name | Room | Solution Summary | Reward / Unlock |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait Cards | Child's Room | Place Patricia center, use lenses on outer | Glass Eyeball |
| Switchboard | Control Room | Connect Red 1-9, Blue 3-11, Yellow 6-12 | Captain's Log |
| Pink Pig Safe | Women's Bunk | Set branches to sum 8, 6; lower to 5, 9, 2 | Underwater Photograph |
| Dirk's Phone | Men's Bunk | Align tiles to connect matching symbols | Unlocked phone data |
| Typewriter Rings | Men's Bunk | Rotate rings for 45-degree pattern shifts | Letter from Ibis |
| Four Compasses | Engine Room | Yellow left, Blue down, Pink 2 o'clock, Red NW | Repaired Compass |
| Diving Helmet | Airlock Grotto | Match symbols on entering/leaving pipes | Helmet mechanism |
How to Solve the Key Mechanisms
- Portrait Cards & Lenses: In the Child's Room, combine the six cards to form three complete girls. Place Patricia in the center with her medium-sized doll. Use the magnifying and shrinking lenses on the left and right dolls, then place the fish-eye lenses over their faces to secure the Glass Eyeball.
- Control Room Switchboard: Connect the colored cables to restore power. Connect the red cable from socket 1 to 9, the blue cable from socket 3 to 11, and the yellow cable from socket 6 to 12. This opens the compartment containing the Captain's Log.
- Pink Pig Safe: In the Women's Bunk Room, arrange the numbers on the safe's branching pathways. The top branch must read 3, 4, 1 (totaling 8), and the second branch must read 2, 3, 1 (totaling 6). Align the bottom totals to 5, 9, and 2 to retrieve the Gloomy Underwater Photograph.
- Four Compasses: In the Engine Room, inspect the compass mechanism. Set the yellow compass to point left, the blue compass to point down, the pink compass to point toward two o'clock, and the red compass to point toward the upper-left (Northwest). This yields the Repaired Compass.
Solving the Crew Location Pinboard in the Cargo Hold is mandatory to progress. You must place all eight living suspects in their current rooms, and place Magnus Mortuga's portrait outside the submarine diagram.
Suspect Dossiers & Evidence Connections
Solving the murder requires connecting physical clues to the testimonies of the crew. Each suspect has a specific role, location, and hidden motive that must be uncovered through thorough interrogation.
Sinthia Seafoam
- Location: Control Room
- Role: Acting Captain
- Secret: Conceals the Stonetop Inn deeds under her mattress.
Symmetry Silkmoth
- Location: Child's Room
- Role: Illusionist
- Secret: Expert in stage deception and hidden compartments.
Madam Tadpole
- Location: Airlock Grotto
- Role: Resident Mermaid
- Secret: Claims to have seen a glowing-eyed demon on deck.
Crew Suspect Profiles & Motives
Use this directory to track suspect locations, roles, and the key evidence needed to complete their personal investigations.
| Suspect Name | Submarine Room | Primary Role | Secret / Hidden Motive |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sinthia Seafoam | Control Room | Acting Captain | Conceals property deeds to Stonetop Inn |
| Symmetry Silkmoth | Child's Room | Illusionist | Expert in stagecraft and visual deception |
| Madam Tadpole | Airlock Grotto | Resident | Witnessed glowing-eyed figure on deck |
| Zacharias Zephyr | Dream Chamber | Dream Doctor | Owns perception-altering chemicals/bottles |
| J.D. Wirman | Men's Bunk Room | Author | Secretly corresponds with mysterious Ibis |
| Dirk Dansom | Men's Bunk Room | Actor | Troubling calls, recorded threat on Dictaphone |
| Mariana Moon | Cargo Hold | Historian | Secretly records crew with pipe Dictaphone |
| Godrik Gripp | Engine Room | Shopkeeper | Access to ship systems, repairs broken compass |
Utilizing Mariana's Dictaphone Recordings
A major turning point in Chapter One involves finding the Pipe-Shaped Dictaphone in the Cargo Hold. Present this suspicious object to Mariana Moon after gathering mechanical evidence from the Engine Room. This unlocks several secretly recorded conversations between the crew.
Listen to every available recording in your inventory, then present these statements to the involved characters to expose contradictions in their alibis.
Always present new evidence to every single crew member. Even if a suspect is not directly linked to a clue, their reaction can provide vital background information or unlock new dialogue options with other characters.
Achievements & Exploration Checklist
The Steam release of the game contains 21 achievements. While many unlock automatically through story progression, several are highly missable and require completing optional puzzles or thoroughly inspecting the submarine's rooms.
Missable Achievements Checklist:
- Private Caller: Unlock Dirk Dansom's phone and read all calls, messages, and emails.
- Sweet Dreams: Complete the optional bottle-cap puzzle in Dr. Zephyr's Dream Chamber.
- Curiosity Satisfied: Complete the skull classification display in the Cabinet of Curiosity.
- Recorded for Posterity: Find Mariana's Dictaphone and listen to every hidden recording.
- No Stone Unturned: Fully inspect every 3D evidence object and complete all optional room mechanisms.
Optional vs Required Exploration
To earn the Perfect Investigation achievement, you must complete all optional content before initiating the final confrontation in the Illusion Theatre.
| Optional Activity | Location | Action | Achievement Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skull Classification | Cabinet of Curiosity | Sort skulls by ornament and face feature | Curiosity Satisfied |
| Bottle Cap Matching | Dream Chamber | Place physical caps on matching bottles | Sweet Dreams |
| Mushroom Catalog | Cargo Hold | Count glowing mushrooms under light | No Stone Unturned progress |
| Colored Orb Mechanism | Bilge | Align red groups, white, and pale spheres | No Stone Unturned progress |
| Pirates & Lighthouses | Dome Tank | Match pirates to flags, lighthouses to slots | No Stone Unturned progress |
Once you enter the final reconstruction sequence in the Illusion Theatre, you will be locked out of free exploration. Create a backup save before completing all personal investigations to avoid replaying the entire game.
Ending Explained & Final FAQ
The climax of the mermaid mask sfb games dismantles the supernatural rumors surrounding Captain Mortuga's death. By reconstructing the timeline using physical evidence, Detective Grimoire and Sally prove that the "curse" was a meticulously planned stage illusion designed to exploit the crew's superstitions.
The upside-down poster, the ragged sail cloth, and the hidden mechanisms within the ancient stone cauldron reveal that the killer used theatrical misdirection to stage a locked-room murder. The "glowing-eyed demon" reported by Madam Tadpole was actually a crew member wearing modified diving equipment, utilizing the submarine's unique lighting to project a terrifying silhouette. By separating the crew's personal secrets (such as Sinthia's property disputes and Dirk's private communications) from the physical evidence of the crime, you can successfully identify the culprit and close the case.
The FAQ below contains minor spoilers regarding the game's platforms, mechanics, and puzzle solutions. Read at your own discretion.
Q: What platforms support the mermaid mask sfb games?
The Mermaid Mask developed by SFB Games is available on PC via Steam, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2, launching on July 16, 2026.
Q: How do I solve the typewriter ring code in the Men's Bunk Room?
Rotate the three inner dials and three outer rings so that the displayed patterns follow a continuous 45-degree transformation sequence. This unlocks the handwritten letter from Ibis to J.D. Wirman.
Q: Is there a penalty for using the in-game hint system?
No, there is no score or achievement penalty for using the hint system. Sally's hints can be accessed freely at any time to help guide your investigation.
Q: What is the solution to the diving helmet puzzle in the Airlock Grotto?
Rotate the pipe dials so that the symbol leaving one pipe matches the symbol entering the next dial. Repeat this process from the central junction outward until all pipe routes are continuous.