Omescape
San Jose, California
Kingdom of Cats: Trapped in a kingdom of felines, we were compelled to compete in a tournament to crown the wisest cat in the kingdom. The only way to escape perpetual imprisonment was to compete alongside our feline friends.
Dark Altar: We found ourselves trapped inside the Copenheimer Museum where an archaeology obsessed collector had initiated a dark ritual. Our goal was to work our way through the museum to discover and stop the ritual.
Joker's Asylum: A maniacal Joker was locked away in an asylum after a tragic incident at the circus. The Joker had escaped. We were tasked with discovering the Joker's secrets and escaping the asylum.
Pandemic Zero: A super virus has sickened the city. We must break into the lab and finish work on the cure.
Pros: The physical layout of Omescape from the waiting area to the game-play areas is clean, orderly and visually appealing. The puzzles are mostly linear, less about searching and more about thinking critically. Set-design is appealing and clearly tied to the overarching storyline. The games are scaled at different difficulty levels and geared toward different group sizes. Game moderators can be helpful and willing to provide assistance if asked.
Cons: The reservation system only works on web browsers and is not reliable on mobile phones. This was a problem on multiple occasions, especially since the popularity of this place makes it difficult to make reservations. The puzzles in their rooms tend to be geometrical or symbol-based. We found the puzzles quite complex in all three games and extremely difficult to solve without assistance from the game masters. Scaling of the puzzles within each individual game could have helped us with the puzzle-solving process. Overall, we find their games overly complex. The friendliness of the game masters and their willingness to offer relevant clues helped prevent frustration and a complete mental melt-down of players.
