Conundrum Escape Rooms
Arvada, Colorado
The Cabin: Lost in the woods, we finally found a cabin. Finding a way in, we had to gather supplies and find our way home.
Pros: The set design was the BEST. Honestly, one of our top five when it comes to set design. Lots of attention to detail and emphasis on player experience. The puzzles were clear, logical and fun to solve. The number of puzzles presented quite a challenge for us but the gamemaster helped when necessary. The storyline was unique and the immersive environment helped us feel like we were really playing the part of lost hikers.
Cons: None. Great escape room. Go play it! Seriously. What are you waiting for?
Sprightly Escapes
Denver, Colorado
Weekend Getaway: Stranded by car trouble, our group sought refuge in a roadside motel. The problem was that something very suspicious was happening there.
Mission Improbable: RAWR! Dinosaurs extinct? Not in this world. We had to travel back in time and save them from inevitable extinction.
Pros: We loved the gamemaster! Her enthusiasm and love of escape rooms clearly showed and made our experience all the more enjoyable. Weekend Getaway seemed mostly clear and logical. We enjoyed the challenge of this room and the storyline kept us on our toes throughout the game. The set of Mission Improbable was fun and we enjoyed our efforts to save the dinosaurs from extinction. This was definitely a unique storyline that we had yet to come across so we appreciated the creativity and thought put into the game.
Cons: Although the puzzles in both games were mostly clear and logical, we did find ourselves stumbling through a few parts of the game and needed assistance here and there. A few minor refinements could improve the game flow and player experience. Overall we recommend Sprightly Escapes as a solid middle-of-the-road game experience.
Room 5280
Denver, Colorado
The Dark Room: Trapped in a mysterious dark room with cryptic symbols on the wall, we had to discover the secret of what happened here and find our way out safely.
The Experiment: A scientist has disappeared leaving his experiments incomplete. We had to finish the experiment and discover the truth of what happened to the professor.
Pros: The Dark Room puzzles were challenging but we worked our way through the process with limited guidance. The storyline for the Experiment was very interesting and unique. We really enjoyed the puzzles in this room which were tied into the overall theme. I was most impressed by the fact that we actually learned a bit of history and science in the process. Kudos to the game designer for proving that education can be fun. The game master was helpful and attentive. We appreciated his enthusiasm and referrals to other area escape rooms. He helped generate excitement about the scavenger hunt challenge designed to encourage us to visit other escape rooms.
Cons: The set design was fairly basic in both rooms and did little to add to the ambiance. We struggled with the logic of a few of the puzzles in the Experiment and required a few more hints than usual. The Dark Room seemed fairly straight-forward but we could have used more flashlights. Escape rooms are no fun in the dark!
The Clue Room
Centennial, Colorado
1893: We were transported to Chicago in 1893 where the World's Columbian Exposition was underway. But a mysterious man and a strange hotel beckons further investigation.
Pros: Great theme. Love the book that the room is based on. The decorations fit the theme as well. The gamemaster was awesome and the introduction to the room/storyline generated much excitement.
Cons: The storyline lost cohesiveness in the room and deviated from the actual story at many points. We found most of the puzzles to be actually illogical and required hints on nearly every one. We would have loved to play other games at the establishment to see if this is a trend in general for the business, but time limited our ability to play more. Next time we are in Denver, we will try to play some of their other games.
Colorado Escape
Thornton, Colorado
Temple of Doom: Our band of treasure hunters had to locate the ancient relic, the Golden Gato, before a competing band of treasure hunters beat us to the punch.
Pros: This room was nicely decorated with a clear storyline. Most of the puzzles made sense and were connected to the story. We did however, struggle with a few and required assistance. Minor changes to the puzzles could make them more straight-forward. We found ourselves spending lots of time searching, which can be a good thing if your group size is larger. We had a group of six and everyone had enough work to do.
Cons: This was a mostly multilinear room with lots of puzzles. Groups of no more than four or five are recommended. When it becomes linear, it can be difficult to keep everyone focused but the searching in the beginning is best for larger groups. The gamemasters did their job, but their friendly people-skills were lacking during the time we were there and they grumpily instructed us to re-read the rules a few times before our game began (even though we did read the rules and also told them we had been there before). We assumed they were having an off-day, since on previous visits we had a great encounter with other employees.
