Escape Modesto, Escape Room Review

Escape Modesto

Modesto, CA

King Tut's Treasure: Locked in the tomb of King Tut, our group had only one hour before the air would run out in the room. We had to find a way out by following the clues of previous treasure hunters.

Prison Break: Falsely imprisoned for a crime we didn't commit, we sat behind bars biding time until the inevitable execution day. Once the prison guards step away we had a narrow window of time to try to make our great escape.

CSI Modesto: A serial killer has just committed his next horrific murder. Our team of detectives had to figure out the identity of the killer and flee the scene of the crime.

Pros: The game moderator was very friendly and attentive. She carefully monitored all three games and offered intervention when it appeared that we needed it. Her hints were timely and helpful without revealing too much detail. The sets were nicely laid out and clearly tied to the theme. Furniture was bolted to the walls which helped avoid needless searching and kept the room tidy for future players. The props and decorations helped add to the storyline. Puzzles in all the rooms varied and included math equations, word scrambles, and symbols. The hints and clues were all very logical.

Cons: A few of the puzzles in both Prison Break and King Tut's Treasure seemed overly complex requiring more than a few steps to solve. This slowed us down quite a bit and prevented our successful escape. Red herrings and tools that had to be used more than once also threw us off the track. A few cheap props such as wooden puzzle boxes and plastic cryptex puzzle boxes also created frustration since these rarely work effectively.

   

http://www.escapemodesto.com

PanIQ Room, Escape Room Review

PanIQ Room

San Francisco, California

Psycho - A psycho serial killer had locked us in his apartment. We had to escape before the sadistic psychopath returned to kill us.

Geek - As employees of a tech company we found ourselves locked in the office. Our boss had lost his mind and determined to end it all with a bomb. We had to find the bomb before it detonated.

The Prison - Our group of jailbirds were locked in opposite cells. Together we had to work out a plan to breakout of the joint.

Pros: The waiting room was nice and large with a variety of games and opportunities to socialize before our escape game began. The game rooms were nicely decorated and clearly tied to the storyline. Each room had a good introductory story that helped set the tone for the game. We really liked the setup of the prison room and the separation of the groups was a nice added element that enhanced game play.

Cons: These were the most expensive rooms we have ever played. We do not mind paying for high-quality games and since this is a chain we expected high quality rooms. However, we definitely felt like it did not live up to the hype. The game moderator was unenthusiastic and monotone. While we were waiting to play, we could hear him giving hints to the group that played before us. We all had to try to not hear what was being said. When it was our turn to play, we quickly found that we needed help. When we requested hints during the game his responses were delayed and condescending. Rather than giving hints, he gave full answers.  At one point, we pointed out that we were unable to solve a puzzle because the information on the hint did not match the lock. He insisted we were just doing it wrong and did not come into the room to check it out. At the end of the game, he looked at the lock and insisted that it was indeed the wrong lock (and therefore the puzzle was unsolvable). Rather than apologize, he simply insisted there was "problems with management." Similarly one of the hints provided to another puzzle was completely wrong and when we pointed this out he simply dismissed it. Our concern was that he would do nothing to fix the problems for the next groups.

The puzzles in all the rooms were not tied to the theme of the rooms. They were both too simplistic (crosswords, sudoku, simple mechanical puzzles) and yet overly complex and time-consuming. We felt more like we were doing homework than playing a game. Not our favorite experience. 

https://paniqroom.com/sanfrancisco

The Locked Inn, Escape Room Review

The Locked Inn

Grover Beach, California

The Locked Inn: When you check into the Locked Inn you enter a mysterious hotel room where all is not what it seems. The story of the inn's past guests may help you escape. 

Pros: The best thing about the Locked Inn is the set design. Meticulous attention to detail in decorations, furniture and props adds to the immersive feeling. A consistent theme runs through the whole game with puzzles adding to the overall storyline. The owners/game moderators were fun and friendly establishing clear guidelines and enthusiastically introducing the story. 

Cons: Difficulty in locating key clues and multiple red herrings sometimes detracted from the experience. The puzzles were not our favorite.

Overall: We highly recommend a visit to this escape room by the beach. The Locked Inn is definitely a not-to-be-missed escape room experience! We cannot wait to see their next room!

http://www.thelockedinn.com

Castle Escape Room, Escape Room Review

Castle Escape Room

San Jose, California

Castle Escape: Trapped in a mysterious castle, we had to locate four magical symbols in order to discover the secrets of the castle and find our way out.

Pros: This was a great theme for an escape room. The puzzles were relatively easy to solve. So easy in fact, that we never broke a sweat and escaped with 20 minutes to spare. This would be a great room for children or escape room newbies. Kids would especially enjoy the Harry Potter type theme. Game moderators were helpful and friendly. Best for groups of 2-4.

Cons: The set design was very cheap and poorly laid out. We felt like we had to be very careful so as to not to break any of the props or furniture. Cheap puzzles, locks, and containers added to the flimsy, low-budget feel of the whole experience. Storyline was basic to non-existent. Puzzles were simple and not very challenging.

http://castleescaperoom.com

Ninja Escape, Escape Room Review

Ninja Escape

Seattle, Washington

Mission 1: Hack Attack: Taking on the role of Ninjas, our goal was to rummage through the office of Mr. Hancock and recover money stolen from our clients. As a member of the Kraken, Hancock represents a major threat to the Ninja order. We had to escape the room before Hancock or the Kraken returned.

Mission 2: Black Lace: The Kraken have developed a deadly poison that has the potential to kill everyone. Our goal was to scour the lab, uncover its secrets, and steal the formula before the lab combusted.

Pros: The ninja theme was exciting and the introduction to the story was interesting. Game masters were friendly, enthusiastic, and attentive to the game, keeping us progressing forward.

Cons: The overall set design was basic and seemed inconsistent with the initial storyline. Not all of the puzzles were very logical and some required additional, unnecessary steps.

Bonus: We were able to pose with cool Ninja gear for our victory photos! Fun props are always a plus!

https://escape.ninja

Omescape, Escape Room Review

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.

https://omescape.us

Sherlocked, Escape Room Review

Sherlocked

Seattle, Washington

Escape from the Haunted House: Our goal was to escape from the haunted room before we met the fate of a young woman who was similarly trapped nearly 100 years ago.

Pros: Extremely enthusiastic and engaging puzzle master who introduced the story and celebrated our success afterwards. However, the puzzle master needs to be present in the room or to have access to cameras so that intervention may be provided as appropriate to keep the game flowing.

Cons: Cheesy decorations and cheap or poorly designed puzzles detracted from the experience. The room was not spooky or scary. A few cheap halloween decorations on the wall were intended to create the "haunted house" effect. The puzzles seemed mostly logical but cheap, poorly constructed materials caused confusion and led to problems for our group. Unfortunately, we were grouped with another team, a very large group of teenagers. This greatly limited our ability to enjoy the puzzles (especially since they misplaced or broke many of the puzzle clues). This was my face :(

http://www.sherlockedseattle.com