Theresa

Reviews

Reviews

Le Château du Supplice Éternel [The Castle of Eternal Suffering]

Le Château du Supplice Éternel [The Castle of Eternal Suffering]

Sauve Qui Peut - Saint-Jean

  • Escape room
  • IRL
This escape game was such a treat! Worth a trip to St Jean to complete this and the high ranking is well deserved. There were many unique and surprising elements that added to the fun experience and the puzzles hit a good balance of difficulty level, even though there were some puzzles that we struggled with at first. Excellent execution of audio/visual, lighting and sound mixing/ambience, one of the best we’ve seen in North America and on par with some of the best escape games in Europe. Excellent gamemasters and transition between them over our two hour play. There was quite a bit of downtime (waiting for the storyline to finish) which was tolerable, but quite close to the threshold where we might have lost our patience. We are looking forward to coming back to play other games. Note, take heed of the warning/caution that there are physical elements to the game and some flashing of lights - they mean it. Some flashing was a bit intense for us that we just had to close our eyes. Overall a must play.
De Wraak Van Han [Han’s Revenge]

De Wraak Van Han [Han’s Revenge]

De Gouden Kooi

  • Escape room
  • IRL
We were “new hires” on a trial run for an HVAC company, complete with uniforms that immediately put us in character. On our first day on the job, we’re called to fix the A/C of our company’s arch-nemesis… an oscillating fan company. Things spiral quickly as we find secret passages, uncover plans of sabotage and ultimately escape their dungeon. This game had a high production value…it was like a perfectly executed traditional escape room run by a well oiled machine. Professionally produced intro videos, the most clear communication ahead of time out of all the escape rooms I'd ever done (they emailed me reminders like five times?), and a very polished set. Definitely a smooth business. Really great set..almost flawless. We enjoyed most of the puzzles, they were very on point with the story telling, mix of logic puzzles, cute logic puzzles, physical exploration, it was very well executed and full of funny fan related things mixed in.
Metropolis 2099

Metropolis 2099

Dream Labs

  • Escape room
  • IRL
This escape room honestly felt like being dropped straight into a sci-fi movie. From the second you walk in, you’re transported into a futuristic world with amazing build quality and some of the best transitions I’ve ever seen. Every new room felt like stepping onto a different movie set, and the “wow” moments just kept coming. The ambiance was next-level: notably clear audio creating immersive sound effects, and visuals that made us feel like we were walking through a neon-lit Tokyo alleyway or strapping into a ‘dream pod’ that that could transport us through time and space. You forget you’re in an escape room. It really feels 'alive' especially in some of the key moments throughout your heart is racing. The puzzles themselves were on the easier side. Most of them involved looking around, finding objects, or noticing details in the space. They were integrated into the story nicely, but puzzle enthusiasts might find them a little light, or one in particular, arduous. One puzzle at the start was a bit buggy, but the staff handled it quickly and it didn’t ruin the flow. That said, the wow factor is unbeatable. The dream pod intro, the jaw-dropping transitions, and some thrilling surprises made this an experience we’ll never forget. The ending wrapped everything up with a really interesting reveal and a really smooth transition back out. If you want to feel like the lead character in a high-budget sci-fi adventure, this is it. Such a great ER, it made the trip to Bad Steben worth it. We did this on our first day of our escape room tour after a red-eye and two hours of sleep... One of the most immersive escape rooms we’ve ever done. We can't wait to be back to do the other rooms :) Note, I was worried about previous reviews online saying there are no toilet facilities here, but indeed there is.
Kaleidoskop 1963 [Kaleidoscope 1963]

Kaleidoskop 1963 [Kaleidoscope 1963]

Time Maze

  • Escape room
  • IRL

𓆜𓋘𓄁 𓊛𓇙𓋸𓌤𓌥 𓌦 𓅐𓆢 𓆣 𓀉𓆤 𓆥 𓅑𓆘 𓆙 𓅒𓄙 𓄚 𓄛 𓅓𓃺 𓃻 𓅔 𓅕 𓃕 𓃖 𓃗 𓎷 𓄁𓎸𓅖 𓅽 𓅾 𓅿𓅗 𓅘 𓇆 𓇇𓅙 𓅚 𓁵 𓁶𓂵 𓂶𓃝𓋲 𓋳𓀬 𓅛𓁃 𓂺𓅜 �𓅝𓃄 �𓄁𓅞𓂙 𓅟𓂿 𓆜𓋘𓄁 𓊛𓇙𓋸𓌤𓌥 𓌦 𓅐𓆢 𓆣 𓀉𓆤 𓆥 𓅑𓆘 𓆙 𓅒𓄙 𓄚 𓄛 𓅓𓃺 𓃻 𓅔 𓅕 𓃕 𓃖 𓃗 𓎷 𓄁𓎸𓅖 𓅽 𓅾 𓅿𓅗 𓅘 𓇆 𓇇𓅙 𓅚 𓁵 𓁶𓂵 𓂶𓃝𓋲 𓋳𓀬 𓅛𓁃 𓂺𓅜 𓂨𓅝𓃄 𓄁𓅞𓂙 𓅟𓂿

Monster Mashers

Monster Mashers

Tales of Torchdale - Monster Mashers

  • Escape room
  • IRL
Exciting, goofy, spooky fun! We were recommended this room and added it to our escape room trip itinerary last minute and so glad we decided to book an late-night 11PM experience knowing nothing about it. lol. This was such an entertaining experience, we were scared, laughing our pants off, (and falling over backwards?!) puzzling our way through two wild hours in the middle of the night. We don't usually do scary rooms but this one was so fun and worth the thrill - won't share any spoilers, better to just go do it! We are so glad we add it last minute. Despite being a somewhat scary escape experience, the puzzles were actually really good as well.
Ctrl Alt Reboot

Ctrl Alt Reboot

Escaparium - Laval

  • Escape room
  • IRL
We were quite excited for this game based on the rave reviews and having completed so many of the other Escaparium games, but we were disappointed with Reboot. The game has a beautiful set and a ton of potential and some great components. There was an imbalanced ratio of long stretches of listening to the the ‘immersive theatre’ and musical components before continuing to actual game play. While some puzzles were nice, many were contrived and required step by step instructions from the GM taking away the magic and immersion of ERs. Some puzzles were not responsive or were broken breaking the immersion. Even for an ER, and despite so much of our game time being spent on listening to the storyline, the story and resolution didn’t quite hit the mark for us. There were cool parts to the game but we felt the game play didn’t meet its full potential for how incredible the set and some special effects were.
Botanist Manor

Botanist Manor

Escape Rush

  • Escape room
  • IRL
This escape room was perfection for us in terms of game play, puzzle, set, and the feeling of being transported, and honestly despite a tech hiccup, lands in my top 3. The set was absolutely beautiful. The puzzles struck a balance just challenging enough to tickle your brain, while also being incredibly satisfying to solve. Hints were delivered on a smart phone screen which we love for not disrupting flow. The experience was filled with surprises, twists and turns in the narrative, and clever meta layers that kept us engaged the whole time. From the very start, the experience felt elevated. The lobby sets the stage as you enter “Ravenwood” which looks like a bespoke speakeasy/tailor shop? But we are there as undercover intelligence agents and travel through time. Just how nice the lobby was raised our expectations, and the game not only met them, but exceeded them… It was so satisfying to progress through their custom built gadgety puzzles. By the time we reached the end, we honestly weren’t ready to leave the world they had built… Everything leading up to the end was amazing. We encountered some issues with the Wi-Fi network, which caused a few devices to go down near the end, but it didn’t take away from the overall feeling of magic throughout the game. Customer service was top notch, and we were issued a refund/credit for the technical glitch. I am sure they got to addressing the issue right away. Right up to where we had technical issues, the sound, lighting, build quality, smooth transitions, unique mechanics, and a mix of high-tech and tactile puzzles all combined to create something top notch. We can't wait to go back to Escape Rush to try their other rooms, this one is a must-do.
Le Plan [Escape Plan]

Le Plan [Escape Plan]

Escaparium - Montreal

  • Escape room
  • IRL
I’m leaving this review since this game is fairly new and we didn’t see many reviews online, so hopefully this will be helpful for some. If you have played escape games before with actor interaction (like some Escaparium games), Escape Plan was like that, on steroids. It felt a bit like interacting with NPCs in a videogame but in real life so immersion was the main focus but just not our cup of tea. The actors were excellent! But the design is very socially interactive to figure out the conceptual “puzzles”. It is very much on the same trajectory of newer Escaparium games (Magnifico, Ctrl alt reboot) that are leaning into the theatrical/social experiment/immersive experience. We are fine with escape games with actors but usually it’s one aspect of the larger game. If you love the style of social play, this game would be great for you (role playing games, acting, etc). If you are introverts that aren’t into improv, or prefer independent logic puzzle games without interruptions, we recommend skipping it.
The ByWard Market Butcher

The ByWard Market Butcher

Jigsaw Escape Rooms

  • Escape room
  • IRL
You’re lured into a butcher shop by the promise of "free steak," only to realize what meats the butcher is stocking... The room starts with a non-linear flow, which is great for larger groups because it allows everyone to split up and tackle different corners of the shop simultaneously. It is a traditional room that relies mostly on locks although it featured a couple of nontraditional tactile components which were the highlights of the game. Unfortunately the feedback loop on some components were weak to signal we moved ahead with the puzzle. There were a ton of labels throughout the game that told us what we can’t do! That added a level of distraction, and instead of labels they could have been resolved with simple game modifications. The Challenges (The "Old Meat" Factor) While this was likely a standout room when it first launched, the age of the experience is starting to show in ways that actively hinder the fun: • Visibility Issues: A combination of "mood lighting" and literal fading of colors on props makes it frustratingly difficult to see the clues and numbers on the locks. • Red Herrings: There is a significant amount of "prop clutter." You'll also be given a heads up about several boxes and locks that are visible but not actually part of the game. There’s also information overload that may lead you astray leading to a lot of wasted time. • Poor Feedback: Many puzzles lack a clear "click" or signal when they’ve been solved. You might finish a task only to realize something was triggered elsewhere in the room three minutes ago without anyone noticing. • The Clue System: not a deal breaker but like other rooms at Jigsaw escape, they use standard intercom on the wall which feels a bit dated and breaks the immersion running back and forth potentially. The Gameplay Experience The room is definitely challenging with the quantity of puzzles, but often for the wrong reasons. There is a fair amount of "information overload" and some tasks feel more like tedious chores than clever "Aha!" moments. Some props are really worn/dirty and were not fun to handle. While there are some cool tactile elements—the overall flow is bogged down by tedium and poor aging of the room. Final Thoughts We managed to escape, but only because the staff was kind enough to grant us a few extra minutes (since we started a bit late and were right at the finish line). While the butcher theme is a classic, it’s hard to recommend this one in 2026. With other high-tech, polished rooms now available in the Ottawa and surrounding area, this one feels like a relic of the past.
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