Escape from ShawshankThe Ohio State ReformatoryEscape roomIRLWe were really looking forward to the Escape from Shawshank escape room at the Ohio State Reformatory, but unfortunately, the experience was incredibly disappointing. The room itself seemed like it had a lot of potential, but we barely got to experience it. We were grouped with another family, and a few participants took over most of the puzzles, leaving us standing around watching instead of actually participating. There was also very little willingness to communicate or work together with us, which really defeats the purpose of an escape room. To make matters worse, the parents were impatient and snarky toward their own children, creating an incredibly unpleasant atmosphere. Between the lack of participation, nonexistent teamwork, and overall uncomfortable vibe, we ended up leaving just 30 minutes into the experience. I understand that this is a shared experience and that booking all the spots is an option. But when you’re paying for an escape room, it’s reasonable to expect an opportunity to participate without having to purchase every available ticket. One suggestion would be to consider private bookings during slower periods. We visited on a Monday afternoon in October, and the facility was practically empty. It seems like the off-season would be a reasonable time to offer private experiences without requiring guests to purchase every available spot. We’ve done escape rooms in several states, and this was by far our most disappointing experience. I’m sure the room itself is great, but I would strongly caution anyone booking individual tickets to consider how much being paired with another group can affect the experience. Unfortunately, we left feeling like we’d paid to watch someone else do an escape room.
True Crime: Podcast KillerPanic Escape Room - PalatineEscape roomIRLWe were about 10 minutes early (I know, should be 15) we sat in the lobby for quite awhile. Then when someone finally came in to talk to us, told us all we needed to complete waivers. Ok, fine, maybe I should have paid more attention when booking. Got to the room - “we’ll have to take time off because you’re starting late”. Cool. One of the locks was already undone. The game master for our experience was just very abrupt and rude. At the end, she kept pushing for us to utilize the QR code and leave a review. I finally had to tell her that she probably wouldn’t really like our review. The game itself was ok. Other than the one lock, it was pretty smooth. Worth it as long as you don’t have the same game master we did.
