A Golden AcquisitionArcadia Adventures Escape RoomEscape roomIRLThe previous reviews of this game do a great job of describing it. It is well built, fun, accessible, creative, and just a solid, well-rounded experience. It is a good balance of challenging and satisfying to solve, and is also nicely story-driven (Arcadia does a good job of coming up with unique and fun stories that are refreshing), and set-design is always good with this company as well. As this was our last game at Arcadia before they release any new ones (which we are excitingly anticipating) I want to say I really appreciate how well this company is run. The staff is extremely welcoming and passionate about what they do. It's nice to see people who bring a good energy into the experience. They want the players to have a great time as well, which is apparent not only in the quality of the rooms and sets, but also in the prices of the games. Probably the most accessible company in the city in terms of pricing and the best "bang for your buck." In a time where prices for these games can get insane, Arcadia provides one of the best escape experiences in the city for the lowest price. Highly recommend this company and looking forward to being back when we can!
Tornado ShackLock Down Escape Rooms Red DeerEscape roomIRLThis room was great! It had everything you want in an escape room... immersive set, cool features, well designed puzzles, and a good mix of linear and non-linear gameplay which really enhances game flow. It does a good job of creating tension and a sense of urgency without ever being too much or making you feel too overwhlemed. You can definitely tell they take pride in giving a good experience to customers. They also had some nice additions that helped you stay organized in terms of what you've done/what to do next. Well designed, immersive room that I would defintely recommend!
The Cereal KillersThe Locked Room - Calgary NortheastEscape roomIRLI want to start by saying that I played my very first escape room at this location, so coming back is quite nostalgic and reminscent of when I really started to enjoy these kinds of experiences. That being said, as I've gone back to do more of The Locked Room's new games, the more I realize that although they were one of the first to establish themselves in Calgary, they have not kept up with the progression of some of the other places in Calgary (with exception to the Southland location), both new and old. With respect to this specific room, I thought the theme was quite cute and extremely unique. It's nice when places try something that has never been done before that involves a unique story and puzzles that go along with it. I think it's nice when companies try to go outside of the box, away from cliche, overdone themes and really try to push themselves to make something new. Nonetheless, I would say this room, and as a whole the NE Locked Room location, has a lot of catchup to do in terms of quality, customer, service, and overall gameplay experience. Some puzzles were good, but their was no flow in the game, you never knew what to do next, and this caused it to be extremely difficult to build any momentum. The new hint system was also not the best as it was quite unclear on when to use them and didn't provide direct guidance to puzzles you were stuck on. I think their are a lot of places that have hint systems that they could model theirs after. I also believe that charging $40/person is quite ridiculous unless it is a top-tier facility that offers a really cool/special game experience, perhaps integrating a lot of tech. There are much better escape rooms in the city that offer a cheaper game experience with much more polished sets and features, and some that even go below $30 a person. These rooms are much more put together, clean, and seem frankly just more tested from a puzzling perspective. The staff here is nice, but wasn't super helpful with hints and instead of being offered an oppurtunity to finish the room when we didn't complete it, they suggested we come back and play again which would be another $40/person. I understand time constraints, but we were the last group of the day so we were surprised when we didn't get a chance to play it out and moreso that it was suggested we could pay again to see the ending. Overall, I liked the unique theme, but the overall experience was not great this time, especailly for the amount you pay.
Daphne Dixon: 2 Hot in MiamiRetro Oasis Escape Rooms and ArcadeEscape roomIRLThis game was a little different for me, as I was moreso there to assist my nephews within the room. That being said, I still can say that this game did a great job of catering to younger kids. I believe they have an adult game as well, but I will say the puzzles were well integrated and the room did not seem bloated with set pieces. It was well-designed and did not need to do to much extra to be good. It wasn't anything special or new, but it was fun with a good range of puzzles for kids and also had a well executed concept with a nice team to help us out!
HyperspaceEscape OpsEscape roomIRLHyperspace was the last room at Escape Ops' that we had left before now sadly having to wait for their next room! Once again, it was another fantastic room. Normally, when needing a larger group for a more difficult or larger room, it has been difficult for us to navigate how to go about tackling different puzzles and distributing them amongst our team. However, through a mix of both having a team that worked really well together and a well designed room, this may have been the best larger/more difficult room I've done. The puzzles are set up in a way that everyone is contributing in one way or another at any given moment. It's extremely satisfying that you get to solve plenty of puzzles and also build communication skills within your group working with everyone on something different and bouncing ideas off of one another. The room is really well-designed and flows extremely well. The logic is sound and the puzzles are creative, challenging, and different in the best ways. Escape Ops' always employs their tech really well and this room may be the best example of that. Each of their rooms offers an extremely unique experience in immersion, puzzle solving and team building. I have a lot of praise for Escape Ops' and am disapointed to have to wait but excited to see what they come up with in the future. It's always satisfying being done without needing any hints as the time dwindles down to the last 10-15 minutes... it shows that a room was really well designed and executed.
The Haunting Of Apartment 103 Chapter 2: A Mother’s LoveLevel 1 EscapeEscape roomIRLOverall, Level 1 Escape has been somewhat underwhelming. None of the games, despite the creative storylines, have really delievered in the way I had hoped. Their puzzles are quite simple but don't really make sense. The way the game flows doesn't seem to have much rhyme or reason. The set pieces show obvious wear and the hint system can take you a bit out of the experience. I did enjoy the theme of this specific room, but the design, layout, and puzzles are just lacking some serious polishing. The overall quality just isn't up to par with some of the others in the city, even though the pricing is similar.
Cabin FeverConfined Escape RoomsEscape roomIRLWe have been waiting to play Cabin Fever for a long time and were super excited to finally get the oppurtunity! The game has a unique element similar to a few others around the city where you are split up early on and join up with your full team as you complete the room. These types of rooms always enourage communication within a team and add some fun elements in testing group dynamics! Between this and the spooky cabin theme along with a few good scares, this room definitely achieved it's desired vibe. I still feel this theme has a little bit more to offer and more of a story and set to be desired, but they did a good job. The puzzles however, although they were aligned well with the theme, were somewhat disjointed, unclear, and convoluted. Some of the puzzles, more in line with other stuff we've seen from Confined (such as in the Frankenstein room), were unique and well-integrated. However, the mix of non-linear and linear puzzles was not carried out in the most efficient way and caused the game to lack some sort of flow. Some puzzles were a little bit of a reach as well, relying on interpretation and pretty spot on visual acuity. Overall, I would say the effects, set and story make this room worth it, but there was room for improvement with the puzzle design and it is not up to the same level as their Frankenstein room.
Erin's DiaryXperience Games - CalgaryEscape roomIRLErin's Diary was our first room at Xperience games! We also discovered, talking to the staff, that it is a relatively new game for them, being released only 2 weeks ago. Despite how new they are to the escape room scene, Xperience has done a really good job in this particular room of establishing an eerie tone with a fun story to help you progress through the puzzles. The sets are well designed for a more dark feel and the lighting and effects are fantastic additions that add to the intensifying storyline. The puzzles are very simple and most of what you have to do is very direct, but this room plays as more of an interactive story that you are more just along the ride for, with a few puzzles to solve along the way. I really liked the ending too, and our GM was very kind asking for feedback on the room and chatting with us at the end. Overall, this was a very different experience in an escape room then most in the city. Maybe not super challneging or puzzle oriented, but very immersive and story driven which was enjoyable for us. The room was also purely tech with no classic locks or codes which is always unique and fun for both playing the room and likely designing it too. I hope this company continue to keep making rooms and we will happily keep coming back! It's always exciting to visit a new company and see what they have to offer in their unique style.
Prehistoric ParkExit - CalgaryEscape roomIRLPrehistoric Park was a solid room with a unique, fun theme and decent but worn down puzzles and sets. Exit always is super friendly and chatting with us and giving us updates on new rooms, which is always a highlight of our experience here and makes us excited to come back. Prehistoric Park specifically is one of their older rooms and as a result has some beat down features, and the puzzles aren't as "polished" as some of their newer rooms. The puzzles are also a little more basic and don't require a lot of creative problem solving without nuanced features/technology. The way they tell you the room's background as they put you in is always really good and you can tell there is a really awesome and inspired creative vision from people who love coming up with and sharing their thematic stories. It's really nice and elevates a normal theme to something that you feel when it's told with such passion! You feel a part of something bigger, and as someone who appreciates the stories, themes, and immersion this makes me excited to see with what they come up with next, as the next theme they are currently working on sounds really cool with a lot of potential for excitement! Puzzle wise and the overall room design, logic, and flow left for a bit more to be desried, but as always the Exit experience is really good. I am really looking forward to going back when they open up their new room later this year and seeing them again! They do a great job.
School of MagicGame Over Escape Rooms - Calgary North EastEscape roomIRLSchool of Magic was a really neat game with some really unique puzzles! When a company has a wizard themed room, it's always itneresting to see how they incorporate some "magical" puzzles into their game. This game had 2-3 super interesting and unique touches that were definitely standout moments. Game Over has some neat sets and uses technology really well! The puzzles all were intuitive, made sense and unique. At no point were you wondering what to do or why you were doing something. The set was pretty nice and well laid out, and they use their space quite well, not trying to jam to many things into smaller rooms to overcompensate. This made me very excited to try Game Over's new location which is opening this summer! I also like how Game Over's rooms are all playable with 2 people!
The Mystery of Broom Closet 13Arcadia Adventures Escape RoomEscape roomIRLAfter recently doing Pixie's Candy Emporium, we were really excited to try another new Arcadia room! The Mystery of Broom Closet 13 opened a few days before we got to experience it, and I was really interested in how this room came to life. The somewhat random and mysterious theme allows for a lot of creativity and control in terms of the rooms setup and gameflow. I did feel like the game lacked some immersion and storyline. Where in other rooms (dollhouse, dungeon, pixies) the sets were amazing, creative and had an overall set that made you feel like the story came to life, this one lacked some component that made you feel like you were integrated into a story. Instead it felt like we were solving puzzles just to solve puzzles. We also had one puzzle that was turned off that we were stuck on for a while, (>20 min) and we were given an extra 5 minutes to complete the room. We also asked for multiple hints and the puzzle not working was not noticed until our second or third time asking. It does make sense with a new room that it proposes new challanges and takes time to get familiar with, but it definitely impacted our experience. I really liked the concept and idea, maybe just wish it came together in a more satisfying way! Arcadia has always been a very great experience and the staff is always very friendly, so I am excited to see what they come up with in their future rooms as they continue to fill out the new space.
Pixies Candy EmporiumArcadia Adventures Escape RoomEscape roomIRLPixie's Candy Emporium was a really well designed room that very much plays and feels as it is described, being a "fun, whimsical, fantasy" theme. The game flowed well, the puzzles were not too challenging but still satisfying, and it had a really nice balance of linear/non-linear elements of gameplay. It definitely felt like a great room if you are looking for something light-hearted, or something enjoyable and not too difficult for a family with kids. In terms of the puzzles, this was my favourite room at Arcadia so far. They were thematic, fun, and had some unique elements with some of their very cute little props/pieces. Even with my love of horror-themed rooms in general, I would definitely say this could be the best room at this company I've played so far! I also love the way they integrate the theme through not just the puzzles, but the decorations as well. The room gives off the right energy for it's theme (just like their others) and is really nice to look at as you go about tackling the room! We are really looking forward to coming back to Arcadia as they have a few new rooms scheduled to open!
The Price Is LifeThe Locked Room - Calgary SouthlandEscape roomIRLThe Price is Life was a room we had been waiting to do for a while now, and it was very much worth it! The theme was creative and fun with a really cool twist on game shows that makes it a little more than just your average themed room. The puzzles, although plentiful, were really well done. They were not just on theme and played into one big story, but were also well distributed in a way that supported the logic of the game flow. There was always multiple things to do and you never felt too stuck/waiting for someone else to do something. Throughout the room, there was a unique physical aspect that gave us some good laughs as well. It was really well crafted as a light-hearted, fun themed game for people who enjoy solving lots of puzzles and enjoy a well-designed set that keeps you immersed in the experience. Definitely would recommend this room, one of the best rooms across the city from this company. It also had a great ending which was quite cute!
FrankensteinConfined Escape RoomsEscape roomIRLFrankenstein was such a cool room! Confined seems to do sets really well, and this room was put together so well. The theme was really cool and well done and the puzzles were also very on brand. Really cool concept that we felt totally immersed is. The gameflow was very linear which made it hard to progress, especially with puzzles that take a decent amount of time and don't require a lot of people working on them, thus some people who could be focussing on other puzzles just end up standing around. Some of the tech was also a little tricky to get to work and there was a little lag when you solved a puzzle and when the subsequent thing would open. However, these complaints pale in comparison to the overall experience and fun we had in the room! I certainly recommend this room to anyone who loves escape rooms as there are plenty of unique puzzles and quirks that it has, as well as a great feel to it. A very good difficulty as well, playable for inexperienced players who don't worry about taking hints and experienced players who want to give it a go without hints!
Alice in 3DConfined Escape RoomsEscape roomIRLThis was our first time at Confined and Alice in 3D proved to be a really fun and original experience! The set along with the addition of 3D glasses was really cool and felt very trippy and stimulating. I liked the use of the space in the rooms and the theme was well executed. I also appreciated how they stop your time while giving you hints and help you stay in the experience. The puzzles as a whole, although some were satisfying and done well, were a little disjointed and confusing. The gameflow didn't completely make sense which made it hard to keep any momentum you built going. Some puzzles also seemed like they were just a little too forced and could have been a little more aligned with the theme and the rest of the game. I think if the puzzles were up to the same standard as the immersive set and story this would have been a great room!
Ops CognitionEscape OpsEscape roomIRLCognition was a really cool game and I am glad we got to experience it before it is officially retired. The puzzles were pretty cool and creative, but what really blew me away was the set design. This was a super original room concept and something I had never seen before. The rooms were amazing and each came with it's own special twist. I'm really excited to see what Escape Ops' other rooms have to offer in the near future!
Ye Olde Horrible DungeonArcadia Adventures Escape RoomEscape roomIRLThis was our first experience at Arcadia's new location! It is quite the step up from their recent location and as such, the facility is super nice! It is a large space as well and I am excited to see what else they can come up with to fill this location! However, Ye Olde Horrible Dungeon in particular was a really cool game. It's a nice large room with a really cool design to go along with the neat theme and challenging puzzles. Due to it's size, it is better to have a bigger group, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. Really cool game flow as well. We got stumped at a few points as the puzzles are quite challenging but they were satisfying to solve and were well integrated into the theme as well as into each other. Really excited to visit Arcadia again soon!
Beijing Break-InExit - CalgaryEscape roomIRLWe had a really great time playing Beijing Break-In at Exit! This is their newest game and they continue to do a really great job of making a room that appeals to a broad range of ages and skill levels. The puzzles are satisfying, fair, and in line with the theme, while the story is fun and accompanied by an immersive set that integrates the use of technology nicely into the experience. The staff was once again amazing, we always enjoy chatting with them after and it really enhances our experience! They are clearly very passionate about what they do and they definitely make some of the best in-house built rooms in the city. We look forward to doing the last room we have left here as well as any new ones that they create, as they never fail to make it a creative, enjoyable experience!
Turtle PowerEscape 60 - Downtown Escape Room ExperienceEscape roomIRLOur group had a really great time with the Turtle Power room at Escape 60! It's relatviely small, but this is not indicative of how well its setup and designed, as well as the number of puzzles. It's a very linear game and flows very well. The turtles theme was really nicely done and I liked the originality of the puzzles in here (specifically the very very first one) as well as how they rebuilt the world that the room was based on. I loved the props, colouring, and design of the room; it really felt like being in some underground hangout that you go with your friends to chill. Their is lots of locks and they are pretty direct with how you should navigate each of them (where to go next, what lock corresponds to what puzzle). Maybe could do with a little more creative puzzles as most of the puzzles end with a number/letter lock, but overall this was a great room and we had a great time!
Pharaoh's LabyrinthExit - CalgaryEscape roomIRLThis was a really fun game with a really neat aspect that I love when rooms have. This one required a lot of communication back and forth and I think it would be really hard/chaotic with more then 2-4 people. The puzzles were well integrated, and they did this theme very well, although it is overdone. The puzzles flowed nicely and were relatively linear in an order that made sense, while still being satisfying to solve. I can see this room being really challanging communication wise. The staff were great and always care a lot about your experience and give you a great story going into the room with a unique twist. They also gave us a little bonus after our game with some extra time, and we will definitely be back to check out any new rooms coming soon!
