Sal's CyberneticsThe Immersive MachineEscape roomIRLAll the hype for the Immerse Machine undersells it. Incredible atmosphere and set design compliment crafty game design in a way that puts Sal’s Cybernetics in a league of their own. I’m pumped up to visit their second room when it launches later this year!
Museum Of History: HeistThe Greatest EscapeEscape roomIRLAwesome spy experience that manages to nail the Museum and art heist aesthetic extremely well. I didn’t find any puzzles to be tedious, and I did find a lot of puzzles to be designed around multiple players. Looking forward to seeing Greatest Escape’s third room!
The Asylum: PlaytimeLost GamesEscape roomIRLThis and the other Asylum room at Lost Games need maintenance BADLY. Did this room (part 2 of a set) immediately after a bad experience in its predecessor (where a mechanical failure and late start meant we “failed” to escape). To my surprise, this room ALSO had mechanical failures that broke the game, but in a different direction. Early exposure of a critical key in the first half, and later on, a nonfunctional water feature, meant we escaped with ~15 minutes to spare (and missed out on two of the coolest elements of the room which featured heavily in the promotional materials). The host, Ari, did a swell job handling our disappointment and refunded us.
Wizard's Treasure60Out - HollywoodEscape roomIRLPhenomenally well crafted room with the most immaculate fantasy vibes I’ve seen in a room so far. This was a perfect choice for my buddy who’s never done an escape room before. Grant made this experience one of the best rooms I’ve ever done.
Borderlands: Tannis's LabRed Door Escape Room - Las VegasEscape roomIRLHugely impressive props and visual consistency with the Borderlands games. The audio cues, lighting, effects, and tablet themed with the game’s aesthetic made the experience feel much more premium than I expected for the sub $40/person price.
Escape Plan: Lights OutParanoia Quest - TempeEscape roomIRLHyper communications oriented room! Haven’t seen the “talk through a cell” concept executed this well so far in my escape room travels. Nice novelties for a jailbreak room
The Restless Spirit of Abigail RoseChoice EscapesEscape roomIRLEasily the most narrative-heavy room I’ve encountered so far (in a good way)! Fascinating first room from Choice Escapes with some unconventional puzzles and challenging puzzle logic that will push small groups of experienced players and punish players that rely on normal escape room tropes. Did this with 2 players and came down to the wire (I suspect the GM gave us a bit of extra grace by a few seconds) and definitely think this would have played more comfortably with a 4-6 group.
The Asylum: The Doctor's SecretLost GamesEscape roomIRLBooked this room and the “sequel” to it back to back. Mechanical failure ate ~15 minutes of our time (which was shortened by another ~5 minutes due to the facility’s late start). I commented on us running out of time because of the mechanical failure, expecting something conciliatory (like more time, or at least acknowledgement of the room’s issues) and the host rolled her eyes and just said “Yep.” Notwithstanding the mechanical failure and bad attitude from the host, the room was okay; nothing particularly stand out, felt like a comfortable average indie room.
The Legend of Sorro BaySweet EscapesEscape roomIRLI picked Sweet Escapes as a literal and figurative palate cleanser (after a solo experience yesterday left me wanting). Unfortunately, the most I can say about Sorro Bay is that it looked nice. A mechanical problem in my room required two interventions by the GM (one of which led her to grant me extra time), and while that’s normally frustrating by itself, some elements of the puzzle design ratcheted up my irritation considerably. For example: five numbers being given for a four digit lock, with one of the four numbers in the main room being a red herring and a fifth number hidden in what’s clearly a retired puzzle piece (a barrel with a ball-maneuvering maze game that had been discontinued). I really wanted to love this room since it’s a riff on the Nemesis Club concept, but the execution of the puzzle design itself and the food component afterwards left me wanting. Notwithstanding the GM, the other employees ignored me despite me being the only customer in the building. Glad I went, won’t go again.
