Haunting at Haruka High

Very scary room and perhaps one of the biggest one I've ever had the pleasure of doing! The puzzles weren't too hard, but I was paralyzed with fear which affected my problem-solving abilities. 😅🤣 I was honestly surprised my friend and I escaped (by the skin of our teeth). 😭😣 Our GM (Allen) was fun and helpful! I'll most definitely come back to do more.

My heart rate was definitely at an all time high the entire time we were experiencing The Haunting at Haruka High. If you’re looking for that niche of scare with generally satisfying puzzles, this room is for you! I’ve only been to three “scary” rooms and I think this room definitely eclipses those. The puzzles were cohesive but it’s the storytelling and the immersion of the set that one will surely remember. All the cliché scary movie rooms are there - the mirrors, the bathroom, the long dark hallway, and more. It’s never so scary as to be terrifying but there were some heightened moments that called on individuals of our team to be brave. In hindsight, I could not be impressed with the set production because I was just trying to leave as fast as possible but the thought that went into the design could rival Hollywood productions! I think our game master aka the live actor in the room made up his mind to terrify us, which made for a good story at the end. Either way, I left having a good time. This will be one of my top favorites!

A very elaborately done room with some good scares. This room is somewhat tame by European standards, but on the scarier side for the US. Set design is fantastic and the various props and puzzles were very very well done. At some points, it felt like I was in a Japanese schoolgirl horror fever dream and I suspect that was basically the point. Easily the best horror game in the Bay Area, which sounds like faint praise because there really aren't that many, but this one is top notch!

Great set design, very immersive. If you love getting spooked and doing puzzles you’ll love this room! It had some creative physical puzzles and the sections where one person has to be separated from the group seemed cool. The room was actually way bigger than I expected! In general, I think I would’ve enjoyed this room a lot more if I enjoyed being scared. It was probably my least favorite room in Omescape Sunnyvale aside from Apt Next Door (for obvious reasons) but that’s pure personal taste. I’m just calling it out in my review because other reviews by self proclaimed scaredy-cats said it ended up being their favorite room and that was not my experience. Do it at your own risk I guess 🤷‍♀️

The set is really beautiful, and this room spends more time telling a cohesive story than most scary rooms do. It’s a fairly linear experience. We did this with 4 enthusiasts, and I don’t think you need any more than 4 even with a team of beginners. A great take on a haunted school tale.

Awesome story centric room with good practical and technical effects. Would recommend wholeheartedly.

I was reluctant as I am such a baby with scary stuff but this was so cool and I’m so glad I did it! So much to take in! We chatted for 20 minutes after just about all the detail to find. Highly recommend!!

Overall, A fun game, especially for people who enjoy haunted houses. 2 people recommended for scariest experience, 3-4 optimal for puzzling. >4 people might be sitting around waiting for others to solve. I found the game a little narrative heavy. There were a few times we were all waiting for recorded audio to play through so we could get back to the game. Omescape’s japanese-inspired narratives don’t resonate with me, personally, so I found it to be a little boring. This is my main complaint for the room. Omescape production value never disappoints (the technology is my favorite part). The set was laid out well with multiple room, audio was good, and the props were solid. Good use of light and projectors and an impressive portfolio of moving parts. There were a couple of very minor technical issues that were resolved quickly by a watchful GM (a puzzle needed a jiggle to trigger a sensor, a door needed a little more force). GM was on top of them before we suspected there might be a problem, so minimal impact on immersion. Puzzles leaned easy-medium in my opinion. More than once we outraced the narrative relevant to the puzzle we were solving, leading to waiting. However, we still needed hints on a couple tricky puzzles so I wasn’t disappointed. Scare-wise, I’m not huge on haunted houses, myself, but there were a couple well-done scares I enjoyed. In conclusion - I give the room a 7/10. I’m not gushing about it, but I still had fun. I’d recommend Omescape’s other rooms over this one first, but that’s due to personal preference and experience rather than room quality.

Immersion right from the get go. Good use of tech and some height level variances. Once you finish the room you'll see how elaborate the entire room was built. Very well connected multi room experience.

This room is an absolute masterpiece. It has some scary moments, but the payoff is well worth it having one of my favorite sets to date. It is story-driven and you must pay attention. Some puzzles are slow-paced so a mistake could cost you minutes, make sure to get it right by staying focused. This pacing is probably why is has only a 30% escape rate, and you don't want to miss the finale. I am not a scary room person; this is one of my favorite rooms ever. Do it!