Becoming Houdini

We always have a great time escaping in Phoenix, but this time our experience was even more magical thanks to a stop at Puzzling Escape in Mesa. We arrived parched from our day’s journey across the desert (no time to stop at Starbucks). We were also trying to force ourselves to wake up after staying up way too late the night before and then boarding an early morning flight to Phoenix. As ardent escape enthusiasts we couldn’t give up now. This was our third escape room visit of the day and we had to muster up the energy to power through (with or without caffeine). The game master welcomed us, politely ignored our lethargic unenthusiastic look, and quickly briefed us for our game. We really appreciated that she asked our game play preferences with regards to hints. We love to play uninterrupted even when we struggle (and we often struggle). It was so great to clarify in advance and customize the play experience. Upon entering the room, we were immediately impressed by the quality of the set design. The decor helped transport us back in time to the era of Houdini. We were slow on the uptake in the beginning but soon fell into a good pace and rhythm as we worked through the puzzles. Each new challenge presented a different aspect of Houdini’s career and led us to the next stage. The game flow was seamless and we made good progress without a single hint. Our only hindrance was personal exhaustion from the lack of sleep (boo for sleep deprivation) which seemed to have the effect of slowing our thinking while unexpectedly forcing us to take the time to think them through more methodically (yay sleep deprivation?). As we worked our way through the puzzles we learned about the life of the greatest magician of all time. Each completed puzzle seemed to awaken us a bit more as we internally congratulated our (not so quick) thinking. We concluded the game with time to spare, setting a new record for quickest game. By the end of the game, we were thankfully wide awake and thoroughly impressed by the quality of our experience! We had an all around awesome experience playing Becoming Houdini at Puzzling Escape and definitely recommend it to newbies and advanced players alike!

Very linear room, fun solves. Nice set. Would recommend for 2 or 3 people only since you end up going to from one puzzle to the next together.

Fun puzzles, neat room design.

We truly enjoyed this experience! Set design, storyline, games - everything was well-executed.