40 ThievesMindTrap Escape Room - TemeculaEscape roomIRL40 Thieves was recommended to us by another escape room host as her favorite and I can see why! Highly rewarding with difficult and unique clues. It started off straight forward and as we gained confidence, the clues got harder and harder. How did they fit so many clues in one game?! By the end, we were giggling about how crazy it got! The props were top notch and added to an immersive experience. We didn’t want to leave. My recommendation is to bring friends to this one. We had two people and even though we finished it, it was a big enough space that we needed to run back and forth. Teamwork is dream work in this one! Easily my top 5 favorites of all time.
Winnie The PoohMindTrap Escape Room - MurrietaEscape roomIRLCute, cute, cute! I had no idea an escape room could be so adorably cute. This is a must-see for kids and adults. There were plenty of challenging clues so you won’t be bored. I don’t want to give a single thing away because everyone should experience this room! You won’t regret or forget it.
PlaygroundThe Escape Game - BrooklynEscape roomIRLDON’T play with only two people. Not only does it have way too many puzzles but there’s a physical clue you can’t even do with only two people. My husband and I have completed more than 300 escape rooms so when I say this was the only one we didn’t finish, I want you to understand why I’m saying this isn’t a two-person game. Not only did we not finish but we didn’t even come close. The clues weren’t hard at all but there were just too many, many of which required multiple steps. We asked the employees and they admitted they couldn’t finish in an hour with only two employees. I feel it’s straight up false advertising to say this is ok for only two people. It would have been fun with four or six people.
ExcaliburMindTrap Escape Room - MurrietaEscape roomIRLThis game was a dream come true for all king Arthur fans. The props were on the high-end, the rooms had a lot of extra flair, and it really felt like you were there. I’d host a party in that room if they let me. Most clues were straight forward with only a couple of hard ones. Top 5 rooms of all time! My only complaint was they don’t sell replicas and souvenirs because I really wanted them. Haha.
Operation NightwalkerMindTrap Escape Room - MurrietaEscape roomIRLIt wasn’t a bad room but overall I didn’t like it. At the time I did this room, I’d done 20-30 games and this was the only one I didn’t like. There were a couple of original puzzles that were cool but most of them were uselessly tedious. Things like needlessly garbled verbal instructions that were too quiet to hear, which was annoying to me because if I struggle, I want it to be for a brain challenge, not poorly executed clues. I won’t spoil anything but a few of the clues didn’t have enough information to connect the clues and you’re left with a lot of guessing. We asked the host afterwards and ever her explanation showed the big holes. This room is good for people looking to be scared and like horror.
Prison BreakThe Escape Game - BrooklynEscape roomIRLVery easy room and good for beginners. We played with another group that consisted of a few 10 year olds and we still beat it with about 20 minutes left. The beginning clues require team work. After that, the clues were linear and straight forward. Two clues let you do manual things we’ve never been allowed to do in a room before so that was the coolest part. It was worth it for that.
The Haunted Hotel [prev. Escape Artist: The Final Seance Escape Room]The Great Escape Room - TampaEscape roomIRLWe had tons of fun with this one and I recommend it! The types of clues were original and fit well with the theme of Houdini. There were lots of clues that we were able to split up among the group so everyone stayed busy. The physical space was smaller than expected and our group of 8 was overcrowded until we got to the second room. I rate this as a medium to hard level, not expert, especially since our group finished it in 30 min instead of 60. There was only one clue that didn’t work.
The Pirate ShipEscape Room ExtremeEscape roomIRLRecognize this room has a basic price that matches its basic experience. I wouldn’t recommend this to an experienced player. It’s better suited if you’ve never played and are looking for something easy. This clearly was an add-on to an existing business that was looking to expand its audience. The room was simply a normal room they added locks to and called it an escape room. Nothing inventive or original. The positives are that it had a cute pirate theme, it was cheap, and it’s the only escape room in the area.
Mountain Top MurdersThe Great Escape Room - St PeteEscape roomIRLHighly recommend! The puzzles were fun, they flowed together, and I loved the variety. This was really interactive with physical puzzles, not just locks. The best part was the originality and types of puzzles. It was actually the first spooky room I’ve played that was actually spooky! Not in the loud, jump out at you, shock scare type of spooky. It was a creepy unsettling feeling they accomplished with looks, music, and types of clues.
![The Haunted Hotel [prev. Escape Artist: The Final Seance Escape Room]](https://res.cloudinary.com/mortyapp/image/upload/c_limit,w_260/f_auto/v1/store/s/5cfdd4ec-35f1-447b-8024-47c11315c2d8.webp)
