40 ThievesMindTrap Escape Room - TemeculaEscape roomIRLBy far one of my all time favorite escape rooms! Everything from the way the experience is designed, to the smoothness of the puzzles, to the occasional narrators was perfect and I can understand why this game is so highly rated. It is not only unique but well executed to the point where I honestly couldn't find a single thing to improve. Even our GM, Dante, and the rest of the staff were awesome and accommodating throughout our entire experience. My team, which consists of 3 fairly experienced players with 20-25 rooms each under their belts, completed this game with just over 6 minutes left. Despite this, we never felt panicked or pressured and thoroughly enjoyed our time here while only needing 1 hint due to missing a visual cue. The way this game is designed definitely makes it harder for smaller groups, but not impossible, and makes it so larger groups can get multiple players busy with the sheer number of puzzles. Overall, I would definitely recommend this room to experienced enthusiasts with teams as small as 3 but would only recommend to newer players if they have a larger group to share the burden of all the puzzles.
Operation GryaznayavodaIn Search Of An ExitEscape roomIRLThis has to be one of the most clever and well carried out escape room experiences I've ever had. Everything from finding the place to starting the game was awesome and utterly unique. Easily one of my all time favorites! While our team of 6 (3 experienced and 3 newbies) didn't solve the room in time, the GM still allowed us to finish the room so we could experience the story and everything. The puzzles themselves are well designed and laid out across multiple rooms in a fairly non-linear fashion but are obvious enough to make you connect the dots. Some of the puzzles are fairly thought intensive so I wouldn't recommend it for those who don't like to think or have a language barrier, but the GM is really awesome at giving you hints when they see you're struggling with something or possibly misinterpreting a clue. Definitely recommend anyone visiting Portland to give this escape room a shot and do so with a group of at least 4 experienced players who communicate well as there are several points where working together is involved.
Winnie The PoohMindTrap Escape Room - MurrietaEscape roomIRLOur group, which consisted of 2 adults and a 10 year old who have all done 20+ escape rooms, loved this room and not only because of the theme! We managed it with no hints and finished the story with a good 23 minutes to spare. Don't let our quick time fool you. Despite being an experience based off of the beloved Winnie the Pooh, this game had a surprisingly enjoyable number of tricky puzzles that kept us all entertained and busy. It was honestly a great mix of story and puzzle as you are essentially working your way through a narration without being outright guided to the answers. This was refreshingly different as it allowed us to puzzle out the next steps and rewarded us with the story as opposed to just giving us narrative instructions. This set up also made it possible to enjoy the amount of work and detail that went into the room and allowed our little one to solve multiple puzzles on her own while still leaving challenging ones around for the adults. Be warned, there is a part that involves a fair amount of reading so be prepared to either slowly read everything aloud or have a speed reader handy to solve the related puzzles. Overall, definitely recommend this room for both experienced and new players alike as it is quite enjoyable and will bring a smile to anyone who is even remotely familiar with Ol' Pooh Bear.
Heart Of Bastet [prev. Red Giant]Lara’s Labyrinth - San Diego [prev. Quest Room]Escape roomIRLThis was by far the best and most unique escape room I have experienced. The puzzles flowed smoothly, the rooms were perfectly themed, the GM was super attentive and humorous before, during, and after our session, and the room itself was a blast! I've never had an escape room illicit so many different emotions from me while still enjoying every minute of it! My team of 3 semi experienced players were able to complete this room in 49 minutes with only 2 clues although the GM did give us a little nudge whenever we solved the puzzle but a piece was just an inch or two off in terms of position. We did have one of the puzzles get stuck but were warned beforehand it might happen. Despite this, the GMs were very attentive to ensure it didn't delay us amd even set up an alternate guided way to solve the puzzle in the event it did get stuck. Honestly everything was perfect, even with the puzzle malfunction, and I would recommend everyone who loves escape rooms try this particular experience. It is extremely unique, interactive, and has several moments that will surprise you.
The Missing SeasonSteal and EscapeEscape roomIRLThis room was super enjoyable and gave us several moments where we were pleasantly surprised or amused. Very creative and gives you some awesome souvenirs at the end. Our group of 3 experienced people completed it in 43 minutes with only 1 hint but the narration itself does provide several hints as part of the story if you listen closely. I don't recommend this for anyone who doesn't like narration or story driven rooms and advise those who attempt it to wear something cool as it can get warm.
CannibalLara’s Labyrinth - San Diego [prev. Quest Room]Escape roomIRLOne of our favorite escape rooms to date and the second one I've done at Lara's Labyrinth. This multi-room escape room experience was a blast from start to finish. We picked the regular version instead of the sh*t your pants version but it was still creepy and had a few scares that got our group into a very cautious mindset. Perfect for those groups that think they'd escape the killer in those slasher flicks! Our GM, Josie, was super nice and helpful throughout the entire thing and was sure to explain everything thoroughly before we began. Overall, the experience wasn't overly difficult and the clues flowed well enough that our group of 4 only needed to use one hint to escape with nearly 15 minutes to spare. I imagine this room would be far more fun if you chose to do it with full scares on. I definitely recommend this room for anyone who likes a creepy slasher experience and likewise don't recommend this is you scare easily, even the non-scary version.
Sister's SecretThe Unlockables - San DiegoEscape roomIRLOur team of 3 experienced players completed this room in 72 minutes (out of 75) with 2 hints. We decided to do this room after we completed The Oracle at The Unlockable's Poway location and discovered fairly quickly that it was much more challenging. The theme was fun and the room itself was well decorated but the sheer number of word and reading puzzles was a bit overwhelming. Overall, this is a very challenging room that I recommend for more experienced teams. Don't get hung up on any one puzzle for too long if you feel you might not have the entire picture and don't hesitate to ask for a nudge or two if you feel stuck. The room can be overwhelming at certain intervals but is overall enjoyable with several puzzles that will give you a sense of satisfaction when you solve it.
Operation NightwalkerMindTrap Escape Room - MurrietaEscape roomIRL𓆜𓋘𓄁 𓊛𓇙𓋸𓌤𓌥 𓌦 𓅐𓆢 𓆣 𓀉𓆤 𓆥 𓅑𓆘 𓆙 𓅒𓄙 𓄚 𓄛 𓅓𓃺 𓃻 𓅔 𓅕 𓃕 𓃖 𓃗 𓎷 𓄁𓎸𓅖 𓅽 𓅾 𓅿𓅗 𓅘 𓇆 𓇇𓅙 𓅚 𓁵 𓁶𓂵 𓂶𓃝𓋲 𓋳𓀬 𓅛𓁃 𓂺𓅜 �𓅝𓃄 �𓄁𓅞𓂙 𓅟𓂿 𓆜𓋘𓄁 𓊛𓇙𓋸𓌤𓌥 𓌦 𓅐𓆢 𓆣 𓀉𓆤 𓆥 𓅑𓆘 𓆙 𓅒𓄙 𓄚 𓄛 𓅓𓃺 𓃻 𓅔 𓅕 𓃕 𓃖 𓃗 𓎷 𓄁𓎸𓅖 𓅽 𓅾 𓅿𓅗 𓅘 𓇆 𓇇𓅙 𓅚 𓁵 𓁶𓂵 𓂶𓃝𓋲 𓋳𓀬 𓅛𓁃 𓂺𓅜 𓂨𓅝𓃄 𓄁𓅞𓂙 𓅟𓂿This review contains spoilers.Unscramble𓀗
DaVinci ChallengeLara’s Labyrinth - San Diego [prev. Quest Room]Escape roomIRLThis was our 4th room at Lara's and definitely the one that had the most puzzles out of the lot. Our group of 3 got through this room in 45 minutes with a couple of nudges whenever we became too focused on a puzzle we didn't have all the pieces for. The GM was great at redirecting us without giving us the answers. Unlike the other rooms at Lara's, this room focuses heavily on puzzle solving and is best enjoyed if you have any knowledge on DaVinci and his creations or history. It is also important to note that this experience does have a split start so don't bring someone who is entirely new to escape rooms without providing them at leave another person they can be paired with. Overall, I would recommend this for those who simply love puzzles and DaVinci's history as it does present you with numerous unique and clever puzzles. I do not recommend this if you were expecting someone like Cannibal or BeWitched. Compared to those rooms, this one is far less story driven or emotionally enticing as the point is to test your puzzle solving mettle. Truly does a great job of doing so too!
BeWitchedLara’s Labyrinth - San Diego [prev. Quest Room]Escape roomIRLThis room was so much fun but was definitely more of an experience than an escape room. The live actor is an utter blast and really pushes you to get silly in order to advance. The use of the live actor to nudge you along and give you the story is enjoyable and the overall feel and decor of the room is awesome! My group of 3 did take the full hour and some change to complete this room but that was alright because we were more focused on the banter and having fun rather than escaping. That being said, I wouldn't recommend this for those who prefer heavier puzzled rooms or an experience where you can focus on escaping as this is very story driven and there are points where the live actor will hold you back if you don't satisfy their instructions. Definitely go into this experience with people who have a good sense of humor and be ready to shed your shyness since you will be asked to sing, dance, yell, and make up spells or rhymes on the fly. By far one of my favorite story driven rooms and one I recommend anyone do on the "The Dark Side" or rated R setting.
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