La Cathédrale Oubliée [The Forgotten Cathedral]Escaparium - LavalEscape roomIRLIn terms of sheer spectacle, cinematic immersion, and intensity, this room is out of this world (I actually think it has a slight edge on Magnifico, which is also wonderful, but somewhat weaker on the puzzle side). My sense of Escaparium, having done several rooms, is that puzzles take a bit of a back seat to production, but when the production is this amazing, who’s really complaining?
Ghost PatrolTrivium GamesEscape roomIRLCan’t say I was crazy about this room. A great beginning, and a couple of unique elements, like the fun use of sound and the general whimsy of the story/design, are pluses, but the second part of the experience was a bit of a slog, with puzzles that sometimes felt a little leaden and laborious. A big issue here is the oddly large quantity of assembly puzzles, which never quite feel to me like an actual escape room puzzle—more like someone took something prefabricated out of a box and charged me money to put it together for them, rather than designing an actual puzzle that requires creativity and reasoning. For future Trivium rooms, I’d love to see that element of gameplay deemphasized.
Titkos Metró [Secret Subway]E-Exit Escape Room BudapestEscape roomIRLI’m 64 rooms in at this point, and Secret Subway is one of the best I’ve ever done. Trust me, do it.
The Battle for BritainEscape PlanEscape roomIRLReally loved this room (along with The Adventure Begins). The rooms are built more around incredibly satisfying puzzles and gameplay than they are around FX and flashiness, and they make great use of practical, tactile elements (which also feel thematically fitting with the WWII settings). Our game master, Sarah, was also wonderful.
The Hex RoomCross Roads Escape GamesEscape roomIRLGreat room! Still feels super fresh despite its age.
The BirdMyssTic RoomsEscape roomIRLReally loved this room. At the time we did it, it had only opened a few weeks before, so a couple tech kinks were still being ironed out. But I think it’s the best room in MyssTic—charming and imaginative, with great flow and a nice mix of puzzle elements. A lot of detail and consideration went into this room, which is always nice.
Mad HatterTreasure Valley Escape RoomsEscape roomIRLMy favorite Alice in Wonderland-themed room. A lot of care and imagination went into this one. If you’re ever in Boise, do it!
The Ghost Of MentryvilleArcane Escape RoomsEscape roomIRLWhat a great room! Firstly, its core design idea —what you’ll experience in terms of the relationship between one central object (here undisclosed!) and the rest of the room—unfolds in an inventive, constantly thrilling way. Secondly, one of the best incorporations of a live actor I’ve experienced. Thirdly, a small space that does an awful lot. Fourthly, a fun, macabre story. Do this room if you can!
Haunting at Haruka HighOmescape - SunnyvaleEscape roomIRLSome things that are truly impressive about this room—the level of immersion, the care of the design, technicals details, the attempt to craft a meaningful narrative. However, some shortcomings prevent the love rating. A couple of clever exceptions, but on the whole the puzzles are fairly simple, with some feeling more like by-the-motions tasks to trigger the next effect or narrative development. Speaking of narrative, it’s lovely they crafted a full story with an array of recurring characters, but as a story it’s not all that interesting, and there’s a lottttt of it in the game, amounting to whole segments of passive listening or observation that do add up over time. Those caveats aside, a really fun game with some top-notch elements.
Whatever Happened To The Garretts?Maze Rooms - West LAEscape roomIRLThis was a cool room, especially if you’re keening for some period nostalgia. I didn’t actually like it as much as Maze Rooms’ Avalanche, with which it has some similarities, but it definitely has its own fun twists and turns.
![La Cathédrale Oubliée [The Forgotten Cathedral]](https://res.cloudinary.com/mortyapp/image/upload/c_limit,w_260/f_auto/v1/store/s/2c2890dd-87b6-4712-8136-8403e436ec72.jpg)
![Titkos Metró [Secret Subway]](https://res.cloudinary.com/mortyapp/image/upload/c_limit,w_260/f_auto/v1/store/s/5bfd2445-4248-4988-afbc-e09a1cf9ccea.jpg)
