Castle FlüffendorEscape Artist Greenville - Hampton StationEscape roomIRLA masterclass, as always from Escape Artist. The production value is unparalleled. Creative puzzles that were fun to solve. Perhaps a bit on the easy side, as we never got stuck long enough to consider asking for a clue (three people with lots of experience), but not so easy that they weren't rewarding. I'd highly recommend this one to people trying out rooms with actors for the first time. They primarily interact with you as puppets in this one and the atmosphere isn't tense, which I think makes that experience more relaxed. Also a very family friendly room.
Vanishing ActBlack Mountain EscapeEscape roomIRLAnother fantastic room by Black Mountain Escape! I think this is the most *whimsical* room we've done before, and we really loved that part about it. This is hard to explain without spoilers, but I'll just say that there are some delightful moments in the experience that perfectly capture the feeling of a classic magic show. Multiple moments putting a smile on your face just as when a magician pulls a rabbit out of his hat and you don't know how it got there. Very on-theme, and well done. The puzzles in this room were also very satisfying to solve. Many that were very creative and all of them felt logical and rewarding. We did have a moment or two where we accidentally guessed a clue or solved it in a way not intended, but it didn't feel too upsetting among so many good ones. We had a different game master from our first time, and he was just as friendly as the first. He actually greeted us by name when we arrived and apparently looked up we had done one of their rooms previously 1.5 years ago. I don't think I've ever received such a personal welcome at an escape room before. He was a fun actor as part of the experience. I especially appreciated the magic tricks he began with which were mostly unrelated to the room except in the way they set the tone and theme. Quality experience that you don't get most places. My one main negative remark is, just as with the first room we did, this one is a *bit* run down. The props show wear, and some items show abuse. Extremely minor complaint here.
Nowhere To Be FoundGreat Escapes InmanEscape roomIRLStaff was very friendly and the gamemaster did a fantastic job. This room is better than average, though nothing distinctly special. I say that primarily because it relies too much on locks (most clues simply lead directly to a key or combination which gives you access to the next clue) and is very linear. This is their first room and the owner is aware of those flaws. They're a bit off the beaten path and get a lot of newbies, which I imagine this style is great for. We had a fun time with the room regardless. Some of the puzzles were satisfying to solve and the atmosphere was great. There's a bit of a horror element involved, but no jump scares. I'm really excited to come back and visit their other room, which I fully expect to love.
The Break Room: KrampusThe Lost Room Escape AdventuresEscape roomIRLSome roleplaying by the host at start and end was fun. Creative, satisfying puzzles. Host was very welcoming, and attentive during play.
Cosmic CrisisThe Escape Game - West MidtownEscape roomIRLThis room had the highest level use of technology that I've seen in an escape room. (Puzzle with buttons and video, several puzzles relying on electronics, robotics...) Generally I'd be skeptical places could pull off this much tech without bugs, but this one was VERY smooth. Very unique and positive experience.
Out of TimeBlack Mountain EscapeEscape roomIRLThis location is an escape room gem. Best in Asheville area after trying the other top-rated ones. Host is passionate and welcoming. The atmosphere for *this* room at least was great. Host's acting was excellent. Story was good and puzzles were fun. A few things in the room felt old and worn out, but everything worked.
Prison BreakThe Escape Game - West MidtownEscape roomIRLSome really creative puzzles here that we LOVED, but also a few that we found to be frustrating and unintuitive. We did have one puzzle fail. (host had to come in to fix it during the game.) Too difficult for the two of us (with lots of escape room experience), between the awkward puzzles and difficulty.
Fantastic ForestFox-N-Otter Adventure Escapes Asheville Mall LocationEscape roomIRLAtmosphere was not great (very aware I was in a mall) but quality was good. Some puzzles were frustrating or tedious. Host was selling us on them a bit hard.
The TombESCAPE! AlaskaEscape roomIRLOne of the best escape rooms I've ever done, thanks to the immersion. Highly recommend.
Gefängnis [Prison]Fox In A Box MunchenEscape roomIRLAs someone with 30 escape rooms of experience, this was a good one. We did the Prison room with three people. It was a bit easy for us, but probably perfect for most people. The puzzles were all mostly creative and logical. The rooms had decent production value. (The venue itself was very nicely furnished.) Staff was very friendly. We did have a technology bug... The room uses an electronic device for communicating clues. It wasn't working properly and the game master wasn't aware. Fortunately we didn't need clues, and I would think this is not a normal occurrence.