Witchcraft Alley

I liked this way more than I expected. I’m usually wary when a room advertises itself as “no locks”—even working at one, I’ve seen how they can drift into “interactive experience” territory and lose the smart puzzle-solving that makes escape rooms fun. Witchcraft Alley doesn’t fall into that trap. For an IP-inspired concept (Harry Potter vibes without needing outside knowledge), it delivers way more puzzle solving than I anticipated, and the interactions feel purposeful instead of gimmicky. The game teaches its core logic early with a simple rule: start with the most obvious answer. Without spoiling anything, that guidance pays off quickly and becomes a helpful throughline. The wand/spell mechanic is intuitive once you’ve done it a couple times, and the room keeps building on that language in clever ways. It’s still a puzzle room first—there’s plenty of deduction, patterning, and parallel tracks—just delivered through environmental interactions rather than padlocks. The set is massive and smartly laid out. It feels like a little district with multiple spaces to explore, which makes splitting up practical and necessary. Mid-game there’s a moment where an entire room changes—super satisfying and one of those “ok, that’s cool” reveals that fits the story. Effects lean practical with just enough tech to feel magical; it never turns into “press a button, watch a show.” Feedback on success is generally clear, which helps keep the pace up. Content-wise, there is a lot to do. I played with two newer players and we still moved steadily, but it could be overwhelming for total beginners. Our GM stepped in to override/advance a couple of items when we were clearly on the right track but spinning—handled quickly and without killing momentum. That’s more an FYI for team composition than a knock: experienced players will love the volume and parallelization; mixed-experience teams should plan to divide and conquer. Difficulty lands around medium: approachable logic, but breadth and coverage can make the clock feel tight. The theme stays light and playful—fun nods for HP fans, nothing scary—and the puzzle design keeps the tone joyful rather than punishing. Overall, Witchcraft Alley nails the balance I’m always hoping for with “no locks”: it’s interactive and immersive and still a genuine puzzle room. Easy recommend in Minneapolis.

Fun room. Not a typical escape room. There are no number locks and only one key lock if I remember right. You have to figure out spell names and wand combinations to advance. Definitely a unique experience.

Overall a solid room - fun interactions with objects. Part of the room did not work as intended which was a bit disappointing and we lost some time waiting for the GMs to acknowledge it and then find a workaround.

We recently played two games back to back at this location and both were of absolutely stellar quality. All items in the rooms were in working order and very unique and thoughtfully used. There were so many clever touches, and the puzzles/actions required were well tailored to the room themes. Each room had "OMG!" moments and things that impressed us (the map in Dragon's Keep and one entire room in Witchcraft Alley.) Our game guide Brian was friendly and helpful, providing us hints when we needed them and allowing us to figure things out if he knew we were on the right track. I appreciate that he took the time to learn our game style/preference before starting. These games were of tremendous quality and value. (We paid more for a game at another place that had at least four missing/broken puzzles) and we are very much looking forward to returning and playing some more!

This room is a blast! The entire experience as a whole was so, so fun. I'm not the biggest Harry Potter fan, but even if you aren't, you'll still have a great time with this room.

Fantastic theming, funny and creative. Really cool mechanics that feel original and also classic.

Absolutely amazing! AJ and Tylyn were super friendly and the room itself added even more to our experience! The room itself had so many fun Easter eggs for Harry Potter fans and a lot of fun puzzles! They even let us take a peek into the other rooms and they look JUST as good! Can’t wait to come back!

I really enjoyed this room. It does follow the story line of a certain boy wizard but I thought the props and puzzles were unique. The game masters were very welcoming. We did have an issue with one of the puzzles not setting but it was fine. Overall I really enjoyed this room. I would recommend 5-6 players.

Fantastic room with many magical twists and turns! Our group solved the room a lot faster than any of us expected, but we all had a fantastic time. Thanks Finn for being an incredibly attentive and welcoming GM!