The Killing Station

Very fun, clever tech and puzzles

This was a great all-around experience from the moment you walk through the door until the moment you leave. Matt, one of the owners, is great. As far as the room goes, the puzzles were logical with some really cool physical interactions. The theme is quite cool too, I've never seen a theme like this. There was only one puzzle which was a time-waster, but it was novel. Also, I wish that some of the cooler set pieces got used more.

Rating: 4/5 - Fun room with a charming small town escape room vibe, the owner is an enthusiast and you can feel that in the game design and customer service. Puzzles were enjoyable and satisfying, everything flowed well and there were some interesting things I've never seen before. It was a mix of padlocks and some tech, but many of the puzzles were physical. The owner/GM was super friendly and gave just the right hints/nudges so it didn't feel like she was giving away the answers. It's not high budget but I still enjoyed the set, it worked well for the theme and it was appropriately creepy (no jump scares) with more than one room to explore. The entrance to the location was also kind of fun since you have to solve (very easy) puzzles to enter the lobby. It's playable solo, but I'd recommend 2-4 players since there are a lot of puzzles.

Before we even got officially started, we had to solve some puzzles to gain entry into ER Near Me, which set the tone for the experience. Then, after speaking with the owner (Charlee), and understanding that she was a passionate ER enthusiast, I knew The Killing Station would be a killer room. We brought a squad of 6 people, which I thought may be too many, but ended up being a good number for this room as there was a lot to do in this fairly non-linear room. I recommend 4-6 people. Most of the puzzles were mechanical or logical in nature, some of which were very unique. A few of the puzzles required some physical coordination and teamwork, which were a lot of fun. There were many locks in the room and a wide variety of different types of locks (which I usually don’t care for), but it seemed like when you solved a puzzle and acquired a key/code, the flow of the game allowed you to know where the code/key would be used (which I appreciated). The theme was unique and played into the gameplay well. The GM’s hints (used 2) were in the storyline’s characters and were helpful more just to confirm we were headed down the right path. Overall, a really fun family-owned room where the owner’s main objective is for their customers to have a great experience…which we did.

We were very impressed with the Killing Station! The GM was very sweet and has been a veteran in the escape room designing space since 2015. This is her new brand, and the unique name of the company reflects her approach to the room. From the very beginning when we needed to solve some puzzles to even enter the space, I knew this was going to be novel. To be honest, the room isn't the most high-budget, with the set design at times feeling a bit barebones. Still, the budget is used where it matters, and the puzzles are excellent. There are some really clever puzzles that I have never seen done before, and at times I told my partner there was no way that was what was going to be required, and it was. Having such unique puzzles and settings makes these rooms feel fresh even after all this time, and a GM who cares this much is the cherry on top.

As you would expect from a lonesome sketchy gas station, this Killing Station, erm… filling station, is out of the way but should not be missed! The theme is unique and the narrative, which is accompanied by the game master’s hint-giving style, progresses as you explore this creepy gas station. There are unique puzzles in there that I’ve never or rarely seen. A few time eater puzzles set our small team of 2 back, but our awesome GM and owner helped us escape with our lives. It is naturally a spooky room, so be warned. But if you dare, pick up that dispenser and pump it up for a high octane experience!