L
LoneSpelunker
7 escape rooms
Cartel’s premise is that your group has been split up and locked in a drug cartel enforcer’s secret location. You’ve been outed as informants and will be killed when the cartel’s assassins arrive so you need to work together to escape your individual rooms and get out of the entire facility. This premise works great, providing a fun twist on the usual escape room formula. The puzzles themselves are pretty good - none seemed unfair and some were fun to execute on and provided some memorable moments. Overall the theming and presentation was top-notch, with immersive environmental design that’s visually interesting. (Note that this room is a refactor and retheme on an older room called TNT. If you played TNT it will feel pretty familiar, but the designers put in enough new elements - especially the initial split of the group - to make it still feel fresh.) I’d recommend this room - it’s just solid from start to finish, challenging but fair, and dripping with theme.
Gameplay
Really enjoyed the gameplay on this one. The cool twist on this one is that your team starts the game separated into three rooms and need to communicate to join up. The particular puzzles in this one are memorable, both before and after joining up with your companions. This one is very strong on the gameplay.
Atmosphere
The theme is very strong on this one. The environment is a drug runner’s secret underground hideout, and the theming really was strong on this, with rocky walls, wooden and metal doors and framing, dim lighting and immersive sounds, and plenty of environmental storytelling elements.
Customer service
Friendly and personable staff. No notes.
Particularly interesting or different
Yes
As mentioned, the main conceit of being separated at the start made for some fun, memorable challenges right from the start. And the frame story for it, cartel assassins coming to kill you in an hour if you don’t escape, is compelling and reinforced with a lot of the room’s elements.
Story
Normally I don’t go for organized crime themes, but the presentation of this one sold me.
Difficulty
Hard
There were some nice brain-benders in this that make you feel great when you figure them out. There was one puzzle that we were stumped for a bit on but when we got it, we got really excited AND it was a fun puzzle to execute the solution on.
Game tech
High tech
Ideal number of players
6
I’d recommend six because they split you up into three rooms. We played with five and I was the one alone in a room. While it was fine, I would have preferred to have someone else there to puzzle things out. So six would give each room a pair of teammates. The room is not exactly spacious so I wouldn’t recommend more than six though! Exactly six is probably best (unless you feel confident enough to start the game alone!).
Scary
Not scary
The theme is not spooky at all but it does deal with an overall theme of realistic, real-world violence, so while there are no jump scares or anything, the suspense of the frame story might be an issue for people sensitive to that. There are also some small spaces and they blindfold you to get you into the rooms (unless you don’t want that), which might be a bit much for people with claustrophobia.
Minimum age
15
The Cartel theme pretty much means it’s aimed at young adults or older. Probably not appropriate for younger kids.
Was anything broken?
No
Live actors
No
Physically active
Not at all
Accessibility
As mentioned it might be stressful for people with claustrophobia. I don’t think it would be mobility accessible throughout. But the puzzles in general were pretty accessible and approachable.
Easy to find location
Yes
Parking
Easy
