Room Escape Artist

Firefighter Rescue is one of the best escape rooms around Toronto, Canada. Here are our recommendations for great escape rooms in the Toronto area.

Update 12/27/22: Firefighter Rescue has been relocated since we first reviewed it, to Escape From The 6’s current facility. We walked through the new set, and it’s an upgraded version of the original that we loved, with the same surprises. It’s still a strong game that we recommend.

Where the doors are your greatest nemesis.

Location: Oakville, Ontario

Date played: April 27, 2016

Team size: 4-8; we recommend 4-6

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: 28 CAD per ticket

Story & setting

In Firefighter Rescue, we spent an hour as firefighters. In the middle of a mundane day at the station, we were dispatched to a call. And just like that, we landed in a search and rescue mission.

Firefighter Rescue took place in multiple settings, all custom designed and expertly constructed. The fire station was fun, but the “burning” building was practically a playground. We climbed through it and even manipulated it to complete our mission.

The rescue story was lighthearted and a little hokey. Yet, that didn’t dissuade us from the mission. In fact, it made the mission that much more approachable and fun.

Both the story and the setting were interactive and immersive without becoming serious.

Puzzles

The early puzzles trained us for the dispatch call. They weren’t particularly challenging, but they relied on the set and served a greater purpose.

The later part of this escape room was scavenging heavy, but not in the typical sense. Instead of searching for bits and pieces of hidden puzzles, which can become annoying, we searched in order to rescue. This scavenging had purpose. It also culminated such that we knew when we’d completed the search.

Standouts

Escape From The 6 used simple practical effects brilliantly to enhance the drama of our firefighter dispatch.

This room escape did not rely on technologically driven interactions. The set and its puzzles were hands-on, which fit the theme and story.

Escape From The 6 added technological elements for atmospheric enhancements.

Firefighter Rescue incorporated a fun call back: information from the fire station became crucial later in the game. This was a clever, thematically appropriate design detail. Players who don’t pay attention will land in an amusingly difficult situation.

Shortcomings

Neither the fire station training nor the rescue mission were particularly challenging.

There was one room that felt a bit grimy; piles of clothes in escape rooms are generally gross.

Should I play Escape From The 6’s Firefighter Rescue?

Firefighter Rescue was beautifully designed and constructed. It provided a fully immersive set that enabled more physical interaction than most escape games. Yet, it also wove multiple stories into a coherent plot. This gave us a rare additional level of satisfaction in mission completion.

Furthermore, it was clear that the game designer had a deep knowledge and love of this theme.

This escape room was a rescue mission. It wasn’t scary, but it could prove intimidating to children. It would be an approachable game for all players, with the notable exception that firefighting requires physical mobility.

Book your hour with Escape From The 6’s Firefighter Rescue, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Image via Escape From The 6