Interchangeable history.
Location: Worcester, MA
Date played: October 23, 2016
Team size: up to 6; we recommend 3-4
Duration: 60 minutes
Price: $26.50 per ticket
Story & setting
Conspiracy took place in Marilyn Monroe’s dressing room in the “1950s or 1960s.” We were supposedly investigating her death… and in doing so stumbled upon a conspiracy that raised the stakes of our investigation.
The “50s/60s” time frame was curiously vague and was the first indicator of a larger issue: an utter disregard for the most basic historical facts.
The gamespace was themed as a dressing room conglomeration of eras past. The background music was from the 1930s. It felt hacked together.
Puzzles
Conspiracy was a game of connections.
There was a variety of moderately challenging puzzles.
The hardest part was finding and connecting relevant items to derive the intended meaning. We struggled not over the puzzles, but with losing the thread of gameplay amidst the items.
Standouts
At its best, Conspiracy merged props and technology into puzzles. The dressing room transformed some cool and historically authentic items into interesting game components.
Conspiracy built interactions into some unexpected things.
Shortcomings
While Escape Games Worcester designed solid technical interactions, their haphazard construction telegraphed the game. Exposed wires announced what otherwise could have been surprising moments.
The room escape incorporated props that were needlessly ugly and a few were downright unappealing to interact with.
One part of the game was left totally raw and unfinished. It appeared that Escape Games Worcester neither attempted to design this section, nor worked the lack of aesthetic aspects into a story arc.
The history and storytelling were bad.
Should I play Escape Games Worcester’s Conspiracy?
Conspiracy had a lot of good ideas with spotty execution. From the older props to the newer technology, this game included solid elements. It just didn’t come together as a polished product.
Our team was well versed in history and grew frustrated by the anachronisms in the kind-of-sort-of story.
For newer players, there’s still a lot to experience here. There is a set, a wealth of logic connections, and some cool interactions.
Experienced players will find that Conspiracy doesn’t approach the set and story design, puzzle challenge, or polished execution they have come to experience in major markets. That said, Worcester is a considerable distance from those places.
After we played Conspiracy, we poked our heads into their newest game, still under construction at the time. While we can’t speak to the gameplay or puzzles, it looked like Escape Games Worcester will be raising the bar on scenery and minding the details in their next outing.
We look forward to a return trip, as we think they have a lot of potential.
Book your hour with Escape Games Worcester’s Conspiracy, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.
