This escape room is now closed. Here are our recommendations for great escape rooms in St. Louis.
I can feel it coming in the mail tonight.
Location: St. Louis, MO
Date Played: March 22, 2019
Team size: up to 8; we recommend 3-5
Duration: 60 minutes
Price: $23.95 per player
Ticketing: Public
Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints
REA Reaction
Our group had a really good time in Investigation of a Miss Treedeath. We laughed. We puzzled. We made fun of our friend who did something really silly and broke the game requiring intervention from the gamemaster… and since then we’ve been spamming him with ridiculous postcards because we’re great friends and jerks in equal amounts.
Our antics aside, Escape STL produced a really good traditional escape room that came with a humorous twist. It didn’t look all that impressive from the photos because it was staged in an accurate yet mundane manner… which was emblematic of Investigation of a Miss Treedeath’s biggest issue: It needed to steer into its wackiness.
This could be a fantastic and memorable game if Escape STL leaned into the funnier side of the story that they produced. This game could… and probably should… be dark comedy with puzzles from beginning to end.
From a puzzle and game design standpoint, this was one of the stronger escape rooms that we played during our trip to St Louis. If that’s the kind of escape room play that you’re seeking, then give this one a shot.
Who is this for?
- Puzzle lovers
- Any experience level
Why play?
- Tongue-in-cheek design
- Solid puzzles
- A humorous story
Story
We were rogue detectives investigating Miss Amanda Treedeath under suspicion of murder. We had to break into her apartment and see if we could dredge up some evidence of her suspected crimes.
Setting
Investigation of a Miss Treedeath was an apartment escape game. We began in the apartment building’s hallway and then progressed into a rather convincing apartment dwelling.
It wasn’t an exciting environment by any stretch of the imagination, but it felt like what it was striving to be.
Gameplay
Escape STL’s Investigation of a Miss Treedeath was a standard escape room with a moderate level of difficulty.
Core gameplay revolved around searching and puzzling.
Analysis
➕ Investigation of a Miss Treedeath put a humorous spin on a traditional escape room setup. Escape STL teed up the experience well with the tone in the lobby and the in-character gamemaster.
➕ By solving the puzzles, we developed a deeper sense of the character in whose apartment we spent our 60 minutes. This added depth to the game.
➕ The gameplay worked well. The puzzles solved cleanly.
➕/➖ Escape STL’s staging made the set feel especially… apartment-y. It was a convincing set, but there was nothing special, exciting, or enticing about having an adventure in… an apartment.
➕/➖ We enjoyed the playful tone of Investigation of a Miss Treedeath. Escape STL could lean into this more, especially in the staging, to up the intrigue of the apartment staging.
➖ There was opportunity for Escape STL to surprise players more dramatically than they did.
➕/➖ Escape STL gave each team a score. After we escaped within the allotted 60 minutes, they asked us investigative questions to determine our score. While we liked the tiered goals, we would have preferred the investigation questions be incorporated into the gameplay. Reporting our answers back made these solves feel tacked onto the experience.
Tips For Visiting
- There is a parking lot.
Book your hour with Escape STL’s Investigation of a Miss Treedeath, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.
Disclosure: Escape STL provided media discounted tickets for this game.
