“This is a lovely room of death.” – Ace Ventura
Location: Hamburg, Germany
Date Played: May 11, 2019
Team size: 3-6; we recommend 3-4
Duration: 60 minutes
Price: from €99 per group for teams of 3 to €156 per group for teams of 6
Ticketing: Private
Emergency Exit Rating: [A] Push To Exit
Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints
REA Reaction
Ghost Hunter Ernie Hudson and the Zoo of Death did tons of unique things. We hadn’t played a game set in a zoo. This setting, in combination with Skurrilum’s ghost-hunting staging, gave Zoo of Death an unusual jumping off point.
Zoo of Death had some amazing moments and interactions contained within its beautiful set. It also had a fantastic door puzzle. (It’s well documented how much we love a great door.)
There was plenty to love in this game, but does it live up to the hype of Wailing Woman or the 9th best escape room in the world? That’s more debatable.
One critical prop that could turn dangerous didn’t feel sturdy enough and the story lost its way in the last act by taking itself way too seriously and not paying off that intensity.
Zoo of Death was an incredibly strong escape room. Critiquing a game like this can get dicey because we’re talking about missed opportunities in the finer points of execution, which can sometimes look like condemnation of the entire experience. That’s not our intent.
Skurrilum built an impressive and unique game in Zoo of Death. If you’re in Hamburg, you ought to check it out. But once again, as with Wailing Woman, leave your hype in their lockers.
Who is this for?
- Adventure seekers
- Story seekers
- Puzzle lovers
- Scenery snobs
- Players with at least some experience
Why play?
- Memorable interactions
- Story-driven gameplay
Story
Ghost-hunting celebrity Ernie Hudson had given us a second case! This time he’d sent us to investigate grim and scary events at a nearby zoo.
Setting
Skurrilum’s Ghost Hunter Ernie Hudson and the Zoo of Death opened as Wailing Woman did: in darkness, with a voiceover establishing the story and setting the stage.
Once the game began, we found ourselves on the grounds of a rundown zoo. It looked old, creepy, and forgotten.
Gameplay
Skurrilum’s Ghost Hunter Ernie Hudson and the Zoo of Death was a narrative-driven escape room with a moderate level of difficulty.
Core gameplay revolved around searching, observing, making connections, and puzzling.
Analysis
➕ Skurrilum built two games in the world of ghost-hunting celebrity Ernie Hudson. In this second game, we had a strong sense of Ernie as a character and his world. It’s a world with infinite possibilities. We were excited to be back in it, in an unusual escape room setting, solving another case.
➖ The opening sequence of Ghost Hunter Ernie Hudson and the Zoo of Death bottlenecked severely. There was no way for most teammates to participate at all.
➕ Skurrilum used space brilliantly in Ghost Hunter Ernie Hudson and the Zoo of Death. The changes were unexpected and tons of fun.
➖ While impressive, we questioned the safety of one large set piece, its corresponding action, and its sturdiness.
➕ The best puzzles asked us to solve real-world problems in the zoo setting. If we wanted something from one set piece, how could we logically get it? This was an incredibly satisfying sequence of linked solves.
➕ There was a beast of a puzzle. It was fun.
➖ The gameflow was choppy.
❓ The choppiness of the gameflow was exacerbated by a bad reset and the gamemaster failing to intervene even though we were repeatedly saying how we thought the puzzle was supposed to work and that something seemed wrong. We spun in circles for a solid 10 minutes until we finally received confirmation from the gamemaster that something was amiss and the issue corrected.
➕ We love a good door mechanism. Skurrilum transformed a classic puzzle type into an amazing doorway.
➖ While the narration was fun, in this instance, it felt like the story was told rather than experienced. Wailing Woman did a better job on this front.
➖ While Ghost Hunter Ernie Hudson and the Zoo of Death took us on an adventure, we wanted more from the culminating interaction. Narratively, the conclusion disappointed us by steering straight into the obvious cliche. We thought that Skurrilum was going to do something more interesting with the ending. It felt like it built-up drama only to fizzle out at the end.
Tips For Visiting
- Minimum age is 14 years old
- You must be able to climb stairs and crawl to play this game.
Book your hour with Skurrilum’s Ghost Hunter Ernie Hudson and the Zoo of Death, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.
Disclosure: Skurrilum provided media discounted tickets for this game.
