Escape Truck is one of the best games in Sacramento, CA. Here are our other recommendations for great escape rooms in Sacramento.
Cons and Pros
Location: Yuba City, CA
Date Played: November 14, 2021
Team Size: 2-4; we recommend 3-4
Duration: 41 minutes
Price: $100 for 2 players, $120 for 3-4 players
Ticketing: Private
Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock
Physical Restraints: [B] Mechanical Release
REA Reaction
The 41-minute-long Escape Truck packed an impressive amount of gameplay into a tiny space.
When approaching a mobile escape room, I look for a game that utilizes clever workarounds to compensate for a compact set and that tells a story appropriate for the mobile vehicle format. Escape Truck checked both of these boxes.
The premise was straightforward: we were convicts being transported to a new facility, and we had a brief window to escape after our truck crashed. When we were first led onto the truck, it felt wholly convincing as a prisoner transport vehicle. We were led to understand our roles in the story before we went on to discover the layers of secrets concealed in this environment.
The gameplay in Escape Truck was subtle yet exciting. A split-team start helped move players around the space efficiently and largely avoided single-player bottleneck puzzles. Escape Truck would be a great introduction to escape rooms for players new to the medium, and with a solid smattering of sneaky little reveals, it would be equally enjoyable for more seasoned enthusiasts.
Note: We played the 41-minute version of the Escape Truck. NorCal Escape Co also offers a different 15-minute version of the game for events, which features an entirely set of puzzles.
Who is this for?
- Adventure seekers
- Puzzle lovers
- Any experience level
- Small teams
Story
We were prisoners being transferred between correctional facilities. We had made a deal with a corrupt guard for there to be a little, ahem, accident, and the driver of the transport vehicle had been knocked unconscious. But the guard didn’t want to make it easy on us, and he’d blocked our path to freedom with a series of puzzles hidden throughout the vehicle. We had only 41 minutes until backup would arrive to escape the scene.
Setting
The Escape Truck took place in a standalone truck parked outside the NorCal Escape Co facility. This medium-sized van was fitted as a prisoner transport vehicle. Two long benches faced each other, with a wire mesh fence separating the two sides. White metal walls were bare, apart from our prisoner numbers and a prison logo.
Gameplay
NorCal Escape Co’s Escape Truck was a mobile escape room with a moderate level of difficulty.
Core gameplay revolved around searching and puzzling.
Analysis
➕ Escape Truck‘s set was appropriately austere. Sparsely decorated as I’d imagine a real prison transfer vehicle to be, almost every element looked like it belonged in the space. And at a quick glance, very little stuck out as an obvious component of a puzzle.
➕ The puzzles in Escape Truck were clever and clean. They not just respected but also took advantage of players’ limited mobility within such a small space.
➕ There was an appropriate amount of content for a 41-minute experience, which was an accomplishment given that the space didn’t look overcrowded whatsoever.
➕ The space opened up and revealed new layers as the game progressed. I was pleased to experience multiple unexpected moments of discovery.
➖ It was sometimes hard to understand what was being said in the audio.
➕/➖ A personal touch was a nice surprise and made sense with the story. It was fine as is, though it also felt like a missed opportunity to take this one step further and integrate it with the gameplay.
➕ The final puzzle tied together the story in a direct and satisfying way.
Tips For Visiting
- There was a parking lot.
Book your 41 minutes with NorCal Escape Co’s Escape Truck, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.
