The cat’s pajamas
Location: San Antonio, TX
Date Played: August 29, 2023
Team Size: 2-10; we recommend 2-4 kids (plus 1-2 adult chaperones) or 2-3 adults
Duration: 60 minutes
Price: $36 per player
Ticketing: Private
Accessibility Consideration: Participants are intended to crawl, but technically we could have circumvented this by exiting the gamespace temporarily.
Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock
Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints
REA Reaction
Although just as suited to kids as to adults, The Purrfect Plan rivals many games in the San Antonio area for its adorably diabolical theme, its approachable yet clever puzzles, and its sense of purpose and progress. It’s easy but not too easy for adults to enjoy, and it made us smile a lot. I wished our kids had been with us, but I was also pleased to get to do the fun stuff myself.
Our goal might have been to save the world’s dogs, but really this was a room for cat lovers. Walking into the space was its own form of jaw-dropping. It was rich, appealing, and decked out with oversized professional photos of Dr. Grimalkin and his majestic cat. On my kids’ behalf I exclaimed, “Awwwwwww, it’s so CUUUUUUUUTE!” Someone had to say it.
Despite the room’s lush and classy ambiance, it was well-tailored to help young players find what they needed to. There weren’t an inordinate number of things to sort through or to distract us. Indeed, it was remarkable how much was hidden in so few objects. As the game progressed, the puzzles became more thematic and tactile, and a few would probably require an adult’s help. It was a bit easy to make some discoveries out of order, but it was also clear when we had done so and equally easy to fill in the gaps. Yes, we asked for hints in a kids’ room, and yes, they were for the kinds of things that kids would have a knack for noticing.
Even though we enjoyed this game as adult enthusiasts, I can’t overstate how much I think my kids would adore it. It had the perfect blend of realism and over-the-top fantasy for young imaginations (and even older ones) to appreciate, and the cat theming was equally on point. The puzzles were clearly signposted yet not insultingly obvious, and the purpose of the game was woven throughout. It made the key components of a good escape room accessible to a young audience.
It’s incredibly rare in Texas to find a game that prioritizes a kids’ perspective, but The Purrfect Plan shows how to do it. This is the game in the region for families with kids under 12, and we’ll be back someday to share it with our own.
Who is this for?
- Adventure seekers
- Scenery snobs
- Cat lovers
- Any experience level
- Groups with kids older than 5
Why play?
- To share a well-crafted escape room experience with the kids in your life
- To host a great escape room birthday party for your child in Get Out of My Escape Room’s private event space
- To save the world’s dogs… or to turn all of the world’s dogs into cats
Story
Dr. Grimalkin had hatched a diabolical scheme to enable cats to take over the world. We had an hour to find his secret lab and interrupt (or enable) his plan to turn every dog into a cat.
Setting
We began our quest in Dr. Grimalkin’s study surrounded by images of him and his regal cat. It was a classy space that captured the cartoonish villainy of the situation.
Gameplay
Get Out of My Escape Room’s The Purrfect Plan was a standard escape room with a low level of difficulty.
Gameplay involved searching, observing, making connections, following instructions, and logic.
Analysis
➕ The set was well-appointed while avoiding clutter. Everything felt valuable to the experience.
➕ The cat portraits were simultaneously gorgeous and ridiculous. Kudos to the photographer for capturing them.
➕ Although many puzzles were simple enough for kids to solve, the game included a few sequences that benefited from adult participation, creating a way for everyone to feel important.
➕ A mid-game sequence of tasks built effective anticipation for the second act.
➖ Players who have difficulty crawling would need to temporarily exit the gamespace to have full access to the game.
➖ One otherwise fun puzzle had a confusing delay before allowing input. Children of the 80s might recognize the behavior enough to ignore it, but I do wonder how often it misleads people.
➕ The room had a thematic mechanism for gracefully handling malfunctions or misplaced game pieces. We didn’t encounter the need for it, but we got a demonstration.
➕ Our final decision had effects beyond the room’s universe, another testament to the game’s attention to detail.
➕ Get Out of My Escape Room’s website is more entertaining and helpful than most. We read the FAQs for fun, and the room descriptions gave rich guidance about each game’s intended audience.
Tips For Visiting
- There is a parking lot.
- If you opt to bring kids to this experience (which you should), think ahead about how to help kids enjoy escape rooms.
Book your hour with Get Out of My Escape Room’s The Purrfect Plan, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.
Disclosure: Get Out of My Escape Room provided discounted tickets for this game.
