Room Escape Artist

The Ghost of Mentryville is one of the best games in Los Angeles. Here are our other recommendations for great escape rooms in Los Angeles.

Small and mighty

Location:  Newhall, CA

Date Played: October 20, 2023

Team size: 2-4; we recommend 2-3

Duration: No time limit. Expect 60-90 minutes.

Price: from $122 for a team of 2 to $152 for a team of 4

Ticketing: Private

Accessibility Consideration:  This venue is located on the second floor of a shopping plaza. However, we expect there’s an elevator and we believe the game can be adapted to be wheelchair accessible as long as at least 1 player is able to walk and bend down.

Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock

Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints

REA Reaction

When we were discussing how much we loved The Ghost of Mentryville in our Patreon chat, Dan Egnor replied, “Might be the best room in the world in awesomeness per square foot.” I think that he was dead-on with that assessment.

The Ghost of Mentryville was a legitimately small game in terms of square footage. 2 players is the ideal team size, and I would only play with 3 or 4 people if everyone agrees to be especially chill.

Beyond the small size, The Ghost of Mentryville wasn’t packing a lot of the detailing, aesthetic refinement, or technology that we typically associate with world-class escape games. Yet, I can comfortably tell you that this was one of my favorite escape rooms. In some ways it was incredible because of its small size, lack of technology, and rustic construction. Arcane Escape Room took a tiny space and figured out how to fit the perfect game into it.

The Ghost of Mentryville may also be the best game in Southern California that nobody has played. It spent years on ice during and after the pandemic because of how small it was and the fact that Arcane Escape Room needed to put a performer into that small space with the players. They don’t have a ton of bookings available for it because it is a complex game to operate. Our performer/ gamemaster was exceptionally skilled.

With The Ghost of Mentryville, Arcane Escape Room made the closest thing to black box theater that I have seen in escape rooms. It was minimalism that allowed the experience to shine.

You have to put in work to play The Ghost of Mentryville. It’s difficult to get a booking, you should have a small team to play it, and it’s a bit of a drive to get to Arcane Escape Room. Let me assure you, however, this is a must-play game. Whether you’re a player looking for a unique experience or an owner/ creator seeking to understand what greatness on a budget can feel like, go play The Ghost of Mentryville.

Who is this for?

• Story seekers
• Small teams of 2-3
• Players looking for something different
• Lock afficiandos

Why play?

• Novelty
• Strong character performance
• Ingenuity. They do a lot with a small space.
• Impeccable storytelling

Story

Between the years 1870 and 1900, Mentryville, a small oil drilling town of 200 residents was an ideal community of modest homes and puritan ideals. However, there was a dark secret hidden within the town, and we were about to learn the details intimately.

Setting

We entered a small, dark minimalist space with a performer. In the center of the room was an ornate coffin with a snake carved into its lid. A few doors lined the perimeter of the room. It felt like a black box theater. There were only ever a few things calling our attention… always the most important aspects of the space.

Gameplay

Arcane Escape Room’s The Ghost of Mentryville was an usual escape room, in an intimate setting, for a small group, narrated by a performer.

It had a moderate level of difficulty, which is adjusted by the performer seamlessly, for each time.

Core gameplay revolved around listening to the narrative, searching, observing details, making connections, solving puzzles, and opening unusual locks.

Analysis

➕ Narrative was at the heart of The Ghost of Mentryville. The central prop was built to tell the story, alongside the performer.

➕ The performer was outstanding. They took us through the game, keeping us focused entirely on the story.

➕ Our role in this story was brilliant.

➕ The pacing was excellent. Arcane Escape Room does not set a time limit for this experience. The performer kept us on pace. They were the hint system, and as such, any hints emanated naturally from their character.

➖ In one instance, the cluing didn’t match the interaction. Even the additional hinting seemed to be missing a nuance.

➕ The lighting and sound cues were impeccable. The added drama, punctuated narrative beats, and turned the opening of a lock into an event.

➖ Many of the locks were hard to see. We would have appreciated better spotlighting for inputing codes.

➖ Some areas of the set lacked polish.

➕ The tiny gamespace felt larger than it was. In part, the was because of the emotional weight of the game. It was also due to their particular mirroring of space.

➕ The finale was phenomenal. The Ghost of Mentryville rewarded us for paying attention to the details, of both the props and the story.

🔒 There was a pretty strong lock collection in The Ghost of Mentryville.

Tips For Visiting

• Parking: There is a parking lot.
• Food: We enjoyed Bricks, for nearby burgers and sandwiches
• It would be possible to solo this game. While we believe escape rooms are best as a group activity, this one could be a haunting, intimate solo play.
• The subject matter is dark. This is not a classic horror game. You won’t experience any jump scares, and the character is on your side. However, if you are sensitive to dark themes, you may want to ask for more details about the subject matter before booking.

Update 10/8/24: If you want to hear more about The Ghost of Mentryville, back us on Patreon at the “Search Win!” level to get access to a Spoilers Club Episode about this game. Reality Escape Pod co-hosts David and Peih-Gee talk all about it with the creators, spoilers and all.

Book your hour with Arcane Escape Room’s The Ghost of Mentryville, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.