Room Escape Artist

Han’s Revenge is one of Belgium’s best escape rooms. Here are our other escape room recommendations in the area.

Keep it cool!

Location: Mechelen, Belgium

Date Played: July 17, 2023

Team Size: 2-6; we recommend 3-5

Duration: 70 minutes

Price: from 140 € for 2 players to 180 € for 6 players

Ticketing: Private

Accessibility Consideration: All players must climb and crawl

Emergency Exit Rating: [A] Push To Exit

Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints

REA Reaction

Han’s Revenge was hands down the coolest escape room I’ve experienced.

Centered around a feud between a fan company and an air conditioner company, Han’s Revenge told an utterly silly story with some serious skill and tact.

Though jam-packed with memorable “wow” moments, Han’s Revenge wasn’t just “cool for the sake of being cool.” Each interaction and special effect compounded into an epic experience that was far greater than the sum of its parts. There was a clear “why” to our roles and our actions, and a thoughtful narrative structure that tied everything together.

Han’s Revenge embodied the sort of wonder, delight, and curiosity that keeps me excited about the future of escape rooms — a welcoming future in which puzzlers, explorers, scenery snobs, and people who don’t even know yet that they like escape rooms are all able to find stories and adventures that they can connect with on a personal level.

That’s not to say that Han’s Revenge necessarily tapped into any deep emotions. But, it demonstrated a serious playfulness that I believe almost all players would find both approachable and impressive. It told a cohesive and unique story that falls squarely outside the bounds of the usual escape room themes. It provided a delightful physical environment that instantly brought out our inner child. It sparked anticipation and joy rather than fear or dread.

If you are anywhere near Belgium, Han’s Revenge is a world-class experience that is worth going out of your way to play. And while you’re at De Gouden Kooi, do not miss The Secret of Saint-Rumoldus. While it may now get overshadowed by Han’s Revenge, it would be a top standout at any other escape room facility.

Who is this for?

• Adventure seekers
• Scenery snobs
• Puzzle lovers
• Story seekers
• Players who like physical exploration
• Best for players with at least some experience
• Players who don’t need to be a part of every puzzle

Why play?

• A unique and strangely compelling story
• Truly, such an adventure
• A sprawling playground of a set

Story

We were hired by the air conditioning company Aircotech to help keep up with the rising demand for AC unit installations. Meanwhile, local news was filled with reports of a strange heist at a local research facility. Perhaps our first day on the job would not be as straightforward as it first seemed…

Setting

Han’s Revenge began on a realistically rendered city street with facades of various businesses. Once we’d gained entrance to our initial target, the true adventure began.

To describe any more of the scenic design in Han’s Revenge would be to give away its secrets, but suffice to say, while this adventure began in the mundane, it did not stay there for long. The set was a wondrous playground, with fantastical levels of detail and polish around every twist and turn.

De Gouden Kooi’s lobby was also noteworthy, with a calm, clean aesthetic evocative of a sort of Pinterest oasis. While the lobby vibe didn’t tie into any of their escape experiences, this was nonetheless an exceedingly relaxing environment in which to chill between games.

Gameplay

De Gouden Kooi’s Han’s Revenge was a standard escape room with a moderate-to-high level of difficulty.

Core gameplay revolved around solving puzzles, searching, making connections, and exploring the environment.

Analysis

➕ Han’s Revenge massively stood out by choosing a singularly unique theme and setting for that theme. I can reference “that game about the cooling systems” and players will instantly know which one I’m referring to, probably accompanied by a chuckle because this premise is, as intended, inherently silly and stupid. And yet, the game committed to the bit so seriously and with such a level of polish that, despite all odds, this central joke managed to feel funny and tasteful throughout.

➕ Two pre-game trailers for Han’s Revenge, one presented on De Gouden Kooi’s website and a second screened at the venue, demonstrated a mind-boggling level of production quality and creativity. These films established an expansive and quirky world filled with distinctive characters, mysterious motivations, and cool special effects. I could see these films winning awards at an indie film festival. That said, investing so heavily in the pre-game show can be a risky endeavor in expectation setting — but impressively, the physical experience of Han’s Revenge more than met this high bar, cohesively extending the world and ultimately fulfilling all narrative hooks in unexpected and satisfying ways.

➕ Han’s Revenge was wholly transportive. The set was detailed and delightful. Starting in a realistic rendering of a fairly mundane setting, the scenery progressively evolved into a wondrous playground for this ever deepening adventure. Players need to be reasonably mobile to full appreciate the set.

➕ The puzzles were silky smooth, clearly signposted, thematically appropriate, and deeply fun. They kept all of our medium-sized team of enthusiasts actively engaged for pretty much the entire game, with very few bottlenecks.

➕ By providing multiple copies of a fun tool, De Gouden Kooi turned a search task into a dynamic group dance of sorts. This puzzle provided phenomenal feedback and some entertaining Easter eggs, encouraging all players to participate even after certain elements had been completed.

➖ One puzzle with a visual answer could have felt less arbitrary by specifying the final input format.

➕ Carefully calibrated effects elevated an integral transition, masterfully controlling the descent into Act II of the experience.

➕ A cute minigame offered us a choice. We savored choosing the “wrong” answer first.

➕ An invigoratingly frantic sequence of thematic gameplay triumphantly crescendoed into a satisfying finale, giving this epic adventure the cinematic ending it deserved.

🥵/➖ For a game about cooling systems, certain game spaces bordered on uncomfortably toasty. We’d have appreciated more design of the room temperature, and perhaps also of scent, throughout the game to further extend the cool theme.

➕ The story continued past when we left the room, demonstrating a simple yet effective way to subtly extend without shattering the magic circle.

Tips For Visiting

• De Gouden Kooi has two locations: one for their standard “escape games” and another for their premium “escape experiences.” Han’s Revenge can be found at the latter, located at Haverwerf 7 in Mechelen.
• Metered street parking was available nearby, though not immediately at the venue. With a confusing network of one-way streets in the vicinity, make sure to leave enough time to park and get your bearings.

Book your session with De Gouden Kooi’s Han’s Revenge, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.