Room Escape Artist

When witches go riding and black cats are seen, the moon laughs and whispers, “‘Tis near Halloween”!

Location:  At home

Date Played: March 2, 2024

Recommended team size: 2-3

Duration: 2 chapters (60 minutes each)

Price:  One-Time Box: $39.99 + shipping; Subscription: $29.99 + shipping (per box; delivered every other month)

REA Reaction

My husband Kurtis and I were joined on our latest Escape the Crate mission, Escape the Witch Trials, by our feline familiars (Vax’ildan, left; Mellow, right). We played and reviewed this game in March; however, we are publishing our review now, just in time for Halloween. For any puzzle lovers looking for a fun Halloween themed activity to add to your holiday celebration this month, we recommend purchasing Escape the Witch Trials!

Escape the Witch Trials provided a large quantity of content in a single box. This box contained two missions (The Witch Trial and The Witch Hunt) with separate puzzle paths and storylines. The Witch Trial mission contained themes of spellcraft and colonial punishment; however, we thought the incorporation of these themes and the fear factor were mild.

Each puzzle path contained 8-10 puzzles to solve with a wide variety of puzzle types. We found the puzzles to be well-designed and logical. Of note, Escape the Witch Trials relied heavily on interacting with the website to progress in the story and we would not recommend this game to individuals desiring a completely offline experience.

The Witch Trial path was comprised of a series of linear puzzles. Each webpage provided a video clip to further the story along with guidance on the next puzzle to solve. Our team found The Witch Trial path to be the easier of the two puzzle paths due to the nature of the linear puzzle flow and heavy guidance by the webpage. Alternatively, the bulk of game play in The Witch Hunt path was largely non-linear. We were provided with three possible puzzles to solve using the materials provided, which could be completed in any order. Therefore, to complete this path we had to not only solve puzzles, but also make connections amongst a large quantity of information. We enjoyed the added complexity offered by the non-linear puzzling.

Who is this for?

• Puzzle lovers
• Any experience level

Why play?

• To play an escape room box with a large quantity and variety of puzzles
• To enjoy escape room puzzles themed for the Halloween holiday

Story

In this adventure, we were tasked with two separate paths. One path (The Witch Trial) took us back in time to Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 to prove the innocence of a young women accused of witchcraft. This path dealt with heavier themes such as capital punishment and spell craft. We were warned that The Witch Trial path was a PG-13 experience before starting the mission.

The other path (The Witch Hunt) took place in modern day Salem, where we were tasked with finding a prankster seen throughout town in a witch costume. This path was portrayed as a lighter Scooby-Doo-esque “whodunit” mystery.

Setup

Escape the Witch Trials contained two separate adventure paths which could be played in any order as either a single or separate gaming sessions. We needed a charged internet connected device, scissors, a writing utensil, and a pad of paper to play Escape the Witch Trials. Animal companions were optional, but added to the ambiance.

Both paths were immediately accessible through the website after using the password printed on the welcome sheet. The webpage provided detailed setup instructions and photos to ensure all items for the chosen path were gathered and laid out correctly on the table. Each path took our group of two approximately 1 hour to fully solve.

Gameplay

Escape the Crate’s Escape the Witch Trials was a play-at-home escape game with an easy-to-moderate level of difficulty.

Puzzles for both paths were a mix of observation, logic, deduction, and making connections. We were required to input the puzzle solutions as passwords to locked webpages in order to progress the story. Hints for each puzzle were also provided on the webpage and were organized to give incrementally more information to aid in the solving process.

Analysis

➕ Escape the Witch Trials provided a large quantity of content: two one-hour missions, each containing 8-10 puzzles of a wide variety of puzzle types. We particularly enjoyed a cleverly designed sound puzzle in The Witch Hunt path.

➕ Escape the Witch Trials incorporated both linear (The Witch Trial path) and non-linear (The Witch Hunt path) game play. We enjoyed the added complexity offered by the non-linear puzzling.

➕ Escape the Witch Trials contained two independent stories told through a series of videos embedded in the webpage. The voice acting seemed believable for the portrayed characters and helped embed us into the adventure.

➖ At one point in the Witch Hunt path, we were provided with the illusion of a possible choice. We were disappointed that the outcome of the choice did not affect the progression of the story or the puzzle path.

🧙‍♀️ Opting out of the scary, PG-13 rated Witch Trials path would result in missing out on half of the puzzles and content in the box. For those uncomfortable with the content in the Witch Trials path, we would recommend purchasing a different Escape the Crate offering (i.e. Escape the Genie).

Tips For Players

• Space Requirements: A small table (Note: Table size may need to be larger depending on the number of feline familiars helping with this game)
• Required Gear: Charged internet connected electronic device, paper, writing utensil, and scissors.

Buy your copy of Escape the Crate’s Escape the Witch Trials, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.