Room Escape Artist

Spin the Great Big Wheel!

Location:  San Francisco, California

Date Played: October 9, 2024

Team size: 2-14; we recommend 6, 8, or 10 players. It will work with an odd number of players, but with two teams, even is best.

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $44.99 per player

Ticketing: Public. To make the experience private, you can block the remaining spots at a 50% discount during checkout.

Accessibility Consideration:  Wheelchair accessible

Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock

Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints

REA Reaction

The Great Big Game Show is exactly that… a game show. It is not an escape room, although it is created by The Escape Game and shares its San Francisco storefront with The Escape Game: go left for escape rooms, go right for a game show.

When we went right, we stepped onto the stage of a game show set where we were the contestants. Divided into two teams (blue vs red), we competed against our friends for all the glory.

Great Big Game Show really nailed the games. They were all quick to explain and easy to learn. This was especially impressive because each game was unlike the previous one. There was a game style for everyone. Each game had a clever twist or extra layer that added strategy, and generally kept us on edge as to who would win. Plus, it was exciting to see our friends show off hidden game show-y talents!

As fun as the games were, this experience will succeed or fail on the strength of the host, who makes it into the TV game show experience. Our host, Kevin, was fantastic. His abundant energy was infectious, inclusive, and funny.

Great Big Game Show was not about puzzles prowess. If you’re looking for an escape room experience, look elsewhere. It’s a different kind of immersive game and truly does feel like you’re playing a TV game show, albeit without the audience, actual prizes, or the potential to humiliate yourself before a national audience.

Our only trepidation in recommending it was the price point, which is considerable. At roughly $50 per head, and the need to buy out the rest of the space at a rate of 50% off per extra unused spot if you aren’t bringing 14 people, the optimal experience is an expensive outing. This is the same pricing model that The Escape Game uses, but those games max out at 8 players, so the amount of dead space that you’re paying for is considerably less.

To have the most fun in Great Big Game Show, you have to commit to the ridiculous and overtop presentation of, well, the game show, and we had a ton of fun throughout the show. If you’ve always wanted to be on a game show, but you’re wary of real TV studios, or don’t think you’ll have that opportunity, then Great Big Game Show is perfect for you. They have other game modes and we do hope to one day return and explore them.

Who is this for?

• Game show fans
• Any experience level
• Big groups of friends or family

Why play?

• For silly fun with friends or family
• To show off your obscure talents
• The hosting was spectacular

Story

We were contestants on a game show. We were the stars, playing for ridiculous game show glory.

Setting

The set was designed as a TV studio, filming a gameshow. It was equipped with podiums, buzzers, a big TV screen, and cameras.

Gameplay

Great Big Game Show was a recreation of a TV game show, where we were the contestants.

In our two teams (red vs blue), we played collaboratively and individually, trying to score the most points for our team. Whoever had the most at the end of all the games took home the glory.

This was not an escape room. Game show games were approachable for all. You don’t need to be able to solve puzzles.

Analysis

➕ Great Big Game Show made it feel like we were in a TV studio, filming a game show. From the opening moments, to the introduction bits, to the games themselves, it felt legit. They got a lot of details right.

➖ Our load in was rocky. We never had a chance to split our group into teams. Suddenly we were in the studio and the show was starting. We scrambled to get ourselves ready to play.

➕ Our host, Kevin, was high-energy and quick-witted. He was funny, and never at a player’s expense. He was never mean or overbearing. He made the show about the players, without making it cheesy, and got everyone to lean in, even when reluctant. He made the show what it was.

❓ This experience depends a lot of the skill of the host. This role requires a skilled, practiced performer… who can simultaneously emcee, engage the players, and run show controls.

➕ Great Big Game Show had a game for everyone, some more skill and others more chance. There were classics like trivia and spinning a wheel, but each game had its own twist. Even in the games of skill, the playing field was leveled such that nobody would overshadow. There was always room for everyone to participate, and each player had their moment. We also appreciated that each game had a strategic layer.

➕ The games were simple to learn. This is a testament to both game design, and playtesting the rules. We were never stressed about how to play, which is a huge accomplishment. Furthermore, the experience never dragged as we learned a new game.

➖ We weren’t always clear when a timer started for a game, or a round.

➕ The experience used the game show structure well, and it flowed. Our energy levels spiked at the culmination of each game, and we’d relax as we moved into the next one, only to amp up again. Great Big Game Show leaned on the tropes of TV game shows… and that’s what we wanted it to be.

➕ The interfaces were fun to interact with. They were chonky.

➖ Coming in at 90+ decibels, the audio was just a little too loud. It was uncomfortable and became distracting.

➖ We would have appreciated some floor padding at our buzzer stations. We spent a long time standing in one place on a concrete floor.

➕ The tech worked well… so much so that we barely noticed it. And this was a tech-heavy experience.

➕ This was a Great Big Game Show where everything was great, and big. And that didn’t get old.

➕ Great Big Game Show has produced more games than fit into 60 minutes. Players can return and play a mix of familiar and novel games. Plus, the games are replayable, just like on any TV game show, where they get played every episode.

➖/❓ A private experience at Great Big Game Show was expensive. Individual tickets are priced the same as individual tickets to The Escape Game’s adjacent location. Still, we think this experience is best played with your own group of friends (for even teams, matched energy, and similar vibes), and the buyout for that is pricey because there are 14 tickets available to any given booking. That’s a lot of friends to round up for an evening out. Also, we think Great Big Game Show would be optimal to play with only 6, 8, or 10 people. This experience was really well produced. The value proposition just comes down to how much you want to play a TV game show with your friends.

➕/➖ Great Big Game Show sent us a 30-second highlight reel, following our game. It was fun to watch this back, and for the social media inclined, it’s a fun takeaway. That said, we didn’t feel like these were all great clips, and there was opportunity to improve here.

Tips For Visiting

• Parking: We took a Waymo to avoid parking at Fisherman’s Wharf.
• Great Big Game Show will be fine with an uneven number of players, but it’s best with even teams.

Book your hour with Great Big Game Show, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Disclosure: Great Big Game Show comped our tickets for this game.