Room Escape Artist

Henchmen’s Heist is one of Phoenix’s best escape rooms. Here are our other escape room recommendations in the Phoenix area.

You’re a henchman, act like it!

Location:  Phoenix, AZ

Date Played: October 19, 2024

Team Size: 4-8; we recommend 4-6

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $43.43 per player

Ticketing: Private

Accessibility Consideration:  One area is accessed by crawling, but not all players need to enter

Emergency Exit Rating: [A] Push To Exit

Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints

REA Reaction

A visit to The Nemesis Club is so much more than an escape room day. The venue is located in a hidden speakeasy and can only be accessed from the Soda Jerk milkshake bar. It was exhilarating to go up to the counter and give the secret signal that granted us entrance to the inner sanctum. Inside, an air of mystery permeated the dimly lit and cozy interior. However, instead of illegal moonshine, I observed other patrons indulging in milkshakes, and I was quite grateful for the gap in our schedule after our own game, so that we could do the same.

Henchmen’s Heist itself was a delightful romp through a life-sized comic book world. I had so much fun playing along with the game that at one point I forgot that I was supposed to be puzzling. Despite having many standard escape room puzzle elements, Henchmen’s Heist also successfully elevated the game experience into one of play, in the way a good immersive experience should.

There are a total of three games at The Nemesis Club, Henchmen’s Heist being the newest. I played all of them on my visit and consider the physical set and the puzzle quality to be comparable among all three. While I found Henchmen’s Heist to be less puzzle-focused, with slightly easier puzzles than the other two, I felt the most personally invested in this story, as the story treated me as an actual character, rather than a reluctant person trapped in an situation I need to escape from.

After escaping, we learned that each game played at The Nemesis Club unlocks a corresponding secret menu item from the milkshake bar, which, of course, I ordered. Not only was it delicious and surprisingly intricate, it was possibly the best milkshake I have ever had!

A full day of escaping at The Nemesis Club, finished off with an amazingly indulgent dessert, combines two things that I have a great affinity for. I was in Phoenix for less than 24 hours and consider the hours I passed there very well-spent. I would recommend playing all 3 games here, or at the very least, the one with the theme that appeals most to you, coupled with a fantastic milkshake to cap off the visit.

Who is this for?

• Story seekers
• Puzzle lovers
• Any experience level
• Players who are willing to be silly and have fun
• Folks with a sweet tooth

Why play?

• Strong emphasis on whimsical play that made it fun to suspend disbelief
• Beginning with the secretive speakeasy entrance and culminating in decadent desserts, it is a thrilling experience from start to finish

Story

Our team of elite henchmen were pulling off a daring heist. We had to infiltrate Millennium Man’s superhero lair, break into his vault, locate his most prized possession, and escape with it!

Setting

The set of Henchmen’s Heist was high quality, albeit decidedly campy, with an 80s palette and comic book vibes.

Gameplay

The Nemesis Club’s Henchmen’s Heist was a standard escape room with a moderate level of difficulty.

The puzzles in this game were a mix of traditional logic puzzles and story-based actions, and were well themed to the superhero story.

Analysis

➕ Henchmen’s Heist had a lovely, whimsical sense of humor. It played heavily into both the comic book superhero theme, and the nostalgia of the 80s.

➕ Technology was appropriately and abundantly used for story immersion, delightful effects, and fun puzzles.

➕ The gameplay was consistently interesting. There was a wide variety of puzzle types, including logic, dexterity, and process puzzles. They all felt diegetic to the setting of a superhero lair.

➖ One puzzle relied upon fast player reflexes to be successfully solved, and it took us some time to complete. It could have potentially been very frustrating if no one in my group had the necessary reflexes to solve the puzzle, despite knowing what needed to be done to solve it.

➕ I found the Phoenix air rather dry and it was a hot day so I was very grateful for the cups of ice water that the staff provided.

➖ It is a pity that the really awesome (in my humble opinion) photos taken during this experience are not available for later download (or even for purchase).

➕ Escaping the room unlocks a secret dessert item that you can order and enjoy!

❓The experience uses participant engagement heavily as a vehicle for story telling and game progress. My group enthusiastically played along and found it fun, but introverted escapers may be more reluctant to be as silly. Some of the requested actions could also be challenging for differently-abled players.

Tips For Visiting

• There is ample street parking in front of the location.
• There are a number of large restaurants within walking distance.

Book your hour with Nemesis Club’s Henchmen’s Heist, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.