BOXEDin Escape Rooms - Lost Souls [Review]

Ghostbusters_Theme_Song.mp3

Location: Festus, MO

Date Played: December 27, 2024

Team Size: 2-8; we recommend 3-5

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: It’s complicated, but about $42 per player

Ticketing: Private

Accessibility Consideration: Some uneven flooring and a step down

Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock

Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints

REA Reaction

Lost Souls won us over with it’s spooky story, top notch set, and challenging set of puzzles. After being told we were supernatural investigators, we were immediately given a rundown of how to use our backpack of tools. Simple enough. Now we were experts and on our way to help the unscrupulous owners of a historic site rid themselves of pesky ghosts and finally put in some overpriced condos. The perfectly mundane safety and intro videos belied the beautiful monastery where we soon found ourselves and the intricately woven story told within.

In the bell tower, dimly lit by moonlight seeping through the stained glass windows, we quickly found a way to provide more light. From that moment on we were in awe of what we experienced. The set was immaculately dilapidated and the details of all the furniture and objects were aged but sturdy. As we moved from each scene, the care and intentional design choices were prominent. Additionally, in the second gamespace, BOXEDin designed an incredibly realistic, nuanced, and unique moment which delighted our team. Later, we were prompted to take an action that was unexpected, but so clearly clued that we completed it without hesitation and were rewarded by our bravery. There were genuinely clever moments during puzzles that gave us a feeling of revelation as we deduced a solution.

The story of Lost Souls is mostly provided through letters found throughout the escape room. Our group left the room with a split understanding of the story told through the letters. Simply put: team romantic versus team platonic. Even though our interpretation of the story differed, each of us enjoyed the totality of the experience. The finale was touching and it was clear we had succeeded in putting the spirits to rest. If you are in St. Louis, it is well worth the 45 minute drive to come down and play Lost Souls at BOXEDin.

Who is this for?

Adventure seekers
Story seekers
Puzzle lovers
Scenery snobs
Best for players with at least some experience

Why play?

An incredible set
Logical puzzles
Evolving story

Story

Thankfully our equipment made it all in one piece. Our paranormal investigation team was hired to lay the souls to rest in an ancient, burned-out church. Rumor was that in the early 1700s a witch escaped the Salem Trials, sought asylum from the monks, and took up residence in the bell tower. Eventually, a mob of angry townsfolk demanded the woman be turned over to them. When the monks refused, the townspeople burned the church with everyone inside. As we entered the monastery the doors slammed shut, and our only hope of escape was to move forward and find the spirits that haunted this place.

Setting

Paintings, stained glass windows, and ancient furniture swam into view in the weak moonlight. Our entrance awoke the spirits and the scene roared to life as candles lit up all around us. The attention to detail was striking and made us grip our flashlights a little tighter as we felt other presences join us in the abandoned bell tower.

Painting of the virgin mary hung on the wall of a church with candles on a shelf below.

Gameplay

BOXEDin Escape Rooms’ Lost Souls was an in-person escape room with a challenging level of difficulty.

There was a great balance between gameplay, story beats, and theatrical moments. The puzzles were varied and logical. They included visual connection, riddles, and reasoning.

Analysis

➕ The set was incredibly detailed, and each space had special moments or features that enhanced the realism. As we progressed through the story the sets reacted to and morphed with our progress.

➖ The intro video created a strange sense of deja vu by describing (in third person) the intro sequence which we then experienced firsthand once we entered the room.

➕/➖ Each team member was provided with a flashlight. The flashlights offered enough light to see if you were very close to what needed further inspection, but didn’t help with revealing information for more than one person. This seemed to be an intentional design decision.

➖ The rubber mulch flooring of one of the gamespaces obscured some small elevation changes between rooms, which could be a tripping hazard.

➕ Several puzzles had aha moments that provided extra joy when figuring out the answer.

➕ There were satisfying physical interactions in the bell tower and graveyard that sold the realism of the gamespace.

➖ Some of the sound cues came from speakers that weren’t placed near the items that were changing. This caused some confusion as we weren’t certain where and what the noise was referring to.

➕ For the majority of Lost Souls, there were two puzzle paths available, which allowed us to divide and conquer and kept our team of four busy the entire time.