Room Escape Artist

Come for the graffiti, stay for the rest

Location: Houston, TX

Date Played: July 7, 2025

Team Size: 2-10; we recommend 2-4

Duration: 60 minutes

Price:  $34.50 per player

Ticketing: Private

Accessibility Consideration: None

Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock

Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints

REA Reaction

If the first half of Aurora could match the coherence, intrigue, and spectacle of the second half, this would be an easy experience to recommend. Unfortunately, the first half was so haphazard and underwhelming as to make us question whether the combination was worthwhile. The whiplash was significant, but the end vibes stuck with us.

I can certainly appreciate a game where a slow start crescendos into more excitement, and I suspect that’s what Aurora was striving for. However, the first act felt like sitting in stop-and-go traffic. The relationships between clues and inputs seemed random and without logic. Logic even actively worked against us at times. We just weren’t on the same wavelength as the design, so we were left standing around with no leads.

Now, the latter part of the game clicked quickly, felt two orders of magnitude more logical than the early game, and had dazzling payoffs. It wasn’t challenging, but the tasks allowed us to play with cool things, and we felt like we were accomplishing important goals. The late game effects were some of the best in Houston.

So, what to do? If you’re strictly a puzzler, beware. Otherwise, if you go into this room with appropriate expectations and patience, you will eventually be rewarded.

Who is this for?

• Scenery snobs
• Any experience level

Why play?

• For an exciting, high-stakes endgame

Story

We investigative reporters were hot on the trail of Voltiac, someone doing something somewhere in a graffitied alleyway. We had a hunch he was up to no good.

Setting

Our investigation had led us to an alleyway covered in cryptic graffiti and surrounded by doors. Really, it was pretty tidy for a suspicious alleyway.

Gameplay

Locktopia’s Aurora was a standard escape room with a low to moderate level of difficulty.

Gameplay revolved around observing, making connections, and completing tasks.

Analysis

➖ The early game puzzles suffered from poor relationships between clues and solutions, and the resulting discoveries failed to move the game forward.

➕/➖ An onslaught of graffiti provided excellent ambiance and was delightful to study, but its relevance to the game was ambiguous and distracting.

➖ A common dexterity puzzle would be tricky and maybe exasperating for newcomers and tedious for oldcomers.

➖ A mid-game video suggested that timing was restarting… but it wasn’t.

➕ The second act flowed much more smoothly than the first, with clear connections among puzzle inputs and their purposes. We wished the whole game had been as logical.

➕ We loved the riveting endgame sequence for its thrilling tasks and impressive effects.

Tips For Visiting

• There is a parking lot.
• 100% Taquito is one of my favorite restaurants in the known universe, and it is exactly three minutes away from Locktopia.

Book your hour with Locktopia’s Aurora, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Disclosure: Locktopia provided a complimentary game.