Room Escape Artist

Signs of the times

Location: Brighton, England

Date Played: April 16, 2026

Team Size: 2-6; we recommend 2-3

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: £33-35 per player

Ticketing: Private

Accessibility Consideration: None

Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock

Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints

REA Reaction

While Pavilion Perplex was Pier Pressure’s very first escape room design, it more than holds up a decade later. After witnessing Pier Pressure’s origins as an escape room company, I better understand how they came to create the beloved Loot the Lanes… and having played all of their Brighton games, I was also pleasantly surprised to find that Pavilion Perplex was still one of their most charming offerings.

Pavilion Perplex paid tribute to Brighton’s Royal Pavilion, a fantastical Indo-Saracenic palace that was constructed between 1787 and 1823 before being sold to the city of Brighton in 1850. Pavilion Perplex matched the ornate detailing and 19th-century exotic flair of the real thing, just with a few extra secrets to discover along the way.

Everything was period appropriate. There were no modern padlocks to be found, and any more magical technologies were sufficiently well hidden. The one exception was a Justin Nevins cryptex, but honestly, that vibe and level of precision craftsmanship probably fits in better in 1850 than 2026. While Pavilion Perplex was quite old at this point, the game space and props were well maintained throughout, generally only showing an amount of wear that was appropriate for the style. The gameplay was organically embedded throughout the environment, and some of our favourite moments involved the manipulation of unsuspecting elements of the room’s construction.

For escape room enthusiasts and first-time players alike, Pavilion Perplex is a thoroughly enchanting tribute to one of Brighton’s must unusual landmarks, and it’s not to be overlooked during your visit to Pier Pressure.

Who is this for?

• Puzzle lovers
• History fans
• Any experience level

Why play?

• A detailed recreation of a charming historical setting
• Satisfying tactile discovery
• You want to visit Brighton’s landmarks, but through escape rooms

Story

The year was 1850, and Brighton’s iconic Royal Pavilion was at risk of closing. Thankfully, we’d gotten enough signatures on a petition to prevent its closing… if only we hadn’t lost the petition!

Setting

Pavilion Perplex was set in the 1850s in a room of Brighton’s Royal Pavilion. Filled with hefty antique furniture and interspersed with various Chinese and Indian motifs, every detail of the room was reflective of this building’s unusual history.

Gameplay

Pier Pressure’s Pavilion Perplex was a standard escape room with a moderate level of difficulty.

Core gameplay revolved around solving puzzles and making connections.

Analysis

➕ Stepping through the doors of Pavilion Perplex, we were instantly transported into the past. Throughout every piece of furniture, artwork, and architectural detailing, there was a strong sense of local history. More modern technology and 3D-printed components seamlessly elevated the experience without ever sticking out.

➕ We enjoyed a mostly period-appropriate soundtrack, with a few more modern hits sneakily disguised in the mix.

➕ The gameplay was varied, tactile, and fair. There was a lovely sense of discovery amongst certain architectural details, and the gameplay was at its best when the puzzles didn’t even initially stick out as puzzles.

➖ One puzzle was off-balance, causing us to question our measurements. It was close enough to solidly work out the intended solution, but this miscalibration might instill some level of doubt for newer players.

➕ Each stage of the game had its own metapuzzle of sorts, contained within central dominating set pieces. By puzzling around the perimeter and then focusing our energy in the center, the experience found an organic and satisfying physical flow.

➕/➖ An unusual dexterity puzzle was initially fun and visually fit the environment well. However, the final level was near-impossible, as confirmed by our gamemaster, and while there was an in-room workaround, it broke the “one-time use” rule that had been established at the start of the game.

➕/➖ A spatial puzzle utilized the full environment in a creative way, yet it also led to significant wear on a certain set of props around the room. By finding a way to more securely mark our progress along the way, Pier Pressure might be able to mitigate this sort of damage.

➕ The core premise of Pavilion Perplex — that we were exploring the Pavilion to find a lost petition — was fairly low stakes. This was a nice change of pace from the more common “save the world” escape room scenarios, while still feeling important and highly thematic.

Tips For Visiting

• There is no parking immediately outside the venue; it is all residents only. Pier Pressure recommends parking at Churchill Square car park. We found Brighton to be a walkable city.
• We enjoyed a lunch at No Catch, a plant-based fish & chips shop.

Book your hour with Pier Pressure’s Pavilion Perplex, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Use the code REA10 for 10% off your booking.

Disclosure: Pier Pressure provided media discounted tickets for this game.