Category: The Escape Game

Escape room reviews of The Escape Game located in cities across the United States.

The Escape Game – Playground [Review]

by Lisa Spira, posted in 2018 Golden Lock-In, Nashville, Reviews, The Escape Game
2018 Golden Lock-In Award features an open REA padlock with a golden ring around it.
2018 Golden Lock-In Award Winner

Game on!

Location: Nashville, TN

Date Played: July 25, 2018

Team size: 4-12; we recommend 5-7

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $31.99 per ticket

Ticketing: Public

REA Reaction

Playground was a joyful escape room. The Escape Game captured the elementary school vibe with a bright and ever-so-slightly cartoonish take that made this relatable space entirely delightful to revisit (and one of the rare games to justify fluorescent tube lighting).

While the puzzling was at times chaotic, we could track our collective progress with a giant glowing report card, and the teamwork-centric gameplay kept us all engaged.

If you’re anywhere near Nashville or one of the other The Escape Game locations, Playground is absolutely worth visiting.

In-game: a bright and colorful jungle gym on green turf.

Who is this for?

  • Kids & kids at heart
  • Puzzle lovers
  • Scenery snobs
  • Any experience level
  • Players who don’t need to be a part of every puzzle

Why play?

  • The playground
  • From a puzzling standpoint, there was something for everyone
  • It was joyful

Story

It was the last day of 4th grade and the start of the annual Summer Kickoff Kickball Tournament. We were set to play against our rivals, the 5th graders. If we couldn’t complete all of our assignments before the start of the game, however, we would be forced to forfeit… and that was an unacceptable option.

In-game: A pair of classroom desks with strange projects resting on top of them.

Setting

Playground let us loose in an elementary school classroom and adjacent playground. Both segments struck a fantastic balance of realism and bright fantastic fiction. It looked almost realistic, but better, in a Hollywood sort of way.

It was a joyous environment. We all took a turn wandering away from the gameplay to simply enjoying the wonderful gamespace with childlike glee.

In-game: A red apple sitting on the teachers desk in front of the classroom.

Gameplay

The Escape Game’s Playground was a standard escape room with a lower level of difficulty and a lot of content.

Core gameplay revolved around observing, dexterity, and puzzling.

In-game: The exterior of the school building with a PA and American flag.

Analysis

+ From the moment we entered the gamespace, we felt like excited children on the last day of school. When the gamespace opened up to a playground, we were positively giddy as we explored the set.

+ The set felt overly bright, but authentically so: elementary school meets Disney.

+ This was one of the rare games where fluorescent lighting felt appropriate.

+ If we didn’t know our teammates, introductions were built in, and stayed right up on the wall… as they would all year in the classroom.

In-game: A wall poster with balloons where each player (student) wrote their name.

+ The storyline was both ridiculous and relatable. This escape room didn’t take itself seriously, in a good way.

+ The introductory video was hilarious.

+ We could track our progression through Playground with our report card. This gave us a pretty good sense of how much longer we’d be in class before we escaped to summer break.

– The subjects were a bit abstract and we often had no idea what subject any given puzzle belonged to. One in particular only revealed its true colors upon completion.

In-game: the game's report card, featuring an A+ in every subject.

+ Playground included gamified dexterity challenges, which made sense on a playground.

+ Many of the puzzles required collaboration. These were some of our favorite challenges.

– When I graphed the data from this game, it became clear that one puzzle overstayed its welcome.

– Nobody wants to do math on the playground.

– One of the larger set pieces didn’t contribute to anything. It seemed like there should have been a puzzle climb.

In-game: a bookshelf, ant farm, and hamster cage.

? We opened up most of the gamespace pretty early in our playthrough. This immediately upped the group energy level. That said, it caused us some confusion as to where to focus our energy, even with the report card’s guidance.

+ The Escape Game created a sweet moment that filled us with a bit of unease, then cracked us up.

+ Throughout Playground, solves resolved to a variety of exciting reveals.

+ This was a low-stress escape room and a joyous experience.

Tips for Visiting

  • Playground is at The Escape Game’s East Iris location.
  • There is a parking lot nearby.
  • Check out the map on the wall in the lobby.
  • At least 2 players need to be able to step over, climb up, sit down, crawl… and generally play on a playground.

Book your hour with The Escape Game’s Playground, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Disclosure: The Escape Game comped our tickets for this game.

The Escape Game – Special Ops [Review]

by David Spira, posted in Nashville, Reviews, The Escape Game

It’s time to kick butt and go shoe shopping.

Location: Nashville, TN

Date Played: July 25, 2018

Team size: 4-7; we recommend 4-5

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $34.99 per ticket

Ticketing: Public

REA Reaction

The Escape Game significantly leveled up their set design, technological capability, and narrative chops in Special Ops. This replacement for one of their original games, Classified, blew its predecessor away.

Special Ops played out in two acts: the first set in a Middle Eastern market and playing like a more traditional escape room, the second set in an evil bunker and focused heavily on narration and adventure. This made Special Ops feel like two games.

We loved the overall experience and preferred the second act, both for how dramatic it was and because the puzzles seemed just a little more refined than in the opening act.

All-in-all, this was an undeniably great game and well worth playing if you’re anywhere near Nashville or The Escape Game’s other locations.

In-game: a colorful Middle Eastern market with spices, fruit, shoes, and bags for sale.
Photo via The Escape Game

Who is this for?

  • Adventure seekers
  • Story seekers
  • Puzzle lovers
  • Scenery snobs
  • Any experience level
  • Players who don’t need to be a part of every puzzle

Why play?

  • Gorgeous set
  • Fantastic assortment of puzzles
  • Memorable ending

Story

Our team had been assigned to a routine investigation of the Ansar market. Our late night inspection of this criminal hotbed unexpectedly turned into a crisis of global proportions. It was up to us to stop it.

In-game: a high tech militaristic bunker.
Photo via The Escape Game

Setting

Special Ops was an escape room in two acts. Similarly to Classified we began in a Middle Eastern market and progressed into a villain’s lair. With Special Ops, however, the Escape Game has dramatically leveled up their set design and construction abilities (which weren’t shabby in their earlier games).

The Escape Game noted every construction detail. They even chose specific buttons that would enhance the player’s experience.

In-game: an upwards view the the heavily detailed middle eastern market.
Photo via The Escape Game

Gameplay

The Escape Game’s Special Ops was a standard escape room with a moderate level of difficulty.

Core gameplay revolved around making connections and puzzling.

Analysis

+ The two sets of Special Ops were detailed, beautiful, captivating… and so different from one another.

+ One of Special Ops opening interactions brilliantly broke with escape room tradition.

– The accessories for sale in the Middle Eastern market created strangely frustrating interactions. In one instance, we had a puzzle solved long before the input was available. In another instance, the game trained us to interact with it one way and then required us to take a different approach.

+ The first act included some phenomenal, tangible solves.

+ The second act delivered incredible visual feedback for a variety of tech-driven solves.

+ The Escape built clear clue-structure and user interfaces into the second act. The puzzles were challenging for all the right reasons. We felt like knowledgable, badass, world-savers.

– A video segments dragged… enough that we broken out of the moment and felt our time ticking away while we waited to get back to the game.

+ Special Ops included one puzzle type that repeated across both sets, with completely different implementation. At first we were unimpressed with the repetition. Upon reflection, we were impressed that the game built mastery, as the second implementation was more challenging.

? Special Ops started off typically escape room-y, albeit in an atypically beautiful set, and evolved into a story-driven, mission-centric game. Depending on gameplay preferences, you will likely enjoy one half more than the other. This made Special Ops feel uneven… but considering how much different folks like each part, also rather impressive.

+ The Escape Game’s quality of set and interaction design was phenomenal; especially in the second act. There was a keypad that was so satisfying to push. This may seem like a minor detail, but it really underscored how above and beyond they went to produce a deliberate experience.

+ Special Ops final puzzle was fantastic.

Tips for Visiting

  • Special Ops is at The Escape Game’s East Iris location.
  • There is a parking lot nearby.
  • Check out the map on the wall in the lobby.

Book your hour with The Escape Game’s Special Ops, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Disclosure: The Escape Game comped our tickets for this game.

The Escape Game [Overview]

by David Spira, posted in Nashville, The Escape Game

The Escape Game is one of the easiest recommendations we make when people write in looking for games to play. It doesn’t matter which city. If there’s an Escape Game facility there, we know that their games and customer service are reliably good… which is not something that we can say for most escape room chains or franchises.

The visitor pushpin map from The Escape Game's lobby. It's covered in layers of pins and looks like a population density map of the USA.

Nashville is the original home of The Escape Game and they are seriously cleaning up in that market. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a busier escape room facility… and that goes for both of their Nashville locations.

Must Play

Gold Rush

This was our early favorite from The Escape Game. It is our go-to recommendation because of its many unusual features.

Mission Mars

We’ve sent a lot of folks to this game and they’ve all come back happy. Our review is tragically dated because we played it in beta. The Escape Game has made many improvements to it since then. Fun fact: after playing Mission Mars we decided to avoid beta testing altogether.

Worth Playing

Prison Break

This was one of The Escape Game’s most visually appealing escape rooms. The jail cells looked great and there’s a lot more than jail cells to the experience.

The Heist

This art heist pulled off the art gallery aesthetic. It was a challenging game with a ton of puzzle content and some nifty interactions.

Nashville

The Escape Game’s original room has experienced some serious upgrades since its humble beginnings. It played a bit old-school, but it still had something interesting to offer.

Skippable

Classified

We loved the aesthetic of the initial set in this escape room, but we were underwhelmed by the later portion. It was fine, but not on the level of everything else that The Escape Game had to offer. The Escape Game is phasing out Classified and replacing it with a new game, Special Ops.

What We Haven’t Reviewed Yet

Playground

Playground is the new game replacing one of The Escape Game’s earlier rooms, Underground Playground. We haven’t played it yet, but we have heard great things about the remake. We’d hold off on playing Underground Playground in favor of the newer incarnation.

Special Ops

Special Ops is the up-and-coming replacement for Classified. We’re pretty eager to see this one, but don’t know anyone who’s played it yet, so we don’t have a report. Stay tuned, we’ll have one soon enough.

Closing Thoughts

We’ve had a strong admiration for The Escape Game because we’ve never had someone come back from them disappointed.

If you’re new to escape rooms, this is a phenomenal place to start.

If you’re a well-traveled mega player, I’d be surprised to learn that your absolute favorite escape room came from The Escape Game. However, I am certain that you’ll have a good time and walk away from their facilities recognizing their customer service, attention to detail, consistency, and respect for players.

The Escape Game Nashville's merchandise area with a variety of t-shirts, hoodies, hats, and other products.
Even their swag is nice.

The next Room Escape Conference is taking place in Nashville, TN from July 27-29, 2018. The conference organizers sponsored our trip to Nashville, Murfreesboro, and Franklin to visit this facility and others in the region. We strive to help conference attendees visit the room escapes that are best for them.

The Escape Game – Nashville [Review]

by Lisa Spira, posted in Nashville, Reviews, The Escape Game

After years of players asking… we finally played Nashville.

Location: Nashville, TN

Date Played: February 11, 2018

Team size: up to 7; we recommend 4-5

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $31.99 per ticket

REA Reaction

Since it opened in 2014, Nashville has introduced many players to escape rooms… and gotten them hooked. We are thrilled to have played this escape room that folks have been asking us to visit almost since we started writing this blog.

Nashville was fun. The puzzles, set, and reveals all contributed to our enjoyment. While some puzzles felt dated, The Escape Game Nashville made upgrades to keep Nashville relevant.

Who is this for?

  • Puzzle lovers
  • Music fans
  • Tourists
  • Players who don’t mind math
  • Any experience level

Why play?

  • Nashville introduced so many escape room enthusiasts to escape rooms.
  • Local theme
  • Great old-school escape room puzzles

Story

Our up-and-coming band wanted legendary and retired producer Rick Teggen to produce our next record. Rumor had it that Teggen had hidden a contract in his old recording studio and had vowed to work with the band who could follow his clues to find it.

In-game: A massive stack of blonde Marshall amps.

Setting

Nashville was one of the earliest escape rooms around and one that got a lot of players hooked on escape rooms in general. If you played this room escape in the early days, you would hardly recognize it today, as The Escape Game upgraded it dramatically from their more humble beginnings. (We know this because we had passive teammates in the room who had played it years ago and were shocked by the enhancements.)

Nashville was a recording studio complete with mixing boards, amps, guitars, a recording booth, and memorabilia from famous people who had recorded in the legendary space. It looked sharp.

In-game: A music studio's mixing station.

Gameplay

Nashville was an old-school escape room that had been upgraded significantly. It was search heavy. The puzzling was focused on building connections and working through process puzzles.

There was also a bit of math, which was one of those love-it-or-hate-it interactions that used to be common, has fallen out of favor in American escape games, and doesn’t make an appearance in The Escape Game’s newer adventures.

In-game: closeup of a large mixing board.

Standouts

The Escape Game opened in 2014 with this locally-themed escape room. This, their original creation, embodied Nashville. The premise wasn’t entirely predictable either. It came together well.

The reveal. When Nashville opened, I imagine it would have been magical. Since then The Escape Game added just enough noise to maybe throw you off, even if you’ve played their other escape rooms and you’re expecting it.

Nashville clued a search puzzle with unexpected technology. It was a neat concept and far ahead of its time.

Shortcomings

This cluing didn’t quite work as seamlessly as we would have liked; the searching was still frustrating.

One puzzle needed to be solved on a flat surface, but we didn’t have an appropriate surface. Our choice of surface disrupted our gameplay.

Nashville leaned too heavily on one “paper puzzle” that could be solved without manipulating the set and props. Given the staging for the clues, a louder and more dynamic puzzle would have better fit the beat of the interaction.

Tips for Visiting

  • Parking: If you aren’t parking at Music City Center for a conference, we recommend the lot under the Metro Courthouse (accessible from Gay Street and from James Robertson Parkway) or the Nashville Public Library Garage (on Church Street between 6th and 7th Avenues).
  • Food: Demo’s Restaurant and Puckett’s

Book your hour with The Escape Game’s Nashville, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

The next Room Escape Conference is taking place in Nashville, TN from July 27-29, 2018. The conference organizers sponsored our trip to Nashville, Murfreesboro, and Franklin to play this game and others in the region. We strive to help conference attendees visit the room escapes that are best for them.

The Escape Game Austin – Classified [Review]

by Lisa Spira, posted in Austin, Closed Game, Reviews, The Escape Game

Bazaar & puzzling.

Location: Austin, TX

Date played: January 5, 2017

Team size: 2-7; we recommend 2-4

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $31.99 per ticket

Story & setting

We needed to stop a terrorist cell by gathering intelligence about an impending attack. This was your typical prime-time television counter-terror staging that steered clear of any specific world events.

We entered a Middle Eastern market. It was detailed, vibrant, and original. The initial setting was striking and beautiful.

In-game, a vibrantly colored bazaar market. Rugs hang from the ceiling. Assorted foods and pots sit on the shelves.

As the game progressed, we found ourselves in a dark and far more generic escape room environment.

Puzzles

Classified was primarily linear.

The challenge came from searching and making connections between relevant finds. It was not a puzzle-focused room escape.

Standouts

This was our first gamespace set in a market. The initial set was not only original, but also detailed, and polished.

The first half of the Classifed had silky smooth game flow.

Classified included neat, well-hidden physical interactions with some of the larger set pieces.

Shortcomings

Classified felt disconnected. The second half of the game lacked everything that made the first half special. It wasn’t beautiful, interesting, or exciting. It also lacked the flow of the first half. It became more challenging, but also dull and tedious.

Should I play The Escape Game Austin’s Classified?

Classified had a great first act. The visual impact of walking into such an unusual and beautiful space was energizing. The gameplay was a older escape room style that made it feel more like a scavenger hunt than The Escape Game’s other offerings. While the initial set was creative and exciting, the second act didn’t live up to the expectation set in the first half. That said, it was still more polished than many escape rooms of its era.

The Escape Game Austin has moved forward since designing this game and we recommend that you try their other games first. We visited Gold Rush, Prison Break, and The Heist at The Escape Game’s Orlando location, but took a peek at them in Austin and feel confident recommending them here as well. They’ve done a beautiful job making slight modifications to construct each of their games into the slightly different space in their Austin facilities.

While Classified wasn’t our favorite of their offerings, The Escape Game Austin is a top-notch facility with excellent staff that will deliver a fun, family-friendly experience.

Book your hour with The Escape Game Austin’s Classified, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Full disclosure: The Escape Game Austin comped our tickets for this game.

The Escape Game Orlando – The Heist [Review]

by Lisa Spira, posted in Orlando, Reviews, The Escape Game

The art of the steal.

Location: Orlando, FL

Date played: November 11, 2016

Team size: 2-7; we recommend 4-6

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $32 per ticket

Story & setting

In this counter-heist, we were stealing back a stolen painting.

Of the four games we played at The Escape Game Orlando, The Heist had the least exciting setting. It looked like an art gallery and a gallery doesn’t have the same dramatic allure as a spaceship, gold mine, or prison. That said, this was one of the more compelling art galleries we’ve seen. By that I mean that it actually looked like an art gallery.

In-game: It looks like an art gallery. White walls with cleanly framed paintings. A velvet rope sits in front of the painting at the end of the room.

While there was a hint of story, The Heist was mission-centric and straightforward.

Puzzles

The Heist was a puzzle lover’s room escape. There was a lot to find and a lot of solve.

The puzzles were primarily of an older design style. To that end, we saw some common tropes, but each was well executed.

Standouts

The Heist surprised us. We weren’t anticipating one particularly neat early-game interaction.

There were cleverly hidden moments of escalation and The Heist managed to steer far from our early game expectations.

Shortcomings

Some of the search-heavy early puzzles became tedious, which may have been amplified in this particular case because we were only two players at the tail end of a escape room marathon.

The lock variety and cluing led to a fair amount of trying combinations in many different locks before the right one released.

We encountered a group of puzzle components that had become rather smelly over time. These were not fun to handle.

Should I play The Escape Game Orlando’s Heist?

The Heist was designed for puzzlers. There was a lot to do.

The set didn’t hold the same allure as some of The Escape Game Orlando’s other offerings. Because of this, The Heist didn’t feel as exciting as the others, but eventually escalated to a more dramatic conclusion.

After playing four games back-to-back with The Escape Game Orlando, we’d noticed some trends in the puzzles and interaction design. While many of these patterns differentiated them from others in the industry, unless they innovate, over time their repeat customers will be able to read their designs.

While The Heist followed common themes, it still managed to defy our expectations.

Book your hour with The Escape Game Orlando’s Heist, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Note that we played the original version of this game, but The Escape Game Orlando is updating it in each of their locations in early 2017.

Full disclosure: The Escape Game Orlando comped our tickets for this game.

The Escape Game Orlando – Prison Break [Review]

by Lisa Spira, posted in Orlando, Reviews, The Escape Game

A prison game without a Rita Hayworth poster!

Location: Orlando, FL

Date played: November 11, 2016

Team size: 2-6; we recommend 4

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $32 per ticket

Story & setting

In Prison Break, we found ourselves locked up. The cell’s previous occupant had disappeared, leaving a few clues for how we might follow suit. He may have escaped; we certainly intended to.

While there was a backstory, this was essentially a prison break mission.

This was one of the most visually compelling prisons we’ve been locked in. Cells are cells, but Prison Break presented an exciting adventure between the cells and the exit door.

In-game: A hallway in a prison. It looks intense and heavily weathered.

Puzzles

The puzzles were on theme, but didn’t necessarily build to a compelling narrative.

While the earlier puzzles were more task-based, the late game involved more serious puzzling.

Standouts

The triumph of Prison Break was the progression from bleak prison cells to a compelling adventure. The Escape Game Orlando figured out how to make an exciting and visually appealing prison space. It worked.

Through deliberate design, The Escape Game Orlando took us on a journey and delivered a few wow moments.

The early puzzles made use of some fun and truly funny prop interactions. These props even triggered a more technologically advanced interactions that we wouldn’t have expected in prison.

Shortcomings

Prison Break rewarded observant inmates. Missing just one small detail – of which there were many – could completely stall out the game.

The puzzle structure of Prison Break was uneven and with more than 4 people, it would likely bottleneck.

Occasionally this game was painfully linear. While extra eyes might be handy, adding more teammates could lead to stoppages in game flow.

Should I play The Escape Game Orlando’s Prison Break?

If you want to break out of prison, we recommend this particular prison. Far too many prison escape rooms cannot figure out what to do with the players once they have broken out of the cells. Prison Break knew what came next and that’s what made it stand out.

It was a cleverly designed adventure with some fun and funny moments.

Be observant and expect the unexpected.

Both new players and experienced players will find something to enjoy here.

While it is prison, it’s not at all scary or dangerous.

Book your hour with The Escape Game Orlando’s Prison Break, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Full disclosure: The Escape Game Orlando comped our tickets for this game… and gave me a sweatshirt because prisons are cold. (Thank you!)

The Escape Game Orlando – Mission: Mars [Review]

by Lisa Spira, posted in Orlando, Reviews, The Escape Game

We have liftoff.

Location: Orlando, FL

Date played: November 11, 2016

Team size: 2-8; we recommend 3-5

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $35 per ticket

Note: we played Mission: Mars late in its beta-testing period.

Story & setting

While landing on Mars, our spacecraft sustained significant damage. In order to return home, we needed to repair the compromised spaceship and launch off martian soil.

Mission: Mars looked sharp. It was a sturdy, polished, futuristic spacecraft. It took us to a different world.

In-game: a control console on the ship

The game was essentially a mission to complete, but the Escape Game Orlando crafted a compelling backstory for the narrative.

Puzzles

This was a modular escape room: orderly repair of each section of the ship. The puzzles fit into this staged structure. Each repair offered a different set of challenges.

Mission: Mars’ puzzles relied on making connections between various tactile inputs. Nothing felt even remotely paper-based.

Standouts

The polished set made every interaction in Mission: Mars that much more enjoyable.

The technology delivered in a way that the interactions felt immensely satisfying.

The Escape Game Orlando created some particularly entertaining set pieces. These weren’t necessarily mission crucial, but added to the fun of the world.

They minded the details and there were more than a few.

Shortcomings

The spacecraft was lockless, but couldn’t always deliver the feedback of a physical lock. There were times when we took an action that unlocked something seemingly unrelated and had no real way of knowing that we had triggered a thing to happen.

Mission: Mars escalated nicely, but it didn’t deliver enough of an emotional roller coaster. There was room for the game to leave more of an impact on us than it did.

Should I play The Escape Game Orlando’s Mission: Mars?

We played Mission: Mars in late beta, before it opened to the public. Although this is not our preference, we don’t find ourselves in Orlando all that often, so we opted to experience the game. The Escape Game Orlando was still iterating on a few of the puzzles and accounting for some of the shortcomings described above. We don’t know precisely how Mission: Mars will change before it officially launches, but we know that it will.

Mission: Mars was a tactile, technological, mission-based sci-fi adventure. It successfully combined game flow with a thrilling environment.

Beginners will be pretty shocked by what Mission: Mars has to offer but should enjoy it nonetheless. Experienced players will likely find plenty to enjoy as well.

Book your hour with The Escape Game Orlando’s Mission: Mars, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Full disclosure: The Escape Game Orlando comped our tickets for this game.

The Escape Game Orlando – Gold Rush [Review]

by Lisa Spira, posted in Orlando, Reviews, The Escape Game

There’s gold in dem der hills.

Location: Orlando, FL

Date played: November 11, 2016

Team size: 2-7; we recommend 3-5

Duration: 60 minutes

Price: $32 per ticket

Story & setting

In this modern story of the California Gold Rush, a successful gold prospector has gone missing and we wanted to uncover his stashed gold before anyone else did. The backstory felt unnecessary, but it was charming. In short, this room escape was a mission to find gold.

Gold Rush started in the cheesiest presentation of northern California woods, but it became rapidly more compelling as the scenery changed.

In-game: A odd looking artificial birch tree beside a log gabin with wilderness painted along the walls.

Puzzles

As Gold Rush progressed, so did the puzzles. They started off easy and relatively uninteresting, but by the final section of the game, we were puzzling against a challenging and interesting opponent.

Throughout the game, the puzzles rewarded the observant player.

The best of the interactions defied our expectations.

Standouts

One exhilarating segment of Gold Rush would never fly in the NYC. It was thrilling to watch David crush this; I would have struggled enormously.

The Escape Game Orlando beautifully crafted the gamespace to allow for the fun and surprising moments. It was a thoughtful, perceptive design. Parts of this set were magnificent.

At its best, Gold Rush executed simple things brilliantly.

Shortcomings

Early on the set was pretty silly.

Not only were the early puzzles easy, some of them were simply annoying.

We experienced a technical failure on a crucial puzzle that really diminished our experience. Our gamemaster was quick to respond, but this failure deflated what otherwise would likely have been the Gold Rush‘s finest moment.

Should I play The Escape Game Orlando’s Gold Rush?

The Escape Game Orlando minds the details. While at times the set was cheesy, it was also deliberately designed and crafted for the experience the company intended. The rough edges were purposeful; the rest was polished.

The game flow of Gold Rush would be an excellent on-ramp for new players. It led us from easy to hard. Both the scenery and puzzling escalated as the game progressed. While we would have loved to see a stronger start, more often than not, escape rooms fizzle as they progress. We’d rather start low and build up than the reverse.

Gold Rush is great family-friendly fun. While it does require a fair bit of mobility and the handling of a heavier object, most of the game offers a less intense path for those who need it.

For escape room veterans, by mid-game, there will be delightful surprises that continue on until you find the gold. And if you’re not from a more left-leaning region, well, you’re in for a treat.

Book your hour with The Escape Game Orlando’s Gold Rush, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.

Full disclosure: The Escape Game Orlando comped our tickets for this game.