April 2018

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Clue HQ Warrington: The Vault

A fun challenge that adds an extra layer to Clue HQ’s usual style of game. If you don’t mind lots of padlocks and a tendency towards observational puzzles, you’ll likely have fun here.

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Indizio (Köln/Cologne): John's Secret

A game that looked the part and, I suspect, more than fulfilled the sponsor’s aims. First-timers will undoubtedly have a ball, but the more experienced may get a little frustrated with the in-your-face marketing section and the abundance of annoying red herrings. That said, there’s still plenty of fun to be had.

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Indizio (Köln/Cologne): Santa's List

A Christmassy delight with charming decoration, solid puzzles and a nice flow through the game. It might be a Christmas-themed room but don’t let that influence you – this is the sort of feelgood game that is fun to play at any time of the year.

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Real Life Games (Ramsgate): Extinction

A game that may not have had the excitement and pizzazz of some of its neighbours but also never put a foot wrong. The result was a game where you focused on the strengths – good puzzles, an interesting story and a pleasing sense of progress.

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Hour Escape Rooms (Peterborough): The Black Diamond

A fun game with an enjoyable finale. A couple of the puzzle caused frustration and with nothing to truly novel to compensate for that, I don’t think this game stands out from the crowd.

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Thinking Outside the Box (Peterborough): Retro

A fun throwback to an earlier age of gaming when times were simpler. A room full of references not only to iconic computer games but to how consoles and computers work. The puzzles were enjoyable but perhaps a little too logical with us taking it easy and still escaping in under half an hour.

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Lockdown Escape Rooms (Oldham): A.W.O.L.

A game that sits somewhere in the middle of the road. It’s a fun hour, made all the better by friendly GMs, but the puzzles were reasonably standard with a few rough edges and, while the decoration was probably on theme, this is a theme that’s hard to make truly exciting.