Review

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Live Escape Essex: Room 13

A room with a slight scare factor that shouldn’t put you off. Good theming but let down a bit by basic puzzles.

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Escape Games London: Escape the Theatre

This game isn’t close to being ready for prime time. The staff aren’t well enough trained, the turnover time is too short to let them do the job properly, the story, while interesting, is tacked on the side, there aren’t enough puzzles for fifteen people, the props are broken, the padlocks weren’t reset and, in conclusion, the whole thing is a shambles.

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Omescape: Penitentiary

The hardest game in the Omescape stable, this was my favourite of their three and combined some nice mental puzzles with some physical aspects and good flow. Warning: requires reasonable mobility, so talk to them in advance if that’s a concern.

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Breakout Manchester: Reclassified

A game unusually heavy on skill elements but without being impenetrable. Tech resetting problems significantly affected our game so the star rating probably doesn’t reflect how much you’d enjoy it. Would recommend for something different and particularly for families.

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Curiosity Shoppe

Many rooms try to give a feel of being in the past but this one really delivers. Not just old furniture, but a whole room full of antique props. Some good puzzles which built up to an enjoyable ending. Fantastic hosts really make this a great venue.

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Amazon Escape

A room that oozes Crystal Maze. If you always dreamed of playing a game in the Aztec Zone then now’s your chance. Some fun puzzles, although slightly over-reliance on padlocks and a disappointing final puzzle meant it wasn’t quite perfect.

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Escape Quest: Bad Clown

A wonderfully themed room with plenty of puzzles and props to keep you entertained and the golden ticket system means you’re virtually guaranteed to get almost the full 90 minutes in the room. Highly recommended!

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Agent November: Major X Plow-Shun

The original Agent November game recreates an escape room vibe in a London park. Expect a fun game with a very small amount of walking in a safe environment and a variety of puzzles using the local space.

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Hidden Rooms: Invisible Space

Outside the room It’s almost a year since I first visited Hidden Rooms, just after their initial opening. In that time, they’ve had an almost constant Groupon offer and the stories I kept hearing coming back were that the rooms were OK but the customer service was poor and some of the puzzles were broken. I
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Agent November: The Rainbow Syndicate

The easiest of Agent November’s games, the Rainbow Syndicate combines escape room concepts with an outdoor experience. Expect a short amount of walking around the area local to Euston and a variety of puzzles using the local space.