London

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Sherlock: The Game Is Now (London)

A review of Sherlock: The Game is Now, one of the most expensive but also one of the most impressive games in London. If you’re a fan of the show, it’s well worth a visit and even if you’re not, it’s certainly something to consider if the price point doesn’t put you off.

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Adventox (London) - Haunted: The Curse of Dr Stevens

Of the three games at Adventox, this is my favourite. There’s a pretty set, a vague story that occasionally makes an appearance, enjoyable and logical puzzles, albeit without significant challenge, and a general flow that kept us entertained.

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Omescape Aldgate (London): Kingdom of Cats

An eagerly-anticipated game that never lived up to its billing. As perhaps befits the cat theme, it felt more laid back than most games I’ve played but that took away from the excitement that’s core to escape rooms.

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Lock'd (London): The House of Alistair Moon

After an impressive introduction and a solid opening set of puzzles, the game never really got going – with two puzzles in particular that went well past fun and into tedious.

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XScream Escapes (Ashford): The Corpsewood Killer and Bedlam

Two fun experiences which showed off the set design skills at XScream Escapes. Bedlam was our clear favourite, with more striking decoration, a real sense of exploration and better puzzles while the Corpsewood Killer was a more traditional style of escape room – still fun but a few weaknesses.

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Breakin' Escape (London): Wizarding School

A beautiful game with a great sense of exploration, generally enjoyable puzzles and fun set pieces. A maintenance issue, a confusing puzzle and a disappointing cluing system detracted from what was otherwise a really fun game but I’d still recommend playing.

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clueQuest (London) - cQ: ORIGENES

A game that more than lives up to clueQuest’s reputation with great story, decoration and puzzles. If you’re in or near London – play this game.

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London Escaped: Da Vinci

A beautiful set and some interesting electronics and mechanisms helped but some poor GMing and lack of player feedback took the shine off this game.

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Mostly Harmless (London): Phobos 17

An utterly endearing retro sci-fi game with a good set, fun GM-ing and solid puzzles. Fun for enthusiasts and a great introduction for first timers.