While this blog usually focuses on escape rooms, I’m always on the lookout for experiences from the wider immersive gaming scene. During a recent trip to the Prague Escape Summit, I got to attend ChamCorp, a five-hour open-world cyberpunk-themed immersive experience from The Chamber.

Set in the 22nd century, the game sees you enter the world of ChamCorp, a global entertainment megacorporation, infiltrating one of two factions and uncovering what’s really happening on the streets of New Prague.

First impressions were great. The game is set in a sprawling cyberpunk world with a plethora of spaces to explore. Bright lights, impressive costumes, tech everywhere and lots of people wandering the “city” immediately transported me to the game’s futuristic world. I was almost overwhelmed by how much was thrown at me, and some newcomers looked distinctly lost, but we found that, as soon as we chose which faction to join, we were quickly pulled into the world and getting to grips with what to do.

On the one hand, the choice of faction is important. It determines the detailed narratives and missions you see, but the truth is that there isn’t a “better” option: the choice shapes the flavour of your story but not the quality of the experience.

I enjoyed the narrative arc but the individual missions were the highlight for me, in so many ways. First off, there was the sheer variety of what was on offer. Some missions required you to explore the entire space to track down an operative, while for others you had to stay in one place to engage in hacking or extract information from someone. Some required you to take a piece of equipment to use in the game, while others gave you escape-room-esque puzzles to solve.

Throughout all of these, we were constantly interacting with characters. There are around 30 across the space, and you’ll end up engaging with most of them at some point. Their roles varied from minor interactions to major story arcs, from sharing information and defining missions to adversarial interactions where we needed to think on our feet. That may sound intimidating, but the actors know how to get you through their interactions so, while not everyone loves that side of immersive gaming, I don’t think it will be a problem.

That brings me on to the part of the experience where people seemed most likely to hit issues. When players went off track, they often struggled to get the help they needed. In theory, there were a couple of named characters who could offer advice, but you had to find them within the expansive space. You could try asking random actors, but most of them didn’t know enough of the storylines and missions to reliably point you in the right direction.

I don’t want to give away too much about how the game is structured, but what I can confidently say is that you won’t run out of things to do during your visit. There’s the basic mission that delivers the core storyline, some optional content alongside that mission, a wholly separate set of missions that allow you to join one of two gangs to take on extra challenges and, finally, the option of moving on to some of the second storyline if you complete all of the above. On top of that, there’s also a huge room full of retro arcade games, a robot arena and a casino that are all free to play, as well as food and drink options. So many things, so little time!

The evening rounds off with a final piece of theatre that brings together the plots of the two factions into a single finale. The stage is fairly low so, if you want to get a good view of the action, make sure you get up to the front quickly. A clear view isn’t critical but being in the heart of the action will definitely give your a more immersive ending.

Verdict –

ChamCorp was everything I hoped it would be. They’ve created a world that you can explore at your own pace, with a clear central narrative to uncover through a varied set of missions. There’s plenty of time to see the full story even if you take it very easy and stop for food and drinks but so much optional content that even the keenest immersive gaming fans will surely be satisfied.

If you’re interested in immersive experiences or love the futuristic theme, find their next opening date, grab a group of friends and head over to Prague for an evening of cyberpunk joy. You don’t need to be experienced immersive gamers: this would be a great introduction for first-timers. And yes, it’s a long way to go for one game, even a five-hour one but, if you’re reading this blog, you’re probably an escape room fan, so I’d recommend adding on some games from The Chamber or MindMaze and making a weekend of it.

Full disclosure: I wasn’t charged for my ticket. That doesn’t influence the review – you can read more on the About page.