Month: March 2018

Breakout Greensboro – Operation: Casino (Review)

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Location: Greensboro, NC (There are locations nationwide, however.)

Price: $25.99 per person

Players: 2-8 (We recommend 3-4)

Time to Escape: 60 Minutes

Shaken, not stirred

Theme:

An MI6 agent has gone missing while investigating a shadowy syndicate of villains! He had tracked down their base of operations to a high roller casino in Breakout City, but has since gone dark. It is up to you to follow the trail of clues to determine where the agent has gone and finish what he started! But be quick about it, he doesn’t have much time to spare!

First Impressions:

The small casino we entered was flashy and inviting, and we started to notice hidden objects and puzzles from the moment we stepped in, getting us psyched up for our super-spy adventure!

High Points:

The themeing of the room is impeccable as the casino game tables and items are all very convincing, and every puzzle ties into the story realistically. Game flow is great and connections made between clues and the puzzles they correspond with are intuitive but challenging. The room itself is extremely interactive, presenting a bevy of props and mechanical puzzles that are exciting to interact with and produce surprising effects throughout! Production values and GM interaction was top notch during our visit as well. Specific puzzles were original and well thought out, some of which presented what appeared to be random results, but great care was obviously taken to ensure that each one worked in such a way as to lead to just one solution.

Low Points:

One specific puzzle near the beginning of the game was not properly reset, leading us to believe something else had triggered it and leading us to miss out on a puzzle. The latter half of the game was less interesting, as the decor presented was more sparse and just felt like an extra room instead of a back office or high roller’s den. The puzzles we used to identify the missing agent felt on mission, but we never felt like there was a point we saved him or took down the syndicate, leading to a fairly anticlimactic end.

Verdict:

Operation: Casino is one of my favorite games at Breakout, as it presents a cohesive mission, exciting set and puzzle design, and great reveals! I highly recommend giving it a shot at your local franchise, as it is an excellent choice for players new and old! Book your undercover mission here!

8/10 (Great)

Breakout Greensboro – Do Not Disturb (Review)

~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 2 Comments

Location: Greensboro, NC (There are locations nationwide, however.)

Price: $25.99 per person

Players: 2-8 (We recommend 3-4)

Time to Escape: 60 Minutes

Taken!

Theme:

Breakout City is under attack by a shadowy serial kidnapper! Your task force has been working day and night to find out where he is operating and end his reign of terror, but have had little luck until now. It seems, though, that he has slipped up recently, and you’ve found his hideout within a seedy motel room. Unfortunately, he’s played you, luring you into a trap! Seek out the mysteries inside the kidnapper’s hideout and escape before you become the next to go missing!

First Impressions:

Having escaped Breakout Greensboro’s five other rooms, we were told by the excited front desk staff that Do Not Disturb was not only the company’s newest room, but an example of the new direction that Breakout would be taking with their future rooms! Though we have enjoyed most of the rooms we’ve experienced at Breakout, a more technically focused and story driven room definitely sounded like a great step forward.

High Points:

Though still featuring basic letter and number locks, we could see that there was quite a bit more technological interactions to be had inside Do Not Disturb. The more theatrical production of the experience was certainly a new feature for the company, and the addition of a deeper story was a welcome evolution to their style. Many new and surprising interactions help the room become more immersive as we progressed, and lent a sense of mystery that can be lacking in more straightforward rooms. Once we began to twist further and further into the web of intrigue being spun by the kidnapper, a sense of urgency was fantastically portrayed, leading into an amazing climax and finale!

Low Points:

The room starts out slowly, which can lead to an enjoyable build towards a crescendo, but goes a bit too long and stumbles a few times before the adventure kicks into high gear. The aforementioned stumbles stemmed mostly from the times that the room contained highly specific clues that intentionally pointed us towards the wrong solutions, hanging us up even though we had solved the puzzle itself. Some players may also be put off by a certain complication during the end of the room. A highly linear experience, the room provided a good challenge for 3-4 players, but the maximum of 8 will be way too many to keep everyone engaged for most groups.

Verdict:

Do Not Disturb is an entertaining step forward for the Breakout brand, and though it does have it’s faults, I’m looking forward to how this new design philosophy shapes future rooms for the franchise! Definitely a lot of fun, I’d recommend beginners and enthusiasts alike giving it a shot! Chase down the kidnapper at your local Breakout here!

7.5/10 (Good)

Full disclosure: Breakout Games provided discounted tickets to our group.

Breakout Greensboro – Island Escape (Review)

~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 3 Comments

Location: Greensboro, NC (There are locations nationwide, however.)

Price: $25.99 per person

Players: 2-8 (We recommend 3-4)

Time to Escape: 60 Minutes

She’s gonna blow!

Theme:

You’re on the vacation of a lifetime on a beautiful tropical island when you start to feel a rumbling under your feet! You rush back to the beach to see what’s going on, and see that everyone has evacuated and the volcano in the distance is starting to put out ominous black smoke! You find a boat docked in the distance, but when you get to it, it’s covered in a series of locks. Figure out a way to get it unlocked and started so that you can get out of there before the volcano erupts!

First Impressions:

We’ve always had a good time at Breakout, and this was the place where most of my A-team met and started breaking out of rooms for the first time together! With a new regular member joining the fold, it seemed right to try out the two new rooms Breakout had on offer!

High Points:

There was a large variety of puzzles to solve throughout the room, which allowed for just enough non-linear puzzling to keep our group of 4 engaged with the flow. There were a couple original ideas sprinkled throughout that presented fun physical challenges and encouraged out of the box thinking. The theme itself was well presented and the set was fun to interact with. Our GM was also very attentive as we’ve come to expect from the Breakout brand. Though we had a very minor technical mishap, she handled it very well and kept us moving along expertly.

Low Points:

Even though Island Escape was new to Breakout Greensboro, it had been available at other Breakout chains for a while. It shows in the game design as this one is heavily reliant on black lights, tends to rely heavily on first generation design sensibilities, and packs several escape room cliches into the game flow. Not that this makes it a bad game by any stretch of the imagination, but it does end up feeling very dated, especially to a seasoned group of players. Air cannons were used during one point in the game, and were very loud in the enclosed space, which was unintentionally disorienting. The room was also very worn in places, with a few locks starting to have their letters wear off and the black light being fairly low on battery. Our group fit in the room comfortably, but I could not imagine a group of 8 being comfortable stuffed in there.

Verdict:

Though the experience is a more “classic” escape room game, it’s still a fun and challenging romp. I recommend trying out Island Escape when you have new players or just want to get back to basics with your escape adventuring! You can book your Island Escape at your local Breakout here!

7/10 (Good)

Full disclosure: Breakout Games provided discounted tickets to our group.

Mission X – Candy-land (Review)

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Location: Durham, NC

Players: 2-8 (We recommend 3-5)

Price: $25 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!

Theme:

You’re stuck in the candy factory and the Gingerbread Man has run off with the key! You’ll have to chase him through the magical Candy-land around you to find the exit and escape before you’re locked in for the night! Not that that really sounds like such a bad thing, really…

First Impressions:

Two of Mission X’s other rooms, Vampire Manor and Butcher Shop, are horror themed, and their other, Mirage, is sort of a surreal, spooky experience, so the theme of Candy-land is a massive tonal shift! I was interested to see how this new, family-friendly room would come across, but definitely had high hopes due to how much I had enjoyed their other top-notch, tech-focused rooms!

High Points:

One immediate positive I noticed was that Mission X had reduced their per ticket price to $25 and upped their room times to 60 minutes, adding puzzles in order to lengthen the experience and give customers more bang for their buck! Within the room, we very much enjoyed the bright and colorful nature of our surroundings, which fit the theme perfectly. There was a focus on puzzles that were solved using the scenery and props, allowing us to interact with the factory and immerse us in the theme. Game flow worked great for the most part, and there was plenty of non linear puzzling to do, allowing our group of 4 to stay involved in the experience.

Low Points:

There were much fewer do not touch stickers than usual, which was a good step, but they were still about and were fairly immersion breaking when they did appear. Hints are still delivered via the Game Master entering the room, which still brings immersion to a grinding halt. One particular puzzle uses a less common answer type, but doesn’t give a clue that it should be done this way, so it isn’t very intuitive, and the puzzle itself feels very out of place itself. The room lacks a story beyond the basic theme, so it is more of a puzzle room than a full escape experience.

Verdict:

Candy-land is a great beginners and family focused room and is a great one to introduce new players to the hobby! Enthusiasts may still find a few new puzzles here and there, but would definitely find more of a challenge in Mission X’s horror themed experiences. All in all, though, I recommend giving it a shot for some light-hearted puzzling fun! Book your escape from the candy factory here!

7/10 (Good)

Full Disclosure: Mission X provided discounted tickets for our group.

NC Escape – Dreamscape (Review)

~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 3 Comments

Editor’s note: NC Escape is under new management from the folks at Greenlight Escape Room in Wilmington, NC and this room has (thankfully,) been retired to make way for some much better games! I’m leaving up this review for posterity, but know that it is not indicative of the current set up at NC Escape now.

Location: Durham, NC

Players: 2-6 (We Recommend 3-4)

Price: $26 per person

Time to Escape: 60 Minutes

Trapped in the Matrix

Theme:

You’ve been selected for a next generation Virtual Reality experiment, which will involve uploading your mind into a digital world in order to see what effect it has on the human brain. You’ve been assured that the experiment is perfectly safe, but as soon as you’re strapped in and begin it’s obvious that something’s gone wrong when you’re unable to contact the team responsible for monitoring you! You only have a limited amount of time to explore the digital world and find a way to extract yourself before you’re lost in the Dreamscape forever!

First Impressions:

NC Escape’s previous games were entertaining experiences, mixing basic physical locks and technical puzzles, so when they announced a highly technology focused experience, I was certainly interested to see what they had in store! Considering that they delivered one of the greatest props I’d seen in a room in Ex Machina, expectations were high.

High Points:

There are some clever puzzles in the Dreamscape, some of which have to do with perspective, which is always fun when implemented correctly. Overall, the room heavily focuses on puzzles, and ensures that they make sense within the theme of the digital world. Though a technologically focused room, it involves a good bit of tactile, physical interactions, making the experience as a whole more immersive. The game flow of the room was mostly non-linear, allowing the entire team to stay engaged throughout the game.

Low Points:

The main issue I had with this room was that it seemed to imply in the description on the website that VR would be used within the room, but did not feature actual VR. Also, the room was very new when we visited, but there were several issues within the room involving a malfunctioning technical prop and pieces breaking off of other props even though they were being used very delicately. Another issue is that many of the puzzles involve doing the same task over and over, to the point of the interactions becoming repetitive and boring by the time you complete them. In fact, the second half of the game seems to have a bit of awareness when it refers to it’s puzzles as “inane tasks.” Unfortunately, this doesn’t make completing the more banal puzzles any more entertaining, as at this point, the room seems to be aware of how repetitive it is. Set design is appropriate, but it doesn’t really wow in any way. Due to an ambiguous puzzle and a malfunctioning prop, the climax of the room fell completely flat.

Verdict:

Dreamscape was a highly uneven experience, marred by technical glitches and broken props. The overall experience was interesting, but ultimately disappointing. Given a bit more polish, this room could be more fun, but currently, I’d recommend trying out Ex Machina or The Study instead. You can book your time in the Dreamscape here!

5/10 (Mediocre)