Escape Room Fairfax – Molly’s Horror Room (Review)

January 30, 2020January 30, 2020 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ Leave a comment

Location: Fairfax, VA

Players: 2-8 (We recommend 4-5)

Price: $27 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

Who you gonna call?

Theme:

From the Escape Room Fairfax website:

Molly loved songs, and dolls, and teddy bears just like any other girl. Then two years ago, little Molly disappeared…Her room looks exactly as she left it, untouched (by the living). Lately, Molly’s parents have noticed strange and frightful disturbances. First, only bumps in the night. Now, Molly’s parents fear for their lives. They keep Molly’s room locked tight, to keep-in whatever (or whoever) is haunting them.You and your team are from the Department of Paranormal Investigations, and you’ve been invited to investigate Molly’s room. Unfortunately, you, too, will have to be locked-in. Will you uncover the secret of missing Molly? You’ll have to rely on wit, courage, and the clues you find hidden throughout Molly’s room. This cold-case will be hard to crack, and night-lights won’t keep these ghosts at bay. Can you handle the horror?

First Impressions:

Sometimes after reviewing a business several times, it becomes hard to give a first impression, as we’ve already had several impressions. So far, Escape Room Fairfax had proved to be serviceable, with average to good, if not great rooms. However, I really enjoyed their mural for Molly’s Horror Room. I have selected my favorite part, and shared below for your viewing pleasure.

All shall love me and despair!

High Points:

Molly’s Horror Room stood out to me as a very enjoyable haunted room. It wasn’t overly flashy, but subtle touches created a great spooky ambiance. The storm brewing outside, coupled with a growing sense of unease as we worked through the adventure, developed a great atmosphere for horror themed puzzling, and I really loved how crazy the set became the further we delved. There were some cool sound design touches that evoked the theme in an immersive way, and a few good surprises kept us on our toes but didn’t overdo it with constant jump scares. The storyline was appropriately mysterious, and it was fun to uncover the truth behind the hauntings, which all culminated in a fantastic climax that mostly paid off the story ideas well. The puzzles themselves were a mixed bag, but two larger scale set pieces were a great time to solve using, and provided some fantastic late game moments of revelation. Though the game itself is fairly basic, first generation fare, there are a few spots of tech that do an excellent job bringing a sense of the supernatural into the game.

I always love when a business spices up the entry doors to their rooms. It doesn’t even have to be all that elaborate, a little bit goes a long way.

Low Points:

On a general note, if you’re going to have a dark room, please provide a one to one ratio of flashlights to players. This room does not, and it’s generally frustrating, especially if you’re one of the folks doing without. As previously mentioned, the game here can be somewhat basic, and while escapes like this can be excellent, this one was mostly average, puzzle-wise. The room was also somewhat older, with a few of the props showing some real wear and tear, especially on some of the more tactile props we used. The connective tissue of the game was rather loose, and a few times, the puzzles made little sense between clues and solutions. Two in particular have some very weird logic that only sort of makes sense, and even then, only when you already know the solution. One more egregious example makes little sense at all, and has a solution that just feels completely random, even after the lock is open. Cluing overall is somewhat ambiguous, and it takes a lot of guess and check from time to time just to figure out what items are trying to say. The room doesn’t need to be made easier, but a bit of intuitive signposting would greatly help this room from having as many choke points as it does. As the room is supremely linear, this problem can compound quickly, and a larger group is definitely going to have a few folks waiting around for something to do. Finally, though the room does have a really engaging story and atmosphere, a little more closure during the climax would be nice, as a few story threads remain dangling at the end.

Verdict:

Molly’s Horror Room is certainly the spookiest room at Escape Room Fairfax, at least of the ones we experienced, though the puzzles are fairly basic and the game itself isn’t quite as exciting as the atmosphere and storyline. As an adventure, I recommend checking it out if you’re a fan of the supernatural and macabre, but as an escape room, it’s just ok, so I’d advise looking into other rooms if you’re seeking a more complete experience. Book your time exorcising Molly’s Horror Room here!

6.5/10 (Alright)

Full Disclosure: Escape Room Fairfax provided media discounted tickets for this room.

Escape Room Fairfax – 1960: History of the Future (Review)

January 9, 2020January 13, 2020 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 1 Comment

Location: Fairfax, VA

Players: 2-8 (We recommend 4-5)

Price: $27 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

Back to the Future!

Theme:

From the Escape Room Fairfax website:

You and your teammates are customers of a booming new company, New Horizon Tours, which offers trips to dozens of locations across time and space. Today’s tour: The History of Time Travel, which starts…in the 1960s? In the past few years (of the sixties, that is), INSPiRE Laboratories has been rising in the public eye and offers many innovations for your home and family, but there may be more behind its cheerful façade.When you arrive on location, your tour guide is nowhere to be found, but when the offices of INSPiRE LABS lie just down the hall, curiosity gets the best of you, but with nobody tending to your device, it leaves without you! You will need to seek out a new way to return to your own time in one or be stuck in the 60s forever. Can you make it back to modern times? You’ll be successful either way, if you want to wait 50-60 years.

First Impressions:

2233: Fighting for the Future was our favorite room at Escape Room Fairfax so far, and 1960: History of the Future is the asymmetric partner/prequel and/or sequel to that room, so I was interested to see how the stories interacted as well as how the room was paced to match up with 2233 during competitive games. The lobby was split down the middle via designs inspired by the two separate themes, so we knew that the set design would be appropriate, at least!

Subtle, but appropriate.

High Points:

As a tie in to 2233, 1960: History of the Future is a cool follow up, if not quite as exciting. Easter eggs that reference each other are sprinkled throughout both rooms, and the experience is certainly more cohesive having done both rooms. Some of the storyline is fleshed out better having done both rooms, and seeing some of the tech from the previous room as it is being invented is a lot of fun. The set design feels very 60’s, and while not quite as flashy as the designs within 2233 by virtue of their highly different time periods, it still manages to overcome being “just an office,” with touches here and there that feel dated without feeling dated. Sound design was interesting, and media used within the room was fantastic, lending an authentic feel to the experience.

The game flow worked well for the most part, with a non-linear design that kept us fully engaged with the experience. Tech puzzles abounded, and while it wasn’t a futuristic room, the tech felt as though it belonged and lent a retro-sci-fi feel to the game as a whole. Some really great interactions, tinged with a bit of humor, elevated some of the puzzles, and there were a few really clever puzzles that were hinted in subtle, but intuitive ways. The ending of the game definitely felt more climactic than the end of 2233, and made more sense overall, leaving us with a certainty that this game had the better ending in terms of story and game.

Low Points:

For how authentic some of the set design feels, some of it is entirely too authentic, with horribly loud desk drawers and creaky old set pieces that added some unintended frustration to the game. Searching the room sometimes devolved into a cacophony of horrible sounds that reduced us to being unable to think, and unfortunately, a can of WD-40 was not at hand. The puzzles included within the game could feel disjointed at times, dropping out of the theming and feeling random rather than purposefully designed with story in mind. While everything in 2233 felt like part of a futuristic lab with high tech machinery, 1960 tended to have some interactions that were included “because escape room.” It was a little immersion breaking, especially when some puzzles involved some banal office sorting or a placement puzzle who’s inclusion was just tenuous at best. One late game puzzle caused a bit of frustration due to the similarities between two categories that weren’t clearly differentiated enough to ensure that the solve ran smoothly.

Verdict:

While not as cohesive or flashy as 2233, 1960: History of the Future is a serviceable game, and an interesting tie in to it’s companion experience. I would recommend checking it out in tandem with 2233, but would suggest doing it first, as it is definitely not as exciting as 2233 on the whole. Book your time in INSPiRE’s 1960’s lab here!

6.5/10 (Alright)

Full Disclosure: Escape Room Fairfax provided media discounted tickets for this room.

Escape Room Fairfax – The Frightful Feast (Review)

November 14, 2019November 9, 2019 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 1 Comment

Location: Fairfax, VA

Players: 2-8 (We recommend 4-5)

Price: $27 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

They did the mash… they did the Monster Mash!

Theme:

From the Escape Room Fairfax website:

You and your teammates wake up in a poorly lit cell and can’t quite remember how you got there. As you come to your senses, you can just make out three monstrous voices planning a party. It seems they’ve decided to have you over for dinner…in a manner of speaking. The ghastly group has left you unattended for just one hour to attend to the last details of their frightful feast, giving you just sixty minutes to avoid becoming tonight’s main course.Can you escape this disastrous dinner before the next course? Only time will tell. Good Luck.

First Impressions:

Escape Room Fairfax has a sprawling complex, housing a huge amount of rooms, and requiring marathoners to bop between various areas of the complex the games are housed in. It was impressive how many rooms they had, and navigating our way between them was made interesting via the directions presented in an escape-roomy way. After solving the puzzle of how to find our rooms, we were interested to see how excellent the actual games would be!

High Points:

The Frightful Feast is just the right amount of spooky and cute for families and those seeking a game more akin to the works of R.L. Stine than Stephen King. With some goofier and sometime cuddly monsters about, and a storyline that doesn’t take itself too seriously, it’s the perfect Halloween experience for those who prefer a bit of light spoopyness. There are a good bit of beginner friendly puzzles that will introduce a fair few escape room tropes, making this a good room for first-timers to get a taste of the basic workings of the genre. Further, the game flow is very non-linear, with several separate threads to prevent any unnecessary downtime. A few of the puzzles are very clever, with a good bit of humor mixed between the puzzling and light frights. The story is fun, starting out a little spooky and leading up to a silly, yet satisfying climax that ties everything together at the end. Sound effects, surprising delivery of key items, and some interesting lighting keeps the room in theme, as an obviously haunted house of yore. Overall the room is solid, not bad, but never quite inventive enough to rise above that basic competency.

Low Points:

There are a lot of old school “noticing” puzzles that, for veteran players, may feel like old hat, and some are a bit too directionless for our tastes. A couple of puzzles feel completely out of theme, and while one of them is an old favorite of mine that I enjoyed solving, I couldn’t quite justify why it was included within the room, other than “because escape room.” As one of Escape Room Fairfax’s older rooms, it is definitely a lot more basic overall, in terms of set design and puzzling, and while it is certainly a solid adventure, it isn’t going to blow your mind. There are a few red herrings here and there, nothing that can’t be overcome with a little logic, but seems to leave threads hanging that could otherwise be tightened up. A few of the props around the room have started to show some serious wear and tear, and some of the… gooier, we’ll say, items could bear replacing.

Verdict:

The Frightful Feast would be a fun room for families and those looking for a cute spooky jaunt without much in the way of scares. There’s nothing too world changing for enthusiasts, but is good for an hour’s fun. The room itself certainly left us satisfied with the experience, but I’d recommend trying out the newer 2233: Fighting for the Future or 1960: History of the Future rooms for those seeking a more updated challenge. Book your time escaping the dinner bell here!

6.5/10 (Alright)

Full Disclosure: Escape Room Fairfax provided media discounted tickets for this room.

Cyber Raccoons Escape Room – Train Robbery (Review)

November 5, 2019November 3, 2019 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ Leave a comment

Location: Fairfax, VA

Players: 2-8 (We recommend 4-5)

Price: $27 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

Yee-haw!

Theme:

From the Cyber Raccoons website:

Today we step back into the 19th century gold rush and western frontier. The transcontinental railroad has spurred the settlement of the American West. It carries massive Railway Mail shipments and transports millions of dollars in gold across the country from California to the main treasury in Washington, DC.A great train robbery stunned everyone with its audacity and execution. It required extensive planning on the part of the criminals to carry it off. Over $6,000,000 dollars varnished into the rugged mountain ranges of Nevada along with the clever outlaws. It could have been a ordinary crime but the gangs used a previously unknown weapon powerful enough to turn the main cat into a mangled pile of steel.So now it’s a matter of national security and because of the secrecy involved, a famous private company called the Pinkerton National Detective Agency was engaged. They specialize in solving train robberies and were hired by the government to investigate the crime and track the wily outlaws.Now you are the part of a team of Pinkerton Detectives, deputy sheriffs and marshals heading to a Virginia City Saloon with a mission to find the perpetrators of the crime, recapture the gold and to learn the nature of the secret weapon they used.

First Impressions:

Cyber Raccoons Escape Room has one of the most intriguing names for a business, but a fancy name isn’t everything! We were excited to hear a good many fantastic reviews pretty much across the board from other owners while we were in Northern Virginia, however, so by the time we entered the lobby, we were psyched to see if Train Robbery would live up to the hype.

High Points:

Stepping into Train Robbery sets the scene perfectly. The set is beautiful, fully immersive, and densely packed with secrets from start to finish. Boasting zero basic locks, and filled to the brim with well hidden technology, the room was constantly surprising us with well planned reveals and satisfying solutions. The whole room is objective based, tasking us not with escaping, but with determining the criminals responsible for the robbery and capturing the gold they stole for the most part of the experience. The story line follows these lines of investigation well, and drops tidbits of the mystery into our laps bit by bit. It continued to unfold beautifully until the final quarter of the room, when a majorly unexpected story element appeared, throwing our expectations for a loop in the absolute best possible way. We loved how masterfully Cyber Raccoons crafted their universe and narrative, and look forward to the implications of the astoundingly good climax, as there is room for a sequel.

The game flow is marvelous, with a non-linear approach that ensured our group of five remained locked into the experience and totally immersed within the story. The space is also large enough to comfortably hold the maximum number of players, and a group of eight newbies will not have trouble finding something to do. Searching within the room is directed, and never becomes a glorified scavenger hunt, ensuring that at all times, the game remains tightly crafted. Set pieces are large, and allow for some really cool large scale puzzling, and though the game does not hold your hand, it ensures that connections remain overall intuitive. The whole mystery remains in theme, and even when it was throwing us for a complete, mind blowing loop, it makes sense within the world of the game. So many of the puzzles are beautifully tactile, introducing a physical element of the game that I always enjoy, and allowing us to have a great time manipulating the hand crafted items while we solved.

Low Points:

One particular puzzle requires a little more guess and check than we would prefer, as there is a small logical leap to make based on the clues provided. Another main puzzle becomes a little to complicated overall, when small details suddenly become incredibly important, and it becomes necessary to scour the room for a good while to gather all the previously overlooked items. It is an interesting idea as a meta puzzle, but takes a rather long time to complete, stalling out the game flow.

Verdict:

Aside from a few very small issues, Train Robbery sets off an amazing start for Cyber Raccoons! One of the best rooms we experienced during our trip, I absolutely recommend checking it out. Their next room, Space Glider, is due out soon, and I cannot wait to see what these guys come up with next, as their sets, story lines, and immersion are absolutely stunning! Book your time solving the great Train Robbery here!

9/10 (Excellent)

Full Disclosure: Cyber Raccoons Escape Room provided comped tickets for this room.

Escape Room Fairfax – 2233: Fighting for the Future (Review)

October 22, 2019October 16, 2019 ~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 3 Comments

Location: Fairfax, VA

Players: 2-7 (We recommend 3-4)

Price: $27 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

I’m afraid I can’t do that, Dave… Until you solve a puzzle!

Theme:

From the Escape Room Fairfax website:

You and your teammates are members of a time-traveling resistance group from a dreary future where civilization itself has crumbled due to the rise of an Artificial Intelligence system gone haywire. A.L.I.S.O.N. (Artificial Lifeform and Intelligence System for Optimization of Nations) was created to improve society across the globe, but as it gained power, the system also became self-aware. Your team has arrived in the year 2233 on the very day A.L.I.S.O.N. took control of the arsenal of three global superpowers. She is not happy to see you. With time until chaos and destruction ticking down, will you and your teammates find a way to deactivate A.L.I.S.O.N. before you are short-circuited? The fate of the future is in your hands. Good luck.

First Impressions:

As far as we can tell, for the Northern Virginia area, Escape Room Fairfax boasts the largest amount of rooms in one business. Most of them had some pretty interesting themes, and their two newest rooms came recommended to us from one of our favorite GMs of all time, so we were excited to give them a shot! Our first was a very high tech looking sci-fi room; an exciting way to start! It also didn’t hurt that the evil A.I. was named after one of our teammates, injecting an excellent shot of humor into the experience.

I always enjoy a well themed entrance to a room, and this one had cool lighting to boot!

High Points:

2233: Fighting for the Future has an interesting theme and set up, pitting players against a hostile A.I., and allowing for competitive pairing with Escape Room Fairfax’s other in-universe room, 1960: History of the Future. Both rooms have the goal of shutting down A.L.I.S.O.N. before she can eradicate humanity, and cross over with each other in interesting ways, filling out the story as you puzzle along. The room is filled to the brim with tech, as expected for a sci-fi story, and it works flawlessly, ensuring the room gives off a highly advanced vibe. There are some really great surprises as well, including a couple of moments where the lab’s time travel theme is capitalized on in a fascinating way! Almost everything within the room serves a distinct purpose, and it is mostly intuitive what goes where, eliminating red herrings from the game flow. The individual areas of the room cross over well with each other, and a couple of meta puzzles are built towards as teams work through all the enigmas, providing a real sense of progress from point to point. After the initial stages of the game, the flow opens up excellently, and allows for some great non-linear solving, with a few good teamwork puzzles peppered in to ensure everyone remains engaged. The climax provides some fantastic hands on interactions to round out the story, leading to an exciting conclusion to our showdown with the rogue A.I.

Low Points:

The game flow worked alright for the most part, but was especially rough during the beginning of the game, with a linearity that caused some major choke points during our experience. The culmination of this choppy initial stage was an escape room standard that was very lightly clued, and one critical part of the solution was completely random, causing us to fumble for a bit, wondering if this was even that kind of puzzle until the GM nudged us to keep following our original train of thought. When we triggered the solution for this one, we were completely bewildered as to how we were supposed to know to do what we did. The story for the room worked well for the most part, but A.L.I.S.O.N. was mostly absent from the proceedings. After the build up in the briefing towards this all powerful, malevolent A.I., we were really hoping to hear more from her, and actually face her down, but this did not happen. The props are nicely tactile, but fairly underwhelming for the theme, consisting mostly of wooden or plastic items that felt more fake than usual. While almost everything is important within the game, there are a few strange stickers around the room that detract from the high tech feel and serve seemingly no purpose.

Verdict:

While there are hiccups here and there, 2233: Fighting for the Future is a solid experience that escape enthusiasts and new players will enjoy. While there isn’t too much that will absolutely blow a veteran’s mind, there’s still some good puzzling fun to be found within the walls of A.L.I.S.O.N.’s lab. Book your time fighting for humanity’s future here!

7.5/10 (Good)

Full Disclosure: Escape Room Fairfax provided media discounted tickets for this room.