Tag: Break Out Charleston

Break Out Charleston – Escaping Death Row (Review)

~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 2 Comments

Location: Charleston, SC

Players: 2-10 (We recommend 4-5)

Price: $28 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

Walk the Mile

Theme:

Pretty simple, your team is behind bars awaiting execution and have only an hour to escape, otherwise all is lost!

First Impressions:

We were invited to come back the next day after escaping Bank Heist, and were excited to do so, as we’ll never turn down another escape, especially at a location we know to be a lot of fun. Entering our prison cell, we were much more impressed with the set than in Bank Heist, as the décor was definitely more on par with their Serial Killer room, and felt highly polished and immersive.

High Points:

As previously stated, the décor is well implemented and immersive, feeling polished in most areas. A few nice set pieces were fun to find and interact with, as are the props and puzzles included, which are mostly tactile. A great range of escape room standbys and original puzzles make this a excellent introductory game for beginners and newbies, and boasts a terrific game flow along with several surprises along the way. Connections to be made within the room are clear and add to the riddle solving as well, keeping the puzzle train going from spot to spot. One optional late game interaction is fairly humorous as well, and gave us a good-natured laugh at my sister’s expense.

Low Points:

Some areas of the room felt worn, breaking the overall immersion, though I imagine the fixes wouldn’t be overly burdensome. One puzzle in particular was pretty underwhelming in its presentation and could’ve been made much more interesting with the inclusion of a tactile prop. Some lock types repeat, requiring a couple points of trial and error entry. With a fairly simple theme and puzzles presented without a deep story, Escaping Death Row is a puzzle room more than anything, but a engaging one, so that isn’t a huge problem.

Verdict:

Break Out Charleston bills Escaping Death Row as their beginner’s room, and it would definitely be a fantastic experience for newcomers to the hobby. Enthusiasts might find themselves breaking out fairly quickly, (we still had 31 minutes left when we busted out,) and though it is still a enjoyable experience, Serial Killer will be a much better challenge for seasoned veterans of escaping. Either way, I certainly recommend trying it out! Book your time in the cell here!

8.5/10 (Great)

Full Disclosure: Breakout Charleston comped our tickets for this game

Break Out Charleston – Bank Heist (Review)

~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 1 Comment

Location: Charleston, SC

Players: 2-10 (We recommend 4-5)

Price: $28 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

The original get rich quick scheme

Theme:

Working 9 to 5 just isn’t cutting it anymore and you want to make sure you’ll never have to work again, so you and your friends have decided to do what any well adjusted person tired of the daily grind would do and knock over a bank! You’ve broken in, and luckily there are clues littered everywhere on how to open the vault and steal the cash, but be quick, the cops will be at the door in only an hour to end your 9 to 5 days in a much less comfortable way!

First Impressions:

We were excited to see that our Game Master who led us through Serial Killer exactly one year before would be running us through our next adventure with BreakOut Charleston, as he was excellent the previous visit. As our previous game was a fantastic time, we were looking forward to the next room Breakout had to offer.

High Points:

There were a couple of fun interactions we hadn’t yet seen in this room, dealing with perspective as well as understanding of space that were enjoyable to solve. The connections between puzzle clues, solutions, and items were interesting and exciting to solve, and a good mix of searching and riddle solving kept our group of four involved throughout this mostly non-linear room. The final run of puzzles tied the room together well, and provided a fun physical interaction leading towards the end of our successful heist.

Low Points:

One puzzle is based on geography and requires a bit of outside knowledge in order to solve. The room as a whole feels a bit older and more worn than the other offerings at BreakOut Charleston, and the gameplay itself, while still a fun time, is a bit less cohesive than usual. The rooms and props themselves are sparser and less polished on the whole, delivering more of a facsimile of a bank than immersing you in the theme with it’s set. One of the final interactions is capped at two participants, so bigger groups may feel left out of that section. A few puzzles utilized the same colors as each other, muddling up the solving process in a confusing and ultimately frustrating way.

Verdict:

Bank Heist is an exciting, if sometimes flawed game that provides a challenging puzzle room to solve. Enthusiasts may feel a bit underwhelmed by the more old school feel, but this would definitely be a great room for beginners to try out. Book your break-in at Break Out here!

7/10 (Good)

Break Out Charleston – Serial Killer (Review)

~ EscapeAdventurer ~ 5 Comments

Location: Charleston, SC

Players:  2-10 (We recommend 4-5)

Price: $28 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

You know, it’s really troubling how many people want to murder us.

Theme:

A series of serial murders have broken out in Charleston, 10 victims accounted for so far. The city lives in fear as authorities seem to be incapable of finding the perpetrator. You’ve woken up locked in a dingy shack, made even more disquieting due to the trophies that litter the room. A shiver runs down your spine as you begin to piece together what happened. Luckily the Killer has left a series of puzzles about to help you find your way out! Mighty kind of him.

First Impressions:

After our short briefing in the admittedly cool lobby (and a short conversation about the random Richard Simmons Sweatin’ to the Oldies VHS that was on the front desk) our Gamemaster led us to the room and locked us in. Serial Killer rooms saturate the market of escape rooms, but I really enjoy horror themes so it’s fun when the room is well done.  The Killer’s abode itself was very well decorated, and really felt decrepit in the best way possible. We didn’t stay mystified for long, however, since we knew we needed to get puzzling!

High Points:

Can a Serial Killer’s grimy cabin be called beautifully done? Probably not, but the décor was grungy and immersive. It was great, however, that while the room looked dirty, it didn’t feel that way during our interactions. The room was mostly seek and find along with object interactions and used technology sparingly, which I enjoyed as it fit the theme well. Puzzles that did show up were mostly well clued, and collecting similar items felt like it built towards the next puzzle instead of feeling like a chore. The Gamemaster’s interactions with us were fun, if goofy, and helped alleviate some of the tension. Space was used very well, and to great effect.

Low Points:

One long term puzzle was obtuse in it’s presentation, and is solvable in a slightly less satisfying way, but not well clued enough to have led us to the “proper” solution. There are several red herrings around, which didn’t really add much to the story, but at least felt on theme. There wasn’t a huge amount of cluing present in what inputs went to which locks, which added an unneeded trial and error element to the game. Some props felt a little too silly for the theme, but these were rare.

Verdict:

This was a well done room that was short on deep story, but had a fair amount of puzzles to keep a mid size group occupied. Serial Killer has a horror theme, but Break Out keeps it light-hearted enough that skittish people need not worry, which could be a plus or minus depending on the group. I feel like this is a great room to start with, due to it’s emphasis on escape room tropes, while still adding some original elements, but seasoned escapists may feel a little bit of déjà vu. I still recommend it though, it’s great fun! Book your Serial Killer escape here!

As a side note, my favorite story to tell about this room is that our briefing included the comment, “Please do not lick any of the electrical outlets in the room.” When asked why this became a rule, our Gamemaster informed us that a previous player had done so, explaining that he was an electrician and he wanted to short-circuit a door to make it open.

8/10 (Great)