Tag: Texas

Can You Rob the Bank? – Alien Blood Bank Robbery (Review)

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Editor’s Note: Today’s review comes to us from Texas correspondent, Cathy Nanni! Thanks Cathy for another great review!

Players:  Up to 10 (We recommend 4-6)

Price: $28.00 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

I Just Took A DNA Test, Turns Out I’m 100% That Alien!

Theme

Eddie, the human loving alien, has had it! He’s tired of his alien superiors taking and experimenting on the DNA of humans. With his help, you must break into the Alien Advancement Laboratory and steal back your DNA.

First Impressions:

After boasting about the great experience I had at Can You Rob the Bank? to my girl friends, we decided to head there for our monthly Moms’ Night Out. The owner, Jill, was once again very easy to work with in booking our room. Her employees were very helpful in getting us signed in and we were even able to start the room early. We were also given costumes to wear to play the parts of humans pretending to be aliens. I love any excuse to wear a costume! Also, as a plus size woman, I appreciated that they had lab coats in a large variety of sizes.

High Points:

When we stepped into the room, we immediately felt as if we were in a space age laboratory. Everything from the white walls to the reflective ceiling tiles fit the alien blood bank theme perfectly. One of my favorite parts of the room was Eddie our “alien on the inside”. He has a very quirky personality a his character shines through via the clues to the puzzles. Eddie is very passionate about something that adds a really fun twist to the room; I promised I wouldn’t spoil it, but I will say it is an addition that adds so much whimsy to the room, differentiating itself from your typical alien spaceship escape room. I really felt like it was very important to the designers that the story was integrated well into the puzzles and props for this room, and it absolutely shows throughout the experience. You have engaging scientific equipment to investigate, including a giant microscope, as well as nods to Eddie’s janitorial career such as his locker and cleaning supplies. There is an enormous variety of puzzles in the room that are sure to excite players new to the hobby as well as enthusiasts. Even though it is a sci-fi themed room, there is a good mix of tech and non-tech puzzles. All of the technically based puzzles worked flawlessly which I know is something enthusiasts will appreciate!

Can You Rob the Bank? does an impressive job of scaffolding their puzzles. They start players off with easier puzzles to build confidence before hitting you with so more challenging ones that take a little more time to figure out. As an educator, I do this with my students as well, helping them feel successful so their confidence is raised when things get a little more challenging. This confidence boost and smooth difficulty curve ensures that when the going gets tough, things stay fun, and it takes them longer to reach their frustration level. This really communicates to me that Can You Rob the Bank? understands that this hobby is meant to be challenging but fun.

Low Points:

If you are color blind, this is not the room for  you. There were at least four color based puzzles in the room, one of which involved varying shades that became quite challenging due to the mood lighting in the room. There is also one puzzle that caused us to miss a clue that would be needed in a later puzzle because it was too easy to just guess the answer.

Verdict:

With a challenging, yet entertaining room that boasts a wide variety of excellent puzzles, Can You Rob the Bank? presents another amazing room! If you’re looking for a really entertaining twist on an alien themed room, definitely check out the Alien Blood Bank here!

9/10 (Excellent)

Full Disclosure: Can You Rob the Bank offered a discount and private room to our group.

 

Can You Rob The Bank? Dallas, TX – Wild West Bank Robbery (Review)

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Editor’s Note: Today’s review comes to us from Texas correspondent, Cathy Nanni! Thanks Cathy for another great review, and for making us jealous about this room!

Location: Dallas, TX

Players:  Up to 10 (We recommend 3-5)

Price: $28.00 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

Get the gold and get out before the white hats arrive!

Theme:

Strap on your chaps and put on your ten gallon hat. It’s time to rob the local bank. Following the footsteps of Billy the Kid, can you and your team of bandits grab the gold and ride off into the sunset before the sheriff catches you?

First Impressions:

Jill, the owner of Can You Rob the Bank?, was incredibly warm and welcoming, and her passion for her business and the hobby of escaping was evident from the minute I walked in the door. If you recall my last review, I experienced one of the worst rooms I’d ever played, (also a Western Bank Heist,) with some friends who were new to the hobby. Jill assured me that we would have a much better time at “Can You Rob the Bank?” so I invited a few of those friends back to join me. I’m so glad I did because we had a fantastic time!

High Points:

In the spacious lobby, there is an interactive wall display of all the various locks used in the rooms at Can You Rob the Bank? As an educator, I appreciate this because many people are tactile learners and would therefore benefit greatly from learning how to use the locks before entering the room. Though several escape rooms do demonstrate how to use their locks during their briefings, having a hands on experience is much more beneficial. It was a small touch but another indicator of how important it is to Jill that her players have fun and aren’t bogged down by mechanical errors.

The room itself was decorated excellently with many “wild west” touches, including pictures of outlaws on the walls, cowboy boots, and wood paneling.  Even though the room contained all the props that I’ve come to associate with a wild west bank themed room, (safety deposit boxes, poker table, and a vault,) the puzzles and clues were so entertaining that it didn’t feel overdone.  The clue delivery system was also on theme which I always appreciate. When a hint is needed, players use an antique wall mounted phone providing a fun and immersive way to interact with the GM. I appreciate it when a room has a thematically appropriate clue system especially when it runs smoothly as this one. The puzzles were fun, intuitive, and on theme. My favorite was one that gave you a chance to test your quick shooting skills allowing you to feel like you truly are participating in a bank heist. The puzzles are also a good mix and easy and challenging. Even with the more difficult puzzles, we didn’t reach a level of frustration that lessened the fun we were having and our party of three felt fully engaged with the room throughout the experience. I appreciated how on theme the puzzles where, as even when looking for codes for numeric and alpha locks, the clues were crafted in a way that ensured everything remained in theme.

Low Points:

There really weren’t any low points for this room, but if I had to be nit picky, I’d say there is one puzzle involving pictures that caused a bit of a time suck due to our team having different interpretations of the clue. My only other low point was that I enjoyed the room so much I was ready to do a second room after, but unfortunately, my friends needed to eat dinner. Next time, I’ll bring snacks!

Verdict:

My friends and I can’t wait to return to Can You Rob the Bank? to try their other rooms! Jill, the owner and our GM, was a wonderful host and the room was fantastically engaging for veteran players those new to the hobby. If you’re in the Dallas area, I recommend checking out this local business! You can attempt your Wild West Bank Robbery here!

10/10 (Phenomenal)

Full Disclosure: Can You Rob the Bank offered a discount and private room to our group.

 

Escape the Room Dallas, TX– Western Bank Heist (Guest Review)

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Today’s review was graciously written for us by Texas correspondent, Cathy Nanni! We thank her for enduring this room so that we don’t have to.

Location: Dallas, TX

Players:  Up to 10 (We recommend 4-6)

Price: $28.00 on the weekdays, $30 on the weekends per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

Git along lil’ doggies and rob that bank!

Theme:

Round up your best Huckleberries and put on your black hats. In this Western, you’re playing the bad guy. You have 60 minutes to break into the bank, grab the loot and get out of Dodge.

Impressions:

I was excited to check out Escape the Room. I was bringing along three friends who had never done an escape room before. I wish I hadn’t.

Escape the Room did not offer up a great first impression. In hindsight, this should have been a major red flag, as the sparsely decorated lobby only had a folding table set up for the receptionist who didn’t even offer us a greeting as we walked in. After getting her attention and checking in, we were told to wait for the rest of the people signed up to do the room with us. Our room was scheduled to start at 7, but we weren’t invited back to the room until almost quarter after. The GM guided us right into the room for our safety talk and introduction to the room. There was a large TV on the wall that myself and another room veteran thought would show the backstory for the room but it turned out to be the clock and the means of communication between us and the GM.

We were not offered a locker or basket to place our things in. Along the wall under the TV was a wooden bench. The GM told us to place our things on this bench (remember this, it will become important later!) We set our things down on top of the bench and began the game.

High Points:

The set was well done and felt like the inside of an old timey bank. The walls were covered in wood paneling, there were antique looking safety deposit boxes, and even a creepy banker mannequin.

Several of the puzzles allowed you to  use items you’d expect to find in a Western movie which was a fun touch that added to the theme. They even had several antique items you could manipulate which made the room feel more authentic.

western-bank-heist-1

At least the set is nice?

Low Points:

This is the only escape room I have ever played that allowed people to join after the rest of the group had already begun the game. A couple joined our game about 10 minutes in, breaking the flow. This couple had also never done an escape room before and had missed the GM’s introduction, further confusing things.

The hint system was incredibly frustrating. It should be simple, players ask for a hint out loud and the GM submits the hint via the large TV mounted to the wall. I’m guessing that Escape the Room doesn’t really trust their GMs to be able to run a room because it took a very long time for the GM to respond and when she did, it was very obviously a scripted response that never really answered our questions, just gave a general hint.

The puzzles were so poorly clued that even with half of our group being experienced players, we had to ask for hints for almost every puzzle. One puzzle even required outside knowledge of pop culture. Then there was the bench. Remember the bench the GM directed us to place all of our personal items on? Turns out that bench had a puzzle on it and now we were required to lose precious time moving all of our personal items to access the puzzle.

Another time sink we encountered was a puzzle that required us to use an antique machine that unfortunately didn’t work. We lost a lot of time trying to get help through the hint system, especially since the only responses our GM could use were automated and not actually pertinent to our conundrum. Eventually, a staff member had to come into the room and fix the machine. We were not compensated for the time lost due to this even though the room was strictly linear. This tech fail left our group of 10 standing around twiddling our thumbs for over 5 minutes!

Verdict:

Don’t waste your time with this one unless you want to deal with late guests, a horrible hint system, frustrating puzzles and broken tech. In case you’d like to sate your morbid curiosity, you can do so here. We’d recommend against it, however.

1/10 (Rubbish)

 

The Escape Game Dallas – The Heist (Review)

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Today, we have another great guest review from friend of the site and esteemed escape colleague, Cathy Nanni! Thanks again to her for writing these reviews!

Location: Grapevine, TX

Players:  Up to 8 (We recommend 4)

Price: $31.99 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

Can You Be the Artful Dodger?

Theme:

You’re on a covert mission to steal back a priceless piece of art from a vain and corrupt art dealer. Your mission, however, is as deep undercover as it gets! Law enforcement does not know that you’re going to be embarking on this mission, and should you fail, agency involvement will be disavowed and you will be on your own and behind bars. But if all goes well you’ll be hailed as heroes! You have 60 minutes to make it happen, good luck!

First Impressions:

My experience with The Escape Game began before I had left my house. As soon as you load their website, a chat window pops up asking if you have any questions. The person I chatted with was very helpful in guiding me to which room would be best suited for our group which included my husband, our seven year old son, and my mother-in-law, who had never done an escape room before.

The Escape Game Dallas is located inside the Grapevine Mills Mall. The lobby is very small with a few computers to sign waivers, a bench, and a small souvenir store section. I wish there were more signage as it’s not very easy to find.

As soon as we were checked in, we were taken to our room which began in a small gallery. Several famous paintings hang on the white walls; each painting  brightly illuminated by the hanging gallery lights. After viewing the rules video and storyline video the game begins. Make sure you pay attention to the storyline video or you’ll miss some vital clues to help you escape!

High Points:

Once again The Escape Game developed an excellent set. The clues and set pieces were all very art focused, adding to the immersion of the theme. I liked that they chose recognizable works of art for their gallery, as it made the experience feel more realistic and relatable.  Several puzzles required use of props in the room that made for a very interactive and tactile environment.  There was a unique magic trick style puzzle that I really enjoyed as it was something I’d never seen used in a room before. I can tell from both rooms I have done at The Escape Game that immersive theming is important to them.

Low Points:

While this room was beautiful to look at it was not intuitive to solve at all, leading to a frustrating experience. Many of the puzzles required the use of several components found throughout the room but they weren’t clued well enough that you could intuitively tell what was important and what was not. One puzzle was particularly aggravating because part of it looked identical to the button you press to receive clues. We wasted a lot of time reticent to press that button, worried that it would cause us to use a clue unnecessarily.  Another puzzle piece was difficult to find due to poor lighting in part of the room. It felt like they had run out of ideas and simply decided to toss it in a dark corner.

Unlike Gold Rush, I don’t feel this room is worth the extra cost of admission compared to other rooms in the area. The set was well decorated but compared to the other art gallery/heist rooms I have done, it didn’t deliver a unique experience worthy of the price.

Verdict:

The Heist was pretty to look at but frustrating to play, failing to justify it’s fairly expensive price of admission. I would definitely not recommend this room to a beginner. Veterans may be able to escape, but the experience is wholly lacking. You can, however, book your heist here.

4/10 (Subpar)

The Escape Game Dallas – Gold Rush (Review)

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Today’s review comes from friend of the site, once and future teammate, and progenitor of the Keyed Up team name, Cathy Nanni! We’re sad she moved to Dallas, depriving us of her excellent escape skills, but are happy she’s been busting out of rooms recently, and hope to team up with her again real soon! Thank you to Cathy for writing this review for us, and we look forward to hosting more of her reviews in the future!

Location: Grapevine, TX

Players:  Up to 8 (We recommend 4-6)

Price: $31.99 per person

Time to Escape: 60 minutes

AU, find the gold before the mob arrives!

Theme:

Clyde Hamilton was a prospector in Northern California, and a pretty successful one to boot! Rumors stated that he had stashed his treasure somewhere in his cabin, but for obvious reasons, no one has verified this claim. Unfortunately, Clyde’s love of gambling has gotten him tangled up with the wrong people, and he has gone missing. Fortunately for you, this gives you a shot at finding his gold! Unfortunately, the people that disappeared Clyde are members of the mob, and they’re looking for his gold as well! You’ve only got a small window of opportunity before they arrive, so you’ll need to be in and out with the gold before then!

First Impressions:

The Escape Game Dallas is located inside the Grapevine Mills Mall. It took us a few minutes to find it;  some signage outside the mall would have been helpful. The lobby is small but they make great use of the space by having a counter on wheels that can be moved for group pictures at the end of your escape.

The Game Master took us into the room right away and we immediately felt like we’d been transported to a forest in Northern California.  The lighting was set to feel like twilight and the air smelled of trees.  We stood outside a cabin that had been built with wood imported from Northern California! That’s the kind of attention to detail that was apparent throughout our experience in Gold Rush. Before we began, we were shown two briefing videos, one regarding the rules and regulations of The Escape Game and the other an intro to the story behind the room. I’m not a big fan of when venues show their intro videos while you’re in the room because I find it hard to focus and not begin solving puzzles, but these videos were well done and entertaining.

High Points:

The set was fantastic! It really transported us to a rustic cabin in the middle of the forest. The puzzles flowed nicely and even though there were seven people in our party, none of us felt as though we were just standing around with nothing to do. The room was really interactive with some creative and fun puzzles that fit the theme. All of the puzzles used props or activities that you would expect to encounter in an old prospector’s cabin including an interaction that involves firing a rifle!  As you progress through the room the type of puzzles evolve via the storyline you’re following. For the most part the puzzles were nonlinear so multiple people could be working on the room at once. It was impressively thought out!

You were allowed three clues and any additional clues would cause your time to be penalized. I’d never played with a clue system like that before so I was curious how I’d like it, however, we fortunately only needed the three allotted clues. To receive a clue you pressed a button and the Game Master responded on conveniently placed tv monitors. The button was the most modern looking piece in the room aside from the monitors used to communicate with the Game Master, which made it easy to find.

It was Mother’s Day when we visited The Escape Game and when we were finished they presented myself and the other mom in our group with flowers and a card. It was a nice personal touch.

Low Points:

There was one puzzle that was particularly difficult to see and would benefit from some more lighting.  It’s also quite a bit pricier than other rooms in the area. This was my first room in the Dallas metroplex and I had heard that The Escape Game had some of the best sets around. I think I may be spoiled because the rooms I had been to in Charlotte, NC had sets that also felt Hollywood-level and didn’t come with an extra cost.

There was one puzzle where the game master had to step in and warn us not to use a prop too soon. I find this frustrating in rooms because there’s always the chance the GM doesn’t catch it and you’re left with a puzzle you can’t complete.

Verdict:

Gold Rush was a great immersive room.  If you truly want to feel like you’re on the hunt for hidden gold in the mountains of Northern California, you will enjoy this room. The group we went with was a mix of ages from 7 years old  up to early 50’s and our experience varied from first timers to enthusiasts. Everyone seemed to enjoy the room and especially the fun surprises some of the puzzles offered, especially my seven year old son who said he felt like he was in a movie. There were enough interactions that nobody in our group became bored and what I really liked was that there was a good variety in the skill sets needed for the puzzles so everyone had a moment to shine. It wasn’t just about always finding keys or codes. Overall, we all left smiling and it was a great way to spend Mother’s Day. You can book your search for gold here!

9/10 (Excellent)