St. Charles, MO: Deadlock
January 3, 2021- I left Springfield, MO with only about half of a plan. I knew it would involve at least one escape room, and hopefully more. Thankfully, Deadlock Escape had availability that evening.
Escape Room
Cayman Islands: Locked Inn – Pirate’s Cellar
Escape rooms are pretty much everywhere now, as proven when Christina and I found one only a two minute walk away from the Cayman Islands cruise terminal – Locked Inn. I had known about this business ahead of time, but it was still surprising to see how close and accessible it was.
The Anatomy of a Bad Experience
Christina and I recently completed a negative experience at a nearby escape room, Panic Escape Room. I don’t like speaking negatively about escape rooms regarding subjective elements that I personally didn’t like, but Panic had enough objective issues that make it a perfect case study for simple things to avoid in room design.
50 States, Pictured
I finally got around to plotting on a map the locations of where I’ve solved escape rooms. Now I’m interested in taking trips to plug some of the biggest geographical gaps.
Fort Collins, CO: ConTRAPtions – Plight of the Margo Part 1
May 11, 2019 – On our most recent trip to Denver, Christina and I wanted to hike a little. There’s no shortage of options around Denver for this, but we had heard from Brian at Rabbit Hole Recreation Services that the Fort Collins area had some great escape rooms in addition to its natural wonders, so we headed in that direction.
Marietta, GA: ZEscape – The Cells
June 9, 2019 – We visited ZEscape as a last minute stop on the way back to Atlanta after visiting family in North Carolina. Though I didn’t have much time to read up on the place, their website showed a few clever details that suggested the overall quality of the business. ZEscape had both a 75 minute room and an asymmetrical versus room in which a British room and a Pirates room compete against each other to be the first out, with different but complementary puzzles in both rooms. Both of these details suggested ZEscape didn’t follow a typical formula, […]
The Advent of VR (No Escape)
Originally conceived as video games, escape rooms only came into mainstream awareness when designers started making real-life versions. Now the activity is coming full circle, with advances in virtual reality opening the door to new types of video games that work to combine the best of what both real world and video games do best. It’s a really interesting space to explore, and the people at No Escape in Buffalo Grove & Aurora IL are at the forefront of testing these new digital frontiers. I visited both locations and tried multiple experiences with their different VR rigs, and I was […]
Missoula, MT: Big Sky Breakout – Through the Looking Glass
November 3, 2018 – Whenever Christina and I talk about unique room designs that are immediately eye-catching and memorable, Big Sky Breakout’s Through the Looking Glass room is one of the first that comes into the discussion. The experience takes players through the disorienting world of Wonderland, and from the very start players are thrown into an otherworldly space and have to find their bearings.
Louisville, CO: Rabbit Hole Recreation Services – Paradox
May 11, 2019 – When it comes to escape rooms, I really dislike using the words “favorite” and “best.” Trying to rate rooms against each other is harder than comparing apples and oranges (apples are objectively better, by the way). But actions sometimes speak louder than words, and I will say this- Christina and I planned our trip to Denver around Rabbit Hole Recreation Services’ room #2, with literally nothing else planned on our trip. That should say something about what we thought of the first room, Ruins of the Mystic Temple.
Silver Springs, MD: Big Escape Rooms – Outbreak
July 30, 2018 – I opened the day on a somewhat tight timetable, with goals to tackle escape rooms in Maryland, Virginia, and DC on the 30th, as well as to explore many of Washington’s incredible museums and monuments. The train to Silver Springs was out of commission, but thankfully it was easy enough to get to Silver Springs on a bus and walk to Big Escape Rooms.