September 5, 2019 – I’ve got a new record for closest margin of victory in an escape room. I’ve had some close calls before, some where we needed to double check that we actually won. At Thrifty Pirate in Hurst, TX, the opening of the final lock and the sound of the buzzer telling us time ran out were borderline simultaneous. It was thrilling to get the win and close out the trip 3-0.
My best friend Jon and I spent the morning at the Fort Worth Stockyards, getting some great souvenirs for family and coworkers and seeing massive cattle up close. I even got to ride on a steer!
The stockyards made for an excellent morning, and I’d be very interested to revisit on a day when there’s a rodeo event. The area even had plenty of Geocaches including some clever mystery caches, so it’s not a bad destination for puzzle enthusiasts.
Thrifty Pirate is conveniently placed close enough to Dallas-Fort Worth Airport that we could make it a final pit stop en route to our flight. I was very intrigued by the venue’s premise. A retro-themed thrift shop with an escape room inside?
It’s not uncommon to find a business offering both an escape room and some other random service. Laser tag venues have traditionally been the most common, but I’ve also seen escape rooms at game stores, movie theaters, and even a photography studio. Even then, I was still surprised to find a room planted smack dab in the center of an active retail space.
The room’s placement is unconventional, but it was still apparent that the room had been designed and built with a high degree of care. The pirate’s cave setting was remarkably elaborate, and the intro video was funny while clearly communicating the rules.
We had one of the more unusual hiccups I’ve ever experienced in an escape room- Jon got his arm stuck inside one of the room’s props, and we needed to call in assistance to free him. It was a bit comical when I tried to keep working while simultaneously trying to signal to the camera that we needed some major assistance. Help came quickly and we were able to extricate Jon’s arm with the assistance of some tools. We were not charged for a hint- go figure.
For the most part, I enjoyed the puzzles in the room. There was one puzzle that I don’t think I would have solved in a thousand years, and I’d speculate that 100% of groups would need to use a hint to get through it, but aside from that, the puzzles fit with the room’s narrative. At the beginning of the challenge, we were informed that we were looking for three names that would tell us how to open the final lock.
We needed every hint, but we solved the room with a buzzer-beater. I don’t typically care so much about winning or losing in escape rooms as long as I’ve experienced all the puzzles, but winning here felt good since it felt like a reward for a lot of hard work.
Being able to shop for vintage video games at Thrifty Pirate was a bonus prize. I’ve got a sizeable collection of Nintendo NES games (I credit Maniac Mansion for instilling in me a passion for puzzle-based experiences) and I was able to find a few more I didn’t already have at reasonable prices.
Jon and I headed back to the airport and got back just in time to catch the second half of the Packers vs. Bears season opener. After watching my Packers win the game, I was ready to get to bed (and to go to work the next day). $46 round trip to Dallas was well worth it, and I’m keeping an eye on when I can have my next similar trip.
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