September 22, 2018 – Early flights always catch me off guard. A 6AM flight sounds wonderful in concept. Get up a little bit early, sleep on the plane, and wake up well-rested somewhere far away with the whole day ahead of me. Then I actually get to the day of the flight and I remember how early I have to wake up to catch that 6AM flight… Get to the airport at least an hour before takeoff, and shower before that. When all is said and done, I’m probably getting up before 4.
Still, I can’t complain. I arrived in Boston right on schedule, and aside from a slight misadventure trying to locate my rental car, Christina and I were able to get on the road to Rhode Island right away.
We had plans to meet Christina’s uncle in Boston midday, so the Rhode Island trip was destined to be brief. Escape Rhode Island had convenient time slots ready for us, so we booked a mission to “Escape the Bunker.”
The two game masters, Andy and Diz, warned us that the room might be difficult for a group of only two, but they were still encouraging and told us they’d support us if we needed it. The room also had one puzzle that could be a little time consuming, and they set it up in such a way that we’d be able to solve it in a few less minutes than usual. We appreciated it; it’s a nice touch that they’re able to tailor the room to support different group sizes and levels of experience.
As we dove into the room, we found ourselves in a challenge requiring the best of our communication skills. Not to spoil too much, but it’s a good thing we know how to talk to each other! The team at Escape Rhode Island had a very creative way to divide the space and it made for a fun, intriguing beginning to our story.
As we progressed through the space, the sheer volume of puzzles became apparent. At one point Christina and I were stuck working together on a puzzle, and with the clock dwindling we had to trust each other and split up to cover more territory. The puzzles required numerous different ways of thinking, and each of us found puzzles that played to our strengths. The designers at Escape Rhode Island clearly thought about the different ways different people solve problems and designed a room that would allow a large group to have multiple people shine.
Physical, digital, buttons, switches, knobs… The room had every kind of puzzle. I was very nervous as the clock fell below five minutes, but thankfully Christina and I both powered through different puzzles right at the end to save the day and stop the missile launch with just about two minutes to spare.
Thanks again to the guys at Escape Rhode Island for making the experience memorable. The room was very well designed and gave us a ton to do. The room is perfect for a large group- 6+ would have plenty to work on still, and the time-saving adjustment the game masters included made the difference between a win and a loss.
After solving the room, Christina and I took a walk down to the river one block away from Escape Rhode Island. There was a festival and a nice promenade where we could stop and catch our breath before getting back in the car and saying goodbye to Rhode Island. State #42 completed!
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