While we are travelling to a boardgame convention in Essen, Germany, we of course could not pass on the opportunity to play some escape rooms as well.
Today we played the Dark Sherlock, the Magic School and the Ghost Ship at Enigmania in Duisburg. We had so much fun! The decorations are superb, not only inside the room but in the welcoming area as well. Also a shout out to our great GMs! Thanks for making us feel so welcome!
What a truly epic small finale it was! Congratulations to Team Malm for beating us with 15 seconds to spare! You made us sweat a lot during the last few minutes! We had such a good time participating in this championship and meeting amazing people along the way. Thanks for organising and hopefully see you all again soon!
Escape Quest, Lady Thompson
Yesterday, we got to play the quarter finals of the escapetogether.ch championship. We went in knowing it could go either way but escaped within 26.04 minutes, securing us a place in the semi finals and breaking the room-record!
This was to no small portion thanks to the amazing room by Time Maze. Beutezug 1847 is simply stellar. From the first moment on, you can tell that the owners of the company are enthusiasts themselves and that they put their heart, souls and a lot of hard work and attention to detail into this room.
The riddles are well polished and logical while taking nothing away from a cool storyline that is present throughout the whole room. If anything, we were sad we had to rush this room due to the championship but we will for sure be back once their second room opens!
Time Maze, Baden, Switzerland
We are very happy and excited to have made it to the final rounds of the escapetogether.ch Championship! We’ll be looking forward to the next round and also congratulations to the 7 other teams!
We are taking part in the escapetogether.ch Championship and had such a great time so far. However, one thing we noticed is that the rooms that are participating are of a very varying quality, which of course makes sense given all the different styles and topics that the companies offer.
The best room that we’ve played for the championship so far has definitely been The Ticking Heart by Inside Breakout. It’s so refreshing when everything just works, the gming is amazing and the room is fun yet still very challenging.
Unfortunately, we had a few occasions where things didn’t work as intended in other rooms such as electronics malfunctioning or a GM not paying attention to what we were doing but nothing of the like happened go us at Inside Breakout. This is how escape rooms should be done! Even if you don’t participate in the Championship, go try out their rooms. We are very excited to go back some day and play the other room they offer.
A beautiful story that reveals itself through the solving of puzzles, highly narrative oriented. This is the perfect room to get started with escape rooms.
Zug, Switzerland
This picture is quite dark but that is actually very fitting. Because the room Oscuridad by Maximum Escape is played in complete and absolute darkness. That fact alone makes for a very unique experience.
Inside the room, you have nothing but your sense of touch and hearing to guide you. And even though this room is not a scary one, the fact that you’re unable to see creates quite a strong feeling of unease.
However, the designers have put their all into it to guide you through the room safely and make you have lots of fun on the way. Therefore: Take courage and venture forth into the darkness!
Barcelona
The unique things about the three rooms ‘The dark secret of the congressman’ (chap. 1), ‘Crime Scene: Back alley’ (chap. 2) and ‘Patient Zero’ (chap. 3) is that they are all part of the same story.
Chapter 1 starts out in the mansion of a missing congressman, and your mission is to find out all you can about the shady business he was involved with. The clues you find take you into a back alley, where a murder has taken place (chapter 2). Here you find out about a mysterious laboratory, where it all started, and where you will go during chapter 3 to end the terrible threat to mankind that has arisen from there…
All three rooms can be played separately and in any order, but the story probably is best experienced if you start with chapter 1 and end with chapter 3. All rooms are really done well thematically, with ‘Patient Zero’ standing out specifically. Cool riddles, unique usage of recordings to tell a story and progress advancement in the rooms as well as a lot of love for details make all rooms really special and enjoyable. We definitely recommend visiting these rooms if you visit Vienna / live here and enjoy escape rooms!
Chapter 1: The dark secret of the congressman
Theme: 6.5/10
Puzzles: 6.5/10
Scary: 1.5/10
Score: 7.5/10
Chapter 2: Crime Scene: Back alley
Theme: 7/10
Puzzles: 6/10
Scary: 1/10
Score: 7/10
Chapter 3: Patient Zero
Theme: 9/10
Puzzles: 8.5/10
Scary: 4/10 (scary theme)
Score: 9/10
Vienna, Austria
Powerful and shocking room where there is one! Save the world from an asteroid named after the God of Chaos from wiping humanity- cliche, but wait! A start in a yet-another-office (our nemesis!) ramps up at the speed of light, each step and riddle gets better. I love when rooms have unique creative ideas and this one… does! The room quickly accelerates from an average beginning to become one of my favorite ones!
The GM was very friendly, doing us a walkthrough of how things work internally. Even a behind-the-scenes look that left us wowed and made us appreciate the amount of work behind this. One of the few GM’s in BCN I’ve heard comfortably speak catalan to us. Marc and Pol have put tremendous effort doing everything themselves – and not only can they build sound mechanisms and mouth-watering riddles but have a cohesive progression through the room.
Must visit in Barcelona! Hopefully they have time to finish (or let us test :p) the next one next summer when we visit again!
Barcelona
Have you ever wondered what it is like to be in a coffin? Well, Catalepsia lets you experience just that. The whole “room” happens inside a coffin. You have 30 minutes to figure out how to escape your certain death by working together with your partner who is also in a coffin.
It is an experience unlike any other. Fortunately for us, even though the theme looks scary, the room is not a horror room at all. However, if you suffer from severe claustrophobia, it is maybe not recommended that you try out this room. For everyone else: Definitely give it a try when you’re in Barcelona. The customization options before the room are simply insane. You won’t regret it. Rest in peace.
Barcelona
Have you ever not booked a room because you were worried that the theme is too scary or because you don’t like jump scares but still you’re intrigued by eerie and creepy themes? Well then this room is for you. While the theme is quite creepy – a possessed little girl terrorizing a house – the room itself is not very scary whilst still keeping in tune with an uncanny and sinister atmosphere.
We enjoyed it a lot – had there not been the last riddle which had us quite frustrated and frankly killed the immersion and flow for our group. Nonetheless, its a cool room to check out with some unique elements we hadn’t seen before.
Theme: 8/10
Puzzles: 5/10
Scary: 2/10
Score: 6/10
Hamburg, Germany
The police in Hamburg has been trying for years to expose the shady business of the notorious Moretta clan, so far unsuccessfully. Now it is up to your team to break into the family’s mansion to find key evidence that will put the mafia gang behind bars once and for all. However, as you could have expected the Moretta family is very cautious about their dubious activities. Their secrets are well hidden, and you will need all your investigative talents to collect enough clues in time.
The thematically fitting decoration and the overall vibe of the room creates a very immersive experience. However, if you are an experienced player, the riddles might be a bit too easy for you.
Theme: 7.5/10
Puzzles: 5.5/10
Scary: 0.5/10
Score: 7/10
Hamburg, Germany
After a long and harsh journey through stormy waters and fog, your ship finally reaches the mysterious Phantom Island. Equipped with headlights you head into the misty darkness in search of adventure – and treasure, of course. Not long after setting foot on sand (yes, actual sand), you find what appears to be a shipwreck. Unfortunately, you only have one hour to investigate, after your ship will have to leave because of an incoming storm…
The main strength of this room is its ability to immerse you in the experience. From the headlights to the sand on the floor and the shipwreck entirely made out of wood – the stage is set perfectly. Unfortunately, the riddles are not on the level of the theme, and at times some members of your group will find themselves waiting for others to progress with not much to do on their own. The room is however still a lot of fun and worth a visit for the theme alone!
Theme: 8/10
Puzzles: 4/10
Scary: 2/10
Score: 6/10
Hamburg, Germany
Like all of Hidden in Hamburgs rooms, Neptune’s Curse is on board of a ship. Still, this one is different, since it really is built into the museum ship Rickmer Rickmers.
Legend has it, that the former captain of this three masted beauty had a deal with Neptune himself, but tricked the god of the sea and stole his trident. Not very amused by that, he demands his fabled weapon back, and you only get one hour to retrieve it.
Starting in the cabin of the captain, you soon discover secrets and make your way deep into the hull of the former freight ship. The room has an almost unbeatable nautical theme and interesting puzzles that require you to work together (4 or more people needed).
The only grain of salt may be the extensive use of lighting to showcase the riddles you are supposed to work on, which makes the room mostly linear. A must for all with sailor’s blood, wannabe pirates, ship enthusiasts and people who enjoy themed escape rooms!
Theme: 9.5/10
Puzzles: 7/10
Scary: 1/10
Score: 9/10
Hamburg, Germany
Of all the rooms we played on the Museum Ship Cap San Diego, the Forbidden Game is for sure the one that will stick with us the most! It all starts fairly innocent in an old attic with a faint knocking in the walls but the room grows progressively eery and creepy as you continue to play the evil game and make your way through the secrets of the haunted house.
Are you ready to play?
Theme: 9/10
Puzzles: 6.5/10
Scary: 6.5/10 (depending on GM)
Score: 7/10
Overall we had a heart-racing but great experience in this room which was largely due to our GM Betty who did an amazing job!
Hamburg, Germany
This room was recommended to us with the prospect of being the “biggest escape room in Hamburg“. This, it did deliver. However, most of the rooms had very few riddles each and generally felt too big.
On top of that, unfortunately our mood was dampened a bit by a lock that was not reset and broke the riddle of the whole room. The difficulty of the riddles was mediocre and the rooms scarcely decorated. This, however fit the theme of a prison cell quite well. All in all, the room was okay but nothing to go out of your way for.
Theme: 4/10
Puzzles: 5.5/10
Scary: 0.5/10
Score: 5/10
Out of the other rooms of Break Break, we would definitely recommend Time Maze. Detailed reviews incoming:
Time Maze: 7/10
Insomnia: 5.5/10
Hamburg, Germany
Vvery logical steps in a prison break, felt like being in the body of the well known Michael Scoffield from Prison Break. We broke the record finishing in 29min, with a bit of luck finding the right things at the right moment! A very young company in Hamburg worth checking out. More reviews to come if we manage to schedule their hardest one.
It’s the future and Earth needs to be evacuated. You start with assigned roles and enter a testing station, trying to prove you are worthy of receiving a ticket for the escape pod. Great use of technology and riddles that require multi room coordination and proving your skills. Which would be your role: Logic, dexterity, communication or creativity? Kudos to our GM Carla, she was greatly motivated and overall positive! Our favorite room from teambreakout_hamburg .
Hamburg, Germany
There is a secret hidden underneath this chapel. It has already gotten to the cleaning lady and now she disappeared. Are you able to find out what happened to her and what forces are at work in these sacred halls?
The Secret Chapel is an engaging room with lots of atmosphere and fun puzzles. They might not be the hardest but well in tune with the theme. Interestingly, out of all the rooms we did, this was the first one that recreated a church and the props and visuals are very believable and cool. Out of all the rooms in EscapeDiem, this was definitely our favourite.
Puzzles: 4/10
Theme: 7/10
Scariness: 4/10
Overall rating: 7/10
Hamburg, Germany
We are currently in Hamburg, working our way through 32 rooms, one of which will be the 100th room we do as a team. Separately, we already celebrated our 100th rooms!
Hamburg, Germany
