Author Archives: escapethereview

Exit: The Catacombs of Horror

Room-in-a-box, Oct 2019

For those who enjoy lining up all their Exit games in a neat little line of matching boxes on the shelf, it will have come as bad news that Catacombs of Horror is a double-size game, packaged in an outsized box that completely fails to match the othe… (more)

Modern Fables: Hypersomnia

London, Oct 2019

When I played Modern Fables’ first game they were based down in south Bermondsey, but they’ve since moved to the east side of Shoreditch. Our confirmation email came with extensive instructions for how to find their entrance, and yet we still ended u… (more)

The Clockwork Door: Alice In Wonderland

Dublin, Oct 2019

The second game I played at Clockwork Door was the older of the venue’s two games, Alice; which of course has a Wonderland theme. There’s no information about backstory on the website, and indeed not much in the way of plot in the game, but your task… (more)

The Clockwork Door: Witch House

Dublin, Oct 2019

Of all the escape room lobbies I’ve seen Clockwork Door’s was one of the most inviting, thanks to the board game café they run in the same location. We were welcomed in, offered biscuits and hot drinks, and encouraged to dip into the board games whil… (more)

Pier Pressure: Preston Manor

Brighton, Oct 2019

Despite having been to Brighton any number of times, I was completely unaware of Preston Manor. It seems it’s an Edwardian manor house well preserved as a museum piece, with a relatively unimposing exterior but rather stunning inside, interesting for… (more)

Escape Boats: Convicts

Dublin, Oct 2019

I need to start this review with one very large caveat. Convicts is designed as a versus game for 4-10 players, where one half of the group competes against the other. Each half plays a similar but different sequence to the other, sometimes with some… (more)

Escape Boats: SOS

Dublin, Oct 2019

Escape Boats must have had an easier time than most escape room companies when thinking up a name for their business: they have an obvious distinguishing feature, with their games set inside a boat moored in Dublin’s Grand Canal. The boat hosts two g… (more)

Escape Peterborough: The Bank Heist

Peterborough, Sep 2019

The Bank Vault is of course a heist game. It’s also designed to be a variable score game, where your success is based on how much money you get out with, not how quickly you finish. Staying past the 60 minute mark is a failure, but the gamemaster pro… (more)

Escape Peterborough: Buried Alive

Peterborough, Sep 2019

If you’ve played a few games at the Escape chain, you might feel you have a good idea of what to expect from the company. Be warned that Buried Alive is very much the exception. It’s a distinctive game built around a specific idea, and your enjoyment… (more)

Escape Peterborough: The Great Wine Cellar Swindle

Peterborough, Sep 2019

Each of the three games Escape have built in the Peterborough Museum vaults uses the space in a different way, relating to the crypt’s history: as a mortuary, as a Civil War hiding place, and most prosaically as a wine cellar. The game room in fact c… (more)