Escape Colchester: Escape The Seven Seas

We didn’t know what to expect playing this game as we’d heard great things and sometimes games don’t live up to the hype, but it was fantastic, and still sits in our top 5 games played.

The theming was awesome, and the puzzles were clever. Lots of tech, but tech that worked thankfully. As two seasoned escapers we didn’t rush, just enjoyed ourselves, and still had over 5 minutes to spare at the end. I think if you’re new to escaping then you might struggle as a two to get out within the hour, but absolutely recommended.

Some good puzzles, lots of fun. Have felt disappointed at getting out so quickly in other places but because this one was so fun we didn't. 

This is a very thematic room, from the wobbly deck to the visuals and props. It's quite difficult though, especially as a team of two. But we enjoyed the experience and look forward to trying some of the other games at this venue.

Room has seen alot of use. Great hosting

We played this game at their new premises in Whitechapel. 

Two in our group had played 25-30 rooms, one had never played, so we had an interesting mix. The room was small (it is London) and it is a split start - you start in the ship's brig and have to escape your cells to get started. We've played several of the Escape franchise rooms and this one is probably the trickiest we've played. Unusually for Escape, a lot of the puzzles are magnetised and immersive, rather than codes/padlocks which was a welcome change. We had fun with this room and we did need a couple of hints from Erik, who was an attentive and helpful GM - not excessively forthcoming with hints, which was good. He did make us dance for a clue which was funny!

I won't give away the room but it was a bit more of a challenge than Escape's usual fare and the design was very nicely done. Well done Escape, more of this please.  

Lots to do - And a great start to the game. 

A decent offering with some lovely puzzles and a gameplay that makes a lot of sense. Not too tricky but enough in here to make it a room that's both enjoyable and substantial.

Pirate Jail!

Another voucher from Planet Offers saw my family storming through a swashbuckling escape.

Story

Escape the brig and steal the Captain’s treasure.

Puzzles

Fun, but relatively simple- I think only one clue was needed.

Mise-en-scene

Pirate-themed rooms are my favourite, and this one didn’t disappoint. It had everything you’d expect on a galleon: rats, guns, swords and a brig.

Final Comments

The 4 of us got out with 23 minutes to spare.

Good game with a mixture of puzzles. The room had been decorated well to fit with the theme. 

Good, solid game with nice decoration and an owner who cares. One puzzle stumped us a little, but I think they have now tweaked this a little.

Overall good escape room... a couple of puzzles didn't make sense (but could have been us). 

Probably the better of the rooms available here. It’s very much in line with the type of rooms you expect with the Escape franchise. Quite a small space but still a fun room. For experienced players expect to be finished before the 30 minute mark but it’s perfect for families and beginners 

This is escape Skegness best room, one of the better Pirate themed rooms I've done with some original puzzles

The theming is great and and the hint delivery system is decent. Our host was attentive and delivered hints at the right times. One of the puzzles, however, was very illogical. We figured out what we had to do very quickly but there were several ways to interpret the pattern which resulted in us taking 15 minutes to solve a puzzle that should have taken 3 or 4. "Escape" seem to like these kinds of puzzles which is a real shame as it ruins the flow of the game. 

Great decor and attention to detail across the game, and a fun, immersive start to the room too. We enjoyed the mix of physical and mental puzzles, and the ways the theme cleverly threaded through them. Enjoyable game throughout, and works well for a team of 2.

This room was well made and included some decent puzzles but was badly let down by the hosting. The host gave far too many clues in quick succession without giving us any time to work it out ourselves. We got out in 33 minutes because of this and didn't have time to enjoy the room.