Escape Hunt Oxford: Alice In Puzzleland

This was my favourite of the Escape Hunt games I've played but I still wouldn't really recommend it to anyone with much escape room experience - okay for a new player maybe. Some of the tech was broken or just not clear (ie, coloured lights which were ambiguous). Just not great overall. 

Probably due to manhandling and overuse, a lot of the puzzles were broken. It was very frustrating to be told, "You're doing it right, just try again" multiple times. This game needs to be closed, repaired and reopened. The game itself isn't a bad concept, but the flaws drag the experience down.

Filling In for Alice

This was my first venture down the Rabbit Hole for an Alice in Wonderland-themed adventure. Escape Hunt offer concessions for students and seniors.

Story

Find and return the Queen’s tarts before it’s off with the Mad Hatter’s head, for he has been accused of stealing them.

Puzzles

Interactive, with a far bigger focus on magical mechanics rather than coded locks, which suited this particular room.

Mise-en-scene

Quirky and colourful, the scenery is artfully linked to Lewis Carrol’s novel. It’s compact but this adds to the immersion. An eccentric Hatter provided the odd verbal clue when needed.

Final Comments

We retrieved the Queen’s tarts with 15 minutes to spare. Take no more than 4 people to this challenge, otherwise it’d be too crowded.

We played as a team of 4 to bring back the pies to the afternoon tea of Alice and her friends. the whole room looks superb and the design of the puzzles and props are absolutely amazing! Our host, Michael was purely amazing as well. Highly recommended.

Our favourite of the Escape Hunt games played so far. Gamesmaster was friendly and the Cheltenham venue is open and welcoming. Lovely props, decent puzzles and good links to the Alice in Wonderland story. Only complaint would be that there were some bits were a bit stiff or not in the best condition (one was sticky :->), which is surprising for such a newly opened venue.