Escape Plan: The Adventure Begins

By | March 20, 2019

by Escape Plan (website)

Rich Mix, 35-47 Bethnal Green Road, E16LA

East London

2-6 players

60 minutes

Set in the barracks of a P.O.W camp, you and your comrades quickly discover the legend of Bob Hails – the only prisoner to have successfully escaped the camp. And what’s more he’s left you his journal to help you and your team evade the enemy and make your own great escape. But do you have what it takes to earn your freedom? If you’re unsure which game to play first, we recommend this one.
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Overall rating

Rated between 4 and 4.5 out of 5

based on ratings from 37 users
combined with 8 pro reviews

Your review

Player reviews

Solemn rated this:Rated between 50 and 50 out of 5
Played: 25 Feb 2024 Team size: 2 Time taken: 59:45 Outcome: Successful escape!
originalcleverimmersivequite difficult
I wasn't sure about I'd like the theme when we went in but wow, this room blew me away. Easily one of the best I've played. It hit every mark bang on. The setting, the props, the puzzles, the hosting, and all the other little touches that really pushed it above and beyond. Just a really solid room all around.
Chesscrafted rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 10 Oct 2021 Team size: 4 Outcome: Successful escape!
story-drivengreat hostingfamily friendly

Almost the best escape room I've ever played, only beaten by Roll Out the Barrel (from Escape Plan as well). Like that room, this has original and handmade puzzles, and again has nothing scary but still manages to be immersive and fun to play. The hosts are still just as good as ever, and we escaped with only a couple of hints for a puzzle we'd mostly solved. While there are many great war-themed escaped rooms in London, this one definitely competes for the top spot! I recommend it to anyone who's already played Roll Out the Barrel or is looking for something a little more serious (but still family-friendly).

kman expert rated this:Rated between 30 and 30 out of 5
Played: 22 Aug 2015 Team size: 5 Outcome: Failed 🙁
Mia Rabone experienced rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 3 Aug 2022 Team size: 3 Time taken: 59 mins Outcome: Successful escape!
clevergreat hostingepicquite difficult

Enjoyed this room even more than 'battle for britian'. Highly recommend. Sarah was a brilliant host. The difficulty level of the puzzles was spot on for our group and we felt they were all good quality with no 'fillers'. 

jakea256 expert rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
beautifulstory-driven

Great signposting, solid puzzles, and a brilliant story with the added bonus that you are following a real escape plan from the war. 

abooth expert rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Team size: 2 Time taken: 50 Outcome: Successful escape!
beautifulimmersivestory-driven

Wonderful game - really original, clean and well ran.

Mark Greenhalgh expert rated this:Rated between 35 and 35 out of 5
Anonymous rated this:Rated between 40 and 40 out of 5
Team size: 2 Outcome: Successful escape!
cleverfamily friendly

There is an excellent variety of types of puzzles in this traditional, non-linear escape game. Some were particularly memorable and creative! A lot of love and thought has gone into this room, we really enjoyed it. 

Kelly Archer expert rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Team size: 4 Outcome: Successful escape!
originalimmersivegreat hosting

Loved this room. Some really great in house designed puzzles (lots of wood, which makes a nice change) and a fab host made this room stand out. The theming is beautiful with, plenty of tricky puzzles and lots of non linear moments. I loved that the GM (Sam) knew our names and would direct the clues to the relevant player, that was a lovely touch.

We played both of their current rooms and I am excited to play the next one when it is finished.

adamturna rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 4/9/2022 Team size: 2 Time taken: 57:54 Outcome: Successful escape!
immersivegreat hostingintense😨creepy

Very immersive room with great use of sounds and the host playing into the storyline. All the puzzles were logical and creative, the design was very pretty and similar to Roll the Barrel with WWII theme and usage of a lot of wood. The host was great as well!

Anonymous rated this:Rated between 30 and 30 out of 5
Anonymous rated this:Rated between 35 and 35 out of 5
Mike S expert rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Anonymous rated this:
Played: 5.8.19 Team size: 2 Time taken: 55 Outcome: Successful escape!

Very themic

🌵Juliette B expert rated this:Rated between 50 and 50 out of 5
Played: 13/07/2019 Team size: 2 Outcome: Successful escape!

Excellent room, some genuinely brilliant puzzles, set dressing is fantastic, GM instilled a genuine sense of panic in us fro outside the room. Best company for ERs in central London for consistency - also offer playing as a 2 which is great. Absolutely recommend (all 3 rooms) 

Gavin B rated this:Rated between 50 and 50 out of 5
Ben Bailey experienced rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 4/4/19 Team size: 2 Time taken: 58:58 Outcome: Successful escape!
RR_Duo+ rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 25 Aug 2022 Team size: 2 Time taken: 59:57 Outcome: Successful escape!
Mighty Oaks experienced rated this:Rated between 35 and 35 out of 5
Played: 10 Jul 2021 Team size: 4 Time taken: 56:09 Outcome: Successful escape!
immersive
Joe Brown expert rated this:Rated between 40 and 40 out of 5
Played: 24 Feb 2024 Team size: 4
A nice set and satisfying puzzles, Escape plan always do nice chunky wooden puzzles with a few surprises, will definitely be back for their new room!
James-Dean Hawkins rated this:Rated between 50 and 50 out of 5
Played: 28 Oct 2023 Team size: 9 Time taken: 59minutes Outcome: Successful escape!
beautifulgreat hostingepicquite difficult

We had Lidia and Sam as our hosts for two separate rooms and they were both friendly, happy, helpful and made for a great day out! Thank you!

elfgrunge experienced rated this:Rated between 50 and 50 out of 5
Played: 25 Feb 2024 Team size: 2 Time taken: 59:45 Outcome: Successful escape!
immersivegreat hostingintensequite difficult
This is probably my second favourite game I’ve played so far. I really enjoyed it! Just fun from start to finish, with Escape Plan’s signature complex wooden mechanisms and a thrilling soundscape to really sell the immersion and story. Allie was a joyful host and knew just when to chime in to nudge us in the right direction, though the rooms had really good flow on their own. We loved it so much we immediately booked Roll Out The Barrel on the spot to play after 
Fatemah Abidi rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 3 Feb 2024 Team size: 4 Time taken: 54 Outcome: Successful escape!
immersivegreat hostingepic
Fantastic experience, Jacob was also a top legend. Would recommend to everyone. Missing 0.5 stars only because I wish it was longer! Brilliant brilliant. Could we dress up to do it too? 
Mark Crossley experienced rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 23/04/2023 Team size: 2 Time taken: 50:48 Outcome: Successful escape!
immersivestory-drivengreat hosting
Stevie Davies expert rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: December 2021 Team size: 2 Time taken: 56m 7s Outcome: Successful escape!
immersivestory-drivengreat hosting
ratsontour expert rated this:Rated between 40 and 40 out of 5
Played: 25 Nov 2023 Team size: 3 Time taken: 59:53 Outcome: Successful escape!
great hostingfamily friendly
Jen Wells (Get Wells Soon) expert rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 31 Oct 2023 Team size: 2 Outcome: Successful escape!
beautifulcleverstory-driven

Probably the most straightforward of the rooms here at Escape Plan, this is a beautifully put together game that echoes historical events and packs a powerful punch with puzzle quality.

Props are all delightful, well-made and historically-fitting and Sam, our GM, was excellent from start to finish.

Anonymous rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Team size: 4 Outcome: Successful escape!
originalcleverimmersive
Adam Bravery expert rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 2 Feb 2023 Team size: 4 Time taken: 34:45 Outcome: Successful escape!
originalgreat hosting
I enjoyed this a lot. Set was good and puzzles were inventive - a staple for Escape Plan. Sam was yet again a great GM. At any other venue this would be their best room which goes to show the quality of Escape Plan. Well worth playing
Emma Macedo experienced rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 10 Sep 2023 Team size: 2 Time taken: 59:09 Outcome: Successful escape!
value for moneyimmersivegreat hostingquite difficult
My mum and I were looking for a last minute game that wasn't too far from us so we took a trip into London to check out Escape Plan. I had read good things about this company and games when checking reviews and the reality did not disappoint!
Situated a couple of minutes walk from Shoreditch High Street the venue is easy to find and we were soon greeted by our friendly Games Master Sarah. We booked to play The Adventure Begins and Sarah gave an energetic introduction to the game to set the scene. As we have done a lot of games before, we were able to agree on a help system that meant we could get stuck in with the game and Sarah would only help if we asked or she could see we were completely off track with something. The game itself was well themed and you can tell alot of time and thought has gone into the puzzles that seamlessly met the narrative. It was a relatively linear game, but at times different puzzles could be completed simultaneously, which then lead onto the next puzzle. I liked that nothing was too high tech but instead lots of tactile mechanical puzzles that have been made with care and attention to detail, fitting the theme. There were some really clever puzzles I've never seen/done in the 60 games I've done in the past so that's always a bonus. After some tension (or excitement, depending which way you looked at it) in the last section of the game we managed to escape the Prisoner of War camp with 9 seconds to spare, which we were pleased with considering there was only 2 of us and it is quite a challenging game.
The great customer service continued with Sarah post-game as we debriefed and discussed other games before getting our team picture.
I look forward to returning to try the other games in the future, including the new one opening soon with a non-WW2 theme. I would definitely recommend to others looking for a fun, challenge of a game at an affordable price considering it's in the capital!
roberts0502 experienced rated this:Rated between 50 and 50 out of 5
Played: 3 Jul 2023 Team size: 2 Time taken: 58:53 Outcome: Successful escape!
clevergreat hostingintense

Yet another jolly good time, and a rollicking good adventure. The immersive POW set and unique and clever puzzles kept us busy and thinking for almost the full 60 minutes. Our excellent game master, Sarah, really got into character, which fit the theme well and made the last 10 minutes incredibly intense.

StaceyF expert rated this:Rated between 40 and 40 out of 5
Played: 18/07/2018 Time taken: 55:05 Outcome: Successful escape!
simonfinnie rated this:Rated between 45 and 45 out of 5
Played: 8 Jun 2023 Team size: 3 Time taken: 54 Outcome: Successful escape!
value for moneyimmersivegreat hosting

After a run of pretty average escape rooms, this was an absolute hit with our team. In the pub afterwards, we all agreed that this was in our top 10, which is no mean feat given the number we've done.

Clearly a lot of passion has gone into the whole design and set-up. The things that stood out for us were:

- The hosting was exceptional with just the right balance of everything (this was probably no surprise as it turned out our host was the room designer and owner);

- The parallel problem solving was spot on;

- The puzzles and equipment were all excellent;

-  The story and atmosphere were very good.

This was an average difficulty room, and apparently the other two are slightly more complex, so we'll definitely be trying those soon!

TheEscapeBoomers expert rated this:Rated between 40 and 40 out of 5

Some clever puzzles here and great use of space. 

My only criticism is -  We advanced into the next stage of the game as it isn't locked but requires some physical effort which we found by accident. The host had to interrupt us to tell us not to proceed.....

Ben Franklin rated this:Rated between 40 and 40 out of 5
Played: 12 Apr 2023 Team size: 4 Time taken: 59 mins Outcome: Successful escape!
originalimmersivefamily friendly

Myself and my family had a good time here. Nice tactile puzzles, and our gamesmaster gave us just the right amount of help to keep us going (especially with an 11 and 13 year old who haven't done many rooms).

Some nice surprises and a well thought out story, and we'd definitely like to try their other rooms now.

Criticisms would be that the room wasn't fully reset when we started, with two of the locks already being undone, which is never a good start. Also there were some elements that could do with some TLC, including a small trapdoor in the floor of one of the spaces, which you could simply lift up and contained Ethernet cabling etc. Obviously it should be sealed shut or covered better (e.g. with a rug). 

AubreyB expert rated this:Rated between 40 and 40 out of 5
Team size: 2 Outcome: Successful escape!
Roory experienced rated this:Rated between 40 and 40 out of 5
Played: 27/12/2018 Team size: 4 Time taken: 52.00 Outcome: Successful escape!

Reviews by escape room review sites

Really solid, high quality escape room with excellent puzzles and design. The location was a little tricky to find, but it's worth seeking out.

A well-themed escape room with some interesting mechanical puzzles and a fantastic host. It's missing that final wow factor to make it a truly outstanding room but it's packed with good puzzles.
The Adventure Begins is a fantastic game with clever puzzles, a great set, and some really fun moments. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this room to teams that are trying to find their first escape room or to enthusiasts, particularly those that want to try their hand at their first room as a team of two

There’s a unique aspect to The Adventure Begins which links back to the story. The story goes that only one prisoner has ever made it out of the POW alive – a man named Bob Hails. Bob Hails has left you his notebook which details how he escaped. Too bad it’s quite cryptic, but there in lies your puzzle. What Bob has put in his notebook is vital to solve the the room and make your great escape!

This was my 17th room at the time, and the rest of the team were just a few behind. And I don’t think I’ve ever felt like I knew what I was doing as much as I did in Escape Plan. This game was smooth. Not easy, we had to think hard, but never really got actually stuck.
The City Adventurers received a call from our American counterpart to join her for an historic mission involving a break out from a prisoner of war camp……We found it a great game to play and highly recommend it. 
A WW2-themed escape with a range of deduction, search, and mechanical puzzles – many of which were on theme. Low-tech but they have made a lot of a limiting premises. Pretty high reliance on padlocks.

Lists

This game is part of the following user-created game lists:
  • Best UK escape rooms 2021 by Escape the Review virtuoso
    These are the 100 highest rated escape rooms (out of 1600) in the UK, as of 31st Dec 2021, based on combined ratings from enthusiasts, bloggers and experts - every game here comes highly recommended. 
  • Best UK escape rooms 2023 by Escape the Review virtuoso
    These are the 100 highest rated escape rooms in the UK, as of 31st Dec 2023, based on combined ratings from enthusiasts, bloggers and experts - every game here comes highly recommended. 

See also