Deadlocked Escape Rooms Reading: The Cyphstress

This was definitely not for us.

The heavy dependence on Facebook/instagram/fake phone response delays did little to disguise that this was a few well designed set pieces stitched loosely together with a story that had little depth.

One of us did not have all the social media platforms required, so while playing remotely they were essentially excluded from the “fun” of analysing pictures. (Yes, we could have shared screens, but we had lost patience with the format, the game and each other by that point). Progress is difficult to track when you pick up the game later, but you can largely ignore that as you can direct to the various websites.

We ended up doing it when we were in the same location mostly solving it independently and only the last section had any level of entertainment for two players.

If you like multi application, single player focus puzzles, it’s fine for the price, there are some nice touches, but make sure all players in all locations have facebook, instagram and likely screen sharing.

I've played a couple of digital games and didn't really enjoy them so I wasn't expecting much but we just loved this game! It's clear a lot of time and effort was put into creating this and the use of social media was super fun! Felt like we were only playing for an hour and before we knew it, 4 hours had flown past! Would definitely reccommend.

We’ve done plenty of live escape rooms but this was the first online escape room we’ve purchased and we weren’t disappointed! Saw this on a website as a recommendation and it was brilliant. We loved the interactivity of social media, the game was very high quality overall! Kept us entertained for an evening at home. We will definitely be purchasing another game from Deadlocked soon! 

The gold star for online escape games. I'd say playing as a pair would be ideal, but works fine with 1-4 too.

Firstly it needs to be stated - ridiculously good value for money, £12 for 3 excellent hours of content.

Following this up, the amount of love and care put into this experience comes across so well - some really interesting puzzles and ideas that all work really well. The level of immersion in places that is achieved for an online escape game is remarkable.

This was a fantastic experience which I have been recommending to everyone since.

I am still humming the song more than a year later

Really good value for money - this virtual escape lures problem solver's  into a fermentation of multi-layered puzzles.  We played both parts in one sitting, I'd recommend a water break in between as they mention to allow 90mins per section. You will need social media platforms to progress through the game and be prepared to have lots of browsers opened at once. Nicely executed Deadlocked. (>‿◠)

Great game played in two parts. Amazing use of tech. Great value for money

Long game that was solid throughout. Lot of satisfaction to be had getting your head around some of the more tricky or outside the box thinking puzzles. We had a lot of laughs and the hours flew by. Original story with a ending goal close to my heart.

My favourite online escape game of all time. Gorgeous and unmissable - it's no wonder they are very proud of it!

Really enjoyed playing this with two players on opposite sides of the country.  The only issue we had is that it's quite social media heavy in spots: at least one person will need an active Facebook account.

This is my favourite online game - played it over a couple of days and just adored all of it. Occasionally needed a hint, but the system worked really well and every single hint made me go "oh of COURSE, I'm an idiot" which is as it should be. The game looks amazing, has an incredible mix of puzzles, is really fun... I'm still fangirling over it! Unmissable!

I recently played this virtual escape room for a date night and oh my god it was incredible! The puzzles were interesting and captivating yet proper brain teasers and the story line was amazing. I would recommend trying this or one of the other online escape rooms they have available during your free time! 

Absolutely brilliant game.

Really entertaining for an evening in during lockdown.

A good mix of codes to keep you engaged.

Fantastic value for money. 

Highly recommend.

Well if you judge value for money by the length of time then great but it felt laborious. We had to get to the end but it wasn't the most fun getting there sorry. Started out finding an island, ending up making beer. Can't really tell you why. Felt as if it had been made as a promo for a beer company and then added to as a 'for sale' game. We persevered.

We have played 21 online escape rooms so far over lockdown and the deadlocked games are by far the best in my opinion.

We have played through all of the top rated online rooms and while all of them had something to offer we have had the most fun playing playing the deadlocked games.

The story, puzzles and production quality is all high.

For the amount of entertainment you get from the series they are ridiculously good value.

We are eagerly awaiting the next instalment

This was such a unique style game (aside from their other game, The Insiders) in a refreshing, Covid-kinda way! There's a variety of puzzles, which range in style and challenge. These 2 at-home escape room games gave us a chance to have some fun while staying indoors. The only note I'd have, aside from how much we enjoyed it, is that embarking on this game without a printer adds its own layer of difficulty. Not impossible, but expect the gameplay to last a bit longer than the recommended time. Printer or not, you'll enjoy this game and stay busy for hours. Big thanks to the creators and we'll keep an eye out for the next edition!!

The closest thing I’ve had to an escape room experience at home. Loved the ease of access and the puzzles were fair yet demanding! Recommend to everybody

This was a really solid puzzle experience.  Very high production values, the puzzles are on the easier side, but still quite fun.  For expert puzzlers, I don't really recommend more than two (really solo is possible until the final puzzle).  Make sure you are logged into Facebook messenger!

An absolutely brilliant game (the Captain's voice on the opening sequence is unmissable - oh, wait, err, I may need to declare an interest on that.... so set that aside....) that takes Deadlocked's previous online game, the insiders, fixes certain issues that made Insiders harder than it need to be, improves the user communication bot, put the puzzles into other social media sites and force you to use an internet search engine to develop your ability to read Greek (which is, after all, all Greek to me) and give you a two part game that can be completed in three to four hours for a stupidly low amount of money (GBP 10)... unless you pay for the upgrade that gives you beer too! Can't wait for their next one to come out ....

Engaging, funny and very well done - highly recommend this for giving you a real-life escape room vibe. 

My daughters 12th birthday was approaching and one of the things she had hoped for was a visit to an escape room challenge. However with Covid restrictions in place this wasn’t possible. After a search around the internet I stumbled across Deadlock games and The Cyphstress. The company couldn’t have been more responsive and helpful when I asked questions about suitability, length of the game etc. I have 6 children ages 17, 15,14,12,10 and 6 and we played the game in a room with it projected onto a wall. This worked perfectly. All the children played their part and solved separate mini challenges along the way. The game just kept giving. Since this particular game was in conjunction with a brewery, we hide a prize that they could hunt for in the house after they had solved the main game. That added to the finale very well. Very well thought out and the details even in the final reveal screens and trophy where just superb. This will be a well remembered birthday for a long time. It’s a game with adequate challenge for all ages and can excite and frustrate in equal measure but it’s all entertaining! We didn’t have to resort to help after we got going. But it was discreetly available should it have been required.  100% recommended. Absolutely brilliant activity for lock down and fantastic value. 

We completed The Cyphstress over a few nights. What can I say - Wow it is brilliant. I have completed a good few live escape rooms and a few online ones during lockdown and this is definitely up there with the best. Very good value for money and highly recommended. Just the right level of challenge for us. The beer was also very enjoyable. You won't be disappointed.

We had never played an online escape room before, but love escape rooms in general. We were a little dubious about how much fun it would be playing from your couch.

We were wrong. Very wrong. The use of technology, making you feel like part of a team with a remote character, was excellently implemented. It is as funny as it is well designed, and we laughed as much as we sat pondering what we should be doing next.

A really clever, immersive system, played across multiple social media platforms, and the web. Really fun in a team of four, but would be just as fun with more people! Now can't wait to get started on their other online escape puzzles! Thanks for the time you spent designing and building this. Outstanding value for money.

This second game from the fabulous deadlocked games was just as engaging as the first. The challenges are a great level of difficulty leaving you thinking and conteplating the puzzles for a while but are totally achievable without asking for the answers or too many hints. This leaves you with a wonderful feeling of achievement.

Fantastic value too, with a huge attention for detail and effort put into the making of the game as well as the gameplay itself.

Would definitely (and have) recommend this to friends and family. No prior experience needed.

Now this is exactly what we needed during lockdown! Although its not the same as physically moving stuff around in the room, I would say its much better than some of the ones we have done in real life, if not the best we have done. The story is insane, keeps you gripped the whole way through, and the amount of content that is personalised when you interact with some parts of the game is insane considering its online. Deadlocked have clearly spent lots of time on the puzzles which makes it even more gripping. Well done Charlie and James, and for anyone who has played their physical rooms there's some links to those within this game. TL:DR just go play it already, you won't regret it!

Worthy follow up to the now cult favourite The Insiders. This story is more epic with beautiful music, singing, voice acting and even real acting from Charlie and James - bravo! Really fun and gorgeous puzzles with a great story. Can’t wait for more!

The Cyphstress is a collaboration between Deadlocked escape rooms and the Siren craft brewery, with a plot that revolves around a globetrotting adventurer who is hired to find a legendary beer recipe. If I'm totally honest, the details of the storyline became a little hazy during our playthrough. This can be somewhat explained because we accidentally ended up creating our own escape room/beer collaboration while playing,  creating the rules of a escape room puzzle-based drinking game...

...you see, you are predominantly guided through the game through interaction with a character via Facebook messenger (a Facebook account is absolutely required to play the game). You send answers, and receive new information, links, and images via the messenger chat. The responses from the chatbot are well-written and natural, which allowed us to easily personify the character that we were having a conversation with. The interaction here also paces the game, and provides the opportunity to place some subliminal promotions for the brewery partner ("Hmm, I'll need to think about this one for a while.... why not take a drink and I'll get back to you soon?"). We took those instructions very literally, with our team soon resorting to chanting "DRINK!" after every new message received. After an hour or so of play, we weren't quite sure what we were doing, or how we'd got there, but we were enjoying the moment and we were pretty sure the chatbot was our new best friend.

There's a lot of quality content, very little filler, and for just £10 for the game alone represents very good value for money. Or, order it together with a mixed case of 12 ales from the brewery for £35 and you've got a fantastic boozy night in, and you're supporting two small businesses at the same time. Definitely recommended.