The Paradox Project: The Music Academy

This room blew my mind - in a good way! Looking forward to returning to Greece to do the rest of these rooms.

I have done 50+ escape rooms across numerous countries. I consider myself a newbie still and enjoy learning even if I don’t always get it right.

I was really looking forward to doing the Music Academy with my husband. We are a great team without being the fastest.

I hated this.

I don’t think the reviews show that there are no new puzzles or tech. This is still heavily padlocked.

When we reached the three hour moment I was so relieved, we failed but I could get out. No such luck.

Instead, we were locked in. We asked to give up on a puzzle an ignored - whilst locked in. No route out, the key had been taken away.

Then we “solved” the puzzle - not an interesting or fun experience. And “got out.”

To be locked in again. 

As a woman, I consider this an incredibly unsafe experience. I was booked to go to another escape room this week in Athens but won’t go after this experience.

This is for only the most experienced escape room enthusiasts who don’t mind doing puzzles they’ve seen before with immersion via lazy sub titles.

We did the other two Paradox games a couple of years back on our last trip to Athens but wanted to complete the set on a quick break back in the city. So glad we did. We aren't fans of the horrific actor-based jump scare games that Athens abounds in so it was such a joy to spend so long in a single narrative that challenged our brains and wasn't based around jump scares. It flows, it's tricky, it's logical, it twists and it's brilliant - make sure you do it when you're nearby. 

I was quite underwhelmed with this room. By this point, we had already played the other two rooms, with two very different experiences. So, I tempered my expectations, and I’m glad I did. Within the first 15 minutes I was becoming increasingly frustrated to realise that I was here for the next 3 hours. Yes, the size is great and the story is cool, but the puzzles felt so ‘meh’ and odd. It would have been clear to the GM that I was deflated throughout the game as I found myself sitting down a lot due to constantly facing puzzles that were either non-sensical or forced. Some of the puzzles were nicely themed though. I really don’t believe this needs to be a 3 hour room. I believe that it’s 3 hours because the puzzles require so much thinking and so much time asking for hints. I don’t think the puzzles are hard, just very odd. I understand that Paradox project proudly think outside of the box with their puzzles, but in this case the box would be your best friend in redesigning this room. We got to experience their abstract way of thinking in the Bookstore, which was fab! But they’ve missed the mark in this room. 

We’re intelligent players and when a room is made well, we glide through it and feel like a great team, but this left us stumped and deflated. 

Part of the story is fantastic and still makes us smile when we talk about it. They’ve clearly written a great story, the puzzles just need to be designed to the same level. 

It may have been a better experience with a large group so ideas could be thrown around. Maybe. 

I wish I could say more amazing things as the Bookstore was excellent, but I’m sorry to say, this was disappointing. 

Deserves it's placement as number 26 on Terpeca 2022 - excellent room. Extremely puzzleheavy, but all the puzzles are so on theme, and very clever! Not super intense but I had a great experience.