After a bit of a hiatus where we focused on designing custom rooms for corporate clients, The Escape Room Guys are back to playing rooms and solving puzzles!
We were contacted by the good folks at Sherlocked in Amsterdam about a promotion they are running over the next six weeks (Nov. 24 thru Dec. 29) where they will be releasing puzzles to promote their new room, The Alchemist. Here’s a sneak peek of the 3D rendering of the room.
Now, we LOVE a good puzzle hunt and decided to play along, especially when there are prizes involved!
Each week on Thursday, the puzzle will be released on their Instagram. Players who solve the puzzle must input the correct solution on Sherlocked’s contest page (you must also sign up here to take part in the contest).
After the 6 weeks are up, a final puzzle will be released and one player will win the grand prize, which is a VIP ticket to play The Alchemist, which includes a rare behind-the-scenes tour of Sherlocked’s process, AND a two-night stay at the Zoku hotel in Amsterdam.
Are you going to join us in playing? Comment below or on our social media channels, and follow us each week as we discuss the puzzles that are released!.
Here is a snapshot of the warm up puzzle, just to get you moving!
With the ongoing pandemic and lockdowns still in effect, escape room locations are working on online games (which we’re calling online escape rooms), while other companies are capitalizing on creating escape room games (like board games and puzzle books).
THE PROJECT:
Jan Van Damme, from Crux Club HQ, creates outdoor puzzle hunts, which “are similar to an escape room, but take place outdoors. The goal is to accomplish something in the world, not get out of a room.”
Van Damme’s new venture, however, comes in the form of an escape room style puzzle book, which means that there is a story leading you through an interactive book of theme-related puzzles based on those you might typically see in an escape room.
Enter Mob Treasure, their new Kickstarter, which is live through Thursday, March 4. They’ve crushed their funding goal, so the funds for the project will be collected and awards delivered this May (per their projection).
Did you enjoy this puzzle challenge? If you did, there are many other puzzles like this in our book. Links on where to get it are below (and these links will be updated on our main book page as more information becomes available).
Amazon United States* (pre-order now; ships on January 1, 2021; Prime members will get copies on January 4)
THE PUZZLE:
While traveling in London, you are suddenly approached by a dirty little street urchin. He walks up to you and mumbles that his name is Wiggins. He hands you a crumpled cream-colored scrap of paper and mumbles that “Premierword smiths have rightfully won this challenge.” Wiggins scampers off into the crowd.
You glance down at the dirty scrap of paper:
THE SOLUTION:
Many participants recognized that the puzzle required a keyboard to solve the above cipher. However, a fewer number of super sleuths realized that the standard computer keyboard wouldn’t have been appropriate since they didn’t exist in the late 1800s.
While traveling in London, you are suddenly approached by a dirty little street urchin. He walks up to you and mumbles that his name is Wiggins. He hands you a crumpled cream-colored scrap of paper and mumbles that “Premier word smiths have rightfully won this challenge.” Wiggins scampers off into the crowd.
So… many people ask “what have you done while being quarantined/socially distanced due to COVID-19?”
Well, we co-wrote a book and created puzzles for a Sherlock-themed escape room puzzle book! So, give us a little bit of love and click one of those “share on social media” buttons. We’d appreciate it.
Watch the video we made about how this project came to be:
We present to you: Sherlocked!: The Official Escape Room Puzzle Book
Last October, Sophie, an editor from Studio Press (an imprint of Bonnier Books UK), contacted us to see if we had any interest in creating a series of puzzles for a Sherlock Holmes-themed puzzle book. We were nervous at first because Sherlock is such a literary icon. However, when she assured us that the Conan Doyle Estate sanctioned this project and was on board, we couldn’t wait to get started, which we did starting in January 2020.
This is a pick your own path book (so it’s not something you read straight through from cover to cover). You assist Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson as they investigate a mystery (well, a couple of mysteries) and find yourself solving puzzles that you might normally find in an escape room. There are points where you decide how the story moves along and can encounter different endings (so you can read the book more than once!).
So, check it out. We think it would make a great present for the holidays, or for someone who likes puzzles and is bored at home.
WHERE CAN I BUY THIS:
(The links below will be updated as we get them along with dates the book will be made available)
(*Note: The Escape Room Guys LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com… in other words, we earn a small fee by providing direct links to products on Amazon in return for promoting them.)
UPCOMING CONTEST:
Next week you can enter a contest we’re conducting through our social media channels and this blog. Readers from the United Kingdom (where our publisher is located) and the United States (where we are located) can solve a puzzle to be entered into a drawing to win a free copy of the book. We’ll send a copy to 5 randomly drawn winners each from the U.S. and U.K. who solved the puzzle correctly.
So, follow us now on one of our social media channels (links below) or follow this blog to be notified when the contest starts. Full rules will be outlined when the contest starts next week.
While on a business trip to Georgia, Mike stopped by Odyssey Escape Game in Alpharetta, GA to check out their location. Owner Mike and manager Kyle offered a peek at the 4 rooms they have and agreed to an interview.
We talked about advice for those wishing to enter the escape room industry. We shared some funny stories, and learned about where they get their inspiration for their rooms. They were also kind enough to create a discount code for our readers, so use ERG15 to save 15% off when booking online at either of their locations!
Then, Mike was off to play the Jack the Ripper room… solo! Did he make it out?
Now, as a random coincidence, Jason was passing through Odyssey’s other location in Schaumburg, IL, and decided to play Jack the Ripper as well. So, we’ll be able to bring you the dual perspective from the same room, but at two different locations!
Have YOU done any of the rooms at this location? What was your experience like? You can add your comments to this post.
Stay tuned for our upcoming reviews of Jack the Ripper. Check out and follow our social media channels below to be notified when new postings and interviews are published.
Are there locations or rooms you’d like us to scout out?
Description (from the company website): A voice from the grave commands you!
As a team of archaeologists, you are studying the ancient Mayan ruins of Palenque. Shortly after entering the dig, you find the entrance locked behind you. King Pakal commands you to complete the burial rituals to allow the soul of his beloved wife to join him in the heavens!
Can you find your way out of the temple before he arrives to have his revenge?
Difficulty: Difficult
Time Limit: 60 minutes
Cost: $25 per person
Identifier: R1
Party Size: 6-8 players
Staging Area: There is a huge lobby with plenty of couches to relax before your experience. There are also lockers for your convenience to store your stuff while you are in the rooms.
Metro Access/Parking: Plenty of parking since the location is in a shopping center.
OUR EXPERIENCE
This is the video we took before we entered the room:
This is the video we took just after we completed the room:
Note: The ERG were given the opportunity to try out this room for free, with the understanding that we would continue to provide an honest review and follow the same process we’ve used on all of our other ratings.
Logistics:
Description of the room: You find your party split into two different antechambers with weird sigils on the walls.
Understanding of the Mission: To find your way to the mummy of King Pakal’s Queen, complete the burial ritual that will free her soul from her mortal body, and escape the ruins before the ghost of Pakal arrives to seek his revenge.
Did We Escape: Yes
Time Remaining: 8:05 remaining
Our Suggested Party Size: We had 7 and that may have been 2 too many (but our team was all pretty experienced so enthusiast teams would probably do better with 4-5 and novice teams would probably be able to work with 8 quite well).
Did the room challenge the entire team? Yes
Members of our team (other than the ERG): Brittany, Heather, Tara, Steph D, and Eric
Worth the time and money? Yes
Where to Eat/Drink Before/After: We didn’t have time to grab food or drinks, but you’re in a shopping center, so you have plenty of options.
We’ve been fans of Room Escape DC (Fairfax) for a while now, and we heard that they had opened up a second location in Arlington. Their themes looked pretty cool (very fantasy-based).
Their new location is called Bond’s Escape Room, which will eventually become the official name of the both (and all future) locations.
We were contacted by their digital marketing admin and they invited us in to try out one of their new rooms, so we also made sure we got to spend some time talking with Andrew, their General Manager and puzzle designer extraordinaire.
Check out the video below and find out what makes Bond’s Escape Room a bit different from some of the other locations in the DC area.
Have you done any of the rooms at this location? What was your experience like? You can add your comments to this post.
Stay tuned for our upcoming review of the Enchanted Castle. Check out and follow our social media channels below to be notified when new postings and interviews are published.
Are there locations or rooms you’d like us to scout out?
Cost: Varies. Monthly payment options and box sets available on the website.
After a year between doing box 2 (South America) and box 3 (Tokyo), we decided to try and knock out box 4 right after completing Tokyo. In fact, we got a bit frustrated with some of the puzzles in Tokyo, so we started working on Australia, and that went a bit easier. We’ll say that box 4 (in Australia) took us only about 1.5 hrs, which is longer than the first two, but only half the time as box 3.
We really liked the flow of this one as well. It did a good job in progressing the story and adding additional information and challenges, but still made you go back to other boxes and utilize things you found and messages you received in order to “solve” this box and get to the video that tells you that you’re ready to progress to the next one.
Watch our video review and comment on this post.
Are you playing this subscription? What do you think?
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Are there games, locations or rooms you’d like us to scout out?
The Heist by The Escape Game: Unlocked – Game Subscription
Volume 1: Chasing Hahn
Cost: $20.00
We were contacted by The Escape Game: Unlocked and asked if we’d be interested in playing their new game. Of course we said yes.
So, this is essentially our reaction video after playing the game, but we’ll be doing a comprehensive review post with ratings based on our new escape game rubric. Stay tuned!
Here is how the game plays: Your mission: as a team of detectives, you need to stop international art collector (and thief!), Vincent Hahn. He’s been stealing from museums over the years, and has always eluded capture. Now, you have a break in the case and need to piece together clues, gather evidence, and try and stop him before he strikes again.
Overall, this was a pretty fun game. It took us just over an hour with a small group of friends (we had 6 total in our group). The website that you needed to use to play the game was well designed (but – HINT – make sure you sign in with a user name and password that you’re willing to give the rest of your team so you can all be in the website at the same time… otherwise, there will be a lot of waiting around by some of you).
There were lots of things to look at, but the game is pretty linear, so you’ll need to be good at sharing and working together as a team as you progress.
We’re looking forward to Volume 2.
Watch our video review and comment on this post.
Have you played this game? What do you think?
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Are there games, locations or rooms you’d like us to scout out?
