Escape room experiences are becoming the staple activity for stag/hen parties, milestone birthdays and team building exercises. We take a look at some of the best escape rooms in Europe and share some top tips on how to beat them.
As escape rooms spread to become a worldwide phenomenon, their narratives become more elaborate and their puzzles more sophisticated. From zombies to nuclear weapons, asteroids and evil scientists; the creators pour imagination, science and intellect into every design. The games vary enormously and contenders frequently leave without solving them. For those keen to find out if they’ve got what it takes, we’ve pulled together five of Europe’s best escape games.
Trap, Budapest
Budapest is one of the world’s first hubs for escape games and is thought to have bred 80 different games across the city. Some of the first ones, including Trap, are still the best. Trap offers six intense scenarios to choose from. Pick Armageddon and the future of the entire human race will be in your hands, as you try to prevent an asteroid wiping out planet earth. The plan is to launch a rocket into the asteroid to make it change direction. There’s just one problem: the launch pad has been destroyed and the backup system lies in a locked military bunker, you need to break in, figure out the system and launch the rocket.
MindMaze, Prague
Two very different and brilliantly thought out games: The Alchemist´s chamber, a journey of mystery and magic where you’ll step back in time to 16th century Prague in search of the Philosopher’s Stone, and Enigma, a military mission to steal a submarine blueprint from enemy forces. The latter has only a 40% success rate, so depending on how your mind functions, is set to be the most challenging for avid escape game players. If you’re not sure which one to choose, they’ve designed a handy quiz you can take to help you decide.
Enigmik, Barcelona
If you’ve been checking out Barcelona’s usual attractions and are in need of an antidote to culture overload, this super intensive escape game will certainly revive you. Enigmik’s game, The Bunker, challenges you to unearth rogue scientist, Dr Betsy Smith’s, secret discovery of an unlimited energy source. Once you’ve broken into the bunker and discovered the secret, the question is: how do you get out without becoming the product of a nasty experiment yourself? The evil scientist has rigged the bunker and you’ve just 60 minutes until the air supply fails. You’ll need to rely on your team mates and wits to avoid getting trapped.
Room Escape, Zagreb
Room Escape has coined itself as the ‘ultimate adrenaline game’, and boasts two inventive save the world scenarios that will leave you feeling like a hero on speed (well, provided you successfully crack the codes, that is). In Zombie Lab you’re a group of scientists fighting a lethal man-made virus that threatens to wipe out the human race. Your 60 minutes will be spent trying to complete the cure before the bloodthirsty zombies break down the door of the lab and eat you. The second game, Bunker, transports you to the Cold War era, as a secret agent with a mission to prevent a weapon smuggler who has started the procedure of launching nuclear missiles. Have you got what it takes to save the world from nuclear catastrophe?
Escape Entertainment, London
Having arrived to London from New York, with games designed by professional
game designers, organizational behaviourists, psychologists and mathematicians, and staged environments curated by Hollywood and Broadway set designers, Escape Entertainment is perhaps the blockbuster of escape game experiences. Its two games, Prohibition Pandemonium and The Heist, are perfect for novice escape gamers or big groups with teams that want to race against each other.
Hacks and hints: how to crack the codes and escape
Whether you’re a secret agent, scientist, historian or adventurer; you’ll need all the help you can get to solve the puzzles and make your bid for freedom. The team at stag weekend specialists Maximise, are on their own quest to find and complete the very best escape game experiences, we asked for their top tips for getting ahead:
Think laterally
Often the things you think are not relevant are actually crucial but you don’t know it yet
Leave nothing unturned
Search everywhere. All objects in the room have been put there for a reason. If something’s switched ‘off’, turn it on.
Look ahead
Where are you going, and what have you already seen and accomplished?
If you get stuck revisit your clues
Go back through the clues you have already solved, is there anything you might have missed the first time round?
Don’t panic
Easier said than done, but the worst thing you can do is concentrate on the time ticking away, rather than the task at hand.
Be resourceful
Use the tools and objects that are given to you, they are usually there for a reason.
Communicate
Whenever you discover something new; announce it. If you have an idea or thought; share it. Listen to your team mates; this is not a lone mission.
Stay focused
Remember some of the clues will be there to distract you! It’s your job to figure out which ones are crucial and which one are duds.
