Montreal, May 2025
One of the big difficulties of reviewing escape rooms over a period of years is the degree to which they’ve changed. I remember games that struck me as outstanding ten years ago, but pretty ordinary a few years later, put in the shade by noticeably more sophisticated rooms – which were in turn overshadowed by later creations that reached an entirely different level of scale, drama, ingenuity. Giving a game a five star rating implies some degree of equivalence with the other rooms that got the same rating, so when one comes along and blows them out of the water, there’s no good way to recognise that – except perhaps by extending the scale upwards, and then maybe still further upwards when the same thing happens with an even more extraordinary creation.
All of which is to say, I’m only giving Magnifico five stars because I can’t give it more. Even comparing it to the elite selection of other internationally top-rated escape rooms, including the already remarkable other rooms at the same venue, it’s in another league. I’d worry about damaging your experience by over-hyping it, but I went in knowing it was ranked as the world #1, and it still wowed me beyond my expectations.
It’s a 2.5 hour experience, and while it’s not the length that makes it special, it needs and uses that length of time to build its world and tell its story. That does make it a marathon length session, and I strongly recommend not packing in other games too closely before or after it – you’ll want to go in fresh, and give yourself time to savour it after you come out.
While Magnifico is a puzzle-driven experience throughout, it’s also a piece of immersive theatre, a production performed just for you. As you progress, you become familiar with a number of different characters, and are drawn into the drama and dynamics between them in a way that feels entirely organic. The secrets of the story unfold gradually, and hit all the harder for it; there is a genuine emotional heft to the story.
At the same time, much of the game is joyfully silly or playful. You don’t have to banter with the actors, but there are plenty of chances to lean into the role if you wish; and many of the puzzles combine intellectual challenge with fun. All of it is set in a sprawling world, exquisitely built and decorated down to the fine details, full of interesting objects and gratuitously impressive decorative touches. A dozen different effects are using in passing, each of which could be a notable highlight of another game.
In a large and busy environment it would be easy to lose focus, but this game expertly guides your attention, leading you to focus on these items or move to that area, so smoothly you barely notice it’s doing it. Help is provided with a similar light touch, via subtle nudges that you may not even register as hints. With the same deftness, you’re led between scenes and into different emotional moods.
By normal standards it is also eye-wateringly expensive, for all that the cost is justified by the length and size. However, not only did we leave feeling we’d had our money’s worth, I think all of us would be open to paying the same price again for a repeat play on a future visit.
There’s no single magic ingredient; Magnifico is magnificent in a dozen different ways, a complex, rich and cohesive melange of puzzles and spectacle and story that relentlessly delights and entertains and surprises you. Play it with caution, because it may dent your appreciation for other escape rooms going forward. The day may come when I can write a review of a game and use the phrase _even better than Magnifico_ – but right now I find that hard to believe, let alone imagine what kind of spectacle could surpass this one. 
