Breakout Manchester: The Emporium of Magic

This was my second Breakout game I've ever played and now I have realised why the 1st wasn't very memorable. This game had potential to be better but similarly to Vacancy in Chester, the Emporium was a game that heavily relied on padlocks. For newer escapees this may suffice but for experienced players there doesn't provide much variety or excitement in solving puzzles etc. It was also frustrating that for a couple of the number sequences it wasn't obvious which order to use the numbers in. This took away from the game, in my opinion as I like things to be a bit more logical. 

Theming was ok, host was very enthusiastic which helped set the scene.

Overall, a fun game but probably more suited to newer players to the world of escape rooms.

More Potion Prepping

It’s been a while since I’ve had the pleasure of being locked in a room for an hour, and what better way to get back into the swing of it than a medium-difficulty, magical Breakout with friends?

Story

Sneaking into the emporium to seek the owner’s most powerful potion has triggered a spell, trapping you inside. Brew the potion to escape before they return.

Puzzles

The variety was good, but we didn’t come across anything mind-blowing. They weren’t sequential, which was ideal for our team of 5 since we could split up and work on different things. Players new to Hogwarts-themed rooms will be more impressed by the Emporium of Magic’s puzzles than experienced escapers. We often needed a hint to keep us on the scent (which I blame on the big gap between playing caused by Corona of course). We’d also solved two puzzles without even realising and there were one or two occasions where we (I) hadn’t entered the codes properly…definitely some more post-lockdown rustiness going on there, aha.

Mise-en-scene

The theming left a lot to be desired. More could be done with the space- a couple of dusty bookcases, a desk and an old-looking suitcase does not a magic shop make. The ‘potion-brewing’ corner was nothing more than a bedside table.

Final Comments

This is the fourth magical-themed room I’ve done, and it was by far the weakest.