Escape Enthusiast

The moment you step on-board the bus Dino Deadlock is set on, you'll see why there is so much hype behind this game. It is beautifully themed and really nails the 'Jurassic Park Research Lab' vibe. Considering the fact it's within a single floor bus, that's incredibly impressive. On top of the immersive theming, there are some really enjoyable puzzles. There are a good mix of logic puzzles, alongside some exploration and physical tasks.  There's something for everyone and all of the puzzles are incredibly good fun. I think fun is the best way to describe the room. It left us with a huge smile on our faces. To top it all off we had the most amazing host. I would definitely recommend this room. It's visually stunning, has some really enjoyable puzzles and is just so unique simply due to the fact it's on a bus. 

The Drop is a very unique experience. It's part escape room, part immersive theatre. The attraction is very engaging and is very immersive. I really enjoyed the initial puzzle section, and thought the progression into full on immersive theatre was a nice touch. Unfortunately, the ending was incredibly abrupt. The plot seemed to be building up to an immense finale and just as we were expecting to be confronted with what would've been an exciting ending we were met with what was effectively a "The End" slide appearing on a screen. It was rather disappointing given the calibre of what came before. It left a rather sour taste in our mouths as it the ending that we expected. 

Turf Wars is arguably one of the most terrifying experiences i've ever done. Whilst there are puzzles to solve, I'd argue that the focus here is on the scares. It's a cat and mouse game where you're forced to run from the hunters whilst attempting to solve the four puzzle boxes. Needless to say this is quite the challenge given the ever-present threat of the hunters. If you're a fan of scare attractions or horror based escape rooms this is a must visit. However if you're easily scared or aren't prepared to do a whole ton of running, maybe this experience isn't for you. I absolutely loved Turf Wars, even if I did spend a good 15 mins of it hiding in a corner too scared to move! 

The Lost Passenger is an enjoyable experience for the atmosphere of the game alone. Sadly the puzzles let it down, with the latter half of the game feeling a little bit like you're following a very complex instruction manual. It's a little anti-climactic. It's well worth doing if you want to soak in the immersion of the abandoned tube station, however if you're looking for a good challenge/interesting puzzles, perhaps look elsewhere. 

Monuments is an absolutely fantastic escape room. The setting within the cave works perfectly for the story told throughout the room. It's deeply atmospheric and immerses you into this wonderful historical narrative that ties heavily into the puzzles you'll be solving. It's a rather challenging escape room, but don't let that put you off. The puzzles are magnificent and are very well thought out. It's an utter joy to play and has gone straight up towards the top of my escape room rankings. 

Yet another fantastic game from TimeTrap. I really enjoyed the espionage side to this room. The method in which we identified the infiltrator was unique and highly enjoyable. There were some great puzzles in this room and as you'd expect from TimeTrap it was wonderfully themed and deeply immersive. Definitely an easy recommendation.

This room is quite simply a whole load of fun. It's chock-full of brilliant puzzles, with a lot of variety present. It's quite challenging and there's an absolute ton of puzzles to get through. Thankfully with the score system you don't have to solve everything, so you can complete the room without a huge group. This is definitely a room that every escape enthusiast should visit. I simply can't stress just how enjoyable it is! 

I don't want to spoil anything so I'll keep this review brief. This room is simply stunning. It's a phenomenal experience with brilliant puzzles and beautiful scenery. It's by far my favourite escape room i've experienced. It balances theatrics with some creative puzzles. This should be the priority for any escape room enthusiast. It's perfect. Absolutely flawless.

Oh boy it hurts to leave a negative review for this game. The concept is absolutely fantastic and is incredibly original. There was absolutely great potential here for a top tier game. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to that premise or the hype this game has built up over the years. 

Our biggest issue with the game was the blandness of the puzzles. Very few stood out, with most being frustrating or infuriatingly dull. I didn't appreciate the fact that in two of the four time-zones a lot of the puzzles revolved around very simple mini-games on the computer screen present. It wasn't very satisfying and didn't give any of that wow factor found in other games. Even the best puzzles present were relatively simple and would be filler in other rooms. 

It's a shame as I absolutely loved the concept of the room. Going to different time zones was a unique concept that could've been executed really well. It was especially interesting to see the spaces we'd visited before transformed into different timezones. Sadly this is where the second major issue rears it's head. Now i'm all for rooms being crafty and creating sets themselves. Sadly, I think the sets in Time Machine really let the game down. A lot of the game was clearly made on a budget, which would've been fine had more attention to detail been made. A few of the areas in this game felt incredibly bland (the time machine itself being one of them) and lacked any visual stimulation. Aside from one area, I found the theming to be very rough around the edges. It really tore me out of the experience when I could very clearly identify what certain theming elements were made out of. 

Overall it breaks my heart to write this review as it's so clearly a passion project for the team. It's a simply phenomenal concept that just isn't executed to the standard I'd expect given the price we paid. I felt it was overpriced for the experience we received and the puzzles just weren't satisfying to solve. It certainly didn't help there were some tech issues, ranging from certain parts of the time machine being janky to use, acknowledgement of puzzles being solved correctly being so delayed we got the confirmation mid way through our next attempt and being left entirely in the dark on one of our 'fixing the time machine' phases. I don't know if this was down to the tech or the host, but it was very dissapointing. I hate to say this but there are far better games in Reading. I'd avoid this one.

It's easy to see why so many rate this room as one of the best in the UK. The theming is top notch and the puzzles are really well thought out. This is one room which really evolves over the course of the hour with things opening up and new secrets getting revealed. It's beautiful how the game pans out. Definitely not one to miss! 

One of the most enjoyable games i've played. It's a very physical game with a lot of exploration which makes you feel like you're a tomb raider. There are some great logic puzzles too, so there's a something for everyone to solve. I would easily recommend this room to anyone. It's bound to impress anyone who gives it a go. 

Absolutely phenomenal room. The hype that has built around this experience is well earned. It's beautifully themed and has such a rich atmosphere to it. Easily one of the most immersive escape rooms I have experienced. To top that all off the puzzles are fantastic. It has a great flow to it and there are some truly unique moments. Miss this room at your own peril. It is an absolute must do.

Sub-Terra is an absolute delight to play! It's one of the most interesting games i've experienced with a lot of tech involved in the puzzles. However none of it feels gimmicky. It's all very well implemented and feels befitting of the theme. There's a great balance of physical and logic based puzzles and the room flows beautifully. I loved the addition of optional side missions to add difficulty to a wonderfully balanced room. This really is up there with the best of the best in my opinion. To think Co-Decode have built such a stunning room in a small space is mind-boggling. 

Extinct is a beautiful game. It's very immersive with a fantastic set. There are some great dramatic moments which build tension, although i'd never say it veers off into the realm of being scary. It's just a shame that I felt the puzzles weren't as strong as they could've been. There were some great puzzles in there, but I felt there was an over-reliance on reading based puzzles. After a while I felt a little overwhelmed by the sheer volume of text one had to rummage through to find solutions. Obviously, some people might be drawn towards this type of puzzle so I can't fault it entirely. Overall it's a fun game, but a little bit more variety in the puzzles would've been appreciated. 

One of my all time favourite games. The room is stunning, taking into account historical details into the set. It's an incredibly immersive experience. The puzzles fit into this historical focus by telling the story of the Titanic. I was very impressed with how they merged narrative into the puzzles throughout the game. It added a whole different dimension to the room that made every puzzle feel weighty and important. This was made all the better by the variety of puzzles in the room and the quality of them too. It's a must play game that stands out to me as one of the best in the country. 

This is probably my favourite Trapp'd room. It's their best scary escape room, with some really good jumps coming from the live actor. It's got a nice intense atmosphere and we were on edge throughout. The puzzles are suitably grisly and were very enjoyable. 

Arguably the most unique game i've ever played. The concept behind this escape room is a whole lot of fun and is executed in a really clever way. The puzzles are unlike anything i've ever experienced, balancing logic and physicality. The way you interact with this room is very different to any other room i've done. It's sheer genius and is a must play game.