Den Of Geek took on the Blackwings Cave escape room.
The rest is history…
The first thing to do when you walk into an Escape Room is look around, says Stefan Vargolici.
And he should know.
Many walk into the room and dont look around enough.
Lots of things are hidden in plain sight, and its worth paying attention.
An Escape Room, if youre unfamiliar, is pretty much what it says.
Bank robbery not compulsory).
Were all geeks, grins Stefan, as we ask him where the inspiration comes from.
Its why the rooms the team design come with no shortage of Easter eggs too.
If youre not too busy solving the often-devilish puzzles.
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What struck us, on reflection, was the production design involved.
The lighting, quality of build and spoiling nothing quality of surprises we found ourselves up against was terrific.
The rooms used to be more basic, Stefan said.
But weve expanded them more, invested more, and the design has escalated.
Once designed, theyre thoroughly tested too.
Its a delicate balance getting things right, and that in particular applies to the puzzles themselves.
Also, theyre specifically tailored to teamwork.
Not that hes trying to defeat you.
Theyve managed to get out just in time.
Er, dont judge us when you read how we got on.
Without further ado, weve a sorry story of our adventure to tell you… Not just that escape room, all escape rooms, everywhere.
Imagine the indignity of that!
We have to, because they definitely werent us.
Escape rooms are brilliant.
Even failing at them (we hear) is more fun than succeeding at most things.
Escape rooms are also the fastest way to unveil someones true self.
Are you an angry person?
YOURE DOING IT WRONG SIMON?
Escape rooms will reveal all that.
Theyre quicker than therapy.
You may also require therapy and/or a new job after taking one on, but itll be worth it.
Not that youd realise that upon entering.
Solving the first task involved using a skill these deadbeats hadnt reckoned on: the skill of paying attention.
Within those four walls, everything you need has been provided for you.
Youll need to bring those along yourselves.
For this lacklustre lot it was turned off so they could hear themselves think.
More games and tasks followed, some impressively high-tech, some only requiring proficient use of a Biro.
Every so often, inspiration would strike and a correct answer would be stumbled upon.
Really, it wasnt.
Had they at least had fun?
A great deal of panicky, hysterical fun.
But they werent about to give up their day jobs running the UKs premier modular shed comparison website.
I said it wasnt us.
