Escapism – Taken

Escapism – Taken.
Location: Chester
Game Date 18/06/2017.
Team: Amy, Eddie & Julie

I booked this game as part of Escapism’s Fathers Day deal, where dad could go free! The meant that originally the team was supposed to be Ian, Myself, Mum & Dad… now after reading “Seeing Double” – I realised that this was a duplicate game the same as Escape Blackpool’s Taken , therefore Ian didn’t want to play the same game again, so it was left to Mum, Dad and Myself to make a successful escape! (bearing in mind they’re absolute newbies with a grand total of 3 games under their belt before Taken)
So, with just the 3 of us, we were ready to take on Taken…

Theme:
“Your friends have been taken hostage and time is running out. The kidnappers have given you 60 minutes to meet their demands but you know where they’re hiding. It’s time to take matters into your own hands: can you keep your cool in a daring breakout?”

Theming was good, with a good attempt at immersion, and consideration for lighting and sound effects and added media.
The room was decorated well, if not a little sparsely but this was quite right with the theming, this room had a bit of an anonymous vibe to it, which gave the room character and a little bit more story than its Blackpool counterpart.
The room was spacious, with more than enough space to accommodate the maximum number of players, the lighting however was “mood” lighting… it was bright enough but there were a couple of moments where I struggled to see and so did my parents. This mood lighting can be switched off on request though (for anyone with light sensitive epilepsy)

Game Play:
A beautifully linear game which makes it perfect for a “first timer” or a “newbie” room. A good selection of puzzles leaning more towards observation and code-breaking, with a little bit of searching and physical thrown in.
The room had a wonderful flow and all the puzzles were perfectly logical, solvable and the “bigger” puzzles had lovely ah-ha moments.
There was a dreaded jigsaw…. BUT it was implemented in a decent way,  had clear parameters and most of all WASN’T a red herring so I can let it off!
This room is very much suited to beginners, I can’t recommend it enough as a “first room”. Yes, for enthusiasts it may be a bit classic and predictable but it is still a lovely, logical, linear room!
Enthusiasts, play in a 2! Newbies, take 4-5!

Clue System:
Clues were delivered via a screen in the room

Game Host:
Danielle was our game host and was lovely, clearly knows the game inside out as we only got clues when we REALLY needed them, she left us to figure things out on our own, yet clued us before frustration set in. Very good game hosting.

Did we escape?:
Yes, in 40 minutes!

Website: http://www.escapismchester.co.uk
Price:

Off Peak:
2 Players £36
3 Players £45
4 Players £56
5 Players £60

Peak:
2 Players £40
3 Players £48
4 Players £60
5 Players £70