Lockdown Escape Oldham – Contagion

Lockdown Escape Oldham – Contagion.
Location: Oldham
Game Date 14/10/2017.
Team: Amy & Ian.

THIS GAME HAS NOW CLOSED

First off, apologies for the lateness of the next few reviews! We’ve been busy with escaping & scare attractions as we were away for 4 days for the first Escape Room Industry Conference (#ERIC) We had a fabulous time and will cover ERIC in its own post!

Theme:
“You are a group of aspiring journalists, and you have received an anonymous and potentially huge tip off. There are unconfirmed reports of highly illegal scientific experiments going on in a seemingly innocent apartment. Upon arrival, the neighbours state there are strange noises and smells coming from the apartment. Can you discover the truth behind the rumours and escape before the secrets of apartment 4A eat you alive?”

The theming was good, clean and well finished.
The apartment setting lends to simple decor but this was done very well, and without creating any red-herrings (which could be easy to do in an “apartment”) the rooms were large enough for the maximum group size and very well lit.
The middle of the game saw some excellent theming, with detailed touches and lots of things to look at an investigate.
Good immersion, whilst still aware we were in a “game” the decor really strongly portrayed the situation we were put into.
There is good development of the central character throughout the game, which added a realism and extra layer to the story. This was a great touch and really helped drive the room along.

Game Play:
A game that criss crossed between linear and open allowing for the players to initially work together but then encourages them to split and work the game in smaller pairs or individually, before joining together again for the finale.
The puzzles were very good, code breaking, logic, word, maths and observation were the main types, with a lean towards the observational, overall though a good range of solid puzzles.
The puzzles were logical, on theme and a lot of fun to solve! Each with wonderful ah-ha moments and great conclusions!
The flow was lovely, with no real sticking points (in honestly the only time we got stuck was on observation puzzles as we suck at looking for things!)
Each puzzle and solution led to good finds and furthered our investigation, driving us towards the conclusion of the game, there was an excellent sense of progression throughout.
A solid room which is enjoyable for enthusiasts and would be a bit more taxing for newbies but still a lot of fun!

Clue System:
Clues were delivered via a screen

Game Host:
Natalie & Caroline were our game hosts, and they were just wonderful. So friendly and with a passion for their escape room that really came across! We could have stayed and chatted all day long! They ran the game with ease and precision and were paying full attention as clues came at perfect timing!

Did we escape?
Yes! In 54 minutes

Website: http://www.lockdownescape.co.uk
Price Off Peak:
2 Players £32
3 Players £42
4 Players £48
5 Players £50

Price Peak:
2 Players £36
3 Players £48
4 Players £56
5 Players £60