“Escape Nation – The Citadel
Location: Stafford
Game Date: 02/04/2019
Team: Amy & Ian
Theme:
The year is 2321, Earths population has spread out into space. Mega-corporations have built space stations throughout the galaxy.
You have not long arrived on-board a Citadel class space station owned by the Federal Defence Union (FDU). The main function of this Citadel is scientific research and development.
The night you arrived, the stations Artificial Intelligence (AI) was beginning to malfunction. And now, only one week later, the Citadel’s main power has just shutdown, and the backup generator has come online.
The doors won’t open, communications don’t work, and you can hear some unusual noises from other parts of the space station.
Can you escape before the backup generator goes offline and you’re trapped on-board forever?
Theming was excellent in the Citadel, a fully immersive set with a complimentary soundtrack (that sounded like it was straight out of Tomorrowland at Disney… I LOVED it)
The room looked great and it’s a testament to the boy’s talent in their set design, it felt real, yet lovingly crafted, you could feel the passion and time that has gone into this room. The attention to detail was second to none too (for example, in cupboards that were opened, they had taken the time to line them with a soft material… these little touches took the room to the the next level)
There was plenty to look at and interact with yet this never interfered with the game play and only served to help in progression through the room. The room was large, more than big enough for the max of 6 and lit atmospherically, torches are provided and the light level never interfered with puzzle solving.
A lovely, detailed room that captured the feel of a space station really well, was thoroughly immersive and built with love. What more can you ask for!
Game Play:
An open game that truly tested every facet of our intelligence, with logic, observation, word, codebreaking, physical, aural, critical thinking and teamwork puzzles. There was such a brilliant range of puzzles that the game never got stale or boring.
There was clever use of tech blended with traditional padlocks which served to create a futuristic feel with a more classic escape room edge, just brilliant.
Each and every puzzle was perfectly in theme, and elegant in its execution and logic. We couldn’t find any flaw in the puzzle design, and very quickly we were able to put out confidence in the room and start bringing home those Ah-ha moments, which came thick and fast, This game is a neverending journey of discovery and each and every puzzle had wonderfully clear ah-ha moments and were a joy to solve.
The flow was excellent, there was nothing that hampered or constricted flow and the open nature of the room meant we never got brain-burn out, there was always something to be working on!
Signposting was sublime, with there being excellent on theme yet subtle signposting throuhout the game which essentially brings this game to a point where clues are really not needed. A masterclass in in point, in theme signposting.
A brilliant, brilliant game, I was actually sad when we realised we had the means to escape. I was enjoying the room so much… I didn’t want it to end!
A great game for enthusiasts who will apreciate the finer details and a brilliant introduction to escape rooms for anyone else. Quite probably my favourite “space” themed escape room we have played!
Clue System:
Game Host:
Matt and Luke were our game hosts, and they were wonderful, enthusiastic, friendly and very accommodating, they clearly have a passion for games and this shows through in their design and execution, and in their hosting. They delivered a thorough brief and good story and only delivered hints when we really needed them (we only used 1 hint!)
Did we escape?
Yes, in 48 minutes
Website:
Price:
2 Players £44
3 Players £57
4 Players £68
5 Players £80
6 Players £90
Brit of an Escape Habit 
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