Steeped & Unlocked

Author: Mira Jinkes

  • Room Review: Sherlock’s Library

    All In Adventures: Sherlock’s Library | Team Size: 3 | Time Left: 7min

    As a devoted Sherlock Holmes fan, I couldn’t wait to don my (definitely metaphorical) deerstalker and dive into this room. The premise promised intrigue, clever puzzles, and maybe a touch of Victorian flair. We were excited at the promise of piecing together clues in the great detective’s study – it had all the makings of an immersive, cerebral escape room experience. Unfortunately, what started with high hopes and a flair for deduction, ended up feeling more like a missed opportunity than a thrilling mystery. While the concept had great potential, the execution didn’t quite live up to the legend of Sherlock himself.

     🎨  Immersiveness & Theme Integration

    1/5.

    Every room at this location is quite literally an office cubicle. I’m not even joking. The walls of each room don’t even reach the ceiling. You cannot lean on them or they will fall over. They have wall paper CLINGING FOR LIFE to the walls internal to the cubicle.

    🧩  Puzzle Uniqueness & Variety

    1/5.

    This room was everything you’ve already seen before if you’ve been to any escape room ever. The puzzles were not the most original or unique. There was ONE puzzle in the whole room that could be considered unique – but even then it was unimpressive and anti-climactic. Everything in this room was 1. open a box, 2. take out all of the laminated (at least they were laminated, right?) pieces of paper from the box, 3. figure out what they say to do, 4. get a code/key, repeat steps 1-4 until complete. Sprinkle in a “go find this thing” every 3 or 4 cycles. It felt monotonous at best.

    ⏱️ Flow & Pacing

    2/5.

    There was very minimal flow to the puzzles in this room other than that you would open a box and it would give you a code or a key to the next box. Rinse repeat. While the puzzles were on brand, the only thing we really had to help us figure out how much progress we had made was physically counting how many locks were left. Which we actually did end up doing relatively often (mostly to see how quickly this experience would be over if I’m being frank).

    👨‍💻  Game Master Quality

    1/5 and that feels lenient.

    The game master at this location was friendly at first but as soon as we were in our room, I’m pretty sure they just up and left us to our own devices. I don’t think they were watching/listening to us at all. We asked for a clue about half way through the room and about 5 minutes elapsed and we had no sign of life. No one came. We ended up LEAVING THE ROOM to try and go find them. We knocked on the door to the back and FINALLY got a response and then our clue. The explanation we got was that “it can be hard to hear in the back sometimes” – which just felt like someone who doesn’t want to take accountability in doing a poor job.

    After our game was over, it took them a couple minutes to come back to our room. They “didn’t even know we escaped!” But they did take our picture at least. I was truly unimpressed.

    🛠️ Durability & Maintenance

    2/5

    When we played, this room had some of the wall paper pretty severely peeling off the wall. Considering that was pretty much the entirety of the ambiance, it was pretty impactful on the experience. It also turned out that we needed that part of the wall paper for something. Several of the locked boxes were also on their last legs and there was a lock that fell apart into our hands as we opened it. (So it’s definitely well played?) I will say that all the laminated pieces of paper and the several pictures on the wall were in good repair though. So I’ll give it that.

    🔒 Difficulty

    3/5

    I honestly expected more. A Sherlock room should be able to live up to the hype of Sherlock Holmes, but really these puzzles felt very elementary. I’ve seen them all before and some of the “search and find” puzzles were honestly kinda cheap. “Let’s hide this in a place that is specifically hard to find and has nothing in the room to point you toward it and see how long it takes you to find this thing you need” is the general vibe here. There were a couple of puzzles that got us thinking though. So I consider difficulty pretty middle of the road.

    🧼 Cleanliness

    4/5

    It was clean enough. There was some dust here and there but nothing on what we directly needed to solve the room. I also do not know how often they vacuum or sanitize. The staff said they do it routinely – but one of our clues was a little sticky… so I’ll try and give them the benefit of the doubt.

    ♿ Accessibility

    3/5

    I’m honestly not the most sure about Polaris Mall as a whole, but I do know that it has to follow ADA laws, so this is wheelchair accessible. The store itself is on the second floor – which is notable as I’m not sure how close the elevator is, so it may be a little bit of a longer path, but you CAN do it, and the room itself is an office cubicle, so everything is within reach. I will say that this room was pretty small though, so more than one wheelchair and you’re basically out of space. The room is also relatively cluttered, which makes me a little anxious about recommending it as a place that is “easily” accessible.

    If you’re Deaf or Hard of Hearing, getting clues form your game master may be difficult but I would expect your game master to be willing to work with you – mostly likely writing them down for you. However ours was super inattentive (as mentioned above), so it may be a toss up there on how much they would actually be willing to do for you.

    No color involved here, really, so it is color blind friendly. The whole room feels like it is in blue-scale anyway.

    Overall Score: 2/5

    This rating fells truly too nice for the experience we had. However, credit where credit is due – the puzzles did need solving, it was cleanish, and mostly accessible.

    Best for: Quick thrill, low-pressure introduction to escape rooms in general, cheaper adventure, or looking for something to kill time.
    Avoid if: You want to feel truly immersed, you want attentive service, or you’re a Sherlock Holmes purist expecting clever deduction, intricate puzzles, or immersive storytelling.

    Would I recommend Sherlock’s Library? Honestly? Probably not. This room wasn’t for me. If you’re already at Polaris and need a way to kill an hour – sure, I guess… Though, I personally believe there are better – cheaper – ways to spend an hour. However, it does provide a quick thrill.

    This room seems great in theory – the idea of unraveling a mystery in the legendary detective’s study sounds like the perfect setup for a clever, immersive escape. But while the concept had all the right clues for a great experience, the execution felt more like a rough draft than a polished case file. Let’s just say, Sherlock might’ve walked out in search of a more compelling mystery. If you’re hoping for an experience worthy of 221B Baker Street, this one might leave you feeling a bit underwhelmed.

  • Room Review: Playground

    The Escape Game: Playground | Team Size: 5 | Time Left: 4min

    Remember when the biggest stress in your life was finishing a your homework before heading out to the kickball field? No? Well, Playground by The Escape Game is here to remind you—with a twist. In this nostalgia-fueled escape room, your mission isn’t to crack safes or break out of prison, but to complete school assignments across multiple subjects before recess ends and your kickball glory awaits. It’s an A+ blend of brainpower, teamwork, and childhood chaos—but does this schoolhouse rock, or is it more like detention? Let’s find out…

     🎨  Immersiveness & Theme Integration

    I would give this room a solid 5/5.

    Walking into this room is like a blast form the past. They said “welcome to the 4th grade” and they meant it. I walked in there and felt like a kid again. Who knew getting sent back to elementary school could be this much fun—and this stressful? There was even a recess area with “grass” (turf) and a whole play set! From the desks I definitely used back then, cubbies, posters, and even backpacks… this room definitely feels like the real deal.

    🧩  Puzzle Uniqueness & Variety

    I thought long and hard about this, but I am going to give this a 5/5.

    The puzzles in this room were not difficult by any means… and many puzzles required you to physically interact with the room in some way – so it was the same KIND of puzzle in that sense – but I was never bored. Every single puzzle was unique enough in its own right and the puzzles made sense with the theme of the room – even ADDING to the overall experience by allowing the player to interact with different parts of the room in different ways.

    Everything you do and every thing that happens in this room leads to something else and the feeling of accomplishment you feel when you see your list of tasks get checked off one by one – with an A+ no less – brings such a sense of completion and pride for everything you do in this room. For that, I have to give it credit where credit is due. If it is going to give me full credit for fumbling through the 4th grade, I’ll give it full credit too.

    ⏱️ Flow & Pacing

    I’m pretty definitive in giving this a 4/5.

    There is SO MUCH to do in this room. SO MUCH.

    If I had a smaller group, I really don’t know if we would have made it out in time. This room is amazing for large groups as there is plenty to do, but even the staff at this location say, the smaller the group you have going in here, the harder this room becomes – even rivaling in difficulty to their hardest room!

    However, the flow of the room is great. You see things and know what to do with it. Puzzle pieces? I’m probably putting a puzzle together. Coordinates on a grid? Probably math related. Not to mention the giant report card that tracks your progress as you go – Teamwork? We probably have to work together. This room flows very, very nicely.

    👨‍💻  Game Master Quality

    5/5

    I normally don’t do this, but this game master deserves it – and the rest of my group agrees. Ashley was our “game guide” for this experience and she was just beyond phenomenal. We had a celebration in the group and she truly went above and beyond for us. We only needed a clue twice, but the clue she did give were funny and creative. She let us and helped us take so many photos together all around the room. She also really hyped us up on our win. We were already feeling great, but she came in and just matched our silly goofy energy. We adored her! I don’t know what other games she runs – if any – but someone give her a raise. I will sing her praises from the rooftops!

    🛠️ Durability & Maintenance

    4/5

    This room overall was really very sturdy – it has to be if you’re going to have a full blown play set in the middle of it. I am sure this room has seen its fair share of kids running through it as well.

    That being said, while a majority of this room was in tip top shape, I’d be amiss if I didn’t mention that some of the backpacks were… well used. It was to the point where one of them was even flaking from over use (the orange one specifically). There were also parts of the play set (I’ll admit high usage areas) that you could tell they painted over some pretty hefty wear. Not structural, but worn off paint for sure. Now – honestly – that adds to the realism, but I did notice it and it was enough to distract me from the game for a moment – so it is worth mentioning.

     

    🔒 Difficulty

    3/5

    This rating depends highly on group size, so I’ll settle for average. The puzzles themselves are really quite self explanatory. However, due to the shear amount of things in this room I agree with staff that it is probably a sliding scale for difficulty. If I was in a team of 2 or even by myself and only had an hour to do everything in that room for the first time… if I was miraculously able to manage (which I’m sure some people do) I would be sweating by the time I was done, for sure.

    Difficulty of tasks at hand: minimal

    Number of tasks required: maximal

    Also of note, this would be a GREAT starter room for anyone new to escape rooms and looking for a fun thing to do with a small group of friends.

    🧼 Cleanliness

    I am going to give this a 4/5

    Most of my qualms with this room were addressed in the durability section, however, the books needing a quick wipe down was also in my notes on the room.

    All of the windows? Spotless. Dusty? Not at all. Spider webs? Maybe Charlotte’s… this room is clearly cleaned frequently. I think just a few things could use a touch up or a quick replacement.

    ♿ Accessibility

    4/5 – some potential issues.

    As I’ve said before, the main entrance to the location is directly wheelchair accessible from the main road. There are also no stairs needed to get to the room itself. However, there is a huge play set in the middle of the main room, and climbing on the playset is required for at least one of the puzzles. The rest of the room is fully accessible though.

    If you are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, this company uses written clues that appear on a TV screen. They also use a system to request clues by pressing a button – so no verbal communication necessary with staff, and I’m sure they would be more than willing to write/type back and forth. I can think of one puzzle in this room that MIGHT require a work-around, but it is fully accessible otherwise and would be a very quick fix.

    Lastly, this room is very color heavy, so I am not fully certain someone who is color blind would appreciate the room to it’s fullest. Not sure I would recommend in this sense.

    Overall Score: 4.25/5

    Best for: Groups of 4-6, newer escape room players, and people who want to relive their childhood and actually get good grades and finally make mom and dad proud after all these years…
    Avoid if: You hate puzzles, don’t have any friends, don’t want to do the work, or hate color. 🌈

    Would I recommend Playground? Definitely! Great room, super fun, it was an amazing time!

  • Room Review: Prison Break

    The Escape Game: Prison Break | Team Size: 2 | Time Left: 9min

    They say crime doesn’t pay — but let me tell you, successfully busting out of prison with just 9 minutes on the clock and only two brains behind the breakout? That’s a reward in itself.

    My partner-in-crime and I recently took on Prison Break at The Escape Game, and while we technically didn’t commit a crime, the adrenaline said otherwise. This room isn’t just a clever name — you start locked in separate jail cells, with your only tools being wit, communication, and the faint hope that the other person didn’t miss anything important.

    Stress level when separated: mildly panicked squirrel.
    Satisfaction when reunited: giddy buddy-cop montage.

    🎨 Immersiveness & Theme Integration

    I would give this room a 4/5 for this category.

    The story line (escape the prison) makes sense even if the reason you’re escaping in the first place is because the warden likes to play mind games.

    The atmosphere is very prison like and, honestly, a little spooky – but I feel like they could have done more with it.

    🧩 Puzzle Uniqueness & Variety

    I’m impressed at the uniqueness of puzzles in this room 5/5.

    Starting off separate only added to the uniqueness – not many rooms do this. AND it added a real challenge. Every success felt earned, and every mistake felt like a teachable moment. (Mostly the lesson was “communicate better or rot in jail forever.”)

    The balance between physical puzzles and more logical, thought provoking puzzles was also very well balanced and being observant was also very key in this room. Very well rounded!

    ⏱️ Flow & Pacing

    This is giving 4/5.

    There are puzzles that tie the whole room together, but without these the room would feel pretty disjointed. The end was also a bit anti-climactic in my opinion. If it weren’t for the “YOU ESCAPED!” video on the TV screen, I don’t know if we would have realized we did it.

    I can also see it being very easy to waste a lot of time in the earlier half of this game making the end of the game nearly impossible – probably why it is rated as difficult as it is.

    👨‍💻 Game Master Quality

    I’m giving my “game guide” for this experience a 3/5.

    Definitely over clued us! Personally, I’m not a fan. Please wait until I ask for one. And the one time we did ask for one, they basically just gave us the answer. We had 9 minutes left on the clock… I don’t think we needed *that* much unprompted help.

    That being said, they also were incredibly personable and we struck up a great conversation both before and after our game. They were super sweet and let us take soooo many photos together afterward. We had a great time and they definitely made up for the over-hinting aspect of the game.

    🛠️ Durability & Maintenance

    4/5 in this category as well

    The room itself is well built and obviously well-loved and played. (Not necessarily a bad thing – it’s a good room). But there is some more obvious wear and tear and something that people who are a little more destructive could open when it isn’t intended for groups to do so. Unfortunately, that is quite common with a lot of escape rooms because people get a little too antsy about escaping in time – but also a fixable issue if they would install a mag lock instead. 🤷 

    🔒 Difficulty

    Definitely not the hardest room I’ve ever played, but it’s up there: 4/5

    Let me be clear: this is not your “first time doing an escape room, how fun!” kind of experience. It’s more like, “we’ve done a few rooms, we know how to think laterally, and we’re ready to MacGyver our way through jail” territory.

    This room is the “hardest room at this location” with a 9/10 difficulty rating advertised. Having played all of the rooms at this location at this point, I’m not sure I agree. Definitely a hard room, though. Personally, I had a harder time with their Special Ops: Mysterious Market room – but that could just be me.

    🧼 Cleanliness

    I was surprised at the cleanliness of this jail cell 5/5.

    As dark and dreary as it looked and felt – everything was shockingly clean. If you told me they just deep cleaned right before we got there, I would believe you. No chemical smell, but also no smudges on any glass or mirrors, no visible dust layers, and well swept/mopped hallways and cells. All of the clues were also clean and in good repair.

    ♿ Accessibility

    4/5 – some potential issues.

    The main entrance to the location is directly wheelchair accessible from the main road – amazing! No long winding ramps or using a weird back entrance either. And there are no stairs needed to get to the room itself. However, there is a single part of the room that you cannot access in a wheelchair. There are 3 or 4 stairs in the room, and you need to be able to access what is at the top of the stairs to complete the game. However, all parts of this room are wheelchair accessible meaning that anyone in a wheelchair can very easily be involved with the experience as a whole.

    If you are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, this company uses written clues that appear on a TV screen. They also use a system to request clues by pressing a button – so no verbal communication necessary with staff. I’m not sure if any of the staff use ASL, but they are all very friendly and willing to work with anyone (including English as a second language users as I saw with a different group in the lobby), so I’m positive they will find a way to make it work. That being said, this room starts of with the group split into separate rooms where you cannot see the people in the other room. Which would make some of the more collaborative puzzles very difficult if not impossible without leaving the room. They do allow the use of cellphones in the room though, so this could potentially be fixed with a video call or texting pictures back and forth.

    No issues puzzle-wise for anyone who is color blind, but potentially very hard to see for anyone who is low-vision as the room is pretty dim. I’m sure they could provide extra flishlights upon request.

    The only other thing I will say about this room is that there really isn’t anywhere to sit other than the floor, so if you struggle to stand for long periods of time maybe request a chair? With how friendly the staff is at this location I’m positive they would go out of their way to make sure you had whatever accommodation you need.

    Overall Score: 4.1/5

    Best for: Experienced escapees, dynamic duos, and anyone who’s ever yelled “I could totally break out of jail!” during a Netflix binge.
    Avoid if: You’re claustrophobic, hate puzzles, or don’t like your partner very much.

    Would I recommend Prison Break? Absolutely — but only if you’ve cut your teeth on a few other rooms first. It’s a premium experience, best enjoyed when you’ve got a few lock-and-key battles under your belt.

    And if you’re bold enough to do it with just two people? Well… welcome to the escape room elite.

  • Welcome to Steeped and Unlocked!

    Where escapes are reviewed and tea is spilled 🍵🔐

    Let’s face it: not all escape rooms are created equal. Some are brilliant, immersive, and clever with amazing puzzle flow and attention to detail. Others? Quite literally an office cubicle with a few locks and some laminated pieces of paper.

    After completing countless rooms across state lines I found myself wishing for one central place to keep track of the good, the bad, and the “wow” – whether that means above and beyond or just… wow.

    That’s where this blog comes in. Part honest archive, part public service, and part excuse to make too many lock-related puns, this is a place to share real, spoiler-free reviews of escape rooms. For myself. For fellow enthusiasts. And for anyone who deserves to know whether a room is *worth* escaping in the first place.

    🔎 What You’ll Find Here

    Each escape room I review will be rated out of 5 in these 8 different key areas:

    • 🎨 Immersiveness & Theme Integration
      • Does the room tell a story, or just look like a thrift store exploded?
      • Do I feel like I’m somewhere new or do I *know* I’m at a strip mall?
    • 🧩 Puzzle Uniqueness & Variety
      • Is it a fresh brain workout or just padlocks on everything?
      • Do they use the same kind of puzzle repeatedly or is there a nice variety?
    • ⏱️ Flow & Pacing
      • Was it a smooth escape or a traffic jam of group confusion?
      • Did the room flow from puzzle to puzzle?
      • Is the room built for one small group or a larger group to divide and conquer?
    • 👨‍💻 Game Master Quality
      • Did they add to the immersion, or take away from it?
      • Clue too much or too little?
      • Offer clues unprompted?
      • Were the clues given actually helpful?
    • 🛠️ Durability & Maintenance
      • Are the props sturdy and functioning… or held together by hope and hot glue?
      • Are there game components that are not well maintained or flimsy?
    • 🔒 Difficulty
      • Was it comparable to the difficulty the company assigned it?
      • What difficulty rating would I give it?
    • 🧼 Cleanliness
      • Because no one should fear what’s behind a blacklight.
      • Is it clear they clean daily or can I easily see it’s been a while?
    • ♿ Accessibility
      • Physically doable in shoes that aren’t hiking boots?
      • ADA accessible?
      • Deaf friendly?

    I may also include my own personal opinions about the room as well since, ya know, everything is subjective, and there is always a hot pot of tea here. 🫖

    ❌ What You *Won’t* Find

    Spoilers. I’m here to spill the tea, not the solution to Puzzle 7.

    I may share that there a certain *types* of puzzles, but only if I wish I had known going in. I personally believe that part of an escape room is going in to solve puzzles, so what’s the point if I walk in already knowing exactly what I’m going to find?

    For example, I might tell you a room has a riddle in it and/or if I think the answer to the riddle in the room was a stretch, but i won’t tell you the riddle or the answer to the riddle in question.

    I may also tell you if there are multiple color-based puzzles that may make it difficult if you’re color blind or smelling based puzzles that make make it difficult for those with allergies or a nose that maybe doesn’t work the best – especially if there isn’t a simple work around. I want people to have fun, not be super frustrated because a room isn’t accessible to them.

    📅 Posting Schedule:

    In the spirit of all good escape plans: as soon as the timing is right. 💅Expect reviews whenever I get the chance to tackle a new room.

    🎯 Why This Exists

    To help you walk into every escape room feeling confident, curious, and excited — not duped by vague star ratings or five-year-old reviews. Whether you’re a seasoned solver or a first-time escapee, this blog is your guide to choosing rooms that are worth your time, money, and mental energy and hopefully allow you to find the experience your looking for.

    🎉 Let’s Get the Party Started

    Thanks for being here. Now let’s get locked in… and start unlocking opinions. 🗝️😉

    Click here for more!