Steeped & Unlocked

Tag: escape-rooms

  • 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!

  • 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!