team activity – Catching Marbles

**One super vague partial spoiler in this review**

It’d been a while since we had gone to an escape room and this one in Boston had some glowing reviews. Though I admit I loathe driving (and parking!) in Boston I was content to try this escape room partially because we got there via train which was… so much easier.

Anyway! Due to our quick arrival, we were early and had time to mull about in the sleet and rain for a bit, peering in the window before sauntering off to fill our bellies and come back. The waiting room in this place had big windows facing the street and they had several high tables with various puzzles to play with while we waited. The staff was quite frankly adorable, enthusiastic about working here, and very friendly. When our time came up we were escorted to the elevators and given directions how to get where we needed to go.

We had chosen the Writer’s Secret room which can take up to 75 minutes with 3-5 players. The website describes it as “immersive and adaptive.” On this day we had three players, as a fourth was home with a bad back. Getting old sure is fun…

We were told we could take photos, I chose not to as this was a particularly whimsical room and I didn’t want to ruin the magic. The premise was we needed to help an author come up with ideas for her next book by examining clues in the room which turned out to be a hallway and three rooms besides. Obviously, we started in the hallway at the writing desk and I actually understood the puzzle! That never happens. I’m actually quite bad at puzzles and a bit of a dead weight in these exercises. I will note however one of the best features of this room was the lack of math. I can really get behind that.

It didn’t take long for my companions to find the other puzzles and start working on them as I followed quietly behind. The first room had a marine theme to it and was kinda cute. At one point I was told the shell was whispering secrets. When I asked what the hell that meant he just repeated his sentence as if it wasn’t complete Gibberish. This meant nothing to me. It meant nothing to the other player either. And that’s why this puzzle probably took the longest.

The three rooms were an ocean room, a weird fairy nook, and a smelting room. There was only one combination lock, the rest of the puzzles resulted in actions that’d give you the next step to a different puzzle. It was indeed very immersive with a lot of thuds and bangs coming from other rooms when we solved something! I particularly enjoyed the smelting furnace which took a “gold” brick and returned a key. I just found that cute.

This may have been my favorite escape room to date, if not definitely in the top three. I loved the whimsy, the lack of math and numbered locks (which I feel other rooms rely way too much on,) and just how very Rube Goldberg-y this whole set up felt. We solved the room with more than twenty minutes to spare but did have to ask for two hints. Begrudgingly.

It’s been a while since I tried a new escape room and this one’s brand spanking new. It’s small, currently with only two rooms – one with an ancient Egyptian mummy theme and the other about DaVinci. The following will contain no spoilers but will be a review of the experience.

I think this may have been my favorite escape room so far partially because I was blown away by the ambiance of the place. I was told it used to be a hookah bar, which might explain the elaborate wallpaper but I was taken aback with the luscious purple walls and glammed up tin ceiling, with a Victorian looking couch and chandelier in the waiting area. It just had so much personality!

And if the decor wasn’t enough to wow the genuine warmth and passion of the staff was palpable. We ended up doing the Egyptian themed room and it was… a challenge, as it should be, but quite fun! And the ambiance did not let up! Though the room was somewhat spartan at first the decorations that did exist were so well done. Someone clearly put a lot of love into these props and background. They were perfect. So much so that I wonder what the DaVinci room looks like!

We were able to figure out all the puzzles although we did get a little hung up at the end. That’s OK, we still made it. I really enjoyed this place and this was one of only a few rooms I actually felt useful. Most of these I go to as the group wants me to feel included but I have no idea what I’m doing. This time I felt a little less lost so that was nice!

Anyway, if you’re in the area and games, puzzles, and escape rooms are up your ally definitely check it out!

I didn’t really expect to be going to the Time Zone on this particular day but while in Rome (or rather Lincoln RI…) It’s one of those places this country mouse finds bizarre and slightly intimidating. Why? Well, I’m just not used to indoor go-kart tracks, all the blinky lights and loud noises of an arcade, or really anything else in this sort of venue. Smidge overstimulating. That being said I managed. My only real regret is buying the fish and chips at the cafeteria. Don’t do that. I thought fish would be easier on my already pissed off stomach but alas… What they served me was some sort of batter fried fish jerky that went down with a crunch.

The escape rooms were fun though. They reminded me a lot of the Boda Borg that I went to several years ago. Instead of one theme that brought you through one experience it was a set of twenty-five rooms, each with totally different mini puzzles and quests that only took a few minutes each if that. I really enjoyed the physical ones that asked participants to throw balls, or pucks, or line up metal rods and pass each other a ball with them. I’m not athletic at all but these simple tasks I had a much better chance of actually figuring out than anything involving math or abstract thinking. I’m godawful at those…

ANYWAY – it was a fun way to spend an hour or two. I only managed to take photos of the arcade from above as I ate lunch and nothing of the actual escape rooms as I relinquished my belongings to the locker before going in.

Tag: team activity

Boxaroo (Writer’s Secret) Escape Room – Boston Massachusetts