Escape Reality Birmingham: Bank Job

Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao Ciao Ciao!

Theft was on the mind after watching Money Heist on Netflix, so we were excited about this room! 

Unfortunately the room is quite dated now. We had fun, but some things were made difficult by the state of disrepair; draws that don't open, objects held together with cellotape. 

One major aspect of the game had us waste about 15 minutes, to find it wasn't working. Worst still, it was missing it's QR, so hints were unavailable. This would have been only our second hint, so as a measure, I would say this is a fairly easy game. 

On calling the GM into the room to help, he confirmed it was broken. He then couldn't manually release it, so he had to skip the challenge inside. He then gave us a hint towards the next challenge, so in total 15 minutes were lost and 3 challenges!! So actually, it put a real damper on the whole experience; skipping 3 challenges is a big chunk of game play.

When I requested a discount on a future game, our GM said no. He said they don't have the power to do that. I was really gutted.

I've always disagreed with the way Escape Reality is managed, given you've got one member of staff on the desk, seeing people in, delivering the briefings, monitoring your game on CCTV, seeing teams out, answering the phones, covering the desk, selling drinks, resetting rooms... It's just too much.

I get the impression there's a backseat manager somewhere just enjoying the money roll in, while starving the place of any investment, so I'm not sure how much longer Escape Reality will last. Oddly, I had enquired in here a week prior about bringing in a large party, which I thought would be of interest given they claim to host corporate events on their website, but the staff told me no - they don't do large parties that require hosting multiple rooms. I get the feeling there's a big disconnect between management and the staff here.

Something went badly wrong with this game.  I'm still not sure whether a padlock was in the wrong place or whether it was left unlocked.  We escaped with several puzzles left uncompleted.  In fairness, we received a credit note for our spoiled game, but the game host wasn't especially interested in working out what had gone wrong.

We were told on arrival one of the puzzles was broken but to "use our resources" 

Several rooms, one puzzle per room for a while, very dull and dingy and felt a little like a waste of space. Puzzles were ok, lots of spaces and items were very "well loved" and really need replacing. 

I think as a game it's a little tired and we didn't really enjoy this one on the whole but our host was lovely.

Okay room but some puzzles were not working correctly and our GMs had to enter the room several times. 

Lots to do in here and some clever puzzles that worked well with the theme. We stormed through it because it flowed well, so although it's not the hardest room, it is an enjoyable one.

More Bank Bustin’

This was another occasion where I introduced a newbie to the wonderful world of escape rooms. He’s since been hooked, and so this one must have done a good job of enthralling him!

Story

Steal a big shiny diamond from a bank.

Puzzles

There was lot of calculating and translating numbers into codes, as well as a couple more interactive puzzles. A fun mixture.

Mise-en-scène

There was a very lifelike and absorbing start and finish to this room, lending a sense of flow and progression to fit in with the story. From the big main features such as furniture and room layout, to the minor details like the smallest props, this room was on the money in terms of design.

Final Comments

Four-stars is a fair difficulty rating, but this room could be enjoyed as a pair or in a group of three to four. Another diamond to add to my collection.