by Chelmsford Escape Rooms (website)
Interface Moulsham Mill Project, Parkway, CM2 7PX
2-8 players
60 minutes
Overall rating
based on ratings from 17 users
combined with 1 pro review
Your review
Player reviews
Much of the Governor was reviewed at another Franchise in Chelmsford by Toby (which you can find elsewhere on this site).
On the plus side then was a strong theme (Prison break/haunted/psycho combination), with a nice variety of puzzles (albeit that at times it felt a little bit disjointed). There was a nice series of spaces that took you on a journey through the Prison.
There are however a number of flaws in the game, which detracted from our experience, and many of which could be reasonably easily addressed to improve the experience. There were some puzzles where you needed to search a dimly lit room with one UV torch to know where to start β never a fun experience. Another puzzle had accessibility issues, where we knew exactly what the puzzle was asking to do, and came to a solution, but couldnβt work out what needed changing due to poor lighting. Whilst the venue has a habit of leaving redundant information as deliberate red herrings, there was a feature in one of the spaces which I was genuinely astonished was not labelled βnot part of the gameβ.
For larger groups, redundant information is unlikely to be as big an issue, since by dividing and conquering these can be relatively quickly eliminated. For smaller groups, it can be frustrating, particularly in a game with so many padlocks.
Of note is that whilst we failed this room as a pair, apparently no group of 2 had succeeded at the room (at least at that venue) beforehand, and the pass rate was averaging around 10% for a larger group. We failed to reach a certain part of the game, and yet apparently had done βincredibly wellβ for a group of 2, which felt rather jarring.
This is a game that with minor modifications could be brought up to a much closer level to their βRob the bankβ game.
Not suitable for young families, and those who scare easily should request adjustments from the Game Manager first.
Theatrical, fun, flows really well. We just clicked with this room and flew through it, but didn't feel bored at any point.
I liked this game and it seemed to flow well. Its a bit creepy so not one for small children or those easily frightened! The puzzle all seemed to work well and it was a lot to do in 60mins so it definitely filled the time. I don't feel we struggled on anything really and didnt have much time left at all. Good solid game, nothing ground breaking but still a good one to play and I liked the set/theming.
We preferred the first half to the second half, but overall still a very good game with really inventive use of space and an appropriately grimy vibe
Reviews by escape room review sites
The premise of The Governor is that you're a group of ghost hunters imprisoned in an abandoned prison by an ex-prisoner - thereby managing to combine no fewer than three of the classic escape room themes in an unexpected fusion of haunted house, prison break and homicidal maniac. That blend allowed the tone to range from sly humour to some genuine creepiness without ever feeling incongruous.
I found both the build and the atmospherics impressive. A complex layout makes it a larger and much more...