Escape Hunt Exeter: The Last Vikings

Decent room but hosting at Exeter left something to be desired. Visited the Central Birmingham branch the day before this and the difference was striking. We got out of the room in 30 minutes and the response from the host (a different one to when we went in) was ‘Your time is 30:02 but we’re out of time cards. Was your locker number 1?’ We were left to sort out our own photo and leave. The game itself was fine, a couple of glitchy bits but it really was the (lack of) hosting which let it down. Rating is for the game.

A Victorious Viking Venture!
This marked my first visit to Escape Hunt: I was saving it for when I had a big group coming to keep costs down.
Story
Summon the Norse gods for their protection against the Ice Giants who are on their way to destroy your village. NB: I really like this storyline: simple, creative and adventuresome with a clear goal!

Puzzles
We were all stumped at first- the first puzzle must have taken us ten minutes- but with a couple of hints, we then powered through. There were one or two occasions where it was almost a tad too unclear what needed to be done. However, it seemed to gradually get easier: we made light work of the final tasks. The puzzles were entirely (and appropriately) practical, making it the most hands-on room I’ve ever done so far. Vikings wouldn’t have been involved with number-crunching or word games! The game was very linear, perhaps too much so for a group of 5. We were all often huddled around the same thing, so I'd recommend a smaller group for this one.

Mise-en-scene
The room was thoughtfully decked out like a Viking cabin. There were ‘proper’ props e.g. metal helmets, furniture and tools to appreciate. A lack of traditional number locks in favour of other means of progressing fitted in nicely with the Nordic setting.

Final Comments
We broke out with ten minutes to spare. This room scores highly in all three of my sub-categories!

I always go to escape room chains with a bit of apprehension as those usually don't offer that sense of uniqueness or discovered hidden gem that you can find in local escape rooms. But Escape Hunt Liverpool offers a real warm welcome and immersive atmosphere that Liverpool Breakout or Birkenhead Clue HQ lack. First of all, the Albert Dock location is really cosy and you feel welcome straight when you pass the door. Our host Jenny was everything you want for in a host: friendly, warm, funny, best friend material and theatrical from the introduction to the escape. She was a bit clue-heavy despite our request for no clues but she kept in character throughout with all clues given in a tone suggesting that a god was speaking to us, or a story narrator was guiding our steps; that really was a + point for the immersion. The room itself was a perfect example of how to maximise the space, a perfect proof that you don't need a massive room to do an effective escape game. There was absolutely no padlocks throughout the game, only a couple of keylocks but even then those were offering more than the chance to open a box as they were instead unlocking a new puzzle to solve. The atmosphere was really accurate, no heavy action movie soundtrack but instead a more ambiency and sound effects background that really fitted the room. The puzzles were smart and hands on, and the story was well respected. The Last Vikings is taking you on a journey! The room itself is quite small and with a bunch of clues we escaped in 45 minutes so I would not recommend it for more than 4 players as it can feel a bit linear at times (but in a good way as it serves the story). It was a real pleasure and refreshing to escape from this adventure. The Last Vikings is a great addition to the rooms available in Liverpool. You should definitely give it a go if you are around. I'm looking forwards to try their other rooms in the near future!