clueQuest: IAMAI (London)

A Puzzle Lover’s Dream!

MM7 has retreated to one of our safe houses after being attacked by an unidentified assailant. Your objective is to reach MM7, prevent a system-wide breach, and capture the rogue AI threatening the world’s online safety. Word of caution: our intel suggests the AI is evolving fast, and it may not remain contained for long.

It’s weird, you wait and wait for good London games and then all of a sudden, two come along within a short period of time. Back in July we played Pushed for Time by Escape Plan and I started it by saying that it was possibly my new favourite London game. Well now it has competition, as IAMAI by clueQuest is a serious contender for my favourite London game.

We were kindly invited along to a press day by the team at clueQuest to check out IAMAI, and knowing the quality of previous games at clueQuest, we instantly said yes and booked our train to London. So although our overall experience will not be ‘normal’, the gameplay was identical to regular bookings.

Unlike when we normally play games, on this occasion we met some of the behind-the-scenes team at clueQuest, and then had a chance to chat with some fellow bloggers from sites like; Thrill Nation, Escape the Roomers, and The Escape Roomer. We were teamed up with Helen and John from Escape The Roomers, and formed a super team called ‘Deja Tornado’ (an amalgamation of our two player team names).

We were the first team up, so descended the stairs to the basement, where we were greeted by our host, Rowen. Outside the room we received the mission briefing, and fortunately passed our ‘robot checks’, before Rowen then escorted us into the room and we received more information regarding our mission.

IMMERSION/ROOM DESIGN

So first things first, if you’re what is lovingly referred to in the industry as a ‘spectacle chaser’ then this may not be the room for you. It’s beautifully assembled with robust and well made props, so you may still be wowed as it really is bloody pretty, but you’re possibly not going to get the same “wow” as if you have just walked into a cathedral (looking at you, Chapel and Catacombs). Although I think when we entered there were a lot of ‘Oooooohhhh’s going around.

What you will find is a room that takes you on a puzzle journey through the world the clueQuest have created, a journey that links all their games (although you can play any of their games as a standalone adventure), and a mission that feels oddly representative of the world we live in today where the buzz word right now is clearly ‘Artificial Intelligence’.

Despite being in a space that is a single room with everything on display from the start, this game still had a number of surprises and many moments that show some of the wondrous things that can be achieved with tech if you have the right skills and experience to pull it together. And actually, it’s a great set and is “wow” in its own way.

A pretty room, lots of pretty lights, fun interactions, amazing tech – what more could you want? Oh yes. Puzzles?

PUZZLES

Ok, so I did say this game may not appeal to ‘spectacle chasers’, but can puzzles be spectacles? If you’re a fan of games that are challenging but fair, then IAMAI could be your dream escape room. It’s a puzzle spectacle!

We’ve had many discussions lately about where the UK industry shines, and the general consensus is that the UK does puzzles really well, and IAMAI is a perfect example of that. We’ve played two games now in the last few months that should put the UK firmly on the puzzle enthusiasts map. First, The Locktopus at Knockout in Reading  and now IAMAI by clueQuest. If you’re a puzzle-fiend and need your fix – these are your games.

Things you will not get in this game; hand-holding, padlocks, red herrings or obvious starting points. What you will get: lots of multi-layered puzzles, clever mechanics, a real challenge, many ‘a-ha’ moments, and up to 72 minutes of pure puzzling fun.

Puzzles in IAMAI were varied and unique, making clever use of bespoke props and cutting edge technology. There is a lot to do, and sometimes just working out what is a puzzle was a puzzle in itself; observation, teamwork, pattern recognition, spatial relations were the bulk of the puzzle types. Even understanding how your movements and decisions affect the environment is something you need to be aware of. At more than one point in the game, our entire team (the four of us) were working on the same puzzle, and everyone had something to do to help solve it – collaboration at its finest.

GM/CLUE SYSTEM

We played as a very experienced team of four, and fortunately managed to get through this game on our own, without any help.

Had we needed help, our extremely attentive and competent GM, Rowen, would have beamed in a message direct from HQ. Having now played all the games at clueQuest, we’ve found their GMs to be some of the best out there, so I have no doubt that we were in safe hands.

In our briefing, Rowen said that she would input help when required but we could also ask for help by simply requesting it. This is a challenging game, but one that players will really want to complete and see through to completion, so don’t be afraid to ask for help if needed.

After the game, we had a chat with the manager, Alex, and I believe he mentioned that there was a way that this game could be adjusted to make the difficulty a bit more adaptive – which is great, as everyone should play it!

ANYTHING ELSE

Before we played IAMAI I was asked what my favourite clueQuest game was, and I had to think hard. Now it’s easy, IAMAI is my favourite game at clueQuest, possibly in London.

This is a game that enthusiasts should add to their ‘must play’ list. It’s a puzzle lover’s dream and is sure to challenge even the most experienced of teams. If you’re new to escape rooms, play it, but perhaps work your way through the other games at clueQuest as a warm up! This game can accommodate up to eight people, and normally I’d say eight was too many, but actually, there’s a lot to do so bring all the brain power you can!

clueQuest has always been on the London and UK map, but IAMAI is a game that puts it on the world map.

Success/Failure

Final Rating:

Team: 4 players – succeeded in 51:56 (no hints)

Address: 169-171 Caledonian Rd, London N1 0SL

Website: https://cluequest.co.uk

*Disclaimer: we weren’t charged for this experience, but this has not influenced our review*