I wish we could have spent longer in the vault
You’ve broken into a private collector’s gallery to steal their prized priceless diamond. During the break-in, you get trapped and are divided. You have to work together to get through in one piece, making your way to the vault, through the lasers and make off with the goods! Although this involves division, don’t be put off, you’ll just have to put your teamwork skills to the test!
Our first room of the day at Escape Rooms Cardiff and we chose ‘The Heist’. Located in the city centre it’s very easy to find this venue and they have a decent waiting area with plenty of room for all their rooms. We were given the briefing, chose how we wanted to be split, and then lead to the room.
As you may have gathered, this is a room where your team is split up at the start in two separate rooms, so you have to work together as a team to be reunited, and locate and crack the vault so you can get out with the valuables. Although you are split up you are still able to see and hear each other, there is just a physical barrier (and locked door) between you.
Once your team solve the first few puzzles and are reunited in the main gallery you can then start to work on getting into the vault. It felt like we took a while to get into the vault but this was purely down to a lack of communication where we had a code but due to miscommunication we didn’t actually try it where it needed to go.
Sadly the most exciting and visually impressive part of this game is the vault and you don’t get to enjoy it for that long. Saying that though it is a nice ending to the game and gives a little bit of excitement to finish on
This is a fun game and as a team of five it felt like we had a good number for the space. I’d say six is probably the maximum before it starts getting a bit cramped in some places. We actually enjoyed this room so much that we went back later in the day to do their ‘Tomb’ room.
PUZZLES
Many of the puzzles in this room were pretty standard but there were a few which we hadn’t seen before. Early on in the game you really need to be able to communicate well with your team, but that passes soon enough and you can just continue as normal. It was nice to see a room where almost everything in it served a purpose and wasn’t just a red herring.
IMMERSION/ROOM DESIGN
I’ve never been to a ‘private’ art gallery so I can’t comment on if it felt authentic, but it was pretty cold and sterile and that is a feeling I do usually associate with art galleries. It’s not a spoiler to say that there are three rooms in total, a security office, the gallery, and then the vault room. The security office had the usual office furniture; chair, filing cabinet, white board etc… The gallery had sculptures, paintings, and just general artwork dotted around the room (mostly on plinths). The vault was the coolest room which was a shame as that is where you spend the least time.
GM/CLUE SYSTEM
The GM was attentive and kept a close eye on us to make sure we weren’t doing anything stupid. If/when we required any nudges or clues they were unlimited and were delivered via a screen in the main room.
ANYTHING ELSE
This is a good room if you are comfortable working as a split team and are happy with your communication skills, although you can see into each others rooms, you can’t see everything so good communication is key.
Success / Failure
Final Rating:
| Operation | |
| Puzzles | |
| Room Design | |
| GM/Clues | |
| Excitement |
Team: 5 people – escaped in 36:46
Address: 119 St. Mary Street, Cardiff, CF10 1DY
Leave a Reply