Pier Pressure: Tea Party (Brighton)

A Good day for Tea

The Mad Hatter’s Assistant has got themselves into a pickle! Hats have gone missing and the Mad Hatter will not be pleased if he finds out. Enter the mad and mind-bending world of Alice in Wonderland and, more specifically, the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, to find those hats and save the day.

I love Pier Pressure. The company consistently puts out games that are full of thoughtful puzzles, interesting narratives, and beautiful sets, alongside great hosts. So, whenever we find ourselves in Brighton with a Pier Pressure game we haven’t played yet, it’s inevitable that we will find a way to squeeze it in. Granted it’s been two years, nearly to the day, since the last time Both Gord and I found ourselves both in Brighton with a new Pier Pressure game on offer, but that doesn’t matter.

After a glorious day by the seaside (okay, that’s a lie, it was a glorious day stuck inside the Brighton Centre for a conference), it was time to make our way inland, to attend a tea party. Tea Party is located at Pier Pressure’s secondary Trafalgar Lane location, just a short walk from the seafront, and an even shorter walk from the train station. In fact, the walk was so short, that despite our dawdling, we still arrived about ten minutes early, but fortunately, our eagle eyed games master, Vik, spotted us before we even had a chance to knock, and we were swept into the lobby.

With our possessions safely stowed in the lockers, we settled into the seats to receive our health and safety briefing. once the formalities were out of the way, Vik took the opportunity to give the room one final check before we started. But it wasn’t Vik who returned to fetch us for our mission, no, it was her “twin sister,” Hatty McHatterson, the Mad Hatter’s Assistant, who burst into the lobby to entrust us with our mission. We followed “Hatty” to a curious looking door, and stepped through into Wonderland, where things got curiouser and curiouser, and Hatty revealed just exactly what we would need to do.

IMMERSION/ROOM DESIGN

Pier Pressure sets never disappoint, and as the door opened to Wonderland, it was clear that the team have worked hard to create something magical. Bright colours, and touches of whimsy filled the space, which was mostly occupied by the giant table, fully laden for a tea party. But there was still plenty of space to explore, and plenty of space to spread out, as we set about finding the three missing hats to save the day. As one might expect from a game set in Wonderland, there were still plenty of surprises to be had, and the set gave opportunities to climb, crawl, and play. (Don’t worry though, only one person needs to do this. The rest of the game is all on one level.)

Tea Party had moments of non-linearity, but for the most part, we stuck together to solve things as a duo, if for no other reason than some puzzles were made much less complex with more brains. The game isn’t a narrative adventure, but there is a story there, and the puzzles fit well within the theming, bringing Wonderland to life.

PUZZLES

Tea Party is available in two versions, one suitable for families with players or all ages and abilities (or those that have never played an escape room before), and one version more suited to those that have a bit more puzzling experience. Readers will be unsurprised to learn that we opted for the slightly more difficult version, and we were a bit surprised by it. Even with the two difficulty levels, given the family friendly nature of the theme, I was fully expecting to complete the game in under 30 minutes. However, several of the puzzles were actually a bit trickier than they appeared on the surface, with plenty of variation in style and a number of steps required to get to the final solution.

Regardless, even when they were a bit trickier, the puzzles were invariably fair, with plenty of subtle telegraphing to set players off in the right direction. The challenges typically followed a fairly standard sort of escape room logic, and occasionally strayed from this with the occasional need for some lateral thinking. Logic, observation, team work, communication, and of course, a tiny bit of scavenging were all integral to the game, and in many cases, sometimes the simplest solution was indeed the correct one.

GM/CLUE SYSTEM

We have now played six games at Pier Pressure (Broken doesn’t count since we played it in its original location of Pressure Point in Ashford, Kent), but one thing they’ve all had in common was superb hosting. Whether we played a game at Pier Pressure’s main venue, or the Trafalgar Lane location, we have always been immediately made to feel welcome, and this visit was no different.

Vik was so full of enthusiasm and warmth from the second she opened the door, to the moment she ushered us out on our way to catch a train. Her briefing was humorous and engaging, and even more so when she disappeared and was replaced by her “twin sister,” Hatty McHatterson, the Mad Hatter’s Assistant. But not only that, Vik was paying very close attention to our game.

Any clues we needed were arranged through The Cheshire Cat, and would appear in his thoughts. Had we needed any help, I’ve no doubt that the assistance would have been delivered swiftly, simply because we did experience a slight issue with some of the tech, and were reassured quickly that it was in hand and being dealt with, so it was clear Vik knew exactly what we were up to at all times.

ANYTHING ELSE

Tea Party is whimsical and charming, and perfect for families. Or anyone really. With a lovely set, and some great puzzles, I think the only possible thing that could be considered a disappointment in Tea Party was that the cakes in the room weren’t real.

Success / Failure

Final Rating:

Team: 2 players – escaped in 41:28

Address: 12 Trafalgar Lane, Brighton and Hove, Brighton BN1 4EH

Website: https://pierpressure.co.uk/