RATING: 3 Keys RESULT: Win REMAINING: 22:00
It’s a little known fact that the ancient pyramids were actually built to house the left over puzzles from closed escape games. See? You learned something today!
The pyramids are one of the most mysterious buildings of our planet. According to the most accepted theory, the pyramids were built about 4500 years ago for cultic or burial purposes. The Egyptian pyramids are located in Northern Africa, west of Cairo and the Nile. The world’s biggest and most famous pyramids are associated with the name of Cheops, allegedly 100,000 workers worked on the 140-meter-high edifice for nearly 20 years. There are corridors, rooms, ventilation shafts and large galleries in the pyramids.
The orientation of the pyramids reveals in-depth astronomical knowledge.
The big mystery is how they were able to transport multi-ton stones through hundreds of miles? How did they raise the heavy limestone blocks up to 300 feet? What did they carve the rocks out with and how could they fit the multi-ton blocks together that precisely?
One of the most mysterious figures of the Egyptian history is Tutankhamun, who ruled ca. 1332–1323 BC. His – still intact – tomb is located in Luxor, in the Kings’ Valley. Tutankhamun ascended the throne at the age of 9, but he died under unclear circumstances, at the age of 19. His tomb will would supposedly reveal the ancient secrets of the pyramid’s construction.
If you find his tomb, not only thousands of treasures hit your grasp, but it would supposedly reveal the thousands of years old secrets of the pyramids’ construction.
MagIQ room really specializes in the story department – so it’s no surprise that they’d craft one so in-depth. True to their mantra of family entertainment they craft a tale that both teaches the historical significance of the world you’re about to enter, but does so in a fun way that will be appealing to kids, creating a “I didn’t know I was learning” type of game comes off more as fun than homework.
MagIQ Room puts decent effort into their scenic budget, and The Pharaoh’s Legacy is no exception. Stone textured walls add a layer of authenticity, while ceremonial statues bring the world to life.
Dim lighting finds the perfect level of somewhat spooky without becoming uncomfortable for the younger adventurers in your group.
With rooms crafted to evoke the spirit of an ancient Egyptian pyramid, it’s easy to get lost within this storyworld – at least at first glance.
Like its sister company, PanIQ Room, the puzzles themselves are where MagIQ Room loses just a bit of its, well, magic. With storyworlds so artfully crafted, we quickly found ourselves wishing that more attention was paid to ensure each of this game’s puzzles fit organically within it.
And while paying credit where credit is clearly do, MagIQ Room does put more effort into this department than PanIQ Room is known to do, there are still awkward “why would this be here” moments – for example the heavy over-reliance on maze tables in every game.
As experienced players, a major point of contention to us was the rehashing of several puzzles that previously existed in the company’s now closed PanIQ Room location in San Diego. And we mean straight off the truck and into MagIQ Room – whether or not they fit the flow. It was weird, for example, the tarot card puzzle we actually enjoyed in Voodoo Shop – where there it was at appropriate to the story setting – now living out its days in a Pharaoh’s burial chamber. That was just one of several puzzles from San Diego relocated here.
Here’s one thing that we can never take away from MagIQ Room: They understand their audience. This venue was designed to cater much more to families with kids, making it a perfect location for birthday parties and the like. The Pharaoh’s Legacy, much like The Secrets of Wizardy, uses an absolutely fantastic story-driven actor moment that children will absolutely adore. At it’s core, it becomes a classic moment of hide and seek where the Pharaoh returns to check the pyramid for intruders, inspecting the space by the light of a real, flickering candle’s flame.
Moments like this, which may sound silly on paper, are executed with a true charm that makes The Pharaoh’s Legacy something special and something that is highly appealing to a younger audience set. Certainly we are not MagIQ Room’s intended demographic, and that’s actually a good thing. We think it’s wonderful that a venue has been established to truly appeal to younger players – and because of it, those kids will grow up in a few years to share the passion for the escape game genre that brings us all together here.
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Venue: MagIQ Room
Location: Los Angeles, California
Number of Games: 3
GAME SPECIFIC INFORMATION:
Duration: 60 minutes
Capacity: 6 people
Group Type: Private / You will not be paired with strangers.
Cost: $159+ per group of 2 (prices vary by time of day and day of week)