RATING: 4 Keys RESULT: Loss REMAINING: X:XX
Taking a final exam has never been so enchanting.
You are a young Wizard/Witch learning the art of magic. Magic training can be very tedious with studies in: spells, botany, potion-making and more. You have been studying hard all year-long and your instructor is convinced that you are ready for your final test. You are to be locked in his Chamber for 1 hour. All Wizards and Witches must complete this final test to be legally allowed to practice magic in public. Using all of the skills you have learned during your studies, you must find your way out of the Chamber in 1 hour to become a full-fledged member of the Wizard & Witch community.
This is it, the ultimate test for any aspiring master of the mystic arts. While it’s not certain what the prodigy’s fate will be at the end of the hour, what is for sure is that they are definitely not located at a school that rhymes with Fog Shorts. Test takers certainly won’t be encountering any flame filled goblets, location-specific prisoners or solid minerals belonging to other sorcerers.
The story here is simple but it works well. Functioning to create a sense of urgency while also effortlessly justifying the long string of magic spells that one must cast in order to find their way out of The Wizard’s Chamber.
The test begins in a supernatural workshop. Wizard hats, witches’ cloaks, broomsticks, a cauldron, and even an owl residing in an oversized birdcage set the magical mood from the get go. Aged tan walls are adorned with old wooden shelves carrying a vast array of spell casting ingredients.
Eye of newt, check. Ectoplasm? Double check!
The room is appropriately candle-lit with other objects emitting an otherworldly glow that really sell the magical world in which the wizarads currently inhabit.
The only scenic element that really betrays the setting is the open roof. Covered only partially by stained wood boards, revealing the massive warehouse ceiling above. It seems an odd choice, as other games at Escape Room Mentor do feature fully covered ceilings. Regardless, the world of The Wizard’s chamber is mostly convincing and the secret chambers that exist beyond the first room offer plenty of fun surprises.
The hint system is a standard monitor. It would have been fantastic to utilize a more clever integration into the room with help being delivered either by the aforementioned owl or perhaps from within the brooding cauldron.
Wizards and witches will have to use a vast array of spell casting techniques to complete their final test. From pouring the appropriate ingredients into a cauldron to learning the correct order of mysterious words, nearly everything required of wannabe wizards is set solidly in mystical world of magic.
With the narrative of a final exam setting the backdrop of this adventure, it can get away with a lot of tasks that may feel more like puzzles for puzzles sake in other settings. Despite that leeway, The Wizard’s Chamber does not solely rely on it. Several of the puzzles still involved intuitive actions that one would clearly take if they were in such a situation.
This balance of narrative-drive actions mixed with riddles that felt genuinely concocted by a mystical test-administrator keeps The Wizard’s Chamber moving along at a swift pace without ever feeling stale or repetitive.
The only exception here is one or two puzzles that involved translation and were a bit more lengthy than would be ideal.
The Wizard’s Chamber is smart enough to use it’s lightly borrowed IP as a backdrop for the adventure ahead, rather than a central feature. Plucking just enough from the much-loved franchise to bring us into the world, yet crafting an adventure that feels all it’s own once we arrive.
We generally feel that the most compelling adventures create an enchanting narrative that evolves, twists and turns as the hour progress, justifying a new set of actions each time. Yet, there isn’t much of a narrative beyond “you’re taking a test and your goal is to escape this room”. Somehow that didn’t detract from the experience as all of the puzzles existed solidly in the storyworld.
In fact, despite a few scenic misgivings, it was easy to remain bewitched by the spell cast within this wizarding world.
Show your support for Escape Authority and get social with us:
Venue: Escape Room Mentor
Location: Mentor, OH
Number of Games: 5
GAME SPECIFIC INFORMATION:
Duration: 60 minutes
Capacity: 10 people
Group Type: Public / You may be paired with strangers.