RATING: 1 Key RESULT: Win REMAINING: 20:41
We really need to go back to school and get our law degree with how much trouble we end up in.
You have been wrongfully accused of a series of horrible murders and found guilty. The judge has sentenced you to a maximum security prison with the death penalty. Your date with the electric chair is today and you and your cellmates refuse to accept this fate. Fortunately, your family has arranged a prison riot to distract the guards while you are alone in your holding cell. You have 60 minutes to break out and escape to freedom.
Once again you’ve landed in prison. First time on death row you say? Buckle up for the ride, your date with the electric chair is coming up.
But there is just one problem, you’re innocent. So it’s time to do what any innocent member of society would do when faced with the charges of horrific murders. Plan a prison riot and slip out the front while everyone is distracted. Simple right?
With some outside help from the family, a small riot is in place while you’re in a lower security holding cell. Coincidentally this cell is right next to the electric chair you’re trying to escape as well. Use all of your prison knowledge to find a way to break out and hopefully prove your innocence.
As is typical in most prison based games, the scenic quality is purposefully low. Spanning just one square room in an office plaza, it’s hard to imagine ourselves in prison with the drop panel ceilings and fluorescent lights above our heads.
Items included in the cell and the surrounding areas are kept at a bare minimum. But this is prison after all, so there must be some hidden ways of keeping contraband to help escape.
The forefront of standardization of prison rooms is the jail cell. Lockdown brings this expectation to life with a bare bones cell at best. There isn’t even a bed to relax on, as this must be a minimum amenity prison.
For some reason, someone is also already in the electric chair. Lucky for us that we can avoid that for now. To round out the room is a simple metal table, in which the guards have left some of their personal items on that may help us navigate out of the prison.
With this, once again, being a typical prison game, the puzzles follow suit. It always seems like the first task is to undo the handcuffs that were just put locked on, then find a way to rummage the cell for something to pick the lock.
While the puzzle track takes the completely expected route, it has it’s issues with some logical leaps, and an understanding of correct spelling. There are just a small handful of puzzles to go through, but dealing with some of the more abstract ones can be a deterrent to progress with ambiguous instructions.
Given the player limits in this room, it’s hard to find the work to go around for larger groups, or even the space to move around in. With a cap of eight prisoners, the cell can comfortably hold two to three prisoners at best. If the room was a bit more open, it could potentially accommodate a few extra bodies.
There is however one piece of rummaging that could have injured our group while playing. Given our surroundings it’s logical to check every nook and cranny possible, including the electrical switches. While one of them is a fake one, the others are VERY REAL. With a handful of small metal items available to pry at live wires, this poses a large safety issue to anyone trying to escape.
While this is advertised as a medium difficulty room for up to eight players, things don’t really add up here. Space becomes the primary limiting factor, followed by some of the illogical puzzles. Did we mention the safety hazards as well?
At times it seems very hit or miss with Lockdown, and in this case it was one of the misses. Trying to tie together the storyline with the scenic and puzzles, so much is left on the table for imagination rather than immersion. Having a ride on the electric chair would be a fitting ending to this room.
Show your support for Escape Authority and get social with us:
Venue: Lockdown
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Number of Games: 3
GAME SPECIFIC INFORMATION:
Duration: 60 minutes
Capacity: 8 people
Group Type: Private / You will not be paired with strangers.
Cost: $35 per person