Very disappointing experience.
The owner/operator sure is greedy. Knows how to make a buck by taking advantage of clients.
1a. Price per person is steep compared to other locations so it gives you the FALSE impression that you are going to a very impressive experience. The rate they charge is same as places that have complex multiple-rooms per escape each with a lot of bells and whistles. Those stories are relevant and guide you through the process but not here.
1b. Price tier should be children's rate versus adult rate, not all $30 each.
2. The intro video and instructions by the employee are all about telling people not to tear up the room and furnishings and not to photograph or video. There are no clues. Again, the ownership being concerned for their own welfare before the customer.
3. The room is very dark, typical for e-rooms, but there is only 1 flashlight provided.
4. The location is only one single small cramped room to escape.
5. The background music from the narrated plays loudly the whole time so it is difficult to hear your teammates and you have to shout loudly.
6. This room is about 70% or more "Red Herrings" multiple combo letter locks (hard to read numbers) or codes that don't actually open or provide information which are only distract your attention and eat away at your time. This is a very Off-balance way to once again take advantage of customers and give your room a high difficulty rating. You read a bunch of cards that don't link together or have a use. If you solve something out of sequence - a sequence that is totally unclear by the way - you are screwed and will fail.
7. There are a number of clues that are not intuitive or explicitly connected. There is a lot of information you have to randomly locate and then need to try codes out on every single combo lock because there is no direction of where to use an uncoded clue and there are a limited amount of locations for them to put locks in such a tiny rooms (remember, most of the locks are useless).
8. The biggest scam of all is that 1/2 of the precious time you have will be spent on trying to solve a long complex story problem where you have to look up amounts that fall on specific dates, add them, then a second set of numbers is totalled and gets subtracted from this first amount, and finally you divide the difference by a $ amount to come up with a final value. Irritating that 1/2 time is spent on a story problem that you have to find the pieces of ... but even when you have a 4 digit code solved you have to try it on every lock because nothing leads you to where to use the code. In no way has any other escape room required such complicated math. You are not supposed to need to be a mathematician or have prior knowledge. I had a doctor and a banker with us who could not help us to solve things that just don't make sense or provide remote direction.
9. Also, you are limited to 3 clues and each deducts an increasingly higher amount of minutes from your game play time clock. Using a 3rd clue eats 20 minutes of game time. Just another mode of rip-off. And, since clues are room monitor managed you must read the screen in whatever convoluted typing + explanation the room monitor gives. And, if the clue hasn't been solved ... they delete it from the screen so you have to shout to get them to bring it back up on the screen and not deduct time again.
10. I could tell from the overall demeanor / mood of our room monitor that she wasn't going to be helpful or providing useful support. The hints the provide are also overly complex.
11. A clue card has such an abundance of different numbers (i.e. fingerprint) and for each clue there are multiple mathematical steps and story bits that you have to combine. So, with a card full of numbers you have to figure out which fingers to add based on other clues. So multiple clues have to be combined to figure out each math problems. So, odds are greatly reduced of solving.
12. My group and I have been to nearly a dozen escape rooms, some more difficult than others but ALL were far more logical and had the qualities of the best practices for escape room planning and execution.
13. I've now tried both the rooms at Paradox and both are equally flawed and unrefined and disappointing.
14. You don't feel good when leaving, because so much of the product is designed to waste time and cause failure, you don't feel challenged or good that you tried and that the room was complex. Instead you feel ripped off and unhappy with the experience altogether.
15. In conclusion, this location has the WORST escape rooms ever. Don't waste your money or time.
All 3 Paradox Escape Rooms "Collector", "Caskworks", "Casino" My guests and I have graded all a score of F. Rooms are 'curated nicely' so you think that it will be something really special...all went total sucky. read more