We left the previous night past midnight, after having done Zanzibar and Genie, and came back the next morning at 10 am. We were their only customers, and they went to work just so we could play. The owner, whose name I’m forgetting, was already full of energy and was enthusiastic with his spiel about his future plans for the company. He loves what he does and enjoys hearing feedback from customers.

BEN

They came in the morning just so we could play!! That’s amazing dedication right there, we really appreciated it!

There was a lot, just in terms of the sheer number and diversity of the puzzles here. As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by locked boxes on top of each other, which even seasoned escape room players would be intimidated by. Ben and I gathered all the boxes in the open space on the floor and just started sifting through all the clues.

I would say that although there was a lot to do initially, there was still a clear start to our progression. Once we figured out the first puzzle, we were off to the races. We were opening one box after the other.

In terms of difficulty, there were varying levels that everyone in your group would be able to solve. We weren’t stuck on any puzzle for too long because the puzzles play to different strengths.

There were a LOT of locks here! As soon as I saw all the boxes, I got excited for the frenzy of puzzling that was sure to come. And I was not disappointed! I love the feeling of opening lock after lock because it builds so much momentum and you feel like you’re doing so much.

This room is a little bit more text-heavy than others, but it wasn’t anything too overwhelming or unmanageable. I liked how there were different types of text here and not just one giant journal that has everything you need for the room in it.

This was a gorgeous room that took me away from where and when I was. It felt as though I traveled back in the roaring 20s and snuck into a gangster saloon. One thing that’s great about Escape Hour is their use of monochromatic color schemes, similar to Zanzibar and Genie. This was very sepia at first, with some variations along the way. Overall, this was one of the best-looking rooms I’ve ever seen.

This room has real gangster furniture. And I don’t mean that the furniture was G, I mean that real gangsters used the furniture! Details like that really add to the authenticity and overall feel of a room, which is why this room really looked like a gangster hideout.

Ben and I couldn’t stop raving about this room on our way back to Edmonton. That speaks volumes about how much we were into this room. There was never a moment when one of us was just standing idly around. We were busy and immersed for the entire hour. There was also a brief moment here that almost gave us a heart attack, which I thought was a nice added touch to reinvigorate our adrenaline levels.

So many boxes, so little time. The sheer amount of things to do kept us engaged her for sure. This room felt kind of like a horror room since it was so engaging and there was so much forward momentum from opening the boxes.

All the components of this room contributed to how exquisite the execution was. The icing on the cake was how the storyline was seamlessly integrated in the room, unraveling with each puzzle you solve.

For this room, the objective was to determine who the gang boss is. You learn more about the members of the gang as you solve puzzles to determine what everyone’s role was. This was a really cool objective – it kind of plays off the “whodunnit” of murder mystery rooms.

#diamond – If Ben and I were to do a “Best of” list, this would definitely be in my top 3. Be warned: This room is NOT for beginners.

#diamond – This is definitely one of my favourite rooms in Calgary. Bring lots of friends – since this is a fairly non-linear room, you won’t have too much idling and standing around happening!