Escape Room Reviews: Black & White

Company: Escape Room Cleveland
Room: Black & White
Date Played: 12/27/17
Player Count: 3
Success:  Success!

Premise: You’re trapped in an escape room where everything is black and white.

Immersion: This escape room looked just like an escape room. Except that there was no ceiling. Escape Room Cleveland feels a little like a science fair, booths set up in a gymnasium. You can hear people talking (or frantically yelling) in the other rooms, although once we got down to business, it wasn’t much of a distraction. 

Highlights: This is a very puzzle-y room. ERC’s hardest, according to one employee. I was happy that an object I thought was useless decoration turned out to have a valuable purpose. 

Lowlights: Very little in the way of wonder or delight. This is a workmanlike room focused on a series of tasks. A few too many of those tasks are pen-and-paper, activity book types of puzzles. One prop was broken and we didn’t interact with it correctly until prompted by the GM. The big uncomfortable futon actually is useless decoration.

And Finally:  If you’re into some heavy puzzling (like we are), this room will scratch that itch. I think I’d have a hard time recommending it to non-enthusiasts though. I want to be clear that I didn’t -dislike- this room, just that there are better games out there, so out of 41 games played, I’m ranking this one at #29

How to book this room yourself: Visit https://www.escaperoomclev.com/black-and-white-2/

Kickstarter Monday: Failure Edition

You know what’s a good way to start a new year? By reflecting on failure! I’m not going to tell you I always bet on the winning horse. This month, let’s check out some of the Kickstarter projects I wanted to back, but not enough to make 'em happen.

It’s a Month Giant Calendar - It’s just a big wall calendar. I don’t really like those, but this one appealed to me and almost 200 other people. Maybe $26k was too big of an ask. 

The Lost Skeleton Walks Among Us - Larry Blamire is the writer, director, and co-star of a series of wonderful pastiche comedies in the style of 50s b-movies. I’d love for him to be able to make more. Maybe $410k was too big of an ask.

Mutant League Football - a silly football game for the Sega Genesis was up for a remake a couple of years ago. I probably backed out of nostalgia. Maybe $750k was too big of an ask. 
(I think they ended up making the game anyway, but I haven’t played it.)

That’s Not Funny - This was a documentary about comedy. I have no idea why I would have backed it. Looking at the page now, I see that some people I know were interviewed. Maybe they filmed a little bit at an open mic I used to go to or something. All I really know about it now is that a) they sent out so much email and b) $50k was definitely too big of an ask. So they did that really suspicious thing where they restart the project for a tiny fraction of the original budget. Having only raised $30k, the second project set a goal of $15k instead of 50k. And it raised...$15k.

This is the third scummiest move you can do in crowdfunding, after faking a disease or having anything to do with indiegogo.

Not Art Issue 6 Cover Sketch

So it turns out our time-to-crate in this story was about 6 months. That's not too bad. Plus, not to give anything away, but nobody in this issue steals 40 pies. That would be terrible.

What does happen this month? You'll have to get your hands on an issue to find out, and the best way to do that is by having it mailed right to your home. You know, like subscribers do. However, I have a growing contingent of 'newsstand' customers, who like receiving their regular issues in person. 1/5th of each newly printed issue is already spoken for. Get yours today!

Gangbusters! rings in New Years Double-Eve!

Join us on December 29 as we ring in New Years Double Eve (aka December 30) with a night of double acts! 

| Dj and Danny | Angel Boy | Speed Ant | Holston and Rogers | I hate brian | Kid Scientists | Horse Cops | Man and Woman | Ladders | 

...and somewhat ironically, just one of your regular Gangbusters! hosts. Me!

Escape Room Reviews: Prison

Company: Maze Rooms LA
Room: Prison
Date Played: 11/26/17
Player Count: 5, which was plenty
Success:  Success!

Premise: You’re in jail. Nobody likes being in jail. Get out of jail!

Immersion: This didn’t feel much like jail. Maybe it’s like being in the jail of a minor league stadium, or a contentious corporate headquarters. 

Highlights: The best thing about this game for our group was the contrast it had next to 60Out’s Dracula, which we played earlier the same day. This game was much more to do with physical locks and mechanical interactions than Dracula’s emphasis on magical objects. It did a good job of showing our new players the range of styles out there. Also, I liked their map.

Lowlights: Some of the items and devices in this room are pretty nonsensical for a prison theme. 

And Finally:   This room might as well be called ‘office break room.’ We started out in jail cells, but truly, must not have been stuck in them for more than 90 seconds. I suspect this must be one of the earliest games in the Maze Rooms collection, and admittedly, we chose it by seeing what was open that we could use a discount code on about an hour in advance. Although LA has some premium games that are pushing ticket prices higher, I think companies with a wide gamut of games should start pricing the old ones down a few bucks to keep them full. Out of 40 games played, this one is getting a rank of #33.

How to book this room yourself: Visit https://la.mazerooms.com/quest/prison/