Wednesday 27 May 2015

Sydney's newest escape room outfit opening 1 June - NOWAYOUT Sydney, Camperdown



Hi everyone

I've just learned that a tenth escape room outfit is about to open its doors in Sydney.  This outfit is called No Way Out and is based in Camperdown.

They are scheduled to open on 1 June with just the one room to start with, called "The Body Shop".  The description of this room on their website is below:

"Experience the unexperienced. NOWAYOUT presents "The Body Shop", Sydney's most-anticipated real-life escape room. You will find yourself trapped inside the horrid reality of a global organ harvesting operation. You will need to investigate all methods of escape and make use of objects inside the room, in a 60-minute adrenaline fueled adventure. NOWAYOUT delivers a fully-immersive, authentic atmosphere, with captivating storytelling and unmatched realism to create an experience worth trying."

Their method of pricing is a flat rate for the room (for up to 4 players).  Mid-week, the price is $79 and it's $99 on weekends.  However, they have an opening special of just $49 for the month of June.  I'm not sure yet of the quality of the room, but at $49, it's definitely worth a try.

I'll try and get there in the next month or so and will post a review here then.  

I'm checking out Escapism's Butcher's Burrow this weekend, so I'll post my review of that room early next week!

37 comments:

  1. Hi!
    I'm looking for an escape room for my husband, me and our 9yo daughter. She's pretty mature and likes some excitement, but nothing overly violent or gory. I haven't done an escaoe room before but my husband has done the Pub Challenge at Escape Hunt and his team got out in 45 mins.
    We'd like something that isn't too easy as we love a mental challenge.

    We live in North Ryde, so ParaPark is obviously a good location for us.

    Do you think it's suitable for what we're looking for?

    Great blog!

    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I forgot to click 'notify' on my last post. Would you mind replying to this one so I know when you've replied?
      Thanks!

      Delete
    2. Hi Monique

      Thanks for your message - I'm glad you've found my blog useful! Definitely do ParaPark's Gateway 9B - it's definitely not gory or violent, just a little dark and eerie (but if your daughter is pretty mature, I'm sure she'll be fine). Other good options (that would provide a challenge and are suitable for kids) are Enigma Room's In Memoriam or Dr Disaster, or Paniq Room's Supercell 117 (both in the city). But given you're in North Ryde, I think ParaPark is the obvious first choice.

      Small world by the way - I'm at North Ryde too! Let me know which room you end up trying and what you think of it!

      Thanks
      Scott

      Delete
    3. Brilliant! Thanks.
      Bit of a tangent, but have you ever done the Paddy Pallin Urban Series? Like an Amazing Race type of thing around the city.

      Delete
    4. Hi Monique

      Sorry for the delay in response - I responded the other day but my response doesn't seem to have been posted. No, I haven't done the Paddy Palin Urban Series, but I will look into it. I have however done a Great Race in the city (a kind of copy of the Amazing Race). See my review on the Great Race on my blog.

      Thanks
      Scott

      Delete
  2. Hi Scott,

    I've noticed that in your post that you will try this no way out around July. Have you actually tried this new place in Camperdown?

    If yes, how was it like?



    Thanks.


    Andi

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Andi

      I haven't been to No Way Out yet. I'm going there on 8 August, so I will report back then!

      Thanks
      Scott

      Delete
  3. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  4. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  6. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    2. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

      Delete
  7. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  8. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  9. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  10. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hey guys,

    I tried NoWayOut two weeks ago as it was the cheapest at the time. It was a little underwhelming compared to Escape Hunt in Phuket (the only other room I’ve completed) but still very fun. I was with my sister and her friend and we managed to escape just before "the surgeon came back”, though I think we got a few minutes extra time, haha.

    @Scott - I want to try Mission Escape Room but it’s very expensive and you mention in your review that it’s difficult… My friend that I want to take has done many rooms before - will I be too much of a passenger and stuff the game up for him?? Or is one super experienced person good enough for the hard puzzles? I don’t want to pay all that money and end up not escaping.

    Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Clarence

      Thanks for your comments. I'm trying The Body Shop this weekend and I'm really looking forward to it!

      Mission Escape's Dr M is a fantastic room. The theming is excellent and it is probably the most high-tech room in Sydney. I'm sure you would enjoy it. New players don't ever slow down more experienced players in my opinion - a fresh set of eyes always helps! And I know it's always fun to escape in time, but some of the greatest rooms I have tried have been where we have not been able to escape in time (or only with hints). I have still had a heap of fun even though we didn't get out in time.

      Have fun and let me know what you think of the room once you have tried it out!

      Thanks
      Scott

      Delete
  12. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  13. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  14. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  15. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

      Delete
    2. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

      Delete
  16. Thanks everyone for your comments, which I really do appreciate.

    Again, however, I have decided to hide the various comments (as I don't think it's fair to label a company as having done the wrong thing without undeniable evidence).

    I will report back on 8 August myself after I have been there. Can I suggest that if anyone has any concerns in the meantime, contact Mike direct.

    Thanks
    Scott

    ReplyDelete
  17. Hi all

    We were due to try out The Body Shop last night. Like others who have commented on here, I got a call from Mike a couple of hours before letting me know that they were still having technical issues and would have to reschedule. We were disappointed and in light of the various similar comments on here, I asked to come and see their room anyway (so that I could confirm for you all that there is in fact a room there).

    Mike kindly agreed and about 10 minutes later, we had a quick tour of the reception area and a quick look in The Body Shop room itself. So, I can confirm that there is in fact a real escape room outfit being run out of their premises. Access is via a bright green painted door in a small car park off of Denison Street.

    Mike explained that they had been using a Raspberry Pi system to control all aspects of the room, which proved to be reliable initially (they had about 20 successful beta test groups through using that system without any issues). However, since opening to the public, the system has in fact proven to be very unreliable, so he has been spending the last few days completing replacing the system. He had hoped to receive that new system a few days ago (but is waiting on a third party supplier, which still hasn't provided the goods, which is why he had to reschedule us).

    So, if you are looking to book at The Body Shop, I suggest you first contact Mike to confirm that the new system is up and running (to avoid disappointment). I'm not sure how long it will take to get back up and running.

    As soon as they are back up and running, my group will return to try out The Body Shop. While we were there, Mike also showed us some props for their next room, which looked cool!

    Hopefully this helps to clear things up. Thanks again for all of your comments to date.

    Scott

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for that info! We were rescheduled to go last week but asked if we could get a refund instead. It took about a week, so we were concerned about getting it at all, but my friend successfully received it today. I do now think that Mike has just had a lot of bad luck. Hopefully he gets it sorted soon!

      Delete
  18. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  19. We went today and with everything working in the game, we actually had a really good experience. The puzzles had good depth to them and some were pretty clever and challenging. With time to spare we finished the room, and I was pretty happy that my initial worries after reading various negative reviews were dispelled.

    I'd definitely give them a chance!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Hey Scott,
    FYI we went to ParaPark in Macquarie today and it was sensational. The room was 9A Gateway. Slick and very detailed. Very impressed with how clean and tidy it was. Every loose end was tied up by the end of the session. Great mix of puzzles involving computers, blocks, finding things, unlocking things, codes etc. Not as one dimensional as another one my husband has done.
    We went with our 10yo daughter and there was plenty for her to help us with.
    Highly recommend it for families or groups.
    Can't wait to try their new one which is opening in a fortnight. It's a crime scene one.
    Thanks for the recommend and I'll let you know when we try their new one.
    Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Monique

      I'm so glad you tried out ParaPark (and I'm not at all surprised that you enjoyed it). It is my pick of all rooms in Sydney that really suits beginners and more advanced players alike. The owners are also really enthusiastic about their room, which shows.

      I can't wait to try out their new crime scene room. I'll post a blog update on here as soon as I have a confirmed room opening date from the owners.

      Thanks again
      Scott

      Delete
  21. Hi everyone

    I'm really pleased to confirm that my group has now been to NoWayOut and managed to escape The Body Shop! We all had a lot of fun!

    I will post my full review here on my blog very shortly!

    Thanks
    Scott

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Scott, Would you consider the body shop too gory for a group of 3 adults and a 10y.o.?

      Delete
    2. Hi JD

      It wasn't overly gory, but they did have some bad language written on the wall).

      I think a 10yo would be fine if you told them clearly that it was all make believe - the props are clearly plastic.

      That being said, I'm not sure whether No Way Out is still open for business. Their website seems to be down. I suggest calling them first.

      Thanks
      Scott

      Delete
    3. Hi Scott and others,

      It looks like they've changed their name from nowayout to onewayout. I've found from ouffer that they're selling vouchers again.

      Scott, do you think this play is OK for us to play? I'm just bit worried due to my previous experience when I bought the scoopon voucher.

      Delete
    4. Hi Andi

      I'm not sure. I wrote to Mike, the owner of No Way Out (now One Way Out) about the name change and he hasn't responded to me. In fact, he hasn't written to me since I reviewed the room (so maybe he didn't like the score I gave?). As I said in my review, it's a good room, but 2 puzzles weren't in order so they were left out, which really let the room down.

      He clearly opened his room before he was ready and I think that made for a lot of bad will, which I assume is the reason for the name change.

      Unless and until he responds to my email though, I can't say for sure.

      I say give the room a go - maybe all of the puzzles are now back online?

      Let me know if you check it out.

      Thanks
      Scott

      Delete