The nineteenth to twenty-second (and final) rooms that we played on our
May/June 2024 child-free trip to Holland were all of the rooms at Escape Rush
Brussels. Their rooms are located a short drive south of the Brussels city
centre (about a 10 minute uber trip).
We played the rooms as a duo and a trio (another escape room
enthusiast and I played Submarine Bunker together and we were joined by another
player for the other rooms). I had heard great things about Escape Rush’s
latest room, Botanist Manor, so we decided we would come and play all 4 of
their rooms back to back. Here is what I thought:
Submarine Bunker – Room 308
- I
really did not enjoy this room. Some aspects of the theming were nicely
done, but that was probably the only strong aspect about this room;
- the
major flaw I think with this room was the puzzles. One puzzle in early
part of the experience we just couldn’t solve due to very low light. Even
when we were told where to look, it still wasn’t obvious given the low
lighting – I thought this really needs to be improved;
- in
the final section of the experience, there were some puzzles that I found
were more of a chore than fun to solve. I didn’t find those puzzles
particularly logical and I thought they really ruined the experience.
Tokyo Lab – Room 309
- Tokyo
Lab was a much better experience (and it was my second favourite room at
Escape Rush);
- There
was some really nice theming, particularly in the first section of the
experience. I liked the puzzles, which were fun and really suited the
theme;
- I
thought the second half of the experience was not as strong as the first,
both in relation to the quality of theming/set design and the quality of
the puzzles. The puzzles were good overall, but there was also a dexterity
style puzzle thrown in (the type where players mash buttons on walls for 5
minutes). I didn’t think much of that ‘puzzle’, which was more busy work
and definitely did not suit the theme (at all).
White House – Room 310
- The
best aspect I think of the White House experience was the theming. There
were nice details in the set design and props;
- we
had one issue in that we left a walkie talkie in an earlier room (which
was needed in a later room), but the design meant that we were unable to
go back to retrieve it. We therefore had to have the GM break immersion
and come into the room to hand it to us. Whilst this was on us, I think
good room design (and a more attentive GM) might have avoided this;
- in
the later section of the room, there were some puzzles that were
‘inelegant’ (which is a nice was of saying pretty illogical and required
real leaps). Firstly, from a design perspective, the mechanism to input a
solution is really unclear (and there is also a delay of a few seconds
even when the correct combination is entered) – I really disliked this and
I could not see how many players would know what is required without
getting a direct hint. Again, I didn’t think this was particularly strong
design;
- there
was another puzzle in particular (again no spoilers) which was very poor –
it didn’t make sense and was one of those puzzles when you get the
solution you just look at your fellow players, with that look. You know
the look I am talking about…
Botanist Manor – Room 311
- I am
happy to report that although we didn’t have a fantastic experience with
the rest of the rooms at Escape Rush, the exception was Botanist Manor. It
was almost like Botanist Manor had been created by a completely different
puzzle designer/ER business, given just how different the quality was
between this and the other rooms;
- one
of the clear aspects that Botanist Manor has over the other rooms at
Escape Rush is pure scale. Botanist Manor is an enormous adventure (I lost
count of how many spaces we explored our way through). The theming in
Botanist Manor was also excellent and quite varied throughout the
different spaces;
- the
puzzles in Botanist Manor were also really strong (and I thought were
better than their other rooms). There is also a really nice room flow in
Botanist, which really evolves throughout the experience into something I
didn’t expect or see coming;
- I
thought many of the puzzles were on the medium to difficult end, which I
really enjoyed. There was a really big variety across all of the puzzles
as well, which was fantastic. As for the story behind the room, that too
was far stronger than Escape Rush’s other rooms. The story grew and
strengthened throughout the experience I thought, right through until the
very impressive ending;
- I
don’t have much on the negative to report with this experience. There was one
‘busy work’ puzzle (a bit like Tokyo Lab) which had players mashing
buttons at one point. Whilst this was slightly more linked to the theme,
it was still a pretty weak ‘filler’ puzzle in my view. But other than that
one puzzle, I can’t recall anything that stood out.
Overall, the rooms at Escape Rush really vary in quality. I
would give White House and Submarine Bunker a wide berth (pun very much
intended on the latter). When each of
those rooms debuted, they were #188 and #236 on TERPECA. I don’t think they
deserved to be in the top 300 at all (and I have certainly played many
Australian rooms that were far better). Tokyo Lab was stronger and is worth
your time (and its current TERPECA rank at #183 feels about right), but clearly
Botanist Manor is the magical room here. An enormous set with really varied,
strong quality puzzles and a great story that builds through to a kick-arse
ending. It was a great room to finish our trip on.
Where:
Rue de l’automne 30 – 1050 Ixelles
Duration:
60 minutes
Themes:
4 themes
TERPECA: Botanist
Manor #18
Tokyo Lab #183 (formerly #74)
Price:
135 -
180€ (3 players)
Overall Rating: Botanist was fantastic, the others not
so much
More details: https://escaperush.com/
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