Score
– Overall
– Immersion
– Puzzles
– Hints
– Fun
– Scenario
Summary
– 60 minutes
– 3-8 players (we suggest 2-3)
– Freeing Canada Station
– Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
Played on May 15th 2024 by: 
Pirate Prizes was the fourth room we played that day at Freeing Canada Station on May 15th, 2024. In this scenario, a friend has tipped us off that the Red Pearl’s captain, Silverstone, has acquired a treasure worth a hundred times its weight in gold. To gain entry, we tracked him down and insulted his mother — and it worked! We found ourselves locked in the quartermaster’s room, sentenced to walk the plank to our deaths. We had one hour left to locate the artifact and escape! We thought the scenario was creative, well-detailed, and had a clear objective.
The décor was very well done, with great attention to detail and immersive touches throughout. Every area had a clear purpose, and everything from floor to ceiling contributed to the pirate ship atmosphere. We were impressed by the level of realism — especially how cleverly the transitions between rooms were hidden. We appreciated the music playing during the game, which enhanced the immersion. There’s also a fun but efficient way of telling you how much time you have left to complete the room.
The puzzles were all related to the theme. The logic behind some of them wasn’t immediately obvious, which made a few quite challenging for us. It was mostly traditional padlocks, with a few automatic mechanisms. The variety of puzzles was good and the game was linear — meaning we could only focus on one puzzle at a time. This made it a bit less dynamic compared to non-linear rooms where everyone can split up and work simultaneously. To get hints, we were calling the game master on the walkie talkie and she was coming inside the room to help us.
Overall, we liked the room, even if it wasn’t our favorite at this location. The décor and immersion were excellent, but the puzzle flow could have been smoother. It’s a family-friendly room that’s well-suited for small groups of 2–3 people, especially those who enjoy story-driven adventures. We weren’t totally satisfied with our performance since we needed an extra five minutes to finish, but we still completed the room . We liked it and we escaped!
: Yes
Andrea