Escape the tower – Secret city adventures

Played on May 3rd 2025 by:

Escape the Tower was the only room we played that evening at Secret City. In this scenario, we are called in to help the Anti-Submarine Detection Research Centre after enemy U-boats and submarines are detected advancing toward the base. Our mission is to locate their precise positions in an undercover lab and alert the allies before it’s too late. The scenario itself is quite classic maybe a bit short and missing a unique twist but it has a clear goal.

The decor was beautiful—being inside an actual castle already adds a lot, with stone walls and spiral staircases setting the scene naturally. While they didn’t need to add much, they still used the space well, and all the machines and accessories were very war-themed, which helped with immersion. There are actors guiding the experience from start to finish, making this a semi-guided room. They help move the story along and assist with puzzles when needed. This is also a public booking, meaning the room isn’t private to our group only. We were 11 people total, and honestly, it was a nightmare. We didn’t get to see all the puzzles, communication was difficult, and it felt chaotic. It might work for some people, but for us it confirmed that 11 players is far too many and that we strongly prefer private bookings. There was also no background music, only occasional random sound effects.

The puzzles were great—at least the ones we had a chance to see. However, we didn’t think there were enough puzzles for such a large group. All puzzles were well connected to the story and theme, mostly involving automatic mechanisms and machines, with a few traditional locks. The room was non-linear, which helped a bit since multiple puzzles could be worked on at once. That said, it’s hard to comment further since we didn’t get to try everything. Hints were given directly by the actors inside the room.

Overall, we didn’t enjoy the experience very much, mainly because of the large group size and the frequent storytelling interruptions. That said, the decor was nice and the puzzles we did solve were great. It’s a family-friendly room and would likely work much better for smaller groups of 2–3 people. We’re happy with our performance, even if we don’t know our exact time or how many hints were given. We didn’t like it—but we escaped!

: Yes

Andrea