LOCATION: Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
Photo above is property of BreakOUT Escapes - Niagara Falls
Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers
📝 ETR DECODER
🔑 GAME: Taps Brewhouse
📅 DATE PLAYED: March 17, 2023
🎬 GENRE: Mystery
🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 2 Players): 5/10
👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS: 2-10 PPL
🕒 LENGTH OF TIME: 60 Mins.
💰 PRICE: CAD $27.50-$39.99/PP pending on group size
☎️ BOOKING TYPE: Private
🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED?: YES
📖 THE STORY
"TAPS Brewhouse" is one of the most successful bars in the Niagara Falls area. The secret is in their recipes. You and your friends decide to sneak into the bar to steal the recipe while the owner is on a short break. Hopefully, luck is on your side today.
Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers
🎯 HIT THE BULLSEYE
There’s lots of decor in the space making it feel like a real bar. You can explore the bar counter, check out lots of various brands of beers that are local to the area and there’s even a stage if you want to perform a song or two.
A few hidden compartments in the game added to the secrecy element of the storyline.
We always enjoy a story concept that’s unique and can only be played at this local location.
🧩 MISSED THE MARK
This room has too many red herrings that didn’t relate to the game itself. Some props are there purely for advertising purposes.
The ceiling of the rooms in this venue is open on the top and there’s no communication device to receive hints. So throughout the gameplay, we can hear people chatting outside and we have to shout in order to receive a response to our hint request.
Some color locks didn’t have relevance to color and there are two locks that we are supposed to use three props to figure out. There are no pointers as to which are supposed to be used. There are a lot of “trial and error” situations presented in this game.
I actually really enjoy Math in an escape room, but this room had information that we had to assume and no clarity as to why we would do certain calculations. Because there were a lot of numbers we could use to come up with a solution, clear directions were necessary.
The game master felt lost as well. He couldn't explain how to get to the solution after the game.
The final puzzle was probably the weakest one of the entire game. We think the creator was going for a “deduction” route but ended up becoming pure frustration for the players.
🏹 TAKE A SHOT?
This is a very basic Gen 1 room that had no tech at all. We usually don’t mind that as long as the puzzle and storyline make sense. In this case, we had many obstacles stopping our game flow and in the end, we were eager to ESCAPE. With a concept like this, the creator could have dug deep into the history of the bowery and built puzzles in relevance to that versus what felt like piecing random facts altogether.
Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers
ℹ️ ADDITIONAL INFO
Huge lobby with entertainment such as a board game cafe (free to play while waiting for escape room games), arcade, and pool table
Street parking with HONK mobile app or a pay parking lot on Park Street
Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers
(If you do decide to try this game, give us a shoutout or tag us on social media so we know you heard it from "ESCAPETHEROOMers"!)
Disclosure: We thank BreakOUT Escapes - Niagara Falls for comping our tickets for this game. Although complimentary admission was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.
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