Escape Proving Ground - "Mystery of the Holy Grail"

LOCATION:  Pasadena, Maryland, USA

Photo above is property of Escape Proving Ground

📝  ETR DECODER

• 🔑 GAME: Mystery of the Holy Grail

• 📅 DATE PLAYED: July 4, 2019

• 🎬 GENRE: Mystery

• 🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 2 ppl): 6.5/10

• 👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS: Up to 10 ppl

• 🕒 LENGTH OF TIME: 60 Mins.

• 💰 PRICE: $27.99/ pp

• ☎️ BOOKING TYPE: Public

• 🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED?: Yes

Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

Escape Proving Ground is a fairly new escape room location as It’s only been operational for about a year. It’s located in a complex with plenty of parking in the front. The lobby is very spacious and nicely maintained. They have quite a collection of different types of clocks as décor on their wall. As soon as we entered, the owner greeted us and gave us a tour of the place before we began our game. He builds all his games in-house and we were surprised that he already has three games up and running - "Mystery of the Holy Grail", "Velociraptor Escape", "Pasadena Wizarding Academy", and one in the works - "D.I.C.E."!

The game we are tackling today is the "Mystery of the Holy Grail". The storyline brings us down to Solomon’s temple to search for the Holy Grail as it’s supposedly buried here within the knight’s tomb. We, as Dr. Bone’s grandchildren also must find out what happened to him as he went missing following this trail. When we first entered the room, we enjoyed the ambience of the lights and the nice touch of the cobwebs. At first, I didn’t know if I can actually pull on them as they looked like part of the decor, but the owner instructed us to search away. We did notice a few furniture and props that may not have fit in with the theme of the set design, but the owner has informed us that he was going to change them out very soon. Most of the props were on point with the ancient temple theme. We appreciated a few clever ways that he was able to utilize the tools to create different types of puzzles. However, there were a few puzzles that was a bit confusing with the clue. There are a few red herrings in the room which normally we really resent but these were quickly discovered by us and we didn't waste too much time on them. I’m not sure how a beginner player would do on the red herrings, but it would be great if some new puzzles could replace them since red herrings are always a moot point when it comes to escape rooms. We prefer real puzzles as it always brings joy when solved. Speaking of endings, you’ll find this one quite surprising as even if you did solve all the puzzles, you may still lose at the end. But if you pay attention to detail, you should get out with no issues. With the two of us, we had a good amount of time remaining and completed the mission and escaped w/ the Holy Grail!

If we had the chance, we really would want to go back and try his "Velociraptor Escape" room. It looks amazing with the set design and the “surprise” within. The concept behind his "D.I.C.E." room also sounds intriguing where two teams must play against each other and strategize to win. We see great things coming from Escape Proving Ground in the near future. Make sure you check out our exclusive video tour of their location and pick out your favorite room(s) to escape away! 

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

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Disclosure: We thank Escape Proving Ground 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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