Cross Roads Escape Games - "The Psych Ward"

Updated: Apr 24

LOCATION:  Anaheim, California, USA

Photo above is property of Cross Roads Escape Games

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

📝 ETR DECODER

🔑 GAME: The Psych Ward
📅 DATE PLAYED: November 7, 2019
🎬 GENRE: Psychological, Suspense, Role Play, Strategy
🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 5 ppl): 7.5/10
👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS: 5-8 ppl
🕒 LENGTH OF TIME: 60 Mins.
💰 PRICE: $33.00-$37.00/ pp
☎️ BOOKING TYPE: Private
🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED?: Yes

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📖 THE STORY

We were Dr. Griffin’s lab rats. We were being put into an experiment to see who’s sane and who’s insane. In this crazy world, who do we trust? Hopefully you’ll chose the right team…

Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

🎯 HIT THE BULLSEYE

This is the first time we’ve experienced an escape room with an added immersive experience other than just live actors. The "strategics" element was quite unique and became an add on to the regular puzzles.
We were quite amazed at how many puzzles were incorporated in such a small space, yet it did not feel crowded. This room was not linear at all. Everyone could essentially work on a different puzzle all by themselves.
Love the “twist” that was added for the story line. It was like a separate chapter in a book. We are glad everyone got to experience it once.
It was quite strange to be solving puzzles as a team one minute and then planning to sabotage each other in the next.
The asylum decor would make you feel like if you were to stay in there any longer, you’ll probably go insane.
There were a lot of hidden “secrets” in the room which “wowed” all of us as we discovered it.
From dressing up, to intro of the story by our game master to assigning roles, we felt the complete package.

🧩 MISSED THE MARK

Lot of puzzles used memorization as an element. It would’ve been great to see a bit more variation on puzzle design.
At times we had to wait for a puzzle to activate even though it was lit. It was a bit confusing since we thought some clues were in reference to that but it wasn’t.
It was really easy for us to identify who was sane/insane right from the beginning by using the first round of “identifying”. Then the rest of the game lacked the element of strategy. I wonder if there was any way the game master or the game itself can control a bit of that outcome just so it doesn’t happen right at the beginning.
Even if you were able to solve the puzzles quickly, we find that certain ones won’t be activated until it’s time. This kind of prevents you from solving all the puzzles in the room within the hour. I wonder if the speed of the story could develop quicker for teams that solve the puzzles faster?

🏹 TAKE A SHOT?

This is not a typical escape room. There are decisions and strategies to be made which will influence the outcome. If you want to be on the winning team then you must work your wits and defeat the other. There’s no real “escape” here. This room can essentially be replayed if you wanted to try all the puzzles. Due to the time restriction, it’ll be really difficult to complete it all. One of our teammates replayed this room with us and had a brand-new experience. If you like role playing and enjoy strategy games, you’ll have a blast here.

🔎 HINT

What are they doing?

Photos above are property of Cross Roads Escape Games

*** We regret to inform this game is no longer available for booking but check out other games on their website***

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Disclosure: We thank Cross Roads Escape Games for comping our tickets for this game. Although complimentary admission was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.