Puzzle Parade - "Project Pandora"

Updated: Apr 17

LOCATION:  Brighton, United Kingdom

Photo above is property of Puzzle Parade

📝 ETR DECODER

🔑 GAME: Project Pandora
📅 DATE PLAYED: October 29, 2021
🎬 GENRE: Interactive Outdoor Treasure Hunt
🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 1 ppl): 7/10
👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS: 2-5 PPL
🕒 LENGTH OF TIME: 100 Mins
💰 PRICE: £45/Team
☎️ BOOKING TYPE: Private
🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED?: Yes

The route for this challenge is fairly flat, on good hard surfaces and therefore suitable for push-chairs and wheelchairs albeit with a little help, as some pedestrianized areas can get very busy so could be a challenge to get through at times. There are plenty of places to stop and rest on benches or in coffee shops, although you do not need to enter any other premises than “basecamp” but this is of course is part of the fun if you can :) Just wear good shoes as you will be walking around 2 miles in total.

At time of writing this is a very Covid-safe activity as you mostly remain outdoors, can wear a mask if you wish and basecamp has facilities, sanitizer and screens.

If you are a victim of the “lovely” British weather being miserable, they even have a policy of postpone or refund as long as you give them 24 hours notice, or an 80% refund, transfer to visit their indoor illusions attraction or free postponement with <24 hours (as these days the weather can change so quickly!). You can even postpone halfway through and come back to complete another time. This is a very generous and thoughtful policy which not many other places would do.

📖 THE STORY

A collaboration between award-winning and top-rated escape rooms Pier Pressure (Brighton) and Escapement (Kent), this experience is an immersive city-roaming adventure hunt with a fun back story, city-roaming fun, challenges, puzzles and interactive tech that breaks an escape room out of the room and spreads it across a city, allowing you to get fresh air, explore a city that is new to you or even where you live and look at things with a fresh perspective! And with no time limit pressure, you certainly get value for money!

Your team is challenged to embark upon an adventure to save Brighton from positivity-sucking monsters that threaten the people of Brighton since 2020. The Brighton Pavilion was built upon a portal to the world of these monsters you see to keep them at bay, but they are in danger of taking over unless we can help Prince Albert solve the 8 puzzles he hid around the city and return to basecamp and activate the magical Pandora’s Box which was forged to seal the portal and save the day! Can your team take on the challenge?

🎯 HIT THE BULLSEYE

On arrival at the incredible Paradox Place building in Gloucester Road, you will immediately be greeted with wonderful artwork, a tantalizingly tempting gift shop and a lovely smile from the team member in charge. You start your mission inside the gift shop and not at the back where the equally superb House of Illusions attraction is (also highly recommended!).

Photo above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

I was greeted by Vic, who was thrilled to discover I was there to take on the challenge, and quickly took me to the special briefing area where she explained what I needed to know, asked if I was ready and then played me the all-important mission briefing video. Luckily it did not self-destruct afterwards but there rather is a fun reveal at the end. Vic then sorted me out with my mission tech, a-la Q from the 007 series. A mission booklet, the vital city map, the ever-useful pencil, a curious device and the key part of the mission, my handheld “gizmo”. This amazing bit of tech is SO COOL - and makes you really feel like you are off on a mission to hunt ghosts, monsters and track down information with your trusty device. Listen carefully to the instructions on how to use your gizmo as success is based on using it correctly!

Photo above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

Everything is contained within a sturdy tote bag for ease of transport, and after confirming that I was indeed ready for the mission, I was released into the city and off I went!
The route marked on the map is numbered with locations to visit which must be done in order (for the puzzles to be unlocked in the correct sequence), although you can take any route you like really in between those stops.
Heading for the first location it invariably rained right off the mark, so I ducked into a coffee shop for a spot of lunch and a hot drink, and by then the sky was clear and off I went.
Each location is clearly marked and in the challenge book you have the puzzle you need to solve once you’re there to determine the code for that location, which is entered into your device.
The beauty of this hunt lies with the collaboration between the game’s designers and the marvels and delights of Brighton. The infamous Pavilion, Dome and at least 5 choice businesses in The Lanes have worked together to give a varied experience at each stop, relying on a mix of observation, interaction and brain-power to progress.

Photo above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

Each puzzle has been written by escape room designers and each is different in its method. You must carefully combine objects and clues at times, everything is useful and this totally elevates this game above just a set of observations or simple puzzle solves on a sheet. I was super impressed at the cleverness and variety of the tasks and at times even though I am a seasoned puzzler and escape room player, some of them even made me think and have to re-work, but were never too obscure - just very good at making you think with some fabulous “ah-ha” moments.
Each puzzle leads to a 4 digit code which you enter into your device and confirm correctness. One time you also use the device to listen to an audio file as part of the puzzle (tip - go somewhere quiet) and 3 times you get to use the special interactive technology to make something happen inside one of the venues on your route, which was such a delight, One was fairly obvious, one less so and one had me about to ask in the shop if they had removed something necessary because I was convinced there was nothing happening until I thought a little bigger and outside the box. A cunning and delightful twist that had me both cursing and congratulating the designers!

Photo above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

If you get really stuck on any of the puzzles there is a dedicated clue-line for hints, which I did not use but did call to let the team know that one location was restricted due to works going on, this is an occupational hazard of games such as these, but I was still able to complete the puzzle despite this.
I was overjoyed to find and enter my final code and return to basecamp where Vic took me to Pandora and I did the necessary to complete the challenge. Once done, my reward for saving the day was revealed (and believe me I was thrilled with it!) and after a debrief and photo-op I was returned to everyday life - otherwise known as the gift-shop, to bask in my achievement and walk amongst the folk of Brighton, all completely unaware that they had just been saved from a dreadful fate...

🧩 MISSED THE MARK

The ONLY teeny thing that I experienced in the whole thing that was the slightest bit of a nuisance was the fact that the gizmo device had no volume control that I was aware of. Combined with very sensitive keypad buttons, I found that many times throughout the journey the device (which I carried in the tote bag a lot of the time) would randomly proclaim in a loud voice that I had an incorrect code and to try again :) It’s a good job those wrong entries didn’t count towards a final score as it happened a lot!
On the same note, when entering a code in a crowd outside a shop, the voice proclaiming success was quite loud and drew some attention at times! I managed to overcome this by pressing the speaker against my palm or clothing to muffle the sound.
If there is a future iteration of the gizmo, perhaps a volume control or headphone port might be welcome, and possible a protective rim around the keypad to prevent accidental triggering? Like I say this is really a niche concern that does not affect gameplay and is easily overcome!

🏹 TAKE A SHOT?

No matter your group size or how long you are in Brighton, you should go do this puzzle hunt. I loved doing it alone, it felt like my own secret mission like I was a lone spy running around while other folk were oblivious. It filled a good couple of hours for me on my final day - and was one of my favourite memories of the trip.

I spent a good amount on some awesome games and souvenirs from the gift shop afterwards (thanks Georgina!), and not only that but you get to keep the challenge booklet, pencil and tote bag from your kit which I was thrilled about.

The staff I met at Paradox Place and at Pier Pressure were all fabulous, lovely people and so enthusiastic it was infectious! Hats off to all of them.

I shall most certainly be returning when they release their 2nd and 3rd routes/missions in future. Go and treat yourselves to this excellent experience when you can!

*** We regret to inform this company has closed its doors ***

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