The Escape Artist - "Dive to Atlantis!"

Updated: Apr 6

LOCATION:  Seattle, Washington, USA

Photo above is property of The Escape Artist

Photo above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

📝 ETR DECODER

🔑 GAME: Dive to Atlantis!
📅 DATE PLAYED: June 4, 2022
🎬 GENRE: Submarine, Explorer
🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 3 ppl): 7/10
👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS: 3-6 PPL
🕒 LENGTH OF TIME: 60 Mins
💰 PRICE: $37-45/PP (pending on group size)
☎️ BOOKING TYPE: Private
🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED?: Yes

📖 THE STORY

Your salvage crew has been hired by a rich man to journey by submarine to the lost city of Atlantis, which he has located, and bring back a treasured artifact. Can you successfully get the sub to Atlantis, find and extract the relic, and return safely?

Photo above is property of The Escape Artist

🎯 HIT THE BULLSEYE

The ambience in the sub and down in Atlantis are both fantastic but totally different, and it was such a treat to get to experience them both. The ability to play one game that thematically incorporated two completely different and engaging environments was fabulous.
Each of the environments also had a lot of extra little (and sometimes not so little) details to really make you feel like you were there! This is one of two games at The Escape Artist that is a full-motion experience, meaning that the sub moved under your feet! (There is a stop button available if this becomes problematic for anyone, though our motion-sickness-inclined teammate didn’t have any issues.) Rather than being purely random movements, they were also often aligned with what was going on outside of the sub, making everything feel a little more realistic. There is also a bunch of other tech in here to help you feel truly submersed. Then it’s a whole different scene in Atlantis, complete with sand on ground and mysterious ruins.
In terms of gameplay, the puzzles were generally quite rewarding and varied, with appropriate thematic differences between the two areas and nice opportunities for cooperative work. There were also several memorable highlights due to both cool and unexpected happenings!

🧩 MISSED THE MARK

There was one particular puzzle we wasted a lot of time on. We knew exactly what to do (as confirmed after we asked for hints) but found the outcome a bit ambiguous. In the end, the answer seemed incongruous with what we were seeing. I tend to find it frustrating when you’ve figured out what you need to do for a puzzle but the implementation doesn’t seem to work.
Generally speaking, we only got hints when requested, but we did receive one that was unsolicited towards the end. Normally, I don’t mind this, as I do like to see the whole room, and I tend to assume it means we are falling behind. However, we had barely started looking at the puzzle in question, so we didn’t really have an opportunity to get the satisfaction of solving it ourselves. And it was not a super tight finish, so it feels like we could have had that bit of time to work on it. But maybe we were faster than it seemed and made up some time on the last bit!

🏹 TAKE A SHOT?

Playing “Dive to Atlantis!” is almost like getting two escape rooms in one, each with their own unique vibe and atmosphere! They are both really fun “worlds” to explore, and The Escape Artist does an excellent job at immersing you in each environment, with some diverse puzzles throughout. We really did love the contrast of the styles in the two rooms, which kept things really fresh and novel throughout. While the full motion experience was not a huge game-changer for me, it was certainly a fun addition that enhanced the immersion for what was already a great game. The minimum allowable age is 13, but this room would definitely be great for teens and families, as well as adults like us who are still raring to have some deep sea adventurers!

ℹ️ ADDITIONAL INFO

There is a lobby/waiting area where you check in and have your rules/intro, with lockers, seating, and a coat rack. You can get a key for the bathroom that is down the hall and up the stairs. There is a paid lot right behind the building, as well as street parking in the area. If you are not from Seattle, be aware that traffic to West Seattle is a challenge until they finish construction on the bridge, so allow plenty of time to get there!

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(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 The Escape Artist for comping our tickets for this game. Although complimentary admission was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.