Tulleys Escape Room - "The Outfitters"

Updated: Nov 8

LOCATION:  Crawley, England, United Kingdom

Photo above is property of Tulleys Escape Room

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

📝 ETR DECODER

🔑 GAME: The Outfitters
📅 DATE PLAYED: September 13, 2024
🎬 GENRE: Crime
🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 3 ppl): 8/10
👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS: 2-8 ppl
🕒 LENGTH OF TIME: 60 Mins.
💰 PRICE: £72-208 (pending on the group size)
☎️ BOOKING TYPE: Private
🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED?: Yes [55:17]

📖 THE STORY

Chicago, the year is 1926 and the city is still feeling the weight of the Depression. Jobs are hard to come by, and for six years, Prohibition has done little to stop people from drinking. If anything, nothing’s changed, except now the mob runs the show. They control the booze, the streets, and the cash. Their reach is long, even pulling in most of the cops. So, who’s going to bring them down? You are!

The Commissioner has pulled together a special squad of honest officers, and you’ve made the cut. After spending months working your way into the mob’s inner circle, tonight is the night you’ll gather the proof to finally take them down.

🎯 HIT THE BULLSEYE

As soon as we entered Tulleys Escape Rooms we were met by several warm and welcoming GM’s who guided us through the normal formalities and chatted with us about our day, travels, and escape room experiences. They clearly care about their guests and are passionate about what they do!
Before the game officially started, we watched a professionally made and acted video. In order to keep our attention toward the screen, and to not be distracted by our exciting surroundings, the lights were off, which is a thoughtful choice. The video gets a special mention here because it manages to integrate the game rules and story in an entertaining and humorous way, remaining in our thoughts long into the adventure.
As with all of Tulleys' games, the construction value and attention to detail with the game’s theming is exceptionally high. The number of decorative items and props is well balanced; the amount is enough to provide an immersive atmosphere, without the space feeling overcrowded or too sparce. The elements also felt authentic to the time period, such as with the inclusion of an old-school safe, period gambling games, and kegs of booze, and interesting to engage with.
The game area is much larger than we had anticipated, giving us not only ample space to move about in, but also several new room reveals. The abundance of space is great for larger teams to play in without tripping over one another. Each room felt purposeful to the gangster’s hideout and made sense to our story.
The game flow was interesting, because although the intention is for it to be played linearly, there is the possibility for a team to gain access to a side-room earlier than the story intends; this is what happened to us. We appreciated this new dynamic because it opened the game into a more nonlinear format. We were informed after the game that game masters will occasionally stop this from happening if they feel a team would be more successful by not deviating from the linear flow; likely to those less experienced teams.
Overall, the puzzles were thematic and in-keeping with the 1920’s time period. Most of what we did involved searching for and collecting specialty items, many of which would be used much later in the game. Staying organized with what was found and used was important because the game involves a lot of interaction with the props.

🧩 MISSED THE MARK

The ending was a little anti-climactic, there was no special effect or big reveal, plus the story on the website made a small reference to the possibility of our ‘cover being blown’. So that had me thinking that the plot might evolve with a plot twist somehow, which sadly it didn’t.

🏹 TAKE A SHOT?

This is definitely a game worth playing, no matter if you are new to escape rooms or a tried and tested veteran. "The Outfitters" manages to combine immersive set design and thematic puzzles in a way that produces a truly engaging experience.

The abundance of puzzles does make the game challenging to complete within the hour, but the game master is always there to guide you when needed.

ℹ️ ADDITIONAL INFO

Parking is available on site for free. The location is also accessible by bus.
There is a lobby area with comfortable seating and drink for sale, including alcoholic beverages. Some escape room related merchandise is also available for purchase, such as hoodies and pins.
The escape rooms at Tulleys is part of a bigger complex which features seasonal events at Christmas, Halloween, Easter, and other times of the year. There is also a Tea Room and other areas to explore. All information can be found on their website.

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

Check out our interview with the owner to understand more on the development side of the game:

Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

BOOK NOW

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