So what exactly is Escape MSP you ask? Truthfully, I wasn't sure, but I had seen something that I thought was similar on The Big Bang Theory and it looked fun.
Their website describes it like this:
Clocks, Locks and Secret Passages ... Your team of 4-10 players are locked in a fully themed room with two goals; collect the hidden asset and ESCAPE the room before time runs out! To complete your mission you will need your wits, teamwork & a lot of critical thinking… Will you ESCAPE?
Fast forward to son #1's birthday. I booked a private party (minimum of six people, $50 extra fee) and we attempted to escape from Mr. Dupree's Office! (I chose Mr. Dupree's Office based on the recommendation in FAQ: If this is your first experience at Escape, we recommend Mr. Dupree's Office. The James Bomb mission is a lot of fun, but it is more intense and you will be handcuffed.)
MISSION 1: Mr. Dupree's Office
You are on an elite team of fellow CIA
agents assigned with the task of gathering incriminating evidence from
the office of international business man, Mr. Dupree. Our Intelligence
team could only get you into Mr. Dupree’s office for 60 minutes. YOU
must get out before Mr. Dupree returns or the case is blown! Collect
evidence of specific illegal activity, solve the puzzle and escape the
room before you're caught!
MISSION 2: James Bomb
While on a mission to intercept
information in order to foil a terrorist attack on the Bank of England,
you and your team of MI6 agents have been captured by Count David of
Liverpool. The Count now has you and your fellow agents shackled in the
basement of the World Bank, WITH THE BOMB! Can you free yourself, find
the deactivation mechanism, and escape the room before it explodes?
I don't want to give anything away, but from the photo you can see that our mission was a "failure". Personally, I thought the whole thing was very clever (and hard), however I must say that I was IMPRESSED with the abstract, critical thinking skills of the younger generation! All of those hours (and hours) of video game playing may not have been wasted! (This relieves some of my mom-guilt, and oddly enough gives me hope for the future.)
When I remarked to hubby that I thought the kids performed better than we did overall, he said, "That's why there aren't any old secret agents!" (Ouch.)
Anyway, the kids had a blast and it was fun for me to watch them being engaged and having such a good time. The hour locked in the room went very fast! The minute (I kid you not) we left the building, son #2 turned to me and said, "We should do that again!" They are ready and willing to be handcuffed together to attempt "James Bomb". We also found out that there will be a new mission this year at the MN Renaissance Festival (another one of my generous donors!) where you try to escape from a castle. ("We should do that one, too!")
All in all, I give it a (somewhat expensive) thumbs up. If you decide to check it out, please let me know what you think and we can compare notes on what we did and did not figure out.
Visit their website for more information.
Note: This was an unsolicited review. No compensation or discount was received.
