Escape Chambers

Let me start off by saying this was my 1^st «puzzle room» experience. Really, I had no idea what to expect going in. We did «The Job». There were 5 in our group. Luckily, we were the only ones booked into the time slot. The room is listed as having a max of 12 people. Honestly, I cannot imagine having that many people in this room. Also, the person running the game was extremely casual. At one point we had a flashlight that did not work & were told that she knew the flashlight was no good, but we were not given a replacement. My group did have fun, we did escape, and I would really like to try another puzzle room. I’d probably try another place instead of Escape Chambers– especially since it seems their maximum per room is too high.

So much fun with a group of friends!
This was my first time trying out an Escape Game — there are locations popping up across the country. Six of us got together to try it out. We opted to do Jail Break, which is a good mix of mental and physical skill!
Without giving away too much about the game, I’d definitely recommend Escape Chambers. For the room we did, I’d imagine it’d be pretty boring with more than 6 people (up to 10 can play in one room). There are times when we were sitting around while 1 – 2 of the group tries to figure out how to do XYZ.
I’d also recommend to get your own group, too. Playing with strangers might take the fun out of it unless you’re lucky enough to get paired up with people understand there’s no «I» in «Team»!
Overall, a great experience and tons of fun to get the night started. Maybe a little expensive ($ 30/​person) considering the quicker you are at solving the room the shorter your entertainment is. $ 15 seems more reasonable. Nonetheless, this is a must-​do!

For the sake of transparency, I am a room escape professional (I work in the industry, different city/​state). With that being said, I have gone through competitor’s rooms that rocked my socks off — and Escape Chambers left my entire group, including first timers, disappointed. The price point of $ 30/​person should have been $ 18, especially with 10 guests in a room designed for 6 people — max. There simply was not enough work to go around– ⁵⁄₁₀ of us (a mixed group of strangers) stopped caring with 20 minutes to go.
Let’s back up to the business itself — decent location, easy parking, website was easy enough to navigate. Our game master was incredibly casual and I felt like she just got off the couch from a Netflix binge. For the price point and the fact that 1 staff member was able to moderate 2 rooms (15 guests total) — the company absolutely could afford to invest in a contractor to fix the drywall holes that are just covered in tape and handwritten «do not touch signs». I get it– people get excited and are rough on the set — but the margins are too good not to fix these aesthetic items.
Second point, safety. The prison event puts guests in a compromised setting where a quick and safe exit is not feasible (i.e. handcuffs and being locked in with no false lock/​easy). I posed the question to our game master about what if we need to get out in an emergency and was told she was just outside. Sorry, I do not feel safe being chained up and having to rely on a stranger to act quickly. There is a way to safely give the illusion of being locked up and not actually endangering your guests — velcro cuffs are a simple solution.
The room escape itself had some interesting features, but simply– there was not enough work to go around and watching the one person do a bunch of stuff while the rest of us just sat there– well, that was a waste of my money. In terms of elegance, this room escape did a nice job sticking to their theme and I enjoyed their tip giving process. There just simply was not enough to solve and we would have been out with 30 minutes to spare had we opted to use the hints (the room has a 60 minute cap).
Overall, this room escape left a lot to be desired and I felt bad taking my friends here for their first room escape experience. My advice to this company would be to increase their clue storylines within the room and to invest in room maintenance. If you want to visit this business, my recommendation would be to wait for a discount ticket/​daily deal or to reserve the room and play with 5 – 6 people.

Did «the job» last night. Super fun with interesting unique aspects. It’s a bit difficult with just two of but still a blast. Would be perfect with about 6 people. Definitely got my heart pounding near the end.

Go! Get a Groupon! It’s a fun group activity!

I cannot believe I am the first one to write a review for Escape Chambers in Chicago. This place is great!
A group of us did the Jailbreak escape back in October and it was a really fun time! I was surprised at how real it felt; we were literally locked into jail cells and handcuffed! The clues are all in the room, but our team required a lot of assistance and clues. The game itself is very well organized (in terms of having the iPad available to scan QR codes or clues, and having a staff member monitoring us throughout).
We were able to find a groupon and I thought it was very worth it! The only thing that was kind of a surprise was when we arrived we had to pay the tax in person. Kind of wished it was just added to the groupon at the time of purchase. The place itself kind of felt like a dump/​old pet store.
Overall, it was a great time. I would recommend it to anyone looking to do a group activity with family or friends or co-​workers. I plan to try a different challenge, one day.