As the trend for immersive puzzle experiences continues, Lilly Croucher and a team of friends tried MEGA BITE, the latest addition to ClueCracker on St John’s Road…
After signing up to be locked inside a room for an hour with zombies and puzzles, I did start to wonder what I had let myself in for.
But after completing the newest escape room at ClueCracker on St John’s Road in Tunbridge Wells, I can’t wait to come back and try out one of their other immersive rooms.
The rooms were incredible, with a remarkable amount of artistic detail and brilliantly clever puzzles that were flawlessly weaved into its unique concept.
As an experience that starts before you even enter the room, ClueCracker takes the immersive concept to the next level and will trick your sense of reality, tease your brain, and build your anticipation.
From the second we walked through the door, our Games Master Ben, who controlled the game, had us hooked as he explained the rules, safety instructions and even a few, very much-needed, hints.
On our visit, we tried out the newest room, MEGA BITE, a multi-dimensional escape room which transported us through the digital world of a zombie arcade game.
With original arcade machines, 80s-style games and cartoon zombie theme, Mega Bite is not just another escape room.
The game is full of cheeky humour as you try to navigate your way through the tasks, cracking the codes and searching for clues hidden in places you would never think of looking in.
It is perfect for everyone, from groups of kids to adult couples, the game is suited to anyone looking for an afternoon activity with a twist.
We were thrown into a room of glowing screens, flashing buttons, and moving parts where we were tasked with finding the antidote and saving the world from zombies.
ClueCracker is the brainchild of husband-and-wife actors, Ben and Katie Thornton along with their friend, Tom Swift, a local theatre producer.
Throughout the game you see the theatrical minds of Ben, Katie and Tom come to life as you step into these amazing sets, which are incredibly detailed.
It felt like I was stepping on to a Hollywood movie set, with every prop and electrical gadget hand-built and painted by the ClueCracker team.
This, along with the imaginative puzzles totally immersed us into the theatrics of the escape room. So much so that you completely forget you’re on a busy high street!
Ahead of going in, I spoke to Ben about how to complete the room. If you’ve never done an escape room before, here are some top tips from the Games Master himself:
- Search everywhere – In all of the games everything you can see is safe and secure – there no plug sockets to stick your fingers into!
- If there is a fire exit you will be told not to touch that but generally, everything you can see is part of the game.
- If you see a switch, switch it. If you see something lying on the floor, it’s not an accident. Read everything, look at everything.
- Spread out – A lot of new players tend to stick together, whereas there is a lot to do, so it’s good to spread out and gather as much information as possible. Teamwork here is key.
- Communicate – Maybe you’ve both found something that doesn’t mean anything to either of you but if you talk to each other you can start to piece together the task.
While we did attempt to remember Ben’s tips, the adrenaline took over and we were absorbed into the game, but I am proud to say we did finish in a nailbiting time of 59 minutes and 22 seconds!
Ben explained that the ClueCracker team’s ideas came from a love of puzzles and having completed many challenges in the past, they thought they could do better – and
they certainly have!
Starting at the Shuffle House in 2019 and expanding to a new location on 59 St John’s Road in 2020, ClueCracker now has four award-winning immersive escape rooms and it’s not hard to see why.
There are four ClueCracker games to try: Jail Break; Diamond Dogs; Temple Quest as well as MEGA BITE.
Prices start from £22 per person, with two to six players per team and corporate packages available.
To book your escape, visit cluecrackergames.co.uk
