Website: http://www.level1escape.com/
The Haunting of Apartment 103 – 9/10 (by Bubbletease)
- Overall impression and experience (5/5): A pretty solid experience with several strong aspects including the enthusiastic/passionate staff, room immersion/theme, and mini-technologies incorporated into the puzzle. A very fun, creepy escape room.
- Guest service (1/1): The staff that greeted us were fantastic. One of them made me feel like I was at an amusement park, with his energy and enthusiasm. What was slightly humourous was that our hosts had a bit of a “geeky, quirky” feel to them, which harmonized well with the escape room experience. After our escape room, one of the hosts seemed genuinely interested in our feedback and perspectives on the room.
- Creativity (1/1): I enjoyed how the room became creepier and creepier as our game progressed. Lighting and sound effects created a spookier atmosphere as time went on. Mini-technologies were well-incorporated into the room. The paranormal touch was a great addition.
- Puzzles (0.5/1): Puzzles appeared varied and of average difficulty. Nothing was too challenging or strikingly outstanding.
- Set and decor (0.5/1): The immersive feel of a horror room was definitely there. The overall set and props were good, but not extraordinary.
- Room reset/functionality (1/1): No reset errors. Everything worked well for us.
911 Response – 6/10 (by Doctor What)
- Overall impression and experience (3/5): A very strong storyline to this room, but would likely benefit from stronger puzzles. The room itself was very small, but was filled with enough to do to keep players occupied for at least 45 minutes. A particularly interesting twist was introduced into this room—the first of its kind that I have seen in Calgary.
- Guest service (1/1): The staff at Level 1 have a very laid-back, enthusiastic feel to them like you would expect to find in a small group of employees at a small start-up business. Everything was on schedule, and staff did an excellent job.
- Creativity (0.5/1): The storyline itself was strong, weaving its way into each of the puzzles that were completed. I find that in escape rooms, however, the storyline is not nearly as important as the challenges and puzzles faced (which were somewhat lacking in this room).
- Puzzles (0/1): Puzzles consisted mostly of searching and placement puzzles, blacklight puzzles, and paper-based puzzles. I would have loved puzzles that involved more interaction with the room itself and the props in it.
- Set and decor (0.5/1): The set consisted of a standard office-type room—which is exactly what the storyline called for, so it was certainly a very reasonable choice. That being said, it was very ordinary with very little to particularly pique one’s interest.
- Room reset/functionality (1/1): Despite being in the early stages of the room, everything went smoothly and worked well.
The Test Subjects – 8/10 (by Doctor What)
- Overall impression and experience (4/5): The best room at Level 1 in my opinion, from the rooms that I have experienced. Large and spacious. Groups were separated and then allowing them to come back together again. Good variation of tech-based and simple puzzles. Very well-done scenario that was simple, had tasks tie in well, and didn’t distract from the puzzles.
- Guest service (1/1): Excellent staff at Level 1, as always. No complaints whatsoever.
- Creativity (0.5/1): A good, simple storyline that fit well with the room, with only a bit too much reading required. Jail-escape rooms have been done by many different escape room companies, and not much stood out as particularly unique, but overall it was one of the stronger versions of this theme that I’ve seen.
- Puzzles (0.5/1): Like the other rooms at Level 1, there are still some puzzles that would benefit from better design. The first room had rather poor puzzles, searching props for keys, one team reading code off a wall for the other side to translate, etc. The final room had several much more imaginative puzzles, using props around the room, making observations about placement of objects, etc—but still had several of the basic “look around the room for the hidden word” type puzzles. This room contained the only laser-based puzzle I have come across that actually works properly.
- Set and decor (1/1): Very spacious rooms, with authentic-looking props. Players became easily immersed in the world of the story line. My only complaint would be that the rooms were very spacious, yet there were large areas that were entirely empty, making the rooms look rather barren.
- Room reset/functionality (1/1): Everything was in place and worked well. No problems with how the room worked—which was especially impressive with the laser-based puzzle, which is very difficult to ensure it works the way it’s intended to work.
The Vault – 7.5/10 (by Bubbletease)
- Overall impression and experience (4/5): I played this room as a beta-tester. I was impressed with the cool, technological look to it. I liked how the puzzles involved interaction with the room elements. The only limitation I recall was that it was quite a dim room with a poor light source, making it challenging to see for some.
- Guest service (0.5/1): Friendly staff introduced us to the room.
- Creativity (1/1): The puzzles integrated well into the theme. There was creative and purposeful use of technology with puzzle design, and all the technology worked properly. I enjoyed the interaction with the room elements and equipment.
- Puzzles (0.5/1): Puzzles were unique, varied, and mostly straight-forward. Good use of technology within the puzzles. Looking beyond technology though, some of the puzzles do not offer much additional innovation or challenge, as compared to other escape rooms.
- Set and decor (0.5/1): The room looks the nicest out of the other escape rooms at Level 1 Escape. The colour scheme fits well with the post-apocalyptic vault theme. However, one part looks quite plain.
- Room reset/functionality (1/1): No reset errors were obvious. I liked how most of the keypads do not lock you out for extended time after inputting repeated incorrect codes.
The Rise of Ra – 8.5/10 (by Bubbletease)
- Overall impression and experience (5/5): The experience was just FUN. Although I thought the Ancient Egypt/Pyramid theme was overused, I actually enjoyed the cheesiness of the theme and the look and feel of the room. This room was what I envisioned as the “ideal” Ancient Egypt/Pyramid room with just the right amount of cheesiness and good assortment of hands-on puzzles.
- Guest service (0.5/1): The staff at Level 1 Escape are always friendly.
- Creativity (1/1): The puzzles matched the theme quite well. Each component gave more and more things which cumulated in something more grand. The technology was appropriately used, and the room was very interactive.
- Puzzles (0.5/1): Puzzles were unique, varied, and mostly straight-forward. Good use of technology within the puzzles. It seemed like completing the first half of the adventure was more grand than the final exit puzzle of the room; I wish the finale was a bit more climatic.
- Set and decor (1/1): The look of the room was great. It was very Egyptian Pyramid themed.
- Room reset/functionality (0.5/1): There were no room reset errors. Being picky, the clue system of an iPad isn’t fitting with a theme of an Egyptian pyramid. Also, since the iPad’s main screen displays pictures of all the puzzles needing solving, it kind of spoiled what was to come. (I guess don’t be tempted to look at the iPad.)
Doctor Escape 