Review: Escape Plan (Raja Uda, Butterworth)

Previously, I reviewed an Escape Room establishment called Break the Code in Jalan Burmah, Penang. This time, my friends invited me to try a new one called Escape Plan in Butterworth. The game is generally similar. You are locked in a room with puzzles inside, solve them in 1 hour to escape and win the game. Simple! Here is my review of Escape Plan.

My first impression I had when I entered the place was that it looked cheap. There was not much decoration, the entrance was a simple wooden door, the walls were painted bland white illuminated by bland fluorescent light. It felt like I stepped into an office lot. However, the staff were very friendly and eased us into starting our game.

We picked the hardest room called "The Abandoned" to play. Before the game starts, the staff tells us a tale of an aborted child who haunts the hospital. When the aborted child's parents returned to the same hospital to deliver their next child, they were trapped by the vengeful unborn spirit. We are to be trapped in the very same hospital and must figure out the clues left by the child ghost to escape. Scary! Then, we were sent into the room, and the clock starts.

Mom, Dad, why don't you love me? WHY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The room looks er.... cheap (I hate using the same adjective twice in a post but it is the best word to describe). The plain white walls which were occasionally splattered with red bloody message, the simple furniture, and the bland cement floor certainly did not add to the eeriness of the theme. I did not feel like I was in a hospital at all. However, it was enough for the puzzles to work.

The puzzles were on the plus side were very well done. For those of you who are not familiar with my critique of Escape Room puzzles in a previous post, puzzles that have no relation to the story and exist only because the designers wanted the players to solve a puzzle is bad. Although this room has a fair share them, some of the puzzles actually contributed to the room's story and it made the room feel real.

The creative usage of electronics in some of the puzzles was praiseworthy too and it's a breath of fresh air compared to the ole find the number and unlock the padlock puzzles.

The puzzles were good, I felt really satisfied finishing them all

Final Verdict: The game was fun. But at RM30 something per person for 1 hour, it might not be worthwhile for some. With better decorations, this place can be a really solid place to have fun. Fun rating, I'll give it a 3/5

Would I Recommend? If you never played Escape Rooms before, this one is decent and you should definitely go try it out. But I am not sure if it was good enough to warrant a second visit.