I’m hardly a connoisseur of the outdoors, but if there’s one thing I can appreciate, it’s a good room. We often take the claustrophobia-inducing walls of a room without a mummy telling us that we’ll be dying in ten minutes for granted. So, when a game is made that takes advantage of the extraordinary potential of a darkened room, I can’t help but get a bit giddy. The guys over at Realmz have made an immersive and fun experience out of a room, and it’s even cooler to think that it was made here in Perth.
If you’re unfamiliar with escape rooms, they’re a bit like real life puzzle games. You get locked in a room and have to solve a variety of puzzles to escape before your time runs out. Depending on the theme of the game, you might be trapped in a detective’s office or a musty tomb, but getting out is never straight forward. Curse of the Mummy is no different, and it’s one of the better ones around.
Creating an environment that immerses the participants is a big part of the escape room experience. Realmz has pulled out all the stops to make sure that nothing is out of place, from the puzzles to the way you gather hints, and it’s fantastic. The entire time I was in the room, I felt in an ancient Egyptian tomb, which is a lot better than being told I’m in a science facility only to find wooden boxes. The props were damn good, and that was another stand out to me.
In fostering that environment of immersion, everything in the room felt like it was out of a Hollywood production. The props were of a high quality, and the only thing that didn’t stand up to scrutiny were the sounds, but that wasn’t a dealbreaker. From everything I saw and everything we used, it’s obvious that a lot of effort has been put into making the experience a memorable one. I liked what I saw, but what I did was just as enjoyable… More or less.
For the most part, the puzzles on show were enjoyable, but it didn’t feel like there was a whole lot to them. The group I was with brute-forced one of the puzzles, and once we finished one, nothing fed into the other puzzles. Without trying to spoil anything, there was a little bit of backtracking, but it was a very compartmentalised experience. That said, we needed an extra 7 minutes to finish it all, so it’s not like the puzzles weren’t challenging, I just would have preferred a bit more meta.
One of the neat things about escape rooms is that you can link your puzzles into each other, but this was a very linear experience. One you solved puzzle A, you moved on to puzzle B, and it went on like that for the whole experience. Don’t get me wrong, it was fun to solve puzzles alongside your friends, but we never had the opportunity to split off and try solving multiple puzzles at the same time. Considering what was presented, though, it was still a great experience, and I’d highly recommend it.
Whether you’ve never gone to an escape room before or seen it all, Curse of the Mummy is a solid experience for anyone that’s interested. It might not have the best puzzles I’ve ever seen, but it’s a fun romp for you and a few friends, and the quality of the environment is fantastic. It’s cool to see this sort of game gaining momentum in Perth, and it’s definitely worth a shot. And, after all, it’s time we gave more rooms the attention they deserve, don’t you think?
Location & Contact Information
Contact: (08) 9376 1375 or info@realmz.com.au
Website: http://realmz.com.au/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RealmzEscapeGame/
The venue is located at Unit 4 / 63 Russell Street, Morley, Perth, WA, 6062.
