Exitus: Shut Down (Escape Room) – Experience Review

Shut Down is an Exitus escape room at Strike Bowling Bar powered by Cubescape. In Shut Down, players are computer scientists sent to reboot a sentient computer system named ‘IRIS’ which has malfunctioned due to a disgruntled employee.

If you have never done an escape room before, the objective is to solve puzzles to escape the room. Usually with typical escape rooms, there is a game master that actions everything whom you can call if you need help. However, this does ruin the experience as you must go back to reality to ask for help if you get stuck. You can have a minimum of 2 or up to 6 players. I would suggest 4 as the rooms are small, but you also need multiple players to dash in between places and multiple hands and heads to help solve clues.

Shut Down is a next-generation escape room. Cubescape has managed to activate their escape rooms via computer which means there’s no need for someone to constantly monitor you all the time as everything is interactive and automated. If you get stuck, the system can drop hints and modify itself to your skill level to help you move along. Although the main objective is to escape, Cubescape also scores players on how many puzzles you can solve with staff providing a score card at the end of your game.

The special effects and sound effects are so immersive, you really feel like you’re in a science-fiction survival film. The lab coats you’re given to wear during the game also add a nice touch to the experience, complimenting the theme and atmosphere of Shut Down.

My friends and I unfortunately failed to escape. In fact, we only had one puzzle left to solve before the end, but ran out of time. Because we have unfinished business, we will be back. I highly recommend trying this particular escape room at selected Strike Bowling Bar locations. It doesn’t matter if you’re an expert at escape rooms or playing for the first time – you will have fun. I haven’t really done escape rooms before, but I feel that I have been spoiled as nothing feels as real as being in a Cubescape escape room with IRIS telling you she still has fully operational lasers and that your time is running out.

 

For more information on Cubescape’s Shut Down escape room, visit: http://www.cubescape.com.au/shutdown.html