Atmosphere - Clean, organized, lots of rooms to choose from. Customer service - Excellent. Kayla was friendly, helpful, encouraging and knowledgeable. Price - Average read more

Escape the Mystery Room - Escape Games Near Me - Syracuse, New York

We tried the Sherlock's Library experience for a department bonding event and it was kind of lackluster. They really made the cheapest experience possible, and it shows. When you walk into the room, you see a bookshelf decal on the wall and a bunch of chests within the room. The only sort of cool prop they had was one of those globes that opens up. But every single task was to unlock a lock. So you could just search the entire room for hidden keys and chests without actually having to follow any clues (one or two were keys, others were combo locks). You still have to figure out the combos, but just finding codes is kinda lame. The prompt itself wasn't good to start, so I felt like our team didn't have a goal, we just started searching. The storyline was not really there. We solved everything including the master chest. And although humans have a natural sense of satisfaction in finishing something, it wasn't actually that fun. Glad I didn't have to spend my own money on this. I'd be happy to try another escape room, but not at this establishment. read more

Overall the experience was okay. But it's definitely not worth the money. It felt like not a lot of thought goes into the immersion of the experience. I also didn't like that it was more like cubbies and not individual rooms because I could hear other players while I was in my teams room. read more

I would not recommend this place, lady that was working yelled because I was standing in the door way and the sensor was going off then proceeded to ask what our reservation was I went with my daughter to have a fun time the one we picked had a "18%" completion rate and rudely says we won't get it, I don't care if I get it or not I'm trying to have fun with my child, another group comes in and she goes I'll take them ahead of you. Never again will I come back to this place. read more

Never going back! I was visiting from out of town and I went with my family. We had a good time, and were treated well. After you do one escape room they told us that you can schedule another time to do one at half price. We decided to schedule one two days later. We made the reservation and when going to pay, they assured us that we can pay the day of the escape room. When we arrived 30 minutes before our second reservation, the same individuals told us that we needed to pay in advance for the room and that the 50% off only applied on day of the first reservation. The person with red hair disrespectfully explained that they didn't receive any payment from us and therefore gave our reservation away, without any email or call. Instead we had to pick another room, the secret agent room. We had a lot of trouble with that room and when calling for hints, the person said that they "don't know the room very well" and provided no help. We were stuck for the entire time in the room and got no real assistance. When we finished, unsuccessfully, we asked for an explanation of the room and in response were looked at like we were stupid and told "we have another reservation so we don't have time" and that "we could have used the hint as much as needed". This was all from the person in the long red hair who left us feeling disappointed and unable to return. This individual lacks the service that the establishment should want to display, especially to annual visitors. read more

Absolute Waste of Money and Time. Way too expensive for what you get. A room to solve and unlock chests that don't amount to anything. read more

Very helpful and attentive staff and a well laid out escape room. Great experience and would definitely do it again

Was not pleased with my experience at all. This "escape room" was just a bunch of unlocking chests to leave a room. There was no thrill, the scene was not set very well, and just felt like cheap all around. Most escape rooms I've done have been super interactive, involved multiple rooms, appropriately suspenseful music, and just made you feel like you were in a movie actually trying to escape. Wish I could be refunded for this disappointing experience read more

We did a double date night this past weekend and loved it! Location is great because there's a ton of food at destiny mall as well so perfect for a winter date night and staying warm. We did the treasure hunt room and want to come back to try the other rooms!! This was personally my first time at an escape room, I've visited museum of intrigue also in the mall but that isn't in a locked room and has more of an open world or open map feel. Love them both! If you're looking for a step above board game night and want more interaction than just going to the movies then this is the perfect next date idea! read more

They were very unorganized and understaffed. We requested a hint and waited 7 minutes (we did not get that time back on our countdown timer). when the woman came in she said "You aren't the only people I need to help." She took another few minutes (not stopping our time) to figure out where we were in the process. There were so many locks, not really any puzzles. The clues all lead to opening another lock which is not fun with poor eyesight and glaring lights overhead. The walls were partitions so you could hear everyone in the room next door which was also a distraction, especially in our case when they were loud and we could not hear one another in our room relaying a code for a lock. At the end, with two minutes remaining we decided we were done and we could not get out of the room! Can someone say safety issue?! We hit the medical/emergency buzzer, called over the wall, it was 2 or 3 minutes before someone let us out. read more

My best friend and I came in about 5:30 on a Wednesday for my birthday. It's $25 per person, which I think is a little high. Before you enter, they have you read all the rules and guidelines and describe how each of the different locks work. During your time in the room, you can press a button and the guy would come in a give you a clue, which we used both times we were allowed to. The rooms range from levels 1/3, 2/4, and 3/5, with the 1/3 having a 50% solve rate and the latter having a 5% solve rate. We did the Sherlock Holmes library themed room, which was exciting. I believe it was a level 2/4 themed room. The first part was quite simple, and then it became a little harder. Everything made sense, although it seemed as though we jumped around a lot. We were able to solve the room and the bonus challenge, and afterwards we took a picture with some of the props. For reference, this was my first time in an escape room. Both of us were upper classmen Cornell students who are pretty good at solving puzzles and riddles, so we found the overall experience fulfilling and just the right level of fun/challenging. I'd definitely come back with my friends again! read more

It was our family's first time doing an escape room. Liz and Erin were both great - they gave us guidance and tips to make it a fun experience. We happened to pick the Sherlock Holmes room which was the hardest of the rooms available, but we were able to make it out with 5 minutes to spare. Would definitely recommend for a good adult activity. read more

This was so fun. I first thought $20 was too much money per person, but we loved this! We did the Alcatraz room and did not escape. I think we were close though. My friend and I took our 11 yr old sons. They had a blast. I think I would love to try this again with just adults. The staff person that we had that checks on us was great. She kept things fun and gave us pushes where needed. My only complaint is the man who was working. I actually think he was the owner or manager. He checked us in and checked us out. He was miserable and very short with us. It really made me leave in a bad mood after we were laughing and having a good time. I would've left 5 stars if he wasn't there. read more

I appreciate that it is supposed to be a challenge but their "rules" before we started specifically removed one "clue" and a few clues were not staged in other way than just haphazardly laying on the floor. Not much attention was paid to "resetting" the room even though we had to wait an extra 10 minutes after our scheduled appointment time. 5Wits was far more fun/family fun. read more

I came here with a Groupon and had a fun time. It was my second mystery escape room experience (the first was in Denver). I was only with one other person and we weren't able to solve level one because there was a key we couldn't find due to it being stuck at the end of a rope. I was surprised by how many theme room options there were. I didn't like how there were many unnecessary accessory props around and how the walls for each room didn't reach the ceiling. You could hear others in the space and in the next door rooms. The worker there was super friendly and gave us an extra 15 minutes on top of our 50 minutes. We did the Treasure Island game. The clue solving experience wasn't as physical and interactive as the mystery room in Denver I went to. All of the clues involved opening a lock. It would have been more fun if clues weren't just to get codes for locks. Some boxes even had three locks on it. The room was bright and lit unlike the other mystery room I went to that had a more mysterious feel to it due to mood lighting and decoration. As another reviewer mentioned, I was sitting on the floor trying to read maps halfway into the experience. Level one involves clues that line up in succession of one another whereas the higher levels have clues that come overlapping each other. read more

Escape the Mystery Room - Rules - Escape Games Near Me - Syracuse, New York

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I brought a group of nine 12 year olds for my daughter's birthday. They did the Treasure Island and had a great time. Austin and Angel were so kind and patient with them. They all loved it. read more

I must say I much enjoyed my time in the SuperHero themed escape room. Prices were a little much in my opinion, but still worth it. Me and my buddy accidentally solved the Master Level FIRST, but we ended up getting back on track. Overall a great experience for kids and adults alike. read more

This was my first escape room experience and I had high expectations coming in. I should have checked the yelp reviews before choosing this place. It was $20 per person for about 50 minutes to solve the riddles and escape the room. The props were dirty and some of them were broken and could have easily been replaced. It also seems like they do not put much effort into decorating the room and it was kind of depressing to be honest. Don't get me wrong, the actual escape was tough and we weren't able to solve the riddles. The only reason I give it a 2 star and not 1 is because of the really cool and kind workers! They were super friendly! read more

Should have checked Yelp first!! We came to play 5 Wits and had a great time. On our way out, we saw this one and decided since we are only in town for one night to give it a try. Just dreadful. It was like adults being left in a play area while their parents (or significant others) were shopping. Now I know how kids feel at day care. Save your money. Go play somewhere else. Anywhere else. This is not what escape rooms are or should be. read more

We have done escape rooms in SC and FL (different companies) and they were SO fun we talked a group of friends into this room for their birthday. They coordinated babysitters, etc and with our group of 13 it was an EFFORT to make this happen. We chose the plague puzzle. The escape rooms are in a long hall and next door to each other so it's a bit loud and chaotic. Our room was brightly lit and super clean which was great! Unfortunately the room had very little props and was not an "immersive experience" by any stretch. Our game warden did not give us any intro or any real direction whatsoever, no tips or gameplay insight... she just reviewed the RULES (don't steal anything) and the emergency exit and then started the timer and locked the door. Then, we were just in a room in the mall playing a game with decals on the wall and trying to unlock lock after lock after lock after lock. We called the game warden in at one point for a clue and she was ZERO help. And then it was over. No pics. No explanation from the warden, nothing. It was just over. Total waste of money and my friends now think I am crazy for recommending an escape room. Our other experiences at other locations have been so fun, my husband and I would be willing to try it again but I'm not sure the other 11 people in our party felt the same. At the end of the night we were all in agreement that it was a shame we spent all that money as a group. read more

Came here a few weeks ago and thought we'd have a good time. But 2 major problems (and a boring premise) prevented that. Upon opening the first box, we hit a dead end and wasted about 10 minutes on it before we asked for a hint. The employee came in after a few minutes, had a look at our issue, and then apologized to us because the room wasn't properly staged. He opened another box and found the clue we needed. Misplaced. From a business viewpoint (and for those who haven't been to an escape room) this is the equivalent to renting a car and then finding out they lost the keys, preventing you from going anywhere...but then wanting you to pay for the rental anyway. Unacceptable! Once we were past that issue, we quickly noticed a troubling trend. Defective locks. The locks were very cheap, flimsy, and had loose dials. Those dials have to be set absolutely perfect, with no indication or notches to let you know they're set. This is ok for your garage or bike...when you KNOW the combo. But when you're trying to decipher a combo, and have 6-9 possibilities, then a defective lock will immediately put an end to your fun. Put in the right combo, it doesn't work, then waste your time trying to decipher the clues another way. You can't have unknown combos and flimsy locks. Combine that with the improper staging from the beginning, and we lost all confidence in this room, and the staff. We didn't know whether more things were improperly staged, or whether we were dealing with another defective lock. These two things alone should have warranted a refund, which we didn't get. In hindsight, I should have stopped the time and asked for a refund as soon as the misplaced clues were discovered by the employee. Aside from those two massive failures, I noticed early on that they only give you 50 minutes. Not the usual standard of 1 hour. No big deal I guess, but it puts this place beneath other escape rooms in terms of value. And in terms of fun factor.... we got the layout of our escape room (Alcatraz), and the disappointment began immediately. Other escape rooms out there are properly themed, or are actually multiple rooms. This was simulated here by locked boxes. Literally 6 or so locked boxes around the room, which were meant to be other rooms (such as the library, guard's office, exercise yard). Yep...a locked box is meant to be an exercise yard. If that's not depressing enough, the only thing to do here is open locks. That's it. (Defective locks that is). Some escape rooms have you activate things like trap doors and magnetically triggered special effects. Some use polarized glasses to uncover clues. Some require pressing buttons in a sequence to get a radio to transmit a code. Or finding a switch for black lights that uncover a clue. Not here. Decipher combo, open lock, decipher next combo, open next lock....over and over. THATS IT. And by deciphering combo, you just look for a word or number in a paragraph, and put it in the defective lock. Seriously that's it. So basic, boring, and depressing. We didn't finish the room. The 10 minutes we burned at the beginning and defective locks slowed us down too much. At the end the guy working there asked "did you have fun". We honestly had no fun whatsoever. Not even for a second. read more

Been to various Escape rooms and this one would benefit from a little re-organization. Dumped into the room without a starting point which led us to finding 'a clue' to begin our journey. Turns out our clue was probably the fifth clue in a series of 10. Which in turn caused quite a bit of confusion on our end. Called for help and a very rude and condescending individual made it sound like we obviously should've known where to start! Ha. So much for return business. Save your money and go elsewhere. read more

This is part of a chain, and I've been to other locations. This location was pretty much the same as the other locations. At this location we (me and my 13/11 year old kids) did the Sherlock room. We did the easier level, so we were able to solve the mystery before time ran out, but not without three clues from the staff. What I liked: The staff was responsive - at other locations if you need a clue you can waste 5-10 minutes for staff to respond. At this location the staff responded immediately. She didn't make us feel dumb, and she didn't give us more than we asked for. What I didn't like: This was a pretty bare-bones mystery room. There's no ambiance - the room is brightly lit with only the basic furniture/tools. There are also no instructions on the locks (some you have to push up and then pull down to open) so the kids had trouble with them and I had to double check and see that they actually opened. It's a good starter mystery room, but it's definitely overpriced for what you get. read more

I came here with a Groupon but I should've read the reviews first. The fact that no one else was at this place should've been a big tip off. There's no imagination or fitness in the design of these rooms. We did the Alcatraz-themed room. It was just a bed and a bunch of locked boxes in the corners of the room. The levels were confusing and when we asked for a clue, the staff member had no idea what was going on, even with manual in hand. As an escape room enthusiast who's done many rooms with another escape enthusiast friend, I'd say this was by far the worst, most disappointing experience we've ever had. Avoid, avoid, avoid! There are much better escape room options in Syracuse. read more

GREAT escape rooms & staff!!! My three friends and I did "Special Agent" and "Houdinis Magic Cell". Both were challenging and creative. Because of Covid, the staff has masks on, the rooms are sanitized and you keep your mask on. Its only your party in the room like usual. Austin was the man who helped us and he was such a pleasure! He was very informative and helpful. What I liked most about these rooms were the "Bonus boxes". After you escape the regular room there is an added bonus box that is a challenge all in itself. We had a blast! I would recommend these rooms for an older crowd. Might be a little too difficult for young kids. read more

Mediocre. I did the Sherlock room. This was my third escape room experience, first with this company. If it had been my first experience it would be my last. Not very inspiring. Also at the other places they took our photo at the end but not at this place. read more

We had a great experience. I went as an adult with two 11 year old kids. The staff, especially Austin, was fabulous and super patient with the kids who had a lot of questions. Was it a good escape room? I have no idea because we were awful at it and didn't solve anything but we still had a good time. They really went out of their way to make sure the kids had fun. Also if it isn't something you think you would be good at go for a level one. We went level two and that was a mistake. read more

I'll agree with most of the reviews that this is a BASIC escape room experience. It's based on solving word puzzles to unlock different locks on different boxes/bins/props. It's $26 for 50 minutes for a main puzzle and a bonus step that's harder. My friend and i solved the main one, but couldn't get the bonus level so the worker gave us a clue and let us stay to finish it up. We were stumped a few times for a few minutes but it was manageable and perfectly timed. It's in a mall; there isn't room for several rooms to be connected for one game. You get up to two hints and the guy is really friendly. The lock tutorial at the beginning ensured you wouldn't get stuck trying to unlock the locks. Some of the props and clues smelled bad and were water damaged... But he is sanitizing and mopping after every group so they're getting worn down more now. It's basic, but fun enough for a date on a boring day. read more

We did Special Agent with a group of 6 adults and had a blast. A huge shout out to the amazing staff who was super kind to squeeze us in on a busy Saturday after pointing out my online reservation was mistakenly on a different day. read more

I went this past weekend and had a horrible time. They told us one had stolen the remote so I had to time it myself. The guy started off telling us the wrong thing so we were putting in a 4 digit code in the safe instead of a 6 digit code. One of the locks we needed for the 2nd clue was broke and wouldn't open. We spent 20mins on it and the guy was rude when we asked for help and made us feel stupid when it was there faulty equipment. I will not be returning to this mystery room after bringing in 7 adults for it. read more

The staff was nice and the clues were good. That is the only thing I have to say about this Mystery Room. The rooms are SO basic and the clues are boring in that most of them are all laminated paper. There is virtually no furniture or decoration in the rooms so searching for things is boring. The staff was nice but very unprofessional. The clues are set up so that you are only working on one puzzle at a time so when you have a group of 10 there are many people not doing anything. When I called to book they give you several options (groups, etc.) and 2 of the 3 options hung up on me. I had to basically push zero to get to an operator. We were only in the Sherlock Holmes room, but I can't imagine that other rooms are different. Would not suggest. read more

This was hilariously pathetic. The challenge was just one room, which we were locked into by the keys on the managers pants. He was beyond rude to us, which is always great for kids. The room was dirty (even though we were the first family to go in that day), scantly decorated with stickers on the white walls, and the clues were laminated printer paper that was falling apart. The kids were really uncomfortable and when I asked what they thought about it they said, "disappointing." He made fun of us for not knowing answers, and he made us very uncomfortable. I can't believe how expensive it is for such a horrible experience. read more

Our family had a great time in this room. The room was nicely set up and the puzzle was thoughtful. Noah was a fantastic game master. He was friendly and helpful and made sure we had a great time. We will definitely go back! read more

This was a huge waste of money! $20 a pop for 7 people for maybe 30 mins. We had to call the attendant because there was clearly a piece missing from the clues. After that we were out in 5 minutes. Since we "won" we were supposed to get a picture taken but they said the iPad was broken so they could not do the background but they could take a pic with our cell phone! They were clearly understaffed and could tell they had heard all these complaints before. Save your $$ read more

So I decided to give this place a chance when my friends said it was decent. I gotta say I wasn't really feeling t. There were way too many people in our room and I felt like I had nothing to do. The main dude was kind of grumpy too. That turned me off. The mall has so many things to go to and do that you really need to stand out and go that extra mile to really succeed. I think they have potential to have something amazing here but there is so much more work they need to do to get things in order 20 bucks isn't bad for a fun time, but I feel like something was missing while I was there. I may give them another chance later and I will update this review if it's any better. If I were the owners though I would go the extra mile ASAP. read more

Please please do not go here. Please also do not judge escape rooms based on the experience here if you've had the misfortune of going. Worst experience and waste of money! My family (escape room enthusiasts) ended up here as an end of day birthday festivities event. We signed up to do a level 4. We were put in a level 2 with a group who had signed up for the level 2. We finished the game with 20 minutes still on the clock and a bunch of puzzles around the room not open yet because they were level 4s. I mentioned to the staff member afterwards that I had signed up for four and that we missed out on a bunch of puzzles! She told me it was the same price.... and said they did not have enough people on staff to let us do the full game. Wow. I spent $100 there. I didn't get the game I wanted. They PACK people in these rooms to get as much money as possible out of people. The "themes" are wallpaper. The rooms do not have ceilings so you can hear every game around you. Alllll of the puzzles are simple locks and paper clues to get you to unlocking them.. It's so so so awful. I hope this company fails miserably. They do not deserve to have this location. There are plenty of escape rooms that are beautifully crafted, well managed, and loaded with interesting puzzles. read more

Not enough staff Reservations mean absolutely nothing. 1:20 res and we were still waiting @2 Room not staged properly so we had no real chance of winning. $20 per person is high considering we are all in one room (6 people). Should be priced by the room or maybe group rates. Absolutely no refunds! read more

I was not impressed. My 11 year old son wanted to go with a couple friends, and we took his two teenage sisters. A couple of the locks were left to the exact code and all we had to do was pull them open, which hurt us in the long run because we did things completely out of order. The staff was friendly and helpful to us but it was just setup poorly and the instructions were not great either. I think with a few fixes it could be a fun time. read more

We were there at 2:45pm for our 3:00pm appointment (they ask you get there 15 min before). It took forever for someone working there to even sign us in, and then the guy cut me off mid sentence and rudely spoke over me. The 2 people working there were worthless. I saw so many groups come in, wait, never be acknowledged, and end up leaving. We FINALLY entered the room at 3:20pm. The explanation of the room was not tailored to the level of our group- we had a 7.5 year old and a 11 year old with us. It was frustrating to the kids to not even be spoken to. When we asked for help, the guy came in, found the key and handed it to us and left. The second time he basically just pointed to the map, complaining about other clients the entire time. We didn't finish. There was no debrief to tell us what we might have wanted to do differently, or any encouragement to come back another time and try again. He just said he was "too backed up" and that "we had to go". And that was it! The kids, who had been SO excited, and tried SO hard to figure out the clues, were disappointed and bewildered. After we got home, I started reading reviews- apparently this was the worst place to pick in Syracuse. Guess I should have looked it up before we went read more

Worst $20 I've ever spent. They pack 15 people into these rooms but there's no use for more than 5 people in solving the "mystery." Most of us stood around and did nothing in the "mystery room" for 45 minutes. Avoid! Go to Dave & Busters or Wonder Works instead! read more