Challenging people to escape from locked rooms is big business in Hungary and the craze is spreading. First there was HintHunt, now Londoners have a new live escape game to play, clueQuest.
Based out in Tottenham Hale, finding clueQuest is the first part of your mission. It’s not far from the station at all, but you might wonder what on earth you’re doing, traipsing out to a Haringey Technopark that was probably quite modern in the 80s.
Whatever anxieties have been aroused in finding the place will be dispelled by the very charming Gabor, or one of his brothers (the quartet behind the enterprise). He will assure you that, should you need to, you can let yourself out of the game at any time. But once inside, and confronted by a plethora of intriguing, challenging and fiendish puzzles, we warrant you’ll be so wrapped up in unravelling the mysteries that thoughts of a fag break will be far away.
clueQuest gives you 60 minutes to work your way out of a room. As soon as you walk through the game door, you become a secret agent with codes to crack, padlocks to open and clues to find — all moving you closer to the exit through a maze of cryptic steps. A tense soundtrack and a countdown clock keep pulses racing as you discover stuff on your own and piece it all together with your team. If you get stuck, additional clues appear on the screen to nudge you in the right direction. It’s an exhilarating hour and the satisfaction of tumbling out the door with just seconds to spare is immense.
If you enjoyed HintHunt, you’ll enjoy this alternative challenge. If you’ve not tried a live escape game before, clueQuest is a newcomer and therefore has much better availability than its rival at present. Tickets are £17-£21 per person, depending on team size, which we reckon is value for money given the level of detail and intrigue involved, and the sheer joy of playing (and escaping) the game.
clueQuest is at Lea Valley Technopark Unit 303, N17 9LN. Book online here. Like them on Facebook to see who’s escaped the room so far. Londonist played a complimentary game, courtesy of the clueQuest team.
