Wild Goose Escape Rooms - Huntington Beach — Attraction in Huntington Beach

This is the second game our duo has played at this location, and boy, did we make the right choice! The room is a little more expensive than our previous game, but it was the holidays, and we knew from playing “Prison Escape Block D” (previously reviewed) a while back, that we would get a great deal regardless, and so it was that we ended the year with a blast – in “Vegas”!

Once we parked in the spacious parking lot and entered Wild Goose Escapes, we saw that there was not much that had changed since our last game: the clean and spacious lobby showcased their merch – tee-shirts and memorabilia pins (very cool!) - and piped music kept our toes tapping before we were shown the introductory video. This was the first time we watched their introductory video, and we thought it was very professionally done. We especially applauded the fact that the video addressed our main concern every time we played a game everywhere: that gamemaster may be working two rooms at once. It is really encouraging to think that businesses actually read our reviews and take steps to let customers know it in practical ways, especially since there was another group playing a different room as we were getting in. Happily, there were also two game hosts on site, with two groups playing, so we knew we would have the undivided attention of our gamemaster!

“What Happened in Vegas?” is party-themed, and perfect to celebrate the year-end (or year-start). The restrooms are right next door to our room, as well, and, even though we did not use them this time, it was nice that they were right there.

The game story is typical of a letting loose cautionary tale in Sin City: we wake up in a strange Vegas hotel room with no memory of what happened the previous night but realize we need to be at the airport in an hour to make our flight, except we have to find our wallet, car keys, passport and tickets before we leave the room!

The room’s layout was very much in-theme: it had everything you expect from a crazy night in Vegas and more. You must see it to believe it – the sounds and lights, and TV added to ambience and distraction. Our jaws dropped the minute the door opened.

The puzzles were physical, in that you need to use your hands and feet, as well as your brain, but they were not physically strenuous. It's like you wake up groggy but must walk a straight line, so it helps to concentrate fully on each puzzle as you are working them. At first glance it felt like there were oh-so-many puzzles to be solved, how would we ever do it, but on looking back, it may have just been that two puzzles had to be solved for each item to be recovered – but don’t take our word for it … There was a good mix of traditional locks and high-tech releases, but no keys; and a lot of teasers but no red herrings: everything that could be moved was used

“What Happened in Vegas?” is one of the more family-friendly NY Eve party escapes we've done and our gamemaster Elaine was fan.tas.tic. Before showing us our room, we told her we really wanted to see the whole room, so if she could make sure we were on track as far as our time, it would be really appreciated, and it really helped that there are unlimited clues given, too. Not only did she make sure we got out on time, she kept us on track so we got out at 59:50! That took skill! It was such an exciting finish. She was game when we asked to include the "Congrats - Made It Out" screen in our picture, it was fun, as ever, to also pose with props. We loved that our time completed was included in the Escape Games Global log she e-mailed us immediately after the game. When you consider that it takes a five-hour drive to get to The Strip, we are thrilled we found this alternative to actually going to Las Vegas for the holidays. We now have four hours left to do … other things!

This review has been duplicated on Yelp - along...

We came here yesterday to do the Zodiac room and had such a great time that a couple hours later we went back and did Zombie Lab! Zodiac was our favorite of the two but both were a lot of fun and actually really difficult!

Zodiac was definitely creepy but I wouldn't say it was "scary." The puzzles were linear but all 6 of us were busy the whole time, inspecting this and that, theorizing what to do, working together on solutions, etc. Six was a good number of people to have in the room, though you could probably do it with 4 or 5 as well. We escaped with only 3 minutes to spare, and I'll admit we had to use a few hints! It was probably the 3rd most difficult room I've done (out of maybe 10 or 12 we've tried).

The second most difficult room I've ever done was Zombie Lab! This one was not scary at all, though some details did give a sense of anticipation. It's also a bright atmosphere, not dimly lit, which I know some people prefer. Like Zodiac, 4-6 is probably a good number of people to have (we had 6). The puzzles are linear and there are plenty of things for each person to inspect and try to figure out. The clues within the room are a little more vague and it's not always obvious what you're supposed to do. That adds to the fun though, and fits in well with the storyline. We escaped with 2 minutes to go- we really didn't think we were going to finish!

Our game master for both games was Megan, and she was fantastic! Super-friendly, fun, and with a great sense of humor. She definitely added to our experience and seemed to enjoy our game almost as much as we did! The clues she gave us were great- they started off vague and "leading"- rather than explicitly tell us what to do or look at, she guided us in the right direction, and gave more details as needed on the occasions we were reallllllly stuck.

Out of all the rooms I've done, I'd say these both ranked somewhere in the middle. The sets, production value, and puzzles were all really well done. Maybe not the best of the best, but still great. I think people of any age and experience level would enjoy these rooms.

I highly recommend Fox in the Box, and can't wait to come back and do all the...

I lead a group of escape room enthusiasts that have played dozens of rooms over the past couple years. We decided to try our first Fox in a Box room last night, the Zombie Escape room. We got our first impression from the lobby, which was plain and crowded with groups waiting to start. Unlike other escape facilities which usually have fun warm-up puzzles and are easy to get comfortable, this venue's lobby was more like a doctor's office waiting room. The waiting area was very crowded because all rooms start at the same time. If the start times were cascaded by 1/2 hour, it would be significantly easier to check in, but since everyone arrives at once, it took 15 minutes to get an ipad/tablet to check every participant in (they only have 2 or 3 to pass around to 5 rooms full of people). This may be more efficient for the employees because they can brief the rules to all rooms at once, but it made for a much less group-specific experience.

As for the room itself, the puzzles were very linear -- you must solve a specific one before moving on to the next. Therefore if your team got stuck, there was really nothing to do until you give up and ask for a clue, which made the room relatively boring. We had 6 people but this room was better suited to about 3. One early "puzzle" in particular was very much un-intuitive and "solving" it would have just been a matter of luck without asking for a clue, which was tacky.

The staff and our game master were certainly friendly and responsive. We did ask for 2 clues overall, but wish the clues were more subtle -- the ones we got easily gave the puzzle away. Due to the linearity of this room, I'm not very optimistic about the other rooms at this location -- I'd think about going back but probably not for full price, which is about 20% higher than the price of most escapes...