Faves and Other Lists

Gilles' Faves

What are these?

Simply put, for every venue I ever visited during a given year (a "year" going from start of winter to end of fall), I pick one room (still running or not) for which I have the fondest memories, then I compare those "top" rooms with one another and pick the ones with the biggest lasting impressions.
Obviously, any room listed there is one I liked (I'm no masochist 😄), but this doesn't imply that any of the listed venue is objectively better than the ones which aren't. For instance, I tend to favor longer rooms, and I really like gadgets, multimedia effects and original themes. This preference is reflected in my picks. I'm also rather forgiving of technical mistakes if properly handled by management.
The list is in chronological order of play.

2020 Faves

Ah, 2020. 😑 Unsurprisingly, most of the rooms I played that year were remote ones. Overall, I played 59 rooms (44 of them being virtual) in 37 venues (26 of them being virtual, and 1 - Improbable Escapes in Kingston - being both).
RoomCasual players will enjoy...Enthusiasts will enjoy...That being said...
The Night of the Wolf and the Serpent 🕱
Codex 🕱

Laval
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Original theme. Absence of locks. Might be a bit easy for veteran players.
Les 2 Font la Paire
Escaparium

Alma
Large gaming area. Humorous theme. Truly original theme. That same theme could be a turn-off to some.
The Lost Island of the Voodoo Queen
Escaparium

Laval
Very large gaming area. Quality scenery. Stunning visuals. The first section is rather linear.
Evil Dead 2 (Remote)
Hourglass Escapes

Seattle (Washington)
Large gaming area. Strong theme. Well-made tribute to the subject matter. A bit expensive for us Canadians.
Agent Venture: The Heist (Extended) (Remote)
The Adventure Is Real

London (England)
Funny, entertaining host. Great freedom of action. This remains a mostly audio game.
The Diamond Heist (Remote)
The Box

Metz (France)
Funny, entertaining host. Varied puzzles. Adjustable difficulty. Fairly old-school room and theme.
Amsterdam Catacombs (Remote)
Logic Locks

Amsterdam (Netherlands)
Original gaming environment. Strong theme. Longer duration. Adjustable difficulty. The internet signal strength is always at risk.
The TriWizard Trials
Improbable Escapes

Kingston
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Varied puzzles. Absence of locks. It can be hard correlating solved puzzles to their outcome.
Pursuit of the Assassin Artist (Remote)
Omescape

San Jose (California)
Live NPCs. Lots of humor. Very original concept. Longer duration. A bit expensive for us Canadians.
Constellations (Remote)
YouEscape

Athens (Greece)
Original concept. Low cost. Very varied puzzles. The "remote" components are on par with "pop ups".
The Witch's Forest (Remote) 🕱
Daydream Adventures

Toronto
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Funny, entertaining host. The game is totally linear.
The Beast (Remote)
Emergency Exit

Ashton-under-Lyne (England)
Strong theme. Potentially scary. Entertaining host. Clever use of multimedia. Fairly old-school room and theme.

2019 Faves

In 2019, I played through 62 rooms in 42 different locations. However, I decided to exclude the rooms we played during our UK vacation, because they would've filled up half of the list. Go check them out here instead. Likewise, I excluded Enigmorama because it was a one-time, multiple-company event.
RoomCasual players will enjoy...Enthusiasts will enjoy...That being said...
Camping Mortel
Mission Évasion

Saguenay
Quality scenery. Dark theme. Lots of stuff to do. Theme might be a turn-off. Lots of physical locks.
Grand Immersia Hotel
Immersia

Boisbriand
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Multimedia elements. Interesting theme. Varied puzzles. Might be too easy for a large and/or experienced team.
The Forgotten Station 🕱
Immersia

Laval
Fairly original theme. Could be a good room to introduce newbies to the hobby. Fierce competitive mode. A lot less impressive than its fellow rooms, immersion-wise.
Underground Bar
Sauve Qui Peut

Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Strongly original theme. Definitely not for everyone. Uneven puzzles.
AI Martyrdom
Escape REVO

Toronto
Large gaming area. Realistic scenery. Auto-adjustable difficulty. Scoring system. Realistic problem-solving. Might turn out to be too "realistic" for one's tastes.
Love Without Late Fees 🕱
The Tape Escape 🕱

Toronto
Original game theme and mechanics. Multiple endings. Replayability. A bit more like interactive theater than an Escape Room proper.
Le Secret des Dunes
À Double Tour

Quebec City
Quality scenery. Strong theme. Clever handling of game space. The Game Master might make or break your game experience.
The Final Viewing
Escape Manor

Ottawa
Large gaming area. Dark yet funny theme. Effective mix of automated and man-made effects. Not for a younger crowd.
The Reflection of Madness 🕱
Codex 🕱

Laval
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Fairly original theme. Varied puzzles. Theme might be less appealing to non-geeks.
Bloody Mary: Last Call 🕱
Missions Morpheus 🕱

Montréal
Large gaming area. Strong theme. Varied puzzles. Harder on purpose. Might be a bit too much to chew for newbie players.
Deliverance
Room Escape Ottawa

Ottawa
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Varied puzzles. Lots of physical locks.

Faves from previous years

 
RoomCasual players will enjoy...Enthusiasts will enjoy...That being said...
2015 (2 rooms, 2 locations)
The Cabin
Jigsaw Escape

Ottawa
Good scenery. Varied puzzles. Quality puzzles. One might end up feeling a bit cramped in there.
2016 (11 rooms, 8 locations)
Pirate Ship 🕱
Mission Liberté

Mont-Tremblant
Good scenery. Varied puzzles. Lots to do. Quite expensive, especially compared to the big city.
Au Pays des Merveilles
À Double Tour

Quebec City
Quality scenery. Interacting with a live character. Switching between different gameplay. The low success rate borders on being unreasonable.
Boom Room
Room Escape Ottawa

Ottawa
Large gaming area. Varied puzzles. Quality puzzles. The theme doesn't feel relating that much to the puzzles.
2017 (38 rooms, 24 locations)
The $1,000,000 Payday 🕱
Tick-Tock Escape 🕱

Ottawa
Varied puzzles. Easy to obtain a "basic" victory. Original scoring system. Good replayability potential. It can be disappointing, not being able to learn about your missed puzzles.
Project X (long version) 🕱
Obsidem 🕱

Montreal
Longer gameplay. Feeling of truly being on a spy mission. Scoring system. Interesting props and tools. Half your group might end up stuck waiting after the other.
Capone's Hideout 🕱
Dossier 325 🕱

Gatineau
Quality scenery and ambiance. Parallel puzzle sequences. It's a very "classic" room, filled with locks.
POP! 🕱
Ezkapaz

Montreal
Funny theme. Varied puzzles. Truly original theme. That same theme could be seen as boring to some people.
Perdu en Mer
La Société

Rimouski
Varied puzzles. Multimedia elements. Fairly original theme. Bit far, isn't it?
Domination: In God we Trust 🕱
Missions Morpheus 🕱

Montreal
Quality scenery. Multimedia elements. Lots to do. Harder on purpose. Might be a bit too much to chew for newbie players.
Serial Killer Charade
Room Escape Ottawa

Ottawa
Large gaming area. Varied puzzles. Hair-raising theme. Quality puzzles. The theme won't work with everyone, especially younger children.
Tyranno Industries
Escaparium

Montreal
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Multimedia elements. Theme that's both popular and original. You might end up feeling railroaded by the storyline.
2018 (52 rooms, 35 locations)
The Breakout
Escaparium

Saguenay
Large gaming area. Varied puzzles. Quality puzzles. It's a remake of a Montreal room, with a rather classical theme.
Weekend at the Shack
Immersia

Laval
Quality scenery. Multimedia elements. Feeling of immersion. Puzzle quality occasionnally leaves to be desired.
Back to the Fossils 🕱
Escape Manor (Museum of Nature) 🕱

Ottawa
Very large gaming area. Friendly setting. Original gaming environment. The puzzles aren't particularly original.
Escape the Diefenbunker
Escape Manor (Cold War Museum)

Carp
Very large gaming area. Variable difficulty levels. Original gaming environment. The puzzles aren't particularly original.
Feet to the Fire 🕱
Chamber of Secrets 🕱

Pembroke
Nice downtown stroll. Historical angle. Good puzzle integration with the external components. It might feel a bit too easy for seasoned players.
Apocalypse: Tempus Fugit 🕱
Missions Morpheus 🕱

Montréal
Quality scenery. Fairly original theme. Harder on purpose. It's not as impressive as some of its older siblings.
Shipwrecked
Unlocked

Ottawa
Available "Family Mode". Good difficulty ramp-up. Original scoring system. Lots of puzzles. You don't feel the room's theme much, in spite of its nice looks.
Vortex Past
Sauve Qui Peut

St-Jean-sur-Richelieu
Great scenery. Complete absence of locks. It might get a bit cramped, and puzzles might seem a tad repetitive.
The Wizard Four and the Book of the Black Arts
Escaparium

Montréal
Large gaming area. Great scenery. Multimedia elements. Popular theme. Sound quality sometimes leave to be desired.
De-Composed 🕱
Room Escape Ottawa

Ottawa
Multiplayer Virtual Reality escape game Same The game only has a few, fairly easy puzzles.
Spaceship Graveyard 🕱
Codex 🕱

Laval
Large gaming area. Quality scenery. Feeling of immersion. Varied puzzles. The endgame didn't leave me as satisfied.


Technical Problems - How Common Are They?

Here's a list of every room I played where we ran into some sort of technical problem - a broken puzzle, a device not working problem, and so on.
The codeword [Redressed] indicates that my group was somehow compensated in-game for the trouble (by getting more time, or getting a clue, etc) in an appropriate and satisfactory manner. [Fixed] means the problem was corrected but that no other compensation was given (or deemed necessary).



Human Errors - How Common Are They?

An now a list of every room where we suffered from a mistake that someone in charge made. I try to only list cases where the mistake was admitted or rather obvious, and not speculation ("this was too easy/hard, someone must've screwed up").
Once again, the codeword [Redressed] indicates that my group was somehow compensated in-game afterwards.

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