It sounds kind of crazy, but one of the most fun experiences I’ve had recently is getting locked in a room and discovering a way out. Escape room games are fun, scary, and a way of making you think creatively.
Greenpoint’s Komnata Quest offers several different experiences—you choose an “adventure” and get locked into a room. The point? To solve a mystery with 1-4 people you know—and find your way out in less than an hour. There are no actors—just you and your friends in the room. You use the clues you are given, and solve clue after clue until you solve the mystery.
The puzzles you need to solve vary, from horror to fairytale to mystery. Each complicated storyline requires brainstorming, logic, and observation skills to find clues that lead you further and further along, to ultimately solve the puzzle and free you from the space. You get one hour to solve the puzzle—and if you’re stumped, you can use the walkie talkie they provide for a clue. We were so excited we didn’t even think to use the walkie talkie. We were too busy being scared out of our minds!
Your watches, phones, and anything that emits light are locked into a locker that you have the key to, and then you’re led to a room. Your team is given some seemingly random clues—and as time goes on, as a group you have to figure out how to solve whatever challenge or brainteaser you are given. One clue leads you to another…
Komnata Quest, a franchise from Russia, owns 98 locations around the world. At the Greenpoint location, there are three rooms for up to five people (with more rooms under construction) and a small room for two people.
We participated in the Impossible Murder Mystery (highly recommended), which explored a murderer’s lair. We were challenged to figure out how the murderer was still committing brutal murders while he was behind bars. With clues, photos, sound effects, letters, lots of darkness, and experimentation, we were able to solve the murders—and also, save ourselves.
Saint Angelo’s Castle asks participants to figure out how to escape a dungeon of torture in under an hour. Participants need to save themselves in Boxed Up—where you become the toy of a creepy man. In Seven Sinful Pleasures, gamers need to figure out how to take down a public figure in a “hotbed of immorality.” In The Robbery that Changed the World, your goal is to find a very much in-demand package and steal it, before you get caught.
The ideal audience is for friends, coworkers seeking team-building activities, birthday parties, out-of-town guests, or family fun. I’m pretty sure my mom would have a blast in here, while my father would bang on the door, screaming, “Let me out!” So it depends on your family, and their definition of fun.
It is definitely a connective experience—you have to constantly communicate with your friends, all playing different roles, in order to escape the room. You should also bring someone who will let you squeeze their arm when you’re startled (and you probably will be). Good friends don’t mind that.
Komnata Quest is located at 52 Kent Street (at West Street). All experiences can be booked online, or you can call them (347-551-4808) if you have questions. You will have fun—even if you’re totally freaked out!