Last week my other half and I visited our 9th escape room. Despite the clipart, nobody actually handcuffs you anywhere and expects you to escape. Well. That I know of.

What I’m talking about are those places that seem to be popping up like the Frozen Yogurt shops a few years ago. At one point we had to travel all the way to Philly to go to our first escape room. Now we have multiple choices that are less than a half hour from where we live.

The premise is that you are locked in a room for 1 hour and have to use your wits and teamwork to figure out the puzzles and get out. Of the 9 we’ve tried, each has had a different theme, and varying levels of difficulty. I hope to talk about some of the more interesting ones here.

Last week’s event was called CureZ, and unlike many other escape rooms, the object wasn’t to escape, but to develop the cure for the zombie virus.

Now. If you know me, you know I really don’t like zombies. I went along with my friends, but it’s not the theme I’d normally choose. I think that did affect my enjoyment of the room.

Because no one does story like the creators of CureZ – Trap Door Escapes. There is a scenario before you start, and you are totally immersed in that scenario throughout your time in the room. Anyone who is a fan of video games like Resident Evil, this felt like the actual “live action” version of the game – sans killing zombies.

I won’t give out any spoilers, but I will say that with only one major hint, we were able to cure the virus and save the world. You’re welcome:)

Has anyone else tried escape rooms? What did you think? (comments are moderated for spam purposes).