This Trapped location is always nice to visit. The staff are very friendly and helpful, there’s a full bar in the basement with some couches, and the location is very accessible. I was really excited to do this room with a handful of colleagues. I mostly stood back to observe and popped in as needed. Apparently I didn’t stand back enough though as we completed the room in around 30 minutes.
I’ll start with the puzzles – they are well thought out and all fit the theme of the room. The props that are involved all make sense and were in good condition. Some in-room nudges or hints were a bit too obvious for my liking but nevertheless fit the theme. There was only one prop that I would consider a red herring and the staff admitted they weren’t sure why it was included.
The storytelling in the room and making you feel like you’re in an interactive space is really well done. You have a sense that you’re playing with the room and not just within the room. The interactive audio queues are well timed.
The physical space is fairly well built but I feel like a lot of easy opportunities to make it feel like a carnival were missed. It is darker with a creepy atmosphere to it but not what I’d call horror or scary.
This is a fun room with good puzzles that’s great for newer teams. It works for groups from two to five people. It’s a room that you can enjoy without becoming enemies by the end of it.
My suggestions to the owner: Paint the walls with wide red and white stripes to feel like you’re inside of a tent. Better yet – use fabric for the walls to give the same effect. Add a spotlight and a bit of haze in the third room to make the performer feel centre stage. Adding an actor here for the intro or a jump scare at the end of the room would be gold. And finally, microwave a bag of popcorn and put it in a circus themed paper bag in one of the rooms to trigger olfactory memory.
