Curse of Anubis:  Get ready to set off on a quest to locate a missing archaeologist deep inside an ancient tomb. 

Pros:  The gamemaster was absolutely delightful. She greeted us and encouraged us all to get to know each other before the game. After we reviewed the rules and the storyline we embarked on our archaeological adventure. The set design was as good as it gets. We truly appreciated the craftsmanship and thought that went into the props and set design. The puzzles seemed very logical and the game flow worked exceptionally well in part because of the linear puzzle design. We failed to escape, but truly appreciated the game design. 
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Cons: Our experience at Escape on 13th was unfortunately severely dampened by the fact that the owner has chosen to 1) group strangers together and 2) group way too many strangers together. This room comfortably fits four people. The small size of the room makes it very difficult to move around and solve puzzles. We were grouped with a number of strangers to create a total group size of eight. The crowding and confinement prevented our ability to quickly locate hidden items. In the second room, the low lights (even with the noisy generator) made it impossible to read the written hints. We crowded back into the previous room to read the material and solve the puzzles. The lack of experience and clue-hoarding of our new friends combined with the linear nature of the puzzles and confined space led to our failure to get anywhere close to completing the game.  We had an additional game scheduled but when we discovered we would be playing in a similarly confined space with a larger group size, we decided to take a hard pass. Better luck next time.

You definitely shouldn't miss the opportunity to play here. The set design makes it all worthwhile. But be forewarned. Bring as many of your own friends as you can and fingers crossed you don't get grouped with strangers.  

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea:  Seeking the location of Captain Nemo's secret base, we had to sneak onboard before the Captain and his crew returned.

Sherlock Holmes: We had to help Sherlock Holmes solve the still unsolved mystery of the Hound of the Baskervilles. 

Pros:  Shiver me timbers! This place has a lot of spirit (or should I say spirits?) Shortly after our arrival at Mystery Escape Room we were greeted by a punny pirate gamemaster who guided us through our undersea adventure. The set design in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea contributed to an immersive gameplay experience.  The puzzles consisted of a series of nautical challenges that stressed our little land-loving brains. Once we got our sea legs, we struggled through the puzzles. Our ghostly captain kept us on track through verbal instructions over the loud speaker. Once we had successfully saved the ship and sailed back on land, we set sail again on our second adventure.  Seeking to solve the mystery of the hound, we started sleuthing about looking for hints. The multiple written clues and hidden objects presented a complex challenge for our small group. We required multiple hints only to find ourselves unable to successfully solve the mystery.

Cons: We truly appreciated the gamemaster's help. However, the frequent interruptions disrupted our flow of thought and prevented independent decision making.  By the time we started the second game, we had been conditioned to wait for the inevitable assistance to guide us to the correct answers. This was most likely an indication of overly complex puzzles that clearly required the gamemaster's assistance to solve. Simplifying and reducing the number of puzzles (especially in Sherlock Holmes) is highly recommended to improve the player experience. 

We loved the enthusiasm of the gamemaster and really enjoyed the sets. This place is clearly one of Salt Lake City's finest escape room establishments.