Last weekend, a group of us got the chance to test our skills by trying to escape from prison! Orange jumpsuits and handcuffs were donned in order to play the role of convicts locked up for stealing the Super Bowl trophy from The Tampa Bay Buccaneers!
We were invited out by Escape Countdown right here in Tampa to experience one of their multiple themed escape room experiences. When we walked in, we were greeted by the escape team, got our waivers signed, and we were ready to get started. First things first, we suited up in our best prison jumpsuits, were cuffed up, and escorted in a single file towards our jail cell. On our way, we stopped for some Lindsay Lohan style glamour shots (not the cutest inmates, that’s for sure).
Once inside our cell, the “guard” explained the rules. Without giving too much away, we had sixty minutes to use clues and information from around the room, to break our way into the warden’s office, delete our identities from the prison’s database, and escape before the guards came back to check on us.
We were off to a great start as we located the handcuff keys, broke free of those, found a creative way to reach the keys to the cell, and break free of our cell. Our next step was getting into the warden’s office to crack the code on the computer. Now, with a group of 8 people working together, we thought we would be out in no time. Boy, were we wrong! The clues challenged our thinking and were really well thought out.
As time ticked on, we searched and searched to further our progress. After making it about 3/4 of the way through the room, we came to a stopping point. One puzzle in particular really caught us by surprise, but after asking for a hint (you get three total in 60 mins), we cracked the code and were in the home stretch.
The last few pieces came together really fast and before we knew it, we were home free and back to reality. All in all, this experience was a ton of fun. We changed up our Friday night routine and had a blast while doing so. We are excited that Escape Countdown has a ton of other themed rooms including Alice in Wonderland and Haunted Island Jose Gaspar theme as well (perfect for you Gasparilla lovers)! We cannot wait for you to check it out, you will NOT be disappointed!
-Nicholas
NHIE Guys 