Company:
Archimedes Inspiration

Location:
002, Block K, The Biscuit Factory, 100 Clements Road, London, SE16 4DG

Synopsis:
“Things are not always what they seem; the first appearance deceives many; the intelligence of a few perceives what has been carefully hidden”. Strange things are happening in the Sally Star King Hospital. The centre was evacuated and closed down, yet screams and noises can still be heard from inside the building at night. If you are looking for a psychological twist that will give you the chills, this is your game. Not for the faint-hearted. Be cautious and enter at your own risk.

Date we visited:
1 June 2017

Price at time of visit:
£26.25pp

Goats attended:
Daiman, Jenny, Paul, Bharath

Did we escape?
Yes – just!

Value for money

8/10First thing that’s worth pointing out about this game is that it’s 80 mins long instead of the usual 60. They give you 80 minutes so that you can experience the story properly and there really is a story to tell here – it feels like an actual mystery thriller with a proper three-act structure! So yes, worth the asking price!

 Daiman

9/10The room is an average price for a room in London. The whole experience from start to finish is fantastic and you’ll love every minute of it.

Jenny

8/10At £26.25 each it’s about the price you’d expect to pay in London, but the room is expansive and detailed and the game lasts for 80 instead of the usual 60 minutes, making this good value for money.

Paul

8/10This room is all about the story. It lasts for 80 minutes rather than 60 minutes, to allow you to get the full experience of the room. This is important to the hosts. It’s definitely value for money.

 Bharath

Theming

8/10Brilliantly themed and without saying too much, it’s amazing how much light the ending sheds on the things that you’ve experienced throughout your time in the game. You truly have a different perspective on it by the time all’s said and done. Each section of the game has a distinct look despite being fundamentally similar – it’s very clever and well thought out!

 Daiman

9/10As there are multiple parts to the theming, it was a tough challenge to keep the theme strong, however the company met it. Such great thought went into the design it really did add to the experience.

Jenny

10/10An incredible amount of detail has been put into the theming, which is based on a true story. All of the puzzles fit this really well.

Paul

8/10The hosts done well on this room. There were multiple rooms that had their distinct features and characteristics. The way the rooms developed, it built on the story to a thought provoking ending.

 Bharath

Uniqueness

8/10This was a game that was all about the story. It reveals itself in layers and the puzzles actually serve the narrative instead of just being arbitrary obstacles to pass on your way to the end. The best way to describe Kill M.A.D. is to say that this is a story that you interact with rather than a game where you solve a series of puzzles and either win or lose.

 Daiman

9/10Whereas a lot of escape rooms have similar themes, the design here followed through so well. I also thought the overall end goal was so unique compared to any other game I’ve played.

Jenny

8/10There is a psychological edge to the whole game which I’ve not seen done before, and the end is novel. There’s some new puzzle ideas too.

Paul

8/10The uniqueness comes from the story itself. I’ve not seen this story before in other escape rooms.

 Bharath

Puzzles

8/10I liked them though we did find a few quite tricky – including one moment that we just never would’ve got without a clue. They’re generally more interactive, requiring you to embrace the environment rather than solve a series of padlock combinations. There was one moment in particular that I loved, bringing the whole team together and forcing cooperation with each other. I really appreciate puzzles that bring all the players together and gives everyone the opportunity to contribute.

 Daiman

8/10There was one very strong stand out puzzle in this experience, which involved such good team play that I scored the puzzles high. Whilst some are standard, due to the strong theming I can’t reduce the score.

Jenny

7/10Overall the games are very good, with some clever ideas and some which I’ve not seen before. You need to take in quite a lot of information though, which I’m personally not a fan of.

Paul

7/10Most of the puzzles were fun and intriguing which fit to the theme and the psychological nature of the room, and come with a fitting end.

 Bharath

The good

This is more of an experience than a game. Everything is crafted with such care that I couldn’t help but be sucked in by it. I’m eagerly awaiting what this company announce next!

 Daiman

The game design, theming and experience was absolutely amazing. I really felt like this company really excelled themselves with the passion and enthusiasm they showed to escape rooms.

Jenny

Spot on theming, great challenging games and the host was super passionate and talked with us afterwards to find out what we liked and disliked about his game (not knowing that we are escape goats).

Paul

You can see the passion the hosts put in this room, even afterwards when we got to talk to the hosts about the room. Working through the story is what made the difference in this room.

 Bharath

The bad

Not much, although there was that one particular puzzle that was too much of a logic leap for my liking, even once we had the solution.

 Daiman

Struggled to find a negative except some of the puzzles are quite tough which may put people off.

Jenny

The only negative for me is you need to read and watch a lot of information to use later on in the game. I want to spend my time solving puzzles, not studying.

Paul

At times there was a lot of information to take in.

 Bharath

Overall scores