You wake up to find yourself and your companions locked away in what appears to be a basement. The last thing you remember was that you and your group were out camping in Corpsewood. The police have been searching for a serial killer around the area, who for many years has remained out of reach. Little is known about the Corpsewood Killer other than the fact he’s meticulous about his kills and doesn’t want to be found. You and your group must figure out where you are and how you can escape before the time runs out and the killer returns for you!
	60 minutes
	2-6 players
	4/5 difficulty
	£17-19 per person depending on team size in peak time
	Ashford, Surrey
	xscream-escapes.com
	Played by Daiman, Jenny, Paul, Bharath
	September 2018
	Escaped with 7 minutes remaining

Theming

6/10On one hand, the set design was pretty impressive – this space absolutely looked and felt like a rundown garage/house. It wasn’t an interesting space to explore though and there was a distinct lack of urgency – I didn’t really ever feel compelled to get out of this place!

 Daiman

7/10We enter the room to be given our briefing by a video. We were informed we had been captured and were inside the killer’s basement. The area was a rundown garage with blood splatters on the wall and lots of tools lying around. Whilst the room could pass as a killers dungeon it felt like it was missing a fear element. There were various stages in the room and the company kept to the dilapidated look throughout with holes in the wood, broken kitchen appliances etc. Whilst the room was designed well with a great use of space, I felt underwhelmed with the area as there was no real wow factor and we were just inside another room.

Jenny

7/10I thought the theming was a bit better here compared to their other room Bedlam, especially with the second section. It’s still a little basic in places though. Again, it’s not a scary room, there’s just a mild horror tone to the storyline. Unlike Bedlam, there’s a proper ending to this game which I like to see. Clues are again delivered the traditional way of text appearing on a TV screen which is a bit old hat now and not as inventive or immersive as what other new rooms are doing.

Paul

6/10The hosts have done well on the theming of the room. It was a realistic set. There were some big props which could have been used more. It had more of a cluttered feeling, trawling through items to find what you need. The room needs more of a scare factor.

 Bharath

Puzzles

6/10Some of the tasks we had to perform were a bit obscure for my liking – all I’ll say is that at some points, you’ll need a very keen eye and, arguably, some outside knowledge. I think what this game also lacked was a standout set piece – there was no real ‘wow’ moment.

 Daiman

6/10Ha, this room is not for you if you dislike padlocks! There is a lot in here of all varieties. Even the infamous directional lock made a comeback! Aside from the padlocks there was a lot of things to do in this room with a lot of searching and a good mix of logic puzzles. The puzzles were all linked to the killer well and followed the story of his murders. My main qualms with the puzzles was the number of padlocks. I think I counted to ten but may have lost count! Plus there were two puzzles that seemed the same with a slightly different format of an answer.

Jenny

7/10This was a mix of logic games and searching. It’s a hands on game which was very padlock heavy. In some cases there were as many as three separate locks per container which was a bit overkill. There were a few other issues too, but all are fixable. One puzzle needed geographical knowledge of London to solve which isn’t fair on those that don’t know London well. Plus a part of another puzzle broke which meant it showed the wrong answer and the gamesmaster had to tell us what it was meant to show.

Paul

6/10The puzzles in this room were linked well with the theming of the room. There were a lot of padlocks, some had 3 on one lock, which can be demoralising to see. There are also a couple of red herrings in the room.

 Bharath

Enjoyment

6/10For me, this room didn’t necessarily do anything wrong but it didn’t interest me in the same way that Bedlam did. I feel like the distinct lack of threat was a huge contributing factor to this. To be fully effective, there needs to be more atmosphere than there currently is.

 Daiman

6/10Maybe it was the padlocks, maybe it was the lack of fear element considering we were in a killers basement, but I felt a little underwhelmed in this room. Don’t get me wrong, the room is designed well and the host was really friendly, but this game was just missing something for me.

Jenny

7/10I preferred this room over Bedlam. There was less reading to do and it was more physical. The game flowed pretty well and was enjoyable to play. The mass of padlocks put a slight dampener on it though. Our hosts were very friendly and offered us bottles of water on arrival. The rooms were quite cold so bring a jumper just in case!

Paul

6/10There was a bit of back and forth between the different rooms. I did have fun going through this room but a reduction in padlocks would be good. The finale needs improving as well.

 Bharath

Value

6/10Mileage may vary. If you want to dip your toes into a horror-themed room, this is a gentle start. Likewise, if you’ve played few games, The Corpsewood Killer is a decent enough bet although it might be a tad too difficult for complete novices. As mentioned, overall, it’s an inoffensive room but that’s the problem – it didn’t move me either way.

 Daiman

7/10As this room is situated just outside London, the price is very reasonable for a group of four. The company have a large waiting area with free refreshments which is also a really nice touch. The room is well designed. I feel beginners would really like this room and it will be a good test. Please note this room has not been open very long so there may be the odd change. I’d start with the introduction being outside the room.

Jenny

8/10It might not be up there as one of the best escape rooms, but it’s enjoyable and very reasonably priced so if you’re around Ashford in Surrey then give it a go. Plus I expect The Corpsewood Killer to improve over time as it’s only just opened and the company are new to the escape room business so are still learning.

Paul

6/10Currently, this is an OK room. There are areas in this room that require improvement, but once done, it can be a room worth doing.

 Bharath

Overall scores