Tick Tock Unlock - Hatch

My first escape experience was at Tick Tock Unlock in Leeds in 2015 (and the reason why Tick Tock Unlock will forever be a favourite of mine). I'd heard of escape rooms before but only had the opportunity to go when we organised a family trip to the Hatch room for my brother's 30th.

The venue

Tick Tock Unlock is situated in an office building that's very close to Leeds train station. In 2015, the venue was fairly small, only containing three rooms with two themes: Blueprint and Hatch. The briefing area had lots of locks and puzzles to warm up your brain before you go into the room itself.

We were greeted by Yeti, who talked us through the rules, locks, and what to expect. He also mentioned that Hatch was very new and the more difficult of the two themes. This made us immediately nervous - we definitely wanted to escape on our first attempt of a room!

The room

Hatch is a room with a theme that appealed to my old love for the TV show Lost (let's not talk about that ending). You're on a tropical island, where nothing is as it seems, and you have 60 minutes to figure out what exactly is going on there.

The room itself was decorated as a jungle and the music was very dramatic and creepy. Clues were delivered via a large screen on the wall, which also acts as a timer.

All six of us had so much fun in this room! I found the puzzles pretty tricky at the time, but now I look back, they are probably some of the most difficult puzzles in any of the rooms I've been in. Yeti provided cryptic clues just at the right times so that the game moved along at a good pace.

We played this room all the way back in 2015, but the one thing that still stands out for me was one of the later puzzles in the room. It's genius and will have you scratching your heads for a while.

After lots of confusion, teamwork and panic, we escaped the room with around six minutes to spare! At the time, we were told that this was the fastest time so far. I'm pretty sure that was because the room had just opened, and that the fastest time now is much, much quicker.

Final thoughts

I would definitely recommend both Hatch and Tick Tock Unlock. Both this room and the venue itself are still a favourite, and much of this is due to the great room themes and amazing staff.

I give Hatch four out of five locks!


Find out more about Tick Tock Unlock here.

Introduction

Hello! I'm Emma, and you could definitely describe me as an escape room addict. I first discovered escape rooms in 2015 and I've attempted quite a few since then.

I decided to start this blog for a number of reasons. Firstly, I'm really into research. I love to read loads of reviews and hear about the experiences of other players before I book a room. Secondly, I think most people I know irl are sick of me talking about them, so why not wax lyrical about all things escape online? Thirdly, I thought it would be a fun way to document each room and our experiences.

If you're spoiler-sensitive, don't worry! These reviews won't give anything away. Part of the beauty of escape rooms are the surprises you encounter during each experience.

So, that's my introduction. Now, for those of you who are wondering...

What is an escape room?

Ever seen The Crystal Maze? Escape rooms are pretty much that. You get a team of great minds together - usually as few as two and up to as many as eight - and, basically, get locked in a room for 60 minutes. Using your combined brainpower, you solve all different kinds of puzzles to try and escape from the room.

These puzzles can appear in many different ways. You might have to solve a maths problem, find keys or figure out a visual conundrum to open locks or hidden surprises. Your only contact with the outside world will be your puzzle master, who will give you hints if you need them.

Each room has a unique theme - from Hell to Harry Potter - and a full backstory to boot. Depending on the theme, the rooms are suitable for both older and younger, and don't involve any strenuous physical activity.

Intrigued? Good! I guarantee that once you've done one room, you'll want to try more. I hope you enjoy reading this blog, and can't wait to hear about your experiences too!