Adding another facet to their already varied and exciting calendar of events, The National Justice Museum has launched Guilty?! - a new escape room that takes players for an interactive adventure through the Grade II listed historic prison. The LeftLion team went down to try it out…
The first rule of escape rooms is that you don’t talk about escape rooms. Well, you can, but certainly don’t reveal any secrets, which makes writing a review of such a thing a bit tricky. However, I’ll start by saying that the National Justice Museum is a really valuable museum to have in our city.
This was just one of the excellent events that I’ve had the pleasure of attending at NJM. I’ve been to murder mysteries, movie nights complete with treasure hunts, ghostly scare-mazes, and of course the museum itself, which shares a rich and unsettling history of crime and justice in our city - if you like things a little dark, there’ll be something or other worth attending there. And this isn’t one of those gaudy, creeped up papier-mache made attractions either. There’s literally hundreds of years of grisly true crime, local history, lives gone awry, and questionable punishment hidden in the cells, caves, courtroom and oubliettes inside. If ever there was a building to be truly haunted, this would be it.
Intertwining Nottingham’s rich history into the game adds another layer to an already fun format.
That leads us nicely to Guilty?! - the museum’s brand new escape room. You probably know the drill with escape rooms by now: in a small group you have one hour to solve puzzles, gather clues, unlock spaces and escape before time is up, all making for a brilliant insight into group dynamics and teamwork.
Intertwining Nottingham’s rich history into the game adds another layer to an already fun format. The game is set in 1831, the same year Nottingham Castle was razed to the ground. The city is on the brink of reform riots due to the blocked voting rights for ordinary men, and amongst the chaos your group has been accused of setting a pub ablaze and killing two people. If found guilty, the death penalty beckons, but there is always the chance of escape.
Truth be told, our group needed the odd clue here and there, but we found the level of difficulty just right.
Compared to many escape rooms, which confine players to a small room or two, Guilty?! makes excellent use of the 250 year old gaol, courtyard and accompanying spaces. As you gather numerous props on your way around, you’re also invited to glean meaning from some of the curious original features of the museum too - something which I bet never crossed the minds of those confined or working there throughout its time as a working gaol and courtroom.
As with lots of the events at NJM, a trusty host joins the group to add a little dramatic stagecraft to the experience and give a few hints if you’re struggling. (Just be warned, if there’s a top hat hanging on the wall, it’s for your host to don, not an amusing bit of fancy dress for the players.) Truth be told, our group needed the odd clue here and there, but we found the level of difficulty just right. There are actually two possible ways to end the game - three if you count failure - and whether it was luck or wits, our chain of decisions happily led us to freedom. What the other path held I can't say, but I hope one of your group has the gift of the gab should your trial beckon.
The Guilty?! Escape Room is on sale now for groups of 4-6 people, available on select evenings between April to August 2024. For more information and to book, visit nationaljusticemuseum.org.uk
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