You probably won't be surprised to know that there are a huge number of escape room games available to play in London. In fact Trip Advisor lists 103 different room escape games and experiences. Of course, with so many choices, you can feel overwhelmed when it comes to choosing. Once you add such things as age, team size or type of player into the mix, then things become even more difficult. That's why, here at ExitTheRoom, we thought we'd put together a concise guide of the best escape rooms and experiences to play as a social activity for company teams.

What To Consider

When playing with work colleagues there are going to be some extra considerations to take into account as opposed to when you're playing with a group of friends and acquaintances. The first point to keep in mind is that many work socials will start off in a pub. This means that the escape room game needs to be within walking/stumbling/crawling distance. Another point is that companies may have much larger teams than many escape rooms have the capacity for. Of course, these teams can be spit down into smaller ones. But games companies should be aware of the need to cater for larger groups of players. Finally, not all gaming experiences need to take place indoors. In and around London, you'll find many outdoor experiences which offer great fun. Especially when the British weather warms up.

Rooms Near Pubs

When it comes to escape rooms near pubs, and if you're familiar with escape rooms in London, then you'll know there's really only one viable location. Lady Chatterley's Reserve is a spooky room that's situated above the Hope pub in Farringdon EC4. This means that it's perfectly situated for having a drink and for getting to the tube once the game is over. Being above a pub, as you'd expect, the game is an 18+ room. In fact, the game includes a bottle of wine in the price. Though it's not a full out horror room, it is spooky. That being said, there's a fair amount of adult humor thrown into the mix. The room only takes six players at a time. But that’s no so bad as you can pass the time in the pub below, whilst you wait for your team’s slot to appear.

Slightly further out than Lady Chatterley's Reserve, is Clue Quest, which is slightly north of King's Cross. They offer an excellent corporate package which can accomodate up to 66 players at any one time. Whether it’s for a full corporate game or just some social time together, they offer food and drinks as well as the all important trophy for the winning team. You'll find the booking system very intuitive, which makes booking a straightforward process. And you're able with the book up to four copies of the same room at once. Not only that, but having moved into the modern era, you'll find that Clue Quest also offers a VR escape room experience. All the rooms offer excellent quality along with a great balance of interesting puzzles and taxing clues.

Competitive Elements Within Rooms

Heading back into the city of London, you can play in the competitive escape room called Secret Studio which is situated near Algate East tube stop. What's great about the Secret Studio is that all the rooms appear the same, but are in fact quite different. So though the core puzzles maybe similar, the specific puzzles situated around each room are going to be different for each team. Not only that, but they're able to change certain puzzles and games on the fly. This makes all the rooms replayable. If you head over to their website, you'll see that many of their reviews are from players who've returned to play once again. They’re both surprised and happy to discover that the puzzles included are totally different from their first playing experience.

Getting Some Outdoor Experience

Though escape room games have been with us for a number of years now, it's only relatively recently that that their brethren, the outdoor experience, has become a popular fixture on the  escape room competitive map. Before the pandemic, there were a large number of games available to play outdoors in London. Unfortunately, since the lockdown, many of these companies have thrown in the towel. Nevertheless, there are still some great businesses running outdoor experiences throughout the city of London.

Probably the most well known of all of these would be a Hidden City Treasure Hunt. Without a doubt, this is one of the most impressive games. And from the perspective of a business, it’s perfect. The main reason is that they can host up to 300 individuals. Of course, with this number of players then the teams are staggered at that starting times. As a given, these larger games will have a leaderboard so everyone can check either their own or their team's positions. If you happen to be stuck at home, then you can actually log on and play the game in virtual form. 

In itself, the Hidden City Treasure Hunt is incredibly good fun. You end up going to places that you had no idea existed. As well as many places you never thought to actually go in. Many of the objects you need to collect on the treasure hunt are hiding in plain sight. But don’t assume that this doesn't make them any easier to find. The game also features a built-in narrative tree, meaning that you can make one decision whist the team you're opposing may make another, thereby sending each of the teams in different directions.

Custom Made Gaming Routes

For a more traditional style escape room gaming experience, then we would recommend AIM’s Escapes Outdoor Experience. In truth, their indoor escape room games are nothing to write home about. But they've certainly up to the ante when it comes to their outdoor games. Many players writing their reviews state that their outdoor games are the best they've ever played. Unlike many other outdoor adventure games, this experience doesn't require the use of your mobile phone. Each team receivesa kit which is designed with challenges and puzzles that the players must undertake at different locations around the city. What's interesting is that there are no fixed or set rules for precise directions. Essentially, you receive a map and it's up to you as to where to go, along with how you choose to get there. Because you know the stated aim of the game, then you’re free to plan your day more strategically. And because the teams have staggered starts, then it's impossible for one team to simply follow another. The game offers prebuilt routes. Though if you're booking for the first time, you can ask them construct a route just for you and your colleagues.