Game Over (Game duration 90 minutes)(room test shortly before opening for customers)
Fury team: Georgi Georgiev, Venelin Gornishki, Hristo Tomov, Dimitar Smilyanov and Nadezhda Danabasheva
Date: July 24, 2019
Our time: 90:00 minutes
Sawroom are odd ducks. Don’t get me wrong; they are great peeps and wonderful company to spend some time with. Whenever we get together, we can’t stop talking about escape rooms and puzzles. But I will never understand the complete absurdity of their desire to play mega-scary rooms with maddening and sometimes physical elements. I shiver Just hearing about their experiences in the rooms in Greece – actors, chasers, pursuits, mind-fuck situations, and pure psychedelics – something a regular person would never subject themselves to. Kudos.
When we were invited to test the latest and current final room of the Sawrooms series, inspired by their extensive experience in the horror genre, I wasn’t sure. I received a link to the then-still unofficial page of the game and sent it to the team. It informatively stated that the room would have actors, we should not resist, and if chased, we must run and hide. Needless to say, this automatically discouraged me from playing, but I figured the team would be keen, as they always hint that we don’t play scary rooms because of me, probably missing out on exciting visits. After some debate, we concluded that if we were to start playing horror rooms, it might be better first to dip our toes in the water rather than dive in headfirst, as the room’s information suggested. So ultimately, after some arrangements, we promised to test the puzzles and gameplay of the room without the additional elements (meaning without actors and chasers).
We arrive at the familiar location of Sawroom II – The Revenge. After a brief introduction and my emphatic warnings of “no one except us shouldn’t step foot into the room while we play” and “touching me is forbidden by Geneve convention,” we enter to play.
Let’s start with the fact that, in terms of size, this room is the largest of the three by this company. The space is smartly utilized and perfectly suited for the game. When needed, it’s spacious, with enough room for everyone to gather and think together; when required, it’s more intimate and restricts you effectively according to the scenario.
The decorations are truly fantastic and exactly what you would expect from Saw. Every element you encounter is designed to immerse you even more into the theme. One element in the first room was particularly impressive, and although it wasn’t part of the game (thankfully), it kept me looking around the whole time. The start of the game is particularly strong, and without giving away details to not spoil the adventure, I’ll say that I’ve always been close to George, but after this room, I felt literally tied to him. I’ve always thought there was something divine about Venski, but it wasn’t until I opened my eyes after starting the game that I understood what it was.
As expected, the puzzles are strong. Logical, interesting, some of them multi-layered, they make you go back and use familiar elements in new ways, which, let’s admit, is always a cool moment. There are fast and slow puzzles, puzzles for tall and short, visual puzzles, color puzzles, puzzles with natural elements, and puzzles with forbidden substances; you’re faced with an impossible choice – everything you look for in an adrenaline-pumping room, made with a lot of thought and fantastic execution, is here.
Despite losing part of the team during the game (don’t ask), we finished 90 seconds after the set time of 90 minutes. I didn’t realize how time flew; every minute was filled with adrenaline, solving puzzles, communicating, and shouting at the guys, staring and marveling at every little, perfectly crafted detail, or watching how much fun the boys had unraveling this masterpiece of adventure. Sawroom continues to grow and create even more impressive rooms, this being their best execution so far; hats off to them.
After everything seen and experienced in this room, in short:
- They already knew we would have a few tips for certain puzzles, and I’m convinced they will be fine-tuned for the start.
- For me, this is the scariest room in Sofia, at least for now. I personally would never play on “Are you fucking insane?” difficulty, but for those who like it, they will get it in large doses.
- I’m not surprised that Sawroom is one of the three companies that successfully sold a franchise abroad in 2019. It’s not only expected but well deserved because they love what they do, do it well, and listen to feedback.
- Unfortunately, Sawroom I – The Beginning was closed in 2019. For me, it remains one of the rooms I played, despite my discomfort with horror adventures, and it gave me confidence that in moderate doses, tension can make the experience even stronger. It was also one of Fury’s first records and one of the team’s favorite photos ever taken. I will miss it.
- Following the results of the Top Escape Rooms Project Enthusiasts’ Choice Award, or TERPECA for short, Sawroom II – The Revenge ranks 124th in the world. In the WORLD, not just locally. This remains a great recognition for the team, and looking at the ranking results, the horror genre is gaining incredible speed in escape adventures, and definitely, Saw is on the right track for next year’s Sawroom III – The End of the game to take leading positions in the ranking.
Our photo🔪🐷
Unfortunately, after we escaped, caught up in sweet conversations in front of the room, we forgot to take a photo. Two hours later, after half of the team had dispersed, Yosif and I realized we missed this moment, but when we come back to play again, we wouldn’t repeat this carelessness. 🙂