Escape The Past is an award-winning escape room company based in Edinburgh, UK. Steeped in history, all of the experiences provide a fascinating and immersive glimpse into the city’s dark past. Are you willing to follow in the footsteps of body snatchers, serial killers and organ harvesters? If the answer is YES, read on…
Accessibility: This venue has accessibility limitations due to its age and basement location. Disabled access can usually be arranged by contacting the venue in advance to discuss your needs.
Arrival
After grabbing coffee and pastries at The Milkman, we headed over to Escape The Past for our first room of the day. We were greeted by Charlotte, who checked us in and asked us to complete a waiver. The reception area was very small, with no seating, so I wouldn’t recommend arriving too early. There was space to hang our jackets and a toilet was also available, although we had to go back outside to a different area of the building to use it.
The Deacon’s Cabinet
Players: 2-6 | Duration: 60 mins | Difficulty: 4/5
“It’s October 1788, and as the city assembles to witness the hanging of a thief, you have other ideas… For Deacon Brodie is no common criminal – master craftsman and pillar of the establishment – his crimes and double life are only now beginning to emerge. Unfazed, you use the grim spectacle as cover to sneak into the Deacon’s workshop in search of an ill-got fortune. The authorities failed to unlock its secrets… can you? “
Our thoughts
Charlotte, our GM, slipped straight into character to set the scene. Her performance, along with the use of lighting and the musty ‘ye olde’ smell, pulled us right back in time. Once the lights came back on, we found ourselves in a carpenter’s workshop, complete with sawdust and tools hanging on the walls. The titular Deacon’s Cabinet is the main centrepiece. A large wooden cabinet with strange symbols, it’s full of locked compartments and hidden secrets. Effectively its a giant puzzle box that must be unlocked piece by piece.
Gameplay is predominantly linear, so you must solve one puzzle before moving on to the next. We absolutely flew through some puzzles, while others had us stumped for a significant amount of time. This is definitely the most challenging of the Escape the Past experiences. It’s a single-room experience, but although you won’t be opening secret passages into other areas, there are still plenty of secrets to be uncovered.
We enjoyed the mix of puzzles on offer, which played to different strengths within the group. A jigsaw puzzle hid secrets within, and there was a clever puzzle utilising a seemingly everyday item in a fun way. A keen eye, the ability to think laterally and a good ear would be handy tools for this room! The locks within the room are primarily mechanical, with a couple of exceptions. Sadly, towards the end of the game, one of the components malfunctioned, but Charlotte ran in very quickly to fix it. She stayed in character the whole time, and we triumphantly finished the room with mere moments to spare. It was a fairly challenging experience, with a lower success rate than their other room, but we found it extremely engaging.
The Anatomist
Players: 2-8 | Duration: 60 mins | Difficulty: 3/5
“The Anatomist is an award-winning escape game that invites you to descend into a world of grave robbery, mystery and malpractice as you enter the basement study of a 19th-century anatomist. How has Dr Malcolm been procuring bodies for dissection? And what terrible ‘crime’ did Mr Patterson witness that caused him to flee in fear? Dr Malcolm’s journal will reveal all, if you can find it before he returns…”
Our thoughts
Upon completing The Deacon’s Cabinet, we were taken back outside and into a different part of the building for our next game: The Anatomist. This one is set in the office of notorious anatomist, Dr Malcolm, who is rumoured to harbour some sinister secrets. Edmund (GM) set out our simple objective: locate Dr Malcolm’s hidden journal and escape before he returns to his office.
The Anatomist is a broadly non-linear room featuring multiple physical spaces and an assortment of puzzle types. While this room is more spooky than scary, there were a couple of jump scares that caught us off guard. It’s also worth noting that at least one member of the team will need to be comfortable with going into a confined space. The first room is well themed in the style of an old study, another features more creepy decor: think body parts in jars, a dead body on a slab and all sorts of other sinister imagery. It was extremely atmospheric and ramped up the urgency for escaping the room as quickly as possible.
There was a fun selection of puzzles, including some more traditional ones that involved placing items in a specific order, using weights and unlocking a cryptex. I personally loved how the puzzles within the final room came together, and the multi-layered nature of some tasks. There is a lot to tackle, so your team will definitely benefit from splitting up to take on different tasks. Overall, this was a solid room, with plenty of puzzles to keep us busy. Difficulty-wise, it was less of a challenge than The Deacon’s Cabinet, but not overly easy. We escaped after around 45 minutes, which is personally the sweet spot for me.
A Trail of Burke and Hare
Players: 2-30 | Duration: 120 mins | Difficulty: 2/5 | Age: 8+
“A body has been discovered in The Cowgate with wounds eerily reminiscent of a dark period of Edinburgh’s past… The path ahead descends through the city’s very darkest history. Follow the trail, decipher the clues and, if you dare, follow in the bloody footsteps of Edinburgh’s infamous 19th century serial killers: Burke and Hare…”
Our thoughts
As well as offering traditional escape rooms, Escape The Past recently launched a new city trail experience, with the streets of Edinburgh as the stage. We tackled this one on our final day, with the added pressure of finishing it before our flight!
This trail starts and ends at Escape The Past, where our GM met us for a quick briefing. She handed us an over-the-shoulder bag containing a map, puzzle pieces, a code wheel and a wooden box with various locks. Also in the bag is a big leather-bound folder that contains instructions on how to play, along with different chapters housing puzzles. To begin, one team member needs to scan a QR code to load up the browser-based web application. This is used to verify answers and unlock new information as you progress through the experience. For each puzzle you complete, you’ll unlock instructions for where to go next. At this point, you can opt to race on or read additional historical context about the location you are in.
The puzzles creatively use landmarks within the city, along with physical items in the bag, which adds a tactile, immersive nature to gameplay. Our task was to follow the clues, find specific locations and then solve puzzles to retrieve codes to unlock the wooden box. The contents reveal the identity of the next victim, who can then be rushed into protection.
One particular section of the trail took us to a famous cemetery, where we made the rookie mistake of running off too quickly. We spent a large amount of time running around the cemetery, only to find we’d been standing in front of what we needed when we first arrived. Aside from this blip, we made it all the way through to the very satisfying and bone-chilling climax.
This trail lasted for approximately two hours, with breaks encouraged along the way. The final drop-off time for the bag is confirmed on the day of your booking. This may differ depending on other bookings. In terms of accessibility, the route is fairly physical and involves a fair amount of walking. Remember to dress appropriately for the weather. Lastly, it is worth noting that there are no options for bag storage at the venue. As we had checked out of our accommodation, this meant we had to hunt around for a luggage storage facility before we could begin. This did ultimately impact our enjoyment of the trail.
Ranking
Our current team rankings for the rooms and trails we’ve played at Escape The Past are:
| 1 | The Deacon’s Cabinet |
| 2 | The Anatomist |
| 3 | A Trail of Burke and Hare |
We escaped… now what?
We thoroughly enjoyed our time at Escape the Past and will be keeping an eye out for any future developments. There is a lot of scope for further city trails and rooms based on the city’s rich history. What will the team come up with next? We have no idea, but we are sure it will be equally creative!
Edinburgh is such a beautiful city, with a wealth of fantastic foodie spots and tourist destinations. We will definitely be back in future to explore the city further.
Please note: We were not charged for these rooms. This in no way impacts how we cover this venue and our experiences. This article includes my honest opinions on each room, and I don’t shy away from highlighting both the positive and negative aspects.
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