The Curium Experience (Melbourne, Australia)
Time limit: 60-75 minutes (flexible — GM will guide you to finish)
Age limit: 14+ (flexible for families, email to ask; children under 16 require 2 adults)
Player limit: 2-6
Difficulty: Hard
Awards: TERPECA Nominee (2022), TERPECA Top Room (2023), Best of Morty 2023
Date visited: September 2024
I’m not gonna lie. It was shortly after I discovered Extraction at The Curium Experience that I suggested we should go to Melbourne for our next family holiday. Ranked the 68th best escape room in the world by TERPECA in 2023, it is the only Australian room currently in the top 100.
The level of excitement I felt when we arrived at Curium in Collingwood was comparable to what I felt before going into my most anticipated blockbuster movie of the year. I made sure we were the first booking of the day to minimise the risk of disruptions, broken props, or incomplete resets. I wanted the experience to be as smooth as possible.
After doing the usual waivers and safety talk, we entered the initial game area, where we were met with a cool-looking machine and given our mission briefing. The magic soon began shortly after…
We were shocked that Curium actually allows players to bring their phones in and take as many photos or videos as they want. This is something no other escape room we’ve tried has ever allowed. I still don’t know why they allow it, but I encourage everyone who hasn’t played the room to avoid looking at photos and videos posted on social media as much as possible. The best thing about Extraction is being constantly surprised by what comes next. Our family took a whole bunch of photos and videos to capture the experience, but there’s no way we’d share them with anyone who hasn’t played the room.
More than an escape room, Extraction truly is an “adventure experience”. The game starts off in a fairly standard room but then begins ramping up more and more. Everything from the storyline, production value to puzzles just keeps getting crazier and more mind-blowing. Built in a massive warehouse, Extraction is by far the largest (and likely most expensive) escape room we’ve played to date, encapsulating multiple rooms, floors, and transition spaces. You never get to slow down as you complete a whole bunch of varied puzzles and tasks packed with hi-tech wizardry (and only a couple of padlocks).
While Extraction is not very strict with completing the room within 60 minutes (we were told most teams finish between 55-70 minutes), there is one big concerning caveat: In order to maximise revenue, Curium schedules slots as close as 35 minutes apart. They are able to do this because the space is so big and has so many transitions in between. However, what this means is that if your team is slow or gets stuck, your GM might have to force feed your team clues (though a walkie-talkie) so that they can move you along and not delay the next group. My tip would be to book a slot where the next group is not so close behind you, so as to avoid such situations from happening.
Having played around a dozen escape rooms by the time we did Extraction, we struggled more with the dexterity puzzles than the brain teasers, though we never needed any clues or help, so it never felt like we were pressured or short-changed. The only interaction we had with the GM was when Z accidentally fluked a puzzle in the first area (1 in 32 chance!) and we didn’t know it was solved and had to be told that we could move on!
The other consequence of the close time slots is that once you’ve escaped, you cannot go back inside to examine the room and chat with the GM about its various aspects, which is often one of the most enjoyable parts of the experience. This is perhaps why they allow players to take photos and videos inside; on the other hand, the lack of a post-escape debrief could make some players feel a little empty.
All in all, this is a must-do room for anyone living in or visiting Melbourne. Lovers of more traditional escape rooms might not be as enamoured with all the dexterity tasks and physical movement, but as an experience, Extraction is absolutely something enthusiasts and even novices should try. It is now Z and J’s favourite room, and among my favourite experiences too.
Escape time: 65 minutes
PS: Curium’s new room, Don’t Get Your Feet Wet, is tentatively scheduled for release early next year!
Rating: 9.3
Player | Theming | Atmosphere | Puzzles | Creativity | Fun | Average |
H | 10 | 9 | 8.5 | 9 | 10 | 9.3 |
E | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8.8 |
Z | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9.5 | 10 | 9.3 |
J | 10 | 10 | 9.5 | 9.5 | 9.5 | 9.7 |
Rating | 9.3 |
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