Strange World Escape Rooms - Darlinghurst (Sydney, Australia)
Time limit: 60 minutes
Age limit: None (adult required if anyone is under 15)
Player limit: 2-6 (recommended 2-4; private session only guaranteed for booking of 5-6 players)
Difficulty: 3/5
Date visited: October 2024
Our family was very excited about the opening of Strange World Escape Rooms, a brand new escape outfit in Darlinghurst. Their first room, Mrs Claws, is marketed as a Christmas horror-themed experience. The interesting thing about Strange World is that they intend to build a new room to replace the existing one every 6 months. Even though this means they will only have one theme at the venue at any given time, it does allow them to keep the room relatively big, and theoretically have customers return in perpetuity — though it remains to be seen how economically viable this business model is.
We initially booked a day with no live actor, but there was a delay in the opening due to council red tape, so were ended up being moved to another day where a live actor was present. In hindsight, this was a blessing in disguise, as the live actor definitely made it more fun and interactive, without making the experience too scary for the kids.
One important thing to note is that a private session is only guaranteed for bookings of 5 or more players, so definitely keep this in mind when assembling your team. As we were a family of 4, we ended up being placed in a session with another couple. This was the first time we had to do an escape room with strangers, which was definitely not ideal, though we were fortunate that they were very nice and friendly.
Despite the seemingly inauspicious start (there was also a delay as the reset took longer than expected), Mrs Claws turned out to be surprisingly solid. The kids, in particular, really enjoyed the horror theming, scares, and gimmicks.
First of all, the production value was excellent. I was admittedly sceptical at first because I didn't think they could possibly put that much money or effort into sets that would only last for 6 months, but everything we saw inside said otherwise. It looked and felt like every permanent room we've done thus far. From the wooden cabin feel, the colourful objects and lights, to the creepy props and ornaments, just about everything aligned well with the Christmas horror theme. You can tell a lot of time and thought was put into the design.
Secondly, Mrs Claws was definitely one of the larger escape rooms we've done in Sydney. There were multiple areas and crawl spaces, plus a very fun final section. That said, each individual section was not particularly big and could get a little crowded for 6 people. I understand they allow shared bookings for financial reasons, but it's a shame because the space is really suited for only 4 players.
Thirdly, the puzzles were challenging and varied, though I must admit none of them really wowed me with their ingenuity. However, what the puzzles lacked in innovation was made up by their variety — there's a mix of hunt and seek, traditional brain teasers, hi-tech and mechanical devices, as well as padlocks. Looking back, I didn't count a whole lot of puzzles, but there was enough to keep us busy throughout — albeit occasionally interrupted by jump scares. Personally, I would call it more spooky than scary, and I was the one who had to do all the exploring when no one else dared to!
The hint system is delivered through walkie talkies, as well as something else I won't spoil but thought was quite funny and clever. We definitely needed a couple of hints, though I put some of it down to inelegant puzzle design (just a little vague and unrefined), as well as some areas being way too dark to see crucial elements properly. We alerted the owners to this and they will be making some changes shortly, so hopefully the room and puzzles will be even more polished for future groups.
On the whole, Mrs Claws is a highly commendable first effort (considering we went on only their third day of business), suggesting that Strange World has a lot of future potential if this ambitious business model holds up. The two owners, Will and Tanner, who designed and built the rooms themselves, are super nice guys clearly passionate about delivering quality escape room experiences. I'm sure they will apply the customer feedback and lessons learned (especially the reset time!) to their next room, Fugitive Funhouse, set for release in February 2025. We will definitely be back.
Escape time: 46 minutes (beat the old record by 10 minutes!)
Rating: 8.325
Player | Theming | Atmosphere | Puzzles | Creativity | Fun | Average |
H | 8.5 | 8.5 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
E | 7 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 7.4 |
Z | 9 | 8.5 | 8 | 9.5 | 8.5 | 8.7 |
J | 9 | 9.5 | 8.5 | 9.5 | 9.5 | 9.2 |
Rating | 8.325 |
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