The Lost Shipwreck

Crypto Escape Rooms (Newmarket, Canada)

Time limit: 60 minutes

Age limit: Under 12 requires adult supervision

Player limit: 4-8

Difficulty: 8/10

Awards: TERPECA Finalist (2021, 2023-2025), TERPECA Nominee (2020, 2022), Best of Morty (2023-2024)

Date visited: July 2026

After playing a couple of games at Escape Games Canada, the boys and I drove back to Vaughan Mills to pick up E, and we immediately headed north towards Crypto Escape Rooms, the top-ranked Greater Toronto escape room establishment until last year, with several of their rooms named either a TERPECA winner, finalist, or nominee over the past few years.

Our first of three games there that day was The Lost Shipwreck, a pirate-themed adventure. So how was our introduction to Crypto?

• Excellent! The Lost Shipwreck was a really impressive game with a wonderful set, sound narrative foundations, and incredible tech and effects.

• The first thing that became apparent upon entering the game was the quality of the Disney-esque theming. The walls and the props all looked professionally built, creating an immediate sense of immersion.

• We've played quite a few of these pirate ship rooms before, and this definitely had one of the best set designs. Without giving too much away, the extremely high ceilings at Crypto was certainly a huge advantage.

• This game was heavily reliant on tech. Apart from the awesome animatronics, lighting, sound, and special effects, most if not all of the puzzles involved tech props, largely because of a game mechanic that required finding certain objects that could be used to project "memories" on screen. It was a cool mechanic but I did find that it got a little repetitive.

• The puzzles included a range of task-based process puzzles and a few that involved logical deduction, so found ourselves doing a bit of experimenting and guessing and checking. They were not particularly difficult but many required remembering things you've seen, head, and read. So if your memory is as bad as mine, you might find yourself having to keep going back and forth between the different spaces.

• This was a linear, story-driven game. Accordingly, there was quite a bit of reading and multiple media packages and animatronic cut scenes to listen and watch.

• The ending was eye-opening and fun. All I will say is that I'm glad the kids have good memories, though I will also point out that it was yours who that figured out the solution after our first attempt failed!

Escape time: 39 minutes and 1 second

Theming	Atmosphere	Puzzles	Creativity	Fun
A	A-	B+	A-	A

Verdict: A beautifully themed, tech-heavy, and story-driven game with plenty of impressive moments and effects. Perfect for families with kids who like the theme.

OVERALL RANK:

H	E	Z	J
A-	A-	A	A