Top tips for escaping at Lucardo

  We asked a leading panel of escape room enthusiasts who have played between them over 1000 games - "What are your top tips for new players?"

1)  Communication - players who communicate well, will often make quicker progress through rooms.  Shouting out what types of locks each player has found, speaking aloud when codes are discovered and the most important telling other players when you have successfully used a code or key.

2)  If you are provided with a pen and paper - make sure you write down all codes and types of locks - then cross them out when you have used them.

3)  Divide and conquer - the "best" teams are those who will actively split up and look in different directions - try not to "follow" other team members around whilst exploring the room.  By all means help each other with the puzzles but try not to be a by-stander.

4)  Just Once - remember that all codes, keys, riddles and puzzles are used once and only once (in most escape rooms) - save yourself time without trying keys in other locks once it has already opened a padlock - this often slows teams down.

5)  Spend time wisely - if you can not solve a puzzle with in around 5 minutes do not be afraid to step away from that particular puzzle - or let someone else in the group have a look - new teams can lose a lot of time by standing staring at the puzzle waiting for the moment of inspiration - which may never occur.

6)  Asking for hints - do not be scared/proud to ask for help and hints - new players may feel reluctant to ask for help as they may deem it "cheating" - you should never be afraid to ask for help at the end of the day the hosts/games masters are there to make sure you have a great time and solve as much as you and your team can in the allotted time.

7)  Players strengthens and weaknesses - make sure you play to each players strengths, but also be mindful of players weaknesses. For example if one player has an issue with solve mathematical puzzles whereas another in the group feels confident with maths - allow the second person to solve the puzzle whilst the first person goes and finds something else to solve.

8)  Listening - ensure you listen to all players thoughts and solutions - often someone will say the correct answer or code - yet the group will not have listened properly and therefore lose time.