Last weekend, I got to play my first-ever escape room! It was really fun, at the Upside Down Escape Games in Mashpee, Massachusetts (aka on Cape Cod). While I played the Nocturnal Keep game, the Mole of the Mountain game at the same facility has won the extremely prestigious Golden Lock Award last year. A lot of creativity and tech went into these games, and they really give you a great experience!
I’ll share a few photos here, mostly from the Nocturnal Keep game. At this point, the facility has four games/rooms – Baggage Bandits (60 minutes; intermediate gameplay); Gnome Way Out (60 minutes; beginner to intermediate gameplay; currently under construction with an opening date in September); Nocturnal Keep (75 minutes; intermediate gameplay); and Mole of the Mountain (75 minutes; advanced gameplay). Most games have recommended minimum ages, but children down to the age of 5 are welcome (anyone under 16 must have at least one paid adult in their group). Read more about the games here.
There was only one person in my group of six who had done an escape room before. Sheryl (the business co-owner with her husband, Taylor) was great about explaining how it works and making sure we had any hints we needed. (They give you unlimited hints – that’s awesome by me, even if I didn’t ask for one!)
There are restrooms here (yay!), and you’re not actually locked in a room (that would be against fire code). They also have merch for sale in the lobby if you want to remember your visit. I picked up a t-shirt for a family member who wasn’t able to play the game with me due to work schedules.
The idea of Nocturnal Keep is (according the Upside Down Escape Games website), “Grand Wizard Owlazar [the business has a lot of owl stuff!] has hired your band of adventurers to venture into the mysterious Nocturnal Keep – a place of eternal night and even darker secrets…. it is up to all of you to uncover the secrets and bypass the challenges that await you to uncover the Gem Nocturnus. Fail to do so, and you’ll never see the light of day again (dun dun dun)!” Or in plain English, solve the riddles, puzzles, and more find keys, open hideaways, and find the hiding place of the gem!
A couple of things I learned: Very little in the escape room is an accident. Decorations, random objects, and more are clues at some point during the game. As Sheryl told us, “There are no red herrings here.” You might have to go back and forth between the sections of the room. And that’s about as many hints as I’ll give you!
I never asked for a hint (apparently you can wave at the wizard to wake him up), but at one point we were at a standstill, so he gave us a hint anyway. Wasn’t that kind of him?
So enjoy the rest of the pictures, and you can book your own escape room adventure here!
Signs 
Interest
Fun Factor
Personnel
Cleanliness
Price for value
Would I go 100 miles out of my way for this?
Overall Rating: 
Getting to Upside Down Escape Games
The parking area is at 41.61548963330516, -70.49248147132457.
The entrance is back around the side of the building (the door closest to Market Street), at approx. 41.61536624710358, -70.49211428085025.
I’m going to assume that if you’re smart enough to love escape rooms, you’re also smart enough to know how to use a link or GPS coordinates, so I won’t try to give written directions.
Browse Nearby Attractions
Can’t Go to an Escape Room? Get One in a Box!
