David Spira posted: " In Jonas We Trust Location: London, England Date Played: January 7, 2023 Team size: any; we recommend 2-4 Duration: 4.5 hours Price: from £39.99 per adult Ticketing: Public Accessibility Consideration: There are stairs wi" Room Escape Artist
Accessibility Consideration: There are stairs within the experience, but there are plenty of complete trails you can enjoy without needing to access them.
Emergency Exit Rating: [A+] No Lock
Physical Restraints: [A+] No Physical Restraints
REA Reaction
The first half of 2023 was rough for me, and I fell behind on my review writing. One of the conspicuously missing pieces was my review of Phantom Peak: Wintermas. Today is opening day for Christmas at the Peak: The Beast of Winter... if I am publishing this 9 months late, today is honestly the most reasonable day to share my thoughts, feelings, and observations of last winter's Phantom Peak season.
Now while this may be late, listeners of Reality Escape Pod are well aware that I loved Phantom Peak and we discussed this in-depth with Creative Director Nick Moran in Season 5, Episode 1.
Phantom Peak is a massive immersive world, populated with a town of colorful and fully realized characters. Each individual character has their own wants and needs, and that's where we players come in. They give us missions, known as "trails" to help them achieve their goals. Wintermas had 12 trails with a hidden 13th for completionists. These trails had us traversing the town of Phantom Peak interacting with the characters and the odd gadgets of their mysterious corporate overlord, Jonas.
A typical team may accomplish between 1 and 4 trails during a given visit. We did considerably more than that in our back-to-back visits to Phantom Peak. What I found along the way were some of the most delightful immersive performers that I have ever played with. Each breathed life into their idiosyncratic role while leaving a surprising amount of space for us players to dive deep into interaction or wade in gently. As an immersive veteran, it felt great to have these performers meet me where I was, then turn around and soften for a shy newbie.
Additionally, there was a ton of magic in the details of Phantom Peak. Everywhere we looked, there was a curious or humorous detail to absorb. And on the subject of humor, Phantom Peak was brimming with it, while still managing to take its fiction seriously.
Finally, the Wintermas storyline came to a conclusion at the end of each session with a closing performance by some of the season's featured characters. This finale was phenomenal. The lines were written and delivered exceptionally well. I wish that I had a recording of Father Platmus' closing monologue.
Our main critique of Phantom Peak was that the software that we used to get and track our trails felt like a late-stage prototype, not a finished product. That said, nearly a year later, this may have improved.
I will also give a word of caution to puzzle-focused escape room players: Phantom Peak is not a puzzle experience. This world is big, beautiful, and playful... but the challenges barely ever registered as puzzles to our crew. To be clear, this is not a criticism; it is a statement of fact. There are a ton of valid forms of gameplay and interaction in Phantom Peak... but if you're only going to derive enjoyment from puzzles, you will not find your fun within this world.
Phantom Peak was a wonderful place to play and lose myself in. From the food and drink, to the games and characters, I treasured my time visiting. I wish that I lived close enough to justify going to each season.
It was easy to forget that we were in the middle of London, until this one time that I looked up.
Who is this for?
Adventure seekers
Story seekers
Scenery snobs
Steampunk fans
Those who want to interact with characters
Couples, families, or groups of friends
Any experience level
Why play?
To visit an unexpected, western steampunk universe
To collaborate with unusual characters
To solve unusual and entertaining mysteries
Story
There's a mystery behind Phantom Peak and its never seen, but ever-present benefactor Jonas, who everyone speaks about with great reverence. He runs the corporate JONACO.
In addition, each season at Phantom Peak is a different story.
In last winter's season, Wintermus, we needed to save Father Platmus, who was locked up in a cell.
This winter's season, Christmas at the Peak: The Beast of Winter, something else will be afoot.
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