60 to Escape (Gurnee) - "Starship: Final Frontier"

LOCATION:  Gurnee, Illinois, USA

Photo above is property of 60 to Escape

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

📝  ETR DECODER

• 🔑 GAME: Starship: Final Frontier

• 📅 DATE PLAYED: May 15, 2026

• 🎬 GENRE: Sci-Fi

• 🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 2 ppl): 6/10

• 👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS: 2-6 ppl

• 🕒 LENGTH OF TIME: 60 Mins.

• 💰 PRICE: $40.00 - $45.00/ pp (depending on # of players)

• ☎️ BOOKING TYPE: Private

• 🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED?: Yes

📖 THE STORY

You’re embarking on an intergalactic journey and put into cryosleep, expecting to awaken in a half century at a bold new world. However, something’s gone dreadfully wrong, and the ship has woken you…now you find out that you’re on a collision course with the sun! Can you and your team turn things back around?

🎯 HIT THE BULLSEYE

• Spacey, futuristic environment: There were some cool props, décor elements, and interactions on the ship that helped make you feel like you were really there. One, in particular, was quite entrancing and we could have gazed at it a long time…which we kind of did, as a search fail left us stuck in the small entry room for much longer than we should have been!

• Subtle tie-ins: As with many of 60 to Escape’s games, you’ll find a number of Easter egg references to the company, staff, and their other games. (For example, Calastof is a mix of the two owners’ names). We appreciate these personal details and how they can tie together aspects of what are otherwise very disparate worlds across their experiences.

• Clear goals: There’s a nice checklist of duties you need to take care of to get the ship back up and running so you can avoid burning yourselves to a crisp! This clear structure helps to focus your attention right away and clearly indicates when you’ve accomplished something, so you can see how you’re progressing through the main section of the game.

• Fosters communication: As with many of 60 to Escape’s games, there are several well-implemented split information puzzles, providing great opportunities across multiple spaces for teamwork and communication. They even have a built-in speaker and microphone system between the two most distant areas to keep it easy to communicate from afar!

🧩 MISSED THE MARK

• One fiddly bit: There was one slightly finicky puzzle that led to a bit of frustration. However, it would have been easier with more players, and it was still a good test of teamwork and communication!

🏹 TAKE A SHOT?

"Starship: Final Frontier" is a great game for larger groups, with lots of opportunities for collaboration. It’s a very tech-based room, with plenty of futuristic gadgets to play with! And you’ll need to have a keen eye, as there’s some tricky searching to be done. You’ll also have power to determine your fate with a choice at the end. So, if you’ve always dreamed of joining NASA (though…probably without the flying-into-the-sun part…), now’s your chance to hop on the spaceship and take control!

ℹ️  ADDITIONAL INFO

• This location is inside the Gurnee Mills Mall (so plenty of free parking), to the left of the food court when you enter through entrance J.

• The lobby/waiting area where you check in has both shirts and some mainstream tabletop puzzle games for sale.

• There are bathrooms available.

• There are no lockers, but there are hooks and a spot on the floor in each room where you can leave your things.

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

Check out our YouTube video for a sneak peek of their Schaumburg location, an interview with the manager & owner, and a look inside their rooms (no puzzle spoilers) and more:

Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

(If you do decide to try this game, give us a shoutout or tag us on social media so we know you heard it from "ESCAPETHEROOMers"!)

Disclosure:  We thank 60 to Escape for comping our tickets for this game. Although complimentary admission was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.

#DaveBristol #IRLescaperoom #EscapeRooms #60toEscape #SciFi #Illinois #USA