The Valcarol Missions - "The Hidden Lab Mission"

Brandon Chow
Nov 13, 2021
3 min read

Updated: Apr 12, 2024

LOCATION:  Concord, North Carolina, USA

Photo above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

📝 ETR DECODER

🔑 GAME: The Hidden Lab Mission
📅 DATE PLAYED: November 13, 2021
🎬 GENRE: Adventure, Sci-Fi
🧠 DIFFICULTY (Based on 2 PPL): 8/10
👥 TOTAL # OF PLAYERS: 2-10 ppl
🕒 LENGTH OF TIME: 60 Mins
💰 PRICE: $28/PP (5-10PPL), $112/TEAM (2-4PPL)
☎️ BOOKINGTYPE: Private
🔓 ESCAPED/ COMPLETED?: Yes

📖 THE STORY

It's November, 3049 and Dr. Dawking has been developing a vaccine will allow us to survive with the radiation. While experimenting, he became seriously ill and is now confined inside a containment box. Your mission is to figure out which one of Dr. Dawking's vaccine was successful, activate it, and then recreate it! This is a biohazard area, so you will only have one hour to succeed!

Video above is property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

🎯 HIT THE BULLSEYE

The intro "video" of this escape room is one of the best we've seen. The technology and sound really set the tone of the rest of the room. We were literally "worried" about going inside (well Cici more than I).
We loved how the owner put a lot of thought into the authenticity of the props used in this room. If you're not busy solving puzzles, definitely check out some of the decor items.
There's so many puzzles in this room that every station is a different type of puzzle. If you have a large group, you can totally divide and conquer and I'm sure every player will be able to contribute something to this mission.
Some of the simple puzzles were actually our favorites as we haven't seen it utilized like that before, especially with the prop design.
The tech in this room is pretty insane. They use a system where not only they can see and hear you, they can also see what you're entering as your answers. If you are brute forcing, they will let you know. So don't embarrass yourself.

🧩 MISSED THE MARK

One of the props had some foreign language written on it that Cici was able to detect the meaning which made our solve much faster. We've informed the owner about removing that "hint".
The beginning of the room had a bigger impact than the ending. We wish there was a "wow" moment there as well for the complete package.

🏹 TAKE A SHOT?

This room is made for enthusiasts who love puzzles. You're definitely going to feel like a crazy scientist running from one station to the other. You should also be aware of your surrounding as when you solve something, something else might pop open so if you are not paying attention, you might miss your next clue. This room is also very generous in size just like their first room "The Crystal Cave Missions" so feel free to bring your "A TEAM"! These missions are a continuous story. Although you don't need to play the first one (Crystal Cave) in order to play this one, I strongly suggest you play all of them to get the storyline. I love how there's something build into each room that if you didn't pay close attention, you wouldn't realize how they are connected. You just might have to replay all of them again just like binge watching a show when all of the rooms are complete. Currently they have two more in the works and we can't wait to go back!

ℹ️ ADDITIONAL INFO

There's free parking in front of the facility. Make sure to NOT follow your GPS and go straight to the front of the building where the flagpole is. Selfie photobooth in the lobby. This escape room is located in Gibson Mill and there's plenty of food and entertainment to explore!

Photos above are property of ESCAPETHEROOMers

BOOK NOW

(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 The Valcarol Missions for comping our tickets for this game. Although complimentary admission was generously provided, it does not impact our opinion on the review whatsoever.