Thrown into a dungeon by an invincible cursed samurai in ancient Japan: did we manage to escape, or were we… rōnin out of time?!
- Location: Edinburgh
- Players: 2-6
- We played: December 2019 as a team of 5
Great things about The Fourth Samurai
- We appreciated the attention to detail in the theming of this Japanese-style room – there were lots of appropriate decorative objects and puzzle components, and tatami mat flooring made us feel like we should perhaps have taken our shoes off! Moreover, the puzzles fitted the theme and avoided any incongruous details (or padlocks).
- The Fourth Samurai is contextualised by a clear backstory, and has an ultimate objective besides escaping which becomes clearer as you approach the end of the game.
- This game has a good variety of different kinds of puzzles, including logic challenges, dexterity-based tasks and communication puzzles. Some of the puzzles were physical and more dynamic than in many escape rooms.
On the other hand…
- Avoiding the use of padlocks, The Fourth Samurai uses some magnetic locks but a majority of seemingly GM-operated locks, a feature which relies on having a host that’s attentive enough to operate the lock as soon as a task is completed. When we visited, Escape Hunt seemed somewhat understaffed, and our host overstretched, and we therefore experienced some delayed reactions.
- Physically, this room can accommodate up to 6 players, but in our opinion it would need to be more multi-linear, or have more puzzles that involve a group of people, to entertain and challenge a team of more than 3.
Who should try this room?
The Fourth Samurai would suit a pair or small group. In terms of difficulty level it’s accessible to beginners, and the game content is suitable for children over 8.
Rating – 7/10
Unlock & Roll 
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