Last night we went to Appleseed Avenue, a puppet-themed escape room in Santa Clarita, California, and it was an absolute blast. I knew coming out of it that it was easily one of the best I’ve ever done, but the more I think about how well-designed and -executed it is, the more impressed I am with it.
It takes groups of four or more humans, traveling from the human world to the puppet world via the Puppet and Human Association of Recreation and Transportation. (Pronounced “pea-heart,” just as you’d expect). It’s one of the last chances to do so, because Lee DePuppet, the current mayor of Puppet Town, plans to shut down the connection as soon as he’s re-elected, and break ties between humans and puppets.
You’re split into two teams, visiting the office of either the chief detective or medical examiner, to learn how they solve crimes in Puppet Town. (Before you enter, you’re warned that you’ll also have to take over in the event of a real murder, but the odds of that happening are so low, it’s hardly worth mentioning).
Humor and Tone
Obviously, Appleseed Avenue is inspired by the Muppets, but it isn’t an official Muppets production; it’s by a very small independent team. So I was really impressed by just how much they got the tone exactly right for an escape room aimed at adults.
I’ve never seen Avenue Q, or any of the Brian Henson takes on “adult Muppets,” because no matter how much funny material might be hiding inside, they’ve already lost me as soon as I hear the pitch. The gag is always they’re puppets, but they swear and talk about sex and violence and shit! Can you even believe it?! I supposed it’s possible that all the edgelord stuff is just in the marketing, or on the surface, but it seems so lazy that I can’t be bothered.
So I immediately appreciated that Appleseed Avenue doesn’t try so hard. They know that you’re already on board with the concept when you come in, and that puppets are inherently funny and charming. They don’t need to blow your mind with how shocking and outrageous they can be.
And as a result, everything feels like it’s nailing the vibe in the best Muppets stuff — constantly dancing across the line between corny and clever. Taking the concept “what would a murder mystery in the puppet world be like?” and running from there, instead of, “how edgy can we make these things?”
You do get to interact directly with a few of the puppets (along with several seen in video or on posters), and it all is a ton of fun and relentlessly clever. The experience is never, ever, above making the corniest pun possible, usually in the names, but it’s always in service of a really fun and engaging story.
It felt1No pun intended to me like they took the opposite route of the “edgy Muppets” stuff I’ve seen, not trying to shock you with how far they can take these cute characters, but using the cute characters to take the edge off of a Law & Order/CSI-style murder mystery and add some humor to it.
Puzzle Design and Balance
Every bit as impressive is how the experience design solved a lot of my biggest problems with escape rooms.
One of the most persistent problems that can dull one of these experiences is quarterbacking. It’s rarely the fault of the person doing it; it’s just a side effect of throwing a bunch of disparate personalities into a space with time pressure and an agenda. Some people are just more outgoing than others.
But by physically dividing up the spaces, they made it so that everyone gets to play according to their own style, but nobody gets entirely left out. The teams are initially put in separate rooms with no communication with each other besides an intercom, and you’re immediately given a task to compete against the other team. (We got the recommendation to split up couples across the teams, which I think was definitely a good call).
And the space you’re exploring is divided up, so that individuals can — and likely, have to — go off and look for clues on their own. It seemed that everybody in the group got to have the a-ha! moment where they found an essential clue.
There were also plenty of world-building details scattered throughout, along with several red herrings in the puzzles themselves. They had the effect of making the entire experience feel bigger than it actually was. It was a satisfying story that had a few moments that required actual deduction, but it wasn’t so complicated that we ever got stuck or ran out of time. Instead, there was always the suggestion that there’s a ton more out there than the small part you’re seeing.
Technology and Production
I was really surprised to see the entire experience credited to just two people, since nothing about it felt small or amateurish.2I’m assuming that there were more people involved in building the sets and producing the posters, video and audio, but maybe not? It feels like a city street crammed into a small space, and the rooms you spend the most time in have the most details.
I’ve done several escape rooms where you can tell that the designers were particularly pleased with a certain gimmick or a certain effect, and it draws attention to itself. Here, there are pieces of tech and show design scattered throughout, and they were done exactly right. Computer screens that drive everything, “scanners” that feel fun and silly but still sell the effect, sound and music played through speakers mounted throughout. And little touches and details that didn’t need to be automated, but the effort was well spent, like the dial that shows you transitioning from the human world to the puppet world.
The only reason I say Appleseed Avenue might be the best escape room I’ve ever done is because the Palace Games in San Francisco are so impressive. They have some that transform the entire space, with a genuine wow moment in every one that I’ve done.
But I can say definitively that Appleseed Avenue is the most fun I’ve ever had doing an escape room. Charming, funny, and clever throughout, with some fantastic story moments that were played for laughs but genuinely tense at the same time. Exactly my sense of humor, with exactly the right kind of puzzles that feel funny, clever, and perfectly integrated into the story.
I recommend it without hesitation to anyone even slightly interested in escape rooms or immersive entertainment. Even if it takes a drive to southern California to do it! The only people I’d not recommend it to are those who’ve never done an escape room before; I honestly do think it’ll set your expectations too high for any one you did afterwards.
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