How the thrill of the escape at HintHunt got me hooked

IF THERE is one thing I know about myself, it’s that I’m not a team player.

Which is why when my lovely friend Nicole first told me about – no, raved about – HintHunt, I was less than enthusiastic. Why on earth would I want to be locked inside a room with a bunch of people for an hour with the goal of following and solving clues together, so as to be released? It was a hard no.

Then a couple of things happened. I went to have a look at SuperPark which opened in The Watershed at V&A Waterfront back in May, where HintHunt has its second location (the first being at the Old Biscuit Mill in Salt River). Co-owner Stephen Schutte showed me around and suddenly I was intrigued. “Come back with some friends and play,” he offered.

The obvious choice was to invite Nicole to be on my team. She accepted with delight, and brought along her friend Lyndsey, who had also played this game before.

I still wasn’t entirely convinced but was willing to give it a try. Anything for a story, right?

To clarify, HintHunt is an escape room game. The rooms are themed and, once you are imprisoned therein, you and your team mates must use the items inside, as well as hints given to you by the game master sitting in a control room, to complete the hunt and gain freedom.

The games can be played by as few as two people, up to a maximum group of six, and are suitable for children as young as seven (with adult supervision).

At SuperPark there are two types of rooms: submarine

(two) and shipwreck (four). We were assigned to a shipwreck room after having some Dos and Don’ts explained to us, stuff like “don’t move the furniture” and

“if the furniture is bolted down, definitely don’t try to move it”. No cellphones are allowed although they let you keep your bags and stuff with you because there are cameras and we are actually adult enough not to cheat anyway.

Inside the room there is a monitor counting down the minutes, which also shows you the hints provided by the game master. I happily filled a support role, holding the torch and lanterns so Nicole and Lyndsey could do all the heavy lifting.

They say once you have solved a room, that’s it – you’re done. Honestly, I could easily do that one again for all I can remember of the clues and strategy. The submarine rooms have two different missions so can be played at least twice.

Then, of course, there is the success rate – surprisingly enough, not everyone makes it out within the allocated time so going back until you win is an option.

We made it with seven – seven! – seconds to spare.

Bottom line: I had way more fun than I thought I would and if someone as cranky as me can enjoy this, I’m pretty sure lots of you sociable folk will too.

● HintHunt is at the Old Biscuit Mill in Salt River and at SuperPark in The Watershed at V&A Waterfront. For more information, call 021 448 9864, e-mail capetown@ hinthunt.com, or go to https:// hinthunt.com/en/south-africa

IMPRISONED: Solve the clues as a team to escape the room.