As I crawled back to my friends, the lights begin to flicker on and off, the sounds of screaming filling my ears. It took a few seconds for the screams to register as coming from the mouths of my friends. Even as I joined them, trying to comfort them, they still continued to yell. As the lights flashed on one more time, I was able to see why: the witch was here, directly in front of my face, and reaching toward me. I let out my own scream, truly terrified in that moment, just as the lights switched off again. I waited for her embrace, for her to finally get me and end our suffering, but as the lights flashed on again, the witch was gone. Only the three of us remained…with 45 minutes still left on the clock.

And that’s when I knew: The Weeping Witch was the scariest escape room I had ever played.

Those words are not to be taken lightly; I’ve done a lot of immersive horror and spooky escape rooms over the years, so that statement is pretty bold. Allow me to say it again for the purpose of really kicking off this review: The Weeping Witch is not only terrifying, but an absolute “must play” escape room.

Cross Roads Escape Rooms has made a name for themselves over the years with not only their incredible details but also their fantastic storylines. Each of their escape rooms has been more impressive than the last, and The Weeping Witch is no different.

The story is simple; you and your team are cursed and set out to remove said curse using a curse extractor. Surrounded by other cursed objects and various machinery, you not only have to contend with your own impending doom, but also that of the Weeping Witch, who you have accidently set free. Set in a room that would feel at home in Ed and Lorraine Warren’s house, you must work together to not only free yourself from the curse but also escape the witch.

Production design of the room is absolutely incredible. It looks and feels like a functional museum-like space, with the room littered with other cursed objects that, at first glance, feel like part of the décor. Of course, as the game goes on, you realize that everything has its place. Even innocuous looking objects will eventually feed into the game, enhancing the experience even more. The level of production design that went into The Weeping Witch was pretty impressive, but I would expect nothing less from Luke and Madison, the owners.

In addition to the décor, both the lighting and sound helped add to the spooky vibe. Fantastic sound effects and design really helped to enhance the game overall, while the constantly changing lighting was truly a work of art. All of the pieces came together to truly creep our team out.

The game itself was also top-notch. Cross Roads manages to come up with some truly incredible puzzles, each one more unique than the last. Their cleverness was on full display here, as the puzzles naturally lead into the next, while also showcasing that escape rooms don’t have to be just locks and keys. They make wonderful use of technology here, and I am constantly impressed by how they use it to not only enhance the game but tie into the overall story.

To top it all off, this room was HARD. And I’m not saying that to complain, because we did manage to escape with 2 minutes left. I’m saying that it was a challenge, and a welcome one. Too often, rooms err on the side of ease to make ti easier for guests, but the difficulty level here was perfect. We were even told after that it is incredibly hard to beat the room with just three people, but we managed to do it, making us feel even more accomplished.

Cross Roads has always been great about incorporating clever hint systems into their games, and that was the case again here. In fact, I stumbled upon this room’s hint system by accident, when an off-hand remark caused a witty comeback to come my way.

And yes, this room was truly scary. It takes quite a bit to really scare me these days, but The Weeping Witch made me yell out in fear more times than I care to mention. I was very, very happy with my scare quota!

The Weeping Witch is truly a triumph, and a perfect addition to any Halloween season. Tickets have been selling out quickly, but I highly recommend you head over to their website to try to grab yours. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed. Visit Cross Roads online at www.crossroadsescapegames.com