Prison Island Melbourne is the city’s newest immersive adventure, offering a fresh twist on the escape room format in Docklands. Unlike a typical escape room with one door and a series of riddles and puzzles to solve to escape, this format is sprawling, varied and possibly more fun.
When you arrive, you and your team of two to five people will be initiated as prisoners at Prison Island – an open space with 34 different ‘prison cells’. Each cell door hides a different timed challenge behind it, and your team is free to move about the space as you please. Using an electronic fob, teams enter rooms, earn points and reattempt challenges as many times as they like within 90 minutes.
The experiences and difficulty levels vary, and most rooms take around two minutes to solve before a timer goes off. Most rooms provide minimal instructions – you’ll hit a start button and figure things out as you go. While initially intimidating, this quickly becomes part of the thrill, encouraging teamwork and problem-solving on the fly.
Typical escape rooms, while enjoyable, can be a frustrating group experience for those who have strengths other than lateral-thinking and riddle solving, and you can get stuck in one place for a long time. By contrast, Prison Island’s pick-and-mix format lets players lean into their strengths. In this reviewer’s team, one friend took on the majority of the physical challenges, while another took the lead on code-breaking puzzles and another on skill-based events.
Technically, the experience is slick and seamless. Motion sensors, interactive floors, tilt tables and digital screens all work to create a fast-paced experience, while the live scoreboard in the centre of the arena adds a competitive edge. Afterwards they even provide you with a list of all your scores, including the number of attempts per room and the times you entered.
If you’re planning on bringing the kids, be aware: some physical challenges may be tough for younger players. Even our group of 20-somethings to ound a couple of them to be daunting. The rooms evoke a nostalgic sense of adventure – think harder climbing walls and some rougher edges, rather than overly cushioned play spaces. A good rule of thumb is: if you are struggling beyond what feels like a fun challenge, just move on to the next room. There is plenty to explore and enjoy.
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At $44.90 per adult, the price is fairly competitive with most escape room offerings (which typically range from $40 to $70 for 60 minutes). Given the 90-minute playtime and near-unlimited exploration, it offers solid value for money. Hopefully, Escape Prison Island can inject some extra energy into District Docklands.
There are many fun hangouts, birthday parties, hens’ nights and stag-dos to be had in Prison Island. If you’re looking for a unique, high-energy experience to shake off the winter blues, definitely check it out.
Prison Island Melbourne is now open at Docklands.
