Reno has been fortunate to have a number of new escape room businesses pop up the last few years, and we have a great new one at Legends in Sparks, called Key and Code. I had an opportunity to check out Key and Code thanks to a Yelp Reno event. If you aren’t familiar with what an escape room is, it’s essentially a themed room that is stocked with a variety of puzzles that must be solved to find the key to the room’s door. It’s a wonderful exercise of intellect and teamwork.

This is not a drill

I only got an opportunity to participate in one room – Dr. Ensaine, their most popular room. Dr. Ensaine is a demented dentist, who has just stepped out of his office. It’s now your job to find out what’s happening in there before he returns. Upon entering the room, you’ll notice it feels like you’ve been transported to an actual dentist’s office. Next step is to start looking for clues to piece together your eventual escape from the room. I really wish I could tell you more, but spoilers are no fun in this case. What I will tell you about the Dr. Ensaine room is that it is considered a “scary room.” While I didn’t feel scared or threatened, it was definitely a horror-theme and there was a feeling of tension. As our team uncovered puzzle after puzzle, we found ourselves working well together and genuinely excited as we progressed.

The great escape

I’m happy to report that my team escaped with four minutes and change left (of the hour allotted). Part of the joy of the escape room is in the solving of puzzles and getting lost in the theme. The other part is reflecting on the experience together and smiling about the challenges of the escape room and how well (or poorly) everyone did. I highly recommend this experience, whether you’re new to escape rooms or a seasoned veteran. The team that constructed Key and Code have traveled the world comparing escape rooms and curated the concepts they loved the most, bringing them to our community. Key and Code has four rooms for you to choose from.

Kids and cake

Key and Code recommends a minimum age of 10 years old. While it may be difficult for them to solve everything on their own, there’s definitely puzzles they could participate in and contribute to. Anyone under 15 must be accompanied by an adult. Key and Code has space available to accommodate parties, as well. So, if you wanted to have pizza, cake and ice cream prior to or after your escape room experience, you can host your party here. I thought it’d be a really cool concept for a kid’s birthday party (maybe older kid). Of course, you can always do a party with your co-workers. For me, I can’t wait to do a guy’s night out with my buddies and try a couple more escape rooms here.