Skurrilum: Ernie Hudson and the Zoo of Death

“A new case for ghost hunter Ernie Hudson and his team. The investigation will take you to the abandoned sandy bay zoo. It is said that strange noises can be heard between the cages and gates at night. A case for real professionals! Do you have the courage to take on the case?”

Game experience: VERY GOOD
Immersion		Puzzles		Hosting
After playing the first game Ernie Hudson and the Wailing Woman, I had to continue the Ernie Hudson adventures! I guess the Zoo of death should be the 746th in the series then. Following the same inspiration by pulp radio shows about supernatural stories, a narrative voice will accompany all transitions here too. Another very large space with exciting transitions and special effects, using very fun props, and a grand finale – although I had a small preference for the first one (mainly because of a few accidental gamemastering hiccups when I played this one). If you are in Hamburg, both are must-plays!

Immersion
A very fun interaction with an actor. The Ernie Hudson concept, inspired by the “three question marks” (drei Fragezeichen) show Very nice old-fashioned technological props. An interesting special effect that I had never seen so far. The narrative voice. Good light and sound atmosphere, with some times fully or partly in the dark. An epic final.

Puzzles
A very cool manipulation in the first puzzle. A couple of fun interactions with the gamemaster. An interesting lock. Some puzzles are a bit more classical.

Hosting
Very friendly gamemaster and good debriefing. It was difficult for me to understand some of the hints. Some elements can be found a bit too early in the game, creating some confusion. One item from former group was left outside.

Performance: I finished this room in 62 minutes, only one minute more than the former Ernie Hudson room, but I had the feeling it took me forever as I was struggling with every observation challenges.

Difficulty: Like the other one, the room is not overly difficult but it might still not be for beginners.

At the same venue: Skurrilum also features the superb Ernie Hudson and the wailing woman. I actually preferred quite a bit this one than the Zoo of death, but I think this is mainly a matter of personal rpeference in the kind of puzzle.

Elsewhere in the escape galaxy: Some aspects of it remained me a little bit of Room 1408 in Talence (Bordeaux area), France.

Want to play this game? Book here.

Game played in August 2022 (Introduction text and image: Skurrilum)