The lovely people at Breakin Escapes in London lay on a Zombie-themed night of thrills and excitement to celebrate the upcoming Blu-Ray/DVD release of the last entry in the Resident Evil movie franchise. Greg D. Smith reports from the front line…

Walking into the venue, I was immediately confronted by a zombie. Or at least a pleasant young lady with some surprisingly detailed makeup that made her look like one of the living dead. As I went into the main lounge to await my turn in the Escape Room experience, it was an odd mixture of friendly people in normal T shirts and the occasional wandering zombie, all while clips from the movie played on a big screen TV and a man in the corner guided anyone who fancied it through a VR experience of the latest Resident Evil videogame. It was just that sort of evening.

The Escape Room itself had been themed towards a Resident Evil flavouring – a terrified scientist in an Umbrella Corp white coat briefed us on ‘entering the hive’ to recover the antivirus before everyone died. This was interrupted by a flailing zombie and we were ushered into the room itself with a case and our wits to protect us.

Various obscure clues and puzzles awaited, through which the team had to work (with assistance as needed on the radio) to recover the prize and exit before the 30 minute timer ran out. The addition of a zombie halfway through kept things interesting, as did the sudden splitting of the team, and all in all it was a fun experience.

Having exited the Hive safely, it was back to the lounge to try out the much vaunted Playstation VR on the new Resident Evil 7 videogame. Full disclosure, this reviewer suffers a little from motion sickness, and so I managed only to play a few minutes before calling time. But that was because of just how good the tech is.

The graphics may not be 100% lifelike, but that hardly matters with technology which so completely immerses you in them. Every slight move of the head is seamlessly tracked, leaving one with the impression of literally being in the location on the screen. This is where issues arise for those prone to motion sickness, as the information being fed from the eyes to the brain insists that one is moving, while every other sense insists that one is very much not. Combined with the atmosphere and attention to detail of the game, it makes for a truly singular experience, if you can stomach it!

All things considered, it was a fun, thematic night, and the perfect way to celebrate the release of Resident Evil: The Final Chapter. Braiiiiinnnnnnsssss!