The Escape Experience
With seven minutes left to go, my partner and I quickly inserted two skeleton keys into the launch control unit of a secret Raccoon Mountain nuclear missile silo. We had narrowly prevented the beginning of nuclear war, but zombies were now crowding the outside the door and preventing our escape.
Ammo was low, and if we didn’t escape soon the increased radiation levels would surely kill us before the zombies ever got close.
With only a minute and a half left we made a break for the exit. The only door that promised a safe escape was locked. Zombies began getting closer and closer, and then without warning, the lights turned. This is the Halloween edition of the Chattanooga Bunker Escape Experience.
If you’re unfamiliar with the traditional Escape Experience, it involves getting locked in a thematic series of rooms that challenge guests to solve intricate puzzles using teamwork to escape in an hour or less. The catch is that these puzzles are not for the faint of heart, with the usual escape success rate hovering between 25-40% depending on which of the four rooms you choose.
However, for Halloween the Escape Experience has added an undead twist to the usual Bunker room experience. Live actors playing zombies chase guests from room to room, hiding between props and adding an extra layer of stress that truly appeals to the zombie-lover in all of us. Early in the experience, you’ll find a few “guns” that are the only line of defense between you and these zombies.
Just when you think you’re safe and making progress in the cleverly designed puzzle, you’ll be unloading rounds into a horde of zombies you swore were dead only a few minutes before (trust me, headshots are important).
In all honesty, the Bunker Escape Experience is the most unique haunted attraction in the Chattanooga area. Zombies don’t just pop out and scare you; they grab your ankles, pile up and block your pathway, and get close enough that you’ll empathize with the protagonist of zombie narratives for the rest of your life.
Even if you don’t escape, there’s a good chance you’ll stop the nuclear launch and take out many zombies in the hour that’s allotted. That’s enough to make anyone look forward to Halloween.