1665 · about 35 minutes · 4 hours

Late Check-Out: The Shutting-Up

Part 1 of 4. A red cross on the door, a fire that must not go out, and four hours until the watchman looks in.

Play it now, free Free for the whole group
~35 min for a group that talks 1 to 6 players, one link No download any phone or laptop Approachable

Latchkeys › Escape rooms › Late Check-Out: The Shutting-Up

The first night

It was meant to be a joke. A haunted-looking manor in the English countryside, four nights over Halloween, you and your friends, booked at one in the morning because the price was too good to be true. The listing had one rule, in bold:

Keep the lights on after dark. The house prefers it.

On the first night, you turn them off.

Objective
Reach the watchman's dawn round with the fire still burning.
Clock
Jonas Pike looks in at first light. It is three in the morning, and the fire is going out.
Prize
The fire still burning at first light, and the back-door key where no searcher will find it.
  • halloween escape room
  • 1665
  • the plague year
  • a manor house
  • four hours
  • free online escape room
The kitchen of an old manor at night, a wide stone fireplace with a fire burning, an iron pot on a chain, oak beams, copper pans on the walls, a single candle on a scrubbed table and a leaded window black with night. Nobody in the room.The front door of the manor from outside at dusk: weathered oak planks with a red cross painted across them and a paper notice nailed beside it, a lantern burning on a post by the step, and the road running away under bare trees. Nobody there.A cold still-room by candlelight: a copper still standing over a wooden tub, its pipe climbing to the beam, bunches of dried herbs hanging overhead, earthenware jars on a shelf, and a receipt book open on the bench. Nobody in the room.

Play it with your group

Free for the whole group Play it now, free

You get a link. It works for everyone in your group, on any device, and it does not expire.

  • About 35 minutes
  • 1 to 6 players, free for the group
  • Any phone or laptop, in the browser
  • No account, nothing tracked
  • A key on every step if you get stuck
  • The link does not expire

Questions people ask

Can we play it together over Zoom or a video call?

Yes, as a virtual escape room. The one link works for everyone in your group at once, on Zoom, Google Meet, Teams or any other video call, or round one table. Share your screen or all open it; there is nothing to sync, because the puzzle is the pages and the answers you work out together.

Does it work on a phone?

Yes. It was built for a phone first: every lock is a text box or buttons you tap, nothing needs a keyboard, a mouse or a printer.

How long does it take?

About 35 minutes for a group that talks; longer if you like arguing. There is no timer and nothing is scored.

What if we get stuck?

Every step has its own key: a hint first, then a harder hint, and the answer only if you ask for it. Wrong answers say something in the story rather than just no.

Do we need to download anything, or make an account?

No. There is no app and no account: the link opens in any web browser and nothing is installed. Nothing is tracked while you play, either.

Is it suitable for kids and families?

The stories are eerie and never cruel; nobody dies on the page. The puzzles need reading and a little arithmetic, so about twelve and up on their own, younger with an adult.

Does it work for two players, or for one?

Both. Two is a good number: a couple on a date night, you and your spouse at the kitchen table, or a pair of friends in different cities on one link. It was written in the second person, so it works for one as well as for six.

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