If you haven’t heard of Black Market Escape Rooms’ ‘MURDERCO,’ get ready for a treat. Black Market Escape Rooms is a new immersive-based attraction company created by designer Jon Cooke, who is best known for some of Knott’s Scary Farms’ most thrilling installments including Paranormal Inc., Shadow Lands, and Dark Ride. ‘MURDERCO’ is billed as the nation’s first R-Rated horror escape room, and The Haunt List had our highly anticipated visit just a few weeks ago.

One of the things we love about this room is that the experience starts as soon as you enter the building. You are greeted by a masked individual who requires you to sign a waiver to participate, and in lieu of a general waiting area, you are placed into a dark and eerie lobby. There is no witty rules video, no gamemaster, and no help. You are given a selection of four ‘artists’ to choose from for your experience. We chose Sideshow, a maniac clown bearing a chainsaw. Once you’ve chosen your murderer (er.. ‘artist’) the adventure begins, and as to be expected, it was absolutely terrifying!

The storyline is dark yet realistic, and while you enter knowing that you are ‘playing a game,’ for a few brief moments, your brain freezes, thinking “wait…is this real?”. The set design was beyond impressive and displayed the level of detail you would expect from a high-budget theme park, (and we wouldn’t expect anything less less from Plague Productions). Everything from the convincing actors, to the flow of the game and the types of puzzles used, along with other things we cannot mention without adding spoilers, MURDERCO stands out among the rest.

While it’s easy to focus on the graphic and frightening nature of MURDERCO, it is to be noted that the whole experience is a fun, thrilling rush. Our team of six barely escaped, with only four minutes left on the clock.

Reserve your space HERE.

Would we recommend this escape room? If you’re someone who loves escape rooms but haunted attractions are just a bit too scary, this room is probably not for you. If you’re like us at The Haunt List and love both haunted attractions and escape rooms, MURDERCO is a room that you need to visit. Having created a niche of its own, MURDERCO perfectly combines elements from both industries for a truly unique and first-of-its-kind experience. While most escape rooms create a sense of urgency in order to beat a clock, MURDERCO has you racing for your life, with the overwhelming feeling that someone is just one step behind you.

Difficulty: While there is no official difficulty listed for this room, we believe it classifies as medium difficulty.
Players: Up to 8 (Pro-Tip: 6 people worked great for us!)
Time: 60 minutes
Other Notes: This room is 18+ and a signed waiver is required.