About, 88 N 4th St, Columbus

Nora Blake & Theo Grant, since 2017

Built by hand,
one lock at a time.

Two designers, one workshop and nine months per room. Every puzzle is prototyped on friends, rebuilt, and tested again before a paying group walks in.

5 rooms since 2017

48,000 players

Nine months per room

See the rooms

Two designers, one obsession.

Nora writes the stories and the puzzles. Theo builds everything you touch. Jasmine makes sure your party runs on time.

NB

Nora Blake

Co-founder & game designer

A former high-school science teacher who wrote puzzle hunts for her students. Nora designs every room on paper first and still plays each one start to finish every month.

NB

Nora Blake

Co-founder & game designer

A former high-school science teacher who wrote puzzle hunts for her students. Nora designs every room on paper first and still plays each one start to finish every month.

TG

Theo Grant

Co-founder & builder

A set carpenter and electronics tinkerer. Theo builds the locks, drawers and hidden mechanisms in the workshop behind the lobby, nothing is bought off the shelf.

TG

Theo Grant

Co-founder & builder

A set carpenter and electronics tinkerer. Theo builds the locks, drawers and hidden mechanisms in the workshop behind the lobby, nothing is bought off the shelf.

JR

Jasmine Reed

Events lead

Jasmine plans birthdays, team events and buyouts, from the first call to the award ceremony. She has run more than 600 private events.

JR

Jasmine Reed

Events lead

Jasmine plans birthdays, team events and buyouts, from the first call to the award ceremony. She has run more than 600 private events.

Nine months per room.

Every room goes through the same four stages before a paying group ever sees it.

Stage 01

Story first

We write the whole plot, characters, the twist, the ending, before a single puzzle exists.

Stage 01

Story first

We write the whole plot, characters, the twist, the ending, before a single puzzle exists.

Stage 02

Paper prototype

Puzzles get tested on cardboard with friends and strangers until nobody gets stuck in the same place twice.

Stage 02

Paper prototype

Puzzles get tested on cardboard with friends and strangers until nobody gets stuck in the same place twice.

Stage 03

Workshop build

Theo builds the set, the locks and the electronics by hand, mostly from salvaged furniture and old hardware.

Stage 03

Workshop build

Theo builds the set, the locks and the electronics by hand, mostly from salvaged furniture and old hardware.

Stage 04

100 test games

Each room runs 100 free test games with real groups. We rebuild whatever confuses people for the wrong reasons.

Stage 04

100 test games

Each room runs 100 free test games with real groups. We rebuild whatever confuses people for the wrong reasons.

Wall of hand tools hanging above a cluttered workbench

Old iron keys resting on the pages of an open book

Antique padlock hanging on a weathered wooden door

Five rooms in eight years.

2017

The Curator’s Study

Opened in a borrowed basement with one room and a hand-painted sign.

2017

The Curator’s Study

Opened in a borrowed basement with one room and a hand-painted sign.

2019

Midnight Express

Moved into the old print shop on 4th Street and built two train cars.

2019

Midnight Express

Moved into the old print shop on 4th Street and built two train cars.

2021

Tiny Detectives

A room for families after a year of parents asking for one.

2021

Tiny Detectives

A room for families after a year of parents asking for one.

2023

Signal Lost

Our hardest room, wired with real 1970s broadcast gear.

2023

Signal Lost

Our hardest room, wired with real 1970s broadcast gear.

2025

The Last Seance

Candles, knocks and a very old table. Spooky, never gory.

2025

The Last Seance

Candles, knocks and a very old table. Spooky, never gory.

Want to see the workshop? Ask at the front desk

Open Mon-Thu 4-11 PM, Fri 2 PM-midnight, Sat 10 AM-midnight, Sun 10 AM-9 PM

A real person answers during opening hours, usually the game master on shift. Tell us your group and we will pick the room with you.

play@lockwoodrooms.com

Book a room