The Neurodivergent Guide To Universal’s Great Movie Escape

I did not plan for Universal’s Great Movie Escape, and it almost broke me.

I kid, I kid! It’s just an escape room; it’s not that deep. But I did have to sit down in the lobby, close my eyes, and focus inward for awhile when it was over. After all that escaping, I was waaaaaay overstimulated.

You might think this is odd, given that I just put up a post about how I conquered four houses at Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights. High caliber haunted houses are a thousand times more stimulating than a singular escape room, no? Especially one based on a wacky ’80s comedy.

PREPARATION IS KEY

You are correct! While both are designed to be immersive, haunted houses beat non-haunted escape rooms on the stimulation scale every time. The scare actors alone tip the scales for the mazes.

And yet you will also recall from the same post that I came into Horror Nights ultra-prepared. I had done research. There was a game plan. I had carefully arranged my headspace in advance.

Unfortunately, my travel group decided to try out Universal’s Great Movie Escape on a whim while wandering CityWalk after dinner. I know to the outsider this may sound crazy, but many of my fellow neurospicies (I love that word!) will relate when I say I was immediately on edge. I knew next to nothing about Universal’s Great Movie Escape. I’d never done an escape room. I hadn’t prepared! I wasn’t prepared!!! It had been literally years since I had even SEEN Back to the Future; it was sure to come up! WHAT IF THERE WAS A TEST??? WHAT IF I FAILED???????

If all of this sounds like complete nonsense to you – you’re so lucky. Click out of this post secure in the knowledge that I envy your peace. If not…

CAUTION: SPOILERS AHEAD

I know escape room spoilers seem like the worst idea ever. What’s the point of even doing it if you already know how to solve all the puzzles?

Fear not! I have no intention of revealing anything truly meaningful. I will neither outline the plot nor detail the puzzles nor reveal the answers. However, I personally find knowing some of the framework of an experience to be helpful. Below you’ll find details regarding how Universal’s Great Movie Escape works, what general effects you might encounter, the sorts of environments you’ll find yourself in, etc.

I’ve labeled each section so you know what brand of almost-spoiler they contain. Feel free to confine your reading to the segments that best serve your needs. And if you have any questions, ask away!

Alrighty then – let’s rev this blog post up to 88 mph and start with…

WHAT IS UNIVERSAL’S GREAT MOVIE ESCAPE?

The below information is accurate as of November 19, 2024.

Universal’s Great Movie Escape is an escape room experience in Universal Studios Florida’s CityWalk, next to the Antojito’s restaurant. Hours vary, but it’s generally open most of the day, and times are booked in advance. Walkups can be accommodated subject to availability.

There are two ticket options: regular or private. With regular tickets, groups may be combined for a total of up to six people (my group was four and we didn’t have any tagalongs). You may also book a private group of up to eight.

Tickets start at $40 but may be more expensive depending on the day you want to go, the time you want to go (after 6pm is more expensive), and whether you buy in advance. We paid $60 each before tax as walkups.

The lobby is vaguely themed to a sort of ’20s speakeasy, and includes a small bar with specialty drinks you may visit before or after. You can bring your drinks with you as long as your cup has a lid.

WHAT ESCAPE ROOMS ARE AVAILABLE?

There are two escape room storylines you can follow:

Back to the Future: OUTATIME. From Universal: “Great Scott! Biff’s at it again. He’s stolen Doc Brown’s newest time travel device to sabotage the timeline for his gain. Follow Doc’s clues to find the prototype, track down Biff, and save the day before you’re out of time.”

Jurassic Park: Escape. From Universal: “Find yourself in a secret genetics lab on Isla Nublar and use your wits to solve a serious problem: An apex predator has broken free and is headed your way!”

Each experience runs about an hour.

It’s worth noting that Universal’s Great Movie Escape does not offer traditional escape rooms in two ways. (1) You will in fact be traveling through a series of rooms, (2) none of which you technically need to “escape.” There is no backtracking.

You’ll receive a set amount of time within each room, during which you’ll have the chance to solve as many of the room’s puzzles as you can. If you solve them all within the time limit, bam! The next door will open. If the time runs out, the door will open anyway, and you’ll need to leave that room’s puzzles unsolved.

WHAT’S THE GENERAL VIBE OF UNIVERSAL’S GREAT MOVIE ESCAPE?

Any escape room inherently comes with a certain amount of tension baked in. You’re on the clock, after all!

I can’t speak to the Jurassic Park version; if I’m reading the description correctly you’re being stalked by Indominus Rex. That can’t be relaxing.

For Back to the Future, there was still a sense of urgency, but the overall tone was very much in keeping with the movies themselves: goofy, cheesy, and retrofuturistic (not midcentury retrofuturism, alas). It’s not exactly a relaxing environment either, but neither do you ever feel like a fictional threat is hanging over your head. You help Doc Brown or you don’t; no one’s gonna die about it.

ANY SAFETY TIPS OR WARNINGS?

Before your escape room(s), you’ll view a safety video. This video is screened in a curtained off area, and if there’s a group concurrently doing the Jurassic Park series, they’ll watch it with you.

The video includes, among other things, a “help” signal, which you may deploy at any point during your experience to indicate to the staff manning the security cams that you need assistance. So if at any point you discover you need to stop, you can. When I was there the signal was crossing your arms in an X shape over your head, but pay attention to the video in case that changes.

The one caveat is that if you do stop, there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to start up again. That X might mark the spot where your escape room ends. Still, should circumstances require, you have a safety net.

There are also fog and flashing light warnings, both of which occurred during my time OUTATIME. I only recall the fog showing up when the door to the next room opened, but I may have missed something. I’ve indicated where I remember flashing lights later in this post, as well as any loud sounds. Like all memories, mine is imperfect, but you’ll at least be more prepared than not!

DOES UNIVERSAL’S GREAT MOVIE ESCAPE FEATURE LIVE ACTORS?

The briefing video notes that you will “meet characters.” It is with great relief that I can tell you that NO, these actors are not live in the room with you. All in-universe communications with characters are performed either by video or voice-over audio. There’s no real interaction in that you never converse, although they do speak as though they are communicating in real time.

One minor complaint I might levy is that occasionally you’ll be in the middle of working the puzzle and the guide character will unexpectedly pipe up with an unasked for clue that may or may not be relevant to what you’re doing.

Similarly, while there are no actors, there are live people watching you for reasons of safety, security, and assistance. In theory they can give you clues if you so request. Unfortunately, the live minders had a parallel habit of chiming in suddenly and without prompting. We found both the prerecorded and live human clues to be more jarring interruptions than anything else, but reasonable minds may disagree.

WHAT ROOMS ARE IN THE BACK TO THE FUTURE EDITION?

No photography or videography is allowed in the escape rooms for obvious reasons. Based on my memory cross checked with the internet, however, here are the rooms from OUTATIME. I’ve also included a few unspecific sensitivity warnings subject to my personal readings, in addition to indicators of room size. It may be of use to note that one of my party can get claustrophobic, and even with four people he didn’t seem to suffer any anxiety. As with all sensitivities, your mileage may vary.

• Doc Brown’s lab (/museum?) – colorful and brightly lit; a bit cramped

• A barn/blacksmithy (themed to Back to the Future II) – dimly lit; at least one sudden loud noise; the room is more spacious but there’s a lot of large set decoration

• An ’80s diner with booths – colorful and brightly lit; a bit cramped

• A ’50s band setup with musical instruments and audio equipment (prepping for the dance from the movie) – dimly lit; lots of large props

• A museum in the alternate Biff-led universe – brightly lit, although the tone is a bit unfriendly in a stupid, Biff-y way; a bit cramped

• Back to Doc Brown’s lab again I THINK? Or maybe the same museum in the regular, non-Biffed timeline – colorful and brightly lit; a bit cramped

• A clock tower (a la the climax of the first movie) – very dimly lit; the largest of the rooms or at least not as cluttered; flashing lights; loud noises

• Doc Brown’s lab again – colorful and brightly lit; a bit cramped (side note – I don’t think it’s actually the same room in these instances but rather just decorated the same, although I could of course be wrong)

ANY OTHER TIPS FOR UNIVERSAL’S GREAT MOVIE ESCAPE?

Naturally anyone who is neurodivergent will have different needs and sensitivities (hence the divergence!). Here are a few more things I personally would have found useful in retrospect:

Make sure you’ve recently seen the movie in question. I know – duh. Still, while you don’t necessarily need to know a film front-to-back to solve the puzzles (everything you need to know is technically in the room with you), having deep movie knowledge is the equivalent of a cheat code. We encountered at least one puzzle we didn’t have to work through all the way because one of our group members recognized we were spelling a word that featured in Back to the Future. Saves time!

Bring a pen and paper of some kind. I don’t know that you’re not allowed to have your phone out, but as taking pictures is banned I wouldn’t be surprised if you get yelled at should you pull yours out. There were a couple puzzles with spoken clues that could be tough to suss out, especially with multiple people all trying to get it at once. I would have liked to have the option to write things down.

Remember: once you start, there’s no stopping or pausing until you’re done. That’s the one way Universal’s Great Movie Escape might actually be more intense than a Horror Nights haunted house. A haunted house is over after five minutes or so, and you can take a break before the next one if you want. Not so with the escape room – it starts with urgency, remains urgent, and ends urgently. Prepare yourself accordingly.

OUTATIME requires that you pick up and carry a provided object from room to room. You need this object to proceed. Should that weird you out for any reason, make sure someone in the room is comfortable taking over the task.

All that being said, I betcha if you contacted Universal and explained your specific needs, they’d be open to providing accommodations. Well, if only to comply with ADA. If you need more time or decompression points between rooms, or can’t deal with strangers infiltrating your group, they might be willing to roll with it. Can’t hurt to ask.

WOULD I DO UNIVERSAL’S GREAT MOVIE ESCAPE AGAIN?

Aha! I tricked you! This was a “value is subjective” post the entire time!

Despite my misgivings, I would be open to trying Universal’s Great Movie Escape again. While $60 is a bit inflated, I think it’s reasonably fair for an hour’s worth of intricate, immersive entertainment. You may wish to look up more reviews, however; believe it or not, this one is comparatively quite favorable. I told you value was subjective!

To ME, an escape room tyro, the experience was commensurate with the cost at the $40 bottom of the price range. You’re paying not just for the multi-room series of escapes themselves, but for the security camera minders and the team members that brief you and set the rooms for you. Some of the clues are a bit obtuse, but that depends on how your mind works. Some reviews ding Universal’s Great Movie Escape for being dingy and scattered. Through my eyes, the rooms were well done… I just wasn’t ready for it in the moment. Perhaps Universal has made improvements recently.

That being said, it doesn’t strike me as a repeatable experience. According to the team member who greeted us as we exited the last room, there are sixteen puzzles total in OUTATIME. She said the average group solves six to ten. We solved twelve. (This is not me bragging, by the way; I spent about as much time zoned out as I did being constructive. I have smart friends, though!)

One missed puzzle we technically “solved,” but the mechanism was fiddly and we didn’t get it aligned in time. Circling back for three more puzzles hardly seems worth it. Even if you missed more, I’m not sure the story was involved enough to encourage a redo. Maybe if I were joining newbies, but I would feel kinda weird actively participating when I already know over half the answers.

Luckily there’s still the Jurassic Park path to investigate, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Universal has plans to rotate in new movies as demand plays out. Now that I have a solid handle on how the whole thing works, I feel much more comfortable trying again. And having read this blog post, I hope you do too.

IN CONCLUSION

OUTATIME ends, as so many attractions do, with a photo op. I think my body language says it all. Nice lightning bolt placement, no? (BTW, it was Halloween and I was Zero!)

YOU don’t need to worry, though. You’ve read this post. You’re good to go. Now ride forth and solve some puzzles!

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