After a marathon full length escape room Annekoos and Aled join Jon in the vaults of The Counting House. We pick over the bones of The Heist, delve into the affect that the medium of delivery has on the difficulty of different puzzles, reflect on the inherently self defeating nature of late stage capitalism and then talk about Anne of Green Gables.

Standard night out in your thirties, basically.

The first number two we've ever done.

Yep. Leaving that there. Couldn't be happier with it. I can feel your judgement, I can sense your grimace on the winds that whip around the earth and bind our experience together. And on that wind I can taste your dissappointment. And it tastes good.

SURPRISE, you're doing a real escape room, a full length one, that is real. Or was real. Once. In my mind. In your mind. Well, in my mind first, then in your mind. Minds are great aren't they. Aren't they? Do you care? Do you mind? I don't mind. Don't mind me. Mind out there, I'm doing my mindfulness.

Deep breath now. Mind the gap.

I may have gotten carried away with today's sponsor.

Whoo boy do we go on some tangents with this one. From Cockneys to Wombles to Batman and back. And for those of you not from the UK - this is the wombles.

Ben and Dom were stellar pub friends, keeping the banter flowing when my internet connection went down ... several times.

Make sure you comment or send us a message with your answer to our Cockney rhyming slang challenge!

Here are some links to the cool things we talk about during the episode:

• The Men That Will Not Be Blamed For Nothing - Margate Fhtagn

Join Jon, Jame and Ben as they take a sip of Margate Effluent at this underwater boozer. Topics include Why The Hard Things Are Easy and vice versa, the difficulties of puzzle design that doesn't involve numbers and why the "defeat" ending is a dying art. 

Also, Jon gives us a One time only performance of his hit parody "Unter Der Sea".

Enjoy!

Producer Ben marks his return to the show with this voyage beneath the waves. He joins Jamie as they patiently endure Jon's impersonation of a series of Germanic Mermen. Now. How does a Puffer Fish work? Do you know?

Special thanks this episode go to the following FreeSound.org users:

cAPSLOCK7 -  00001NoisevaultAlleyWater.

kernowrules -  Cornish River Estuary

thatjeffcarter -underwater loop 120bpm

• 00:45 - Who's drinking what?

• Ella Minnow Pea - Mark Dunn (book)

Well well well. After 95 years, the OG Mickey Mouse is in the public domain. So of course we see just how close we can get to bringing the fury of the House of Mouse upon us as quickly as possible. What a way to start 2024.

Anna and Bailey were excellent solvers, and it was great to have them back on the pod after so many months.

If you want to support the show, don't forget to check our Patreon where you can:

• Get early access to episodes

Game design by Jamie Gibbs (@armchairescapist)

Let's take a look at some of ours and your favourite episodes and moments from 2023, and I say a few thank yous.

Thank you all so much for your continued support!

We'll be taking a 1-week break for the start of 2024, so you'll get your next episode on Jan 21st.

Here's to 2024 and to more escaping!

Episodes featured in this roundup:

• Britain's Finest Knob Tugging Hour