Review: Ghost Stories, Brain Game Escape Room, Los Angeles (San Pedro)
Fun Factor 8
Brain Games Escape Room
757 W Ninth St, San Pedro, CA 90731
Date we played: April 20, 2025
Booking size 2 to 6; We recommend 3 to 6
Game time: 60 minutes
Objective: Climb up the flight of stairs to the attic, past the danger tape. Help as many ghosts as possible find the missing artifact that will allow their spirit to move on.
Horror Theme: No. At most slightly spooky, but with a humorous take.
Difficulty: Intermediate
We had a lot of fun playing Ghost Stories at Brain Games Escape Room and we highly recommend it! We gave this room a Fun Factor of 8 - that rating is based on the abundance and variety of puzzles, enjoyable use of the set and props and the overall immersion of the story.
One part of the experience involves a crawl-through passage—at least one team member will need to navigate it to progress. The rest of the group can choose to follow or stay behind, depending on comfort level. We appreciated that this segment was optional for most players and didn’t exclude anyone from the puzzle-solving experience.
🛑 Heads-up:
One player will need to crawl through a passage to complete the room. The path is short and manageable, and alternatives are provided for those who prefer not to participate
Since the room is called Ghost Stories it naturally raises the concern that it might be scary - this is not a scary room and there are no horror elements. There are a couple of slightly spooky moments - particulary at the start. The story is that you will be investigating a potentially haunted attic - and indeed the adventure starts with the team climbing a dark staircase to open a door criss-crossed with danger tape.
Duke will be your guide for this room.
This talking ventriloquist doll will be your friendly guide - providing both content and hints if necessary. Very fun and family friendly - not at all spooky.
If you've read our reviews, you know we’re particular about lighting—specifically, when poor lighting gets in the way of the gameplay. Dimly lit environments can absolutely work when they match the story (like exploring a potentially haunted attic), but only if the experience stays playable. Brain Game Escape Room gets this balance right. The room starts dark for thematic effect, but each player is given a reliable flashlight almost from the start—no hunting around in the dark just to get started. It’s a small detail, but one that really shows they’ve considered both immersion and player experience. Bottom line on lighting is that found it appropriate for the scenario and we didn’t find it distracting.
Photo credit: danielcrowleyart.com
This room was previously known as “Twenty Ghosts” - Brain Games Escape Room renamed it Ghost Stories…but it is the same room. Twenty Ghosts debuted as the 207th top escape room in the World according to the 2024 TERPECA survey! A very impressive achievement, solidifying its place as a must-play room if you are in this area.
There’s a lot to do in this room. The scenario revolves around helping each ghost find the artifact that will allow them to move on. There are as many as 20 ghosts that you need to help - several require multi-layer puzzling, others are more direct. Many of the puzzles are non-linear, meaning players can split up and work in parallel, but a few moments are designed to bring the whole group together. We appreciated that the in-room guide—Duke, a talking ventriloquist doll—gave us a nudge when it was best to regroup. Our team of four was fully engaged from start to finish. The room accommodates up to six players, which seems about right for the uppoer limit for this space and the puzzle flow. One puzzle in particular clearly benefits from having four or more players.
Puzzle difficulty is mostly intermediate, but the sheer volume of content makes it a heavier lift for smaller teams. We understand Brain Game can scale the experience by skipping certain puzzles, if necessary, for smaller groups, which is a thoughtful touch so that they can play the end game. We were glad our group of four got to see everything, and especially appreciated the variety of puzzle types.
Photo credit: danielcrowleyart.com
One of the most memorable aspects? Two puzzles we hadn’t seen before—a rare treat after hundreds of rooms. Both were clever, satisfying, and fun to solve.
Brain Games Escape Room is located in San Pedro, California, which is in Los Angeles County. It is south of downtown LA and not far from Long Beach. The facility is a stand-alone facility at 757 W Ninth St, San Pedro, CA 90731, and it has several parking spaces…which is always a plus in LA!
We highly recommend you play Ghost Stories at Brain Games Escape Room - we also highly recommend Treasure Island, another room at this location! if you visit, please let them know you saw a review at Fun Factor Escape Room Reviews! Also, please let us know what you think of the room - and HAVE FUN!
