Review: Phantom Peak - JONACON London 2025

I was lucky enough to score playtest tickets for the new season of Phantom Peak - the open world, interactive and immersive puzzle experience in London. I'd never been before and generally have a mixed reaction to these sorts of immersive shows. I loved Doctor Who - Time Fracture but found 1984 to be underwhelming.

Phantom Peak takes you inside an Old West mining town in a weird steam-punk alternate reality. The corrupt mayor is on the prowl, demons stalk the land, love is in the air, but can you uncover the secrets of town before it is too late!??!!

It was exceptional!

With a large cast of incredibly talented improvisers, a delightfully daft plot, and lushly decorated sets, I was tempted to just sit back and drink in the atmosphere. But there's no time to lounge around; there are puzzles to solve!

Firstly, I have to acknowledge that the playtest was nearly complete. Several of the videos were replaced with text and few of the puzzle elements had some rough edges - but that's what this sort of preview is for. We were encouraged to give feedback to the writers (nestled in a corner) and to let them know what things were confusing.

There are 10 different "trails" to complete, we just-about managed to do 4 of them. Even if you were an expert player, I think you'd struggle to do more than five, so there is some re-playability if you want to come again. The individual elements of the trails all have the same basic template:

• Speak to a person, get a clue.
• Go to a different location, use that clue, get another task.
• Watch a video or listen to some audio, get another clue.
• Scurry across to someone else and give them information.
• Interact with some of the gloriously tactile machines to get the next location.

And repeat. In truth, they aren't puzzles as much as tasks. You won't be deciphering anagrams, opening combination locks, or piecing together different things. But it is a lot of fun and, across our tasks, I think we managed to visit most rooms in the space. Every completed trail earns you tokens which you can use to help your colour-coordinated team win.

You'll need a fully charged phone as there's a useful interactive website to track your progress and enter the clues you've found. If you get stuck, there is a "help" button - or you can ask the cast who all are game and willing to help you out with tips, tricks, and witty asides (but do not ask about the pet rocks). It's all very low-stakes; you aren't going to be trapped or ostracised if you can't complete something. There's no rush, play at your own pace.

That said, Liz and I enjoyed running about between the various rooms determined to experience as much as possible. As we did, we caught sight of what the other players were doing. Everyone was happy to chat about what they were experiencing and eagerly exchanged tips & tricks. About half the testers had played a previous season, and were really enthusiastic about the experience. I'm sure there were plenty of inside jokes, but I didn't feel like I missed anything by being a newbie. There were plenty of kids and teenagers - who all seemed to be having a whale of a time. None of the storylines are too raucous or salacious for younger minds.

There were a few niggles which probably weren't the fault of the playtest. Some of the rooms can get a little crowded so you may have to watch someone else solve a different quest before you get on to your next step. The crowding can also make it difficult to hear some of the audio-only clues - although videos are subtitled. There are various heaters around the indoor parts of the experience, but it is pretty cold - so bring a coat. I suspect the outside parts work better in summer.

The "team" element didn't really work for me. We were split into groups with different wrist-band colours. Nominally, that put us in different worker groups - but that didn't have any effect on the story or trails. The tokens we won were tallied up by team - but the piles looked pretty equal to me. It might have been interesting if there was a distinct ending at the closing ceremony depending on which team was victorious. Or perhaps if there were some team-specific storyline elements. As it was, it felt a little tacked-on.

Would I go again? Adult ticket prices are between £40 & £48 each - which is excellent value for money considering it is a four-hour experience. Certainly better value for money than TaskMaster Live. There are plenty of toilets, a not-too-extortionate bar, and snacks to buy. There's a large outside section with a separate bar (which was closed for the test).

You can spend the four hours mooching about, drinking cocktails, playing at the arcade, and chatting to townsfolk. Or you can whizz about exploring graveyards, conducting matchmaking, and punching codes into terminals.

It is a lot of fun and cleverly constructed. There are plot-strands which we only caught glimpses of, but didn't get a chance to explore. There are a delightful amount of pop-culture references (some of which I had explained to me by an over-excited teenager) and a healthy amount of satire.

So, yeah, I can see us going back - although perhaps when it is a little bit warmer!

Photos and (Minor) Spoilers

One quest had me wearing these nifty glasses. I was rather sad when I had to give them up.

There are seemingly hundreds of little details about the world scattered throughout the venue.

There was a minor bit of confusion during one trail where we were asked information about "Terrence" which, coincidentally, is my name. Luckily, we cleared it up by establishing that I am not a platypus.

Some quests are slightly spooky - but most are a bit silly.

The overall texture of the world is lush.