An escape room is where you and some friends are placed in a room, and you one hour to solve puzzles and locks to get out. Escape rooms are meant to be fun, but everyone has a competitor nature to them. Therefore, you’re going to want to know some secrets to get out of that room. Throughout this blog, we will discuss four tips that will help you dominate any escape room.
1. Communication
Source: Crazy Cat Escape Room
Communication is massive in an escape room. You must be able to talk to your team and let everyone know what you found. That way, everyone involved is working towards that common goal. Communication also helps your group get started in the right direction. With that said, if you go in and you see a lock that takes a key, tell everyone. Yell out that there is a lock over here that needs a key. If your group is made aware, then it gets everybody working together.
At the beginning of a game, it can stall out if people don’t know where to start. Therefore, communication provides a good starting point for people figuring out what to look for next. In escape rooms, a lot of people will find something, realize it’s essential, but then put it back where they see it and not tell the rest of the group. There are also times where a person will find a clue and hold onto it while they are walking around and don’t tell anyone what they saw.
Lastly, as far as going through the room, you don’t want to be scared of looking through the room. The room is there for you to interact with it, so be sure to use it as a resource to find clues. That is what an escape game is supposed to be. It’s meant to be immersive and interactive. So, don’t be afraid to pick stuff up and look around. Therefore, when you find things that seem important, group those items together in the same spot. If you do this, you will be able to see the bigger picture, and that helps your team figure things out a lot faster.
2. Think Simple
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It’s essential to keep reminding yourself that the average person should be able to complete this room in just under an hour. In a great escape room, you won’t need any special knowledge besides what you can find in the room. People tend to overthink and lead themselves down a rabbit hole. For example, in one room, you might find a travel log of a robber, and he went to Washington down to Mexico City, and then up to Toronto.
At first, you might try and look at the inner cities he may travel on, and that could be the code. You could also try and unscramble the names of the countries. However, if you keep it simple, you would realize that his path formed a V shape, which would be the first letter in a combination lock you were trying to unlock. If you can’t come to a solution to a puzzle, the chances are all the necessary clues haven’t been revealed to you yet, so move on and come back to it later.
3. Searching
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The number one thing you should do when you get inside the room is for everyone to split up and start looking for clues, objects, and items. Looking under tables and rugs are a good idea since some escape rooms with have codes underneath these places. Other spots may be in hallowed books, pockets of clothing, or behind a door in the room. A typical first-time mistake some people make is to look in places you shouldn’t. For instance, you’re not going to find a clue by taking apart a light on the ceiling or destroying a power outlet.
Another mistake people make is to see clues in things that aren’t. For example, if the bottom of a chair has letters and numbers from the factory, but they aren’t part of the room design, then that chair won’t have a clue since it doesn’t go with the room’s theme. Remember, the clues and key items should be fairly obvious in a well-designed room. The more escape rooms you do, the more of a sense you will get for what is and what isn’t a good clue.
4. Organize your Stuff
Source: The Krakow Post
As you’re looking through the place put all the clues and items into one location. So, if you found three similar cups with numbers on the bottom, group them. As you do this, other clues begin to emerge, and it’s easier to tell what you’re missing. Don’t let people walk around with items randomly in their hands that other people don’t know about. You can ask before you start, but most rooms have a policy where you use one clue or one lock only one time.
Therefore, if you have already used a clue or item, make a junk pile and be sure to leave any sort of key in the lock where it was used. This helps eliminate wasting of time when a team member is working on something and then realize it has already been solved and used.
In Summary
It’s important to remember that escape rooms are meant to be fun, so keep your morale high. Far too often, people will start to get stressed and forget to enjoy themselves. With that said, when your frustrations begin to build and you’re stuck in a room for an hour, it’s natural to lose sight of why you wanted to be there in the first place. So, through the game, make sure to keep encouraging yourself and friends when someone solves a puzzle or finds a clue. Reinforcing positivity will help the game go by a lot smoother and more enjoyable. Then, if you’re stuck on a puzzle, don’t be afraid to ask for help from your game master. Hopefully, these three tips will make your next escape room experience one that you and your friends will never forget. For a great example of one of the best escape rooms, visit LockBusters today.
