6 Common Misconceptions About Escape Rooms
The escape games industry has grown rapidly over the past decade, and their popularity is continuing to increase. Despite more and more people having played escape games—or at least becoming familiar with the concept, there are still a lot of myths and misconceptions about them. We want to make sure that you have the most fun possible when you come play, but there are some beliefs circulating that make escape rooms seem intimidating or impossible. We’re here to set the record straight and bust some of those escape game myths!
We listen to our customers every day and what they have to say can sometimes surprise us.
1. Escape ‘Rooms’
While the very first escape games were comprised of a single room—and indeed many still are today—they have evolved, and, like our themes, part of that evolution has been more elaborate set designs, including multiple spaces within the themes. We refer to ours as escape ‘games’ or ‘theme’ to differentiate from those that are comprised of a single room, because ours have multiple spaces. How many? Well, discovering that is part of the fun of playing one of our games!
2. You’re dumb if you fail
Time and time again we hear people telling us how dumb they feel because they didn’t complete the game—but it’s just not true! In fact, we hear that so often that it has made our Top 10 Things We’ve Heard in Our Escape Games. Escape rooms are designed to be challenging! Their very nature is that not every group will be able to escape. Like most things in life, escape rooms are a learned skill. And just like learning anything else, there is a curve, and practice makes perfect. The more escape rooms you play, the easier they’ll get. Those people who crush escape rooms and set all-time records more often than not are enthusiasts who’ve played countless games! So, you should never feel disheartened for not escaping; just keep practicing, you’ll get better—and who knows, maybe you too will wind up on our leaderboard for setting a record!
3. All escape room facilities are connected
We are not an association, or an affiliation. There is no head office, no CEO, and no union. Escape room facilities are mostly small businesses owned and operated by people who are passionate about puzzling. Of course, there are a couple of games that are owned by larger parent companies, and there are certainly some franchises, but most escape room companies are small. That means that every facility is different, and while we all share a common industry, we all have our own unique strengths and our own take on what an escape room should be, and how one should be operated. At Quest Reality Games, out vision is to be the BEST escape game operator on Vancouver Island. We take great price in providing an outstanding guest experience, and we take great pains in paying attention to even the smallest detail—all to ensure our guests have a great time!
4. The staff are watching you play and laughing at you
Most, if not all, escape room facilities have security cameras in their games. Customers often ask if we spent the hour laughing at them. Believe it or not, our Game Masters form a bond with players while you’re in the room. While we do enjoy some of the wacky things our guests do, we’re not in the control room laughing at you, we’re actually rooting for you! From when you first enter the theme and everyone on your team is wandering around trying to orient yourselves and find that first clue, to when time is running out and you’re on the brink of solving that last puzzle, our Game Masters are on the edge of their seats cheering you on!
5. A puzzle can be unsolvable
While this is technically true, that would be awfully poor game design! Every puzzle is solvable, the trick is to find and collect all relevant information—AND to figure out the logic behind it, before trying to solve it. At Quest Reality Games, we don’t believe in using red herrings, or in making puzzles impossible to solve. We do believe in making our set designs as immersive as possible, so before you waste your hour searching every line of text in a book or wondering what the meaning is of some text on a manufacturer’s tag on one of our props, check in with your Game Master to ensure you’re on the right track. One thing’s for sure—all the information you need to successfully complete any of our theme is contained within the game, you don’t need any other resources with you, and no need to phone a friend!
6. All escape rooms are created equal
There are literally thousands of escape games operating throughout the world, with thousands more escape rooms and themes. Different companies even have different philosophies about how to design and operate their games. Naturally, with so many people generating so many ideas and building so many different ways, escape rooms differ wildly from one another. Even games that may seem similar because of a common theme—a prison or a pyramid, for example, are usually completely different from one facility to another.
At Quest Reality Games, we’ve designed the next generation of escape games by integrating technology into our themes, and creating an experience where the game responds to your actions. We have doors that open automatically, we have puzzles that react to you in real time—we want every element of the game to feel fully integrated into the setting and the story.
Now that you know the truth about escape games. Come see if you’ve got what it takes to escape our premium, second-generation escape games. Be prepared to test your problem-solving abilities in many ways—our themes will challenge your memory, powers of observation, logic, deductive reasoning, and code-breaking abilities. Think you’ve got what it takes to free yourself from the next generation of escape games? Book now!