Escape rooms are exciting. Afterall, how often do you get the chance to really test your critical-thinking skills? And you’ll really test those skills, because escape rooms are not made to be easy.
Many groups don’t end up breaking out—not because they’re inadequate, but because lots of people just go in without a strategy to help them along. It’s all about solving puzzles and figuring out what to look for. If you can do that with some of these escape room strategies from LockBusters here, you might just be able to escape afterall!
Escape Room Strategies You Need To Know
Your Team
Go into your escape room challenge with a strategy in mind—and with a team that you actually get along with. Sure, you can do these types of rooms with random people if the room allows that, but you’ll want to work with a team that you already know how to communicate with. Knowing the people allows you to do better, and means that you will also avoid working with people who are maybe distracting. For example, you don’t want to join a public room with people who have brought their kids to play for a family fun session.
Keep in mind that this may not always be possible in public rooms, which tend to be less expensive but which allow more people to join. If you want to restrict your party, you’ll either need to book your public room at an odd time or try booking a private room.
Choosing Your Members
Now it comes time to choose the people you will go along with. You can pick people that you generally get along with, but also keep in mind that the number of people matters to. Some rooms can hold up to 8 or 10 people, but you may want to restrict yourself to 4 or 6 people if a smaller group will be more beneficial to your strategy.
Remember that too many people—like 8 people in a tiny room—might be simply too frantic. Not to mention that you’ll all be crammed together, you’ll all have to be on the same page all the time, and some people might end up bored without enough things to work on.
Don’t try on your own or with just one other person though. Those puzzles can be difficult, and without more people, you may have a hard time solving them. You can still join with only one other person if you’re joining a public room, but that means that you won’t know your other teammates.
Be On Time
This seems obvious, but show up to your escape room on time. These rooms take a lot of thought, so you don’t want to be using up space in your brain being worried about being late or having to run out of the house in a rush. Make your reservation beforehand, and show up 10 or 15 minutes before you’re set to begin.
Know the Rules
Different rooms have different rules, which are important to follow. For example, there might be certain items that you shouldn’t touch or else you will disrupt the puzzle and make it impossible to solve. In these scenarios, the game master may have to enter the room to fix your mistake, which leads to lost time and momentum. Know what you can and cannot do, and how many clues you get throughout the game too, along with where these clues are given.
Work Together
This is another obvious one, but work together on the challenges. As much as you might want to solve a tough puzzle on your own, ask one of your team members for help if you’re having trouble. The puzzle will get solved and you’ll have everyone doing something so that no one gets bored. It might even be a good idea to solve puzzles with a buddy provided that you have enough people in your group.
With all this working together, remember to listen to your teammates. You can’t solve everything on your own, and there might be someone else who has an idea that you wouldn’t have thought of. Listen to each other and try out new ideas.
Listen when people yell out too, and yell out yourself! When you discover something, you need to be a little loud about it so that everyone stays on the same page and that separate clues can be put together. If you have a key, for instance, you want everyone to know that you’re on the lookout for a lock.
Embrace the Situation
Go in knowing that you might not find the solution right away and that it’s okay if you’re struggling with a clue or frustrated with a hint. If you’re with a group of people that you don’t know, take a second to make introductions and become acquainted with each other. This will help you work together and have fun along the way.
Don’t forget the time either. You’d be surprised at how quickly an hour passes when you’re all working together to solve the puzzles. Keep an eye on the time so that you don’t struggle with taking up too much time on one task.
Don’t Congregate
Make sure that your entire group spreads out. Instead of clumping together in one place, spread out so that no two people are working on the same thing. Switch people around if they’re having a hard time with a puzzle or if you need some fresh eyes. This way, no puzzle will be forgotten and everyone can be working on something.
Conclusion
You can escape from an escape room—that’s the point! It helps if you have a strategy in mind before you go though, and if you bring the right people along with you. With these little tips in mind, it’s possible to get through your escape room and have fun while you’re doing it!