# Has anybody ever done a real life ‘Escape the Room’ game?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [August 1, 2016, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474 "2016-08-01T15:30:47Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Memnon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Memnon)
#### Post date: [August 1, 2016, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/1 "2016-08-01T15:30:47Z")
Next weekend some friends and I are going to do an Escape the Room challenge. I was just wondering if anyone else here had done one and, if so, what it was like? Also, what kind of puzzles/obstacles do you have to do?
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### Author:  [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)
#### Post date: [August 1, 2016, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/2 "2016-08-01T16:46:07Z")
Yes, there are a few around the DC area. It’s really fun, I thought! Puzzles were varied, from cryptography, logic puzzles, general figure it out type stuff. Trying to go again but it takes planning to make a reservation, sometimes over a week out because they get booked up.
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### Author:  [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)
#### Post date: [August 1, 2016, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/3 "2016-08-01T17:51:24Z")
Yes! They’re super fun.
There’s an active thread [over in the Game Room forum on this topic](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=797162).
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### Author:  [@Disheavel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disheavel)
#### Post date: [August 1, 2016, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/4 "2016-08-01T18:04:01Z")
We did one as a company team building day last year. I would highly recommend it. There were probably 24 puzzles to solve altogether, but often the challenge is recognizing which puzzle pieces go together. Some of the first puzzle “pieces” we found weren’t used until literally the final puzzle. So communicating what people find and are doing is more important than doing the puzzles to some extent. We are looking to do the same thing again this year.
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### Author:  [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)
#### Post date: [August 1, 2016, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/5 "2016-08-01T18:09:12Z")
Yep! We did one with some friends in San Diego last year, and we all enjoyed it so much we went back and did the other two they had at the same place the same weekend.
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### Author:  [@Valgard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valgard)
#### Post date: [August 1, 2016, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/6 "2016-08-01T18:11:24Z")
I haven’t done one myself but I have fond memories of a BBC show from the late 70s/early 80s called “The Adventure Game”. They set up puzzle rooms, showed how to do them and then brought in a group of guest stars who had to figure it out. They would sometimes find different solutions than the hosts had in mind (I remember one puzzle involved getting a ping pong ball out of a narrow tube, it was only reachable if people stood in different locations around the room which caused a fan to blow air into the tube and raise the ball to the top…one of the contestants had long thin arms and she was able to reach right in and pluck it out).
You can find some of the episodes on youtube if you want to see examples of the puzzles.
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### Author:  [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)
#### Post date: [August 1, 2016, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/7 "2016-08-01T19:44:57Z")
Yep, my group did one as a team-building exercise, and we had a blast.
StG
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### Author:  [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)
#### Post date: [August 1, 2016, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/8 "2016-08-01T20:32:31Z")
Yes, just 2 weeks ago. Lots of fun, but there’s a huge advantage having multiple people to solve the problems.
We solved it with 42 seconds to spare.
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### Author:  [@Memnon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Memnon)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2016, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/9 "2016-09-03T14:08:01Z")
Did this the other day. Great fun! Me and my friends escaped with five minutes remaining. We’re definitely going to do another one.
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### Author:  [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2016, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/10 "2016-09-03T18:34:48Z")
My wife did one Thursday, but they brought the escape the room stuff to her work.
She said it was neat, but would have been better if they went to a place that had it all setup already.
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### Author:  [@Memnon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Memnon)
#### Post date: [September 3, 2016, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/11 "2016-09-03T19:57:41Z")
I would absolutely _love_ to set up one of my own. I love making puzzles. I reckon I could come up with some terrific rooms if I had the money.
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### Author:  [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/12 "2016-09-04T02:15:03Z")
My teenage son, who’s pretty smart, has done it twice - two different scenarios - and each time his group couldn’t solve the mystery even after getting hints from staff. But they had fun.
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### Author:  [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/13 "2016-09-04T02:52:41Z")
Is this a thing where they don’t let you out until you solve the puzzles, or the puzzles themselves are the means to getting out? Like you have to have a key to the door, but the key is locked in a box, etc., etc.
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### Author:  [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/14 "2016-09-04T03:09:38Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#):
>
> Is this a thing where they don’t let you out until you solve the puzzles, or the puzzles themselves are the means to getting out? Like you have to have a key to the door, but the key is locked in a box, etc., etc.
Yes. They are absolutely the best. I would endlessly recommend them yo others.
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### Author:  [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/15 "2016-09-04T03:53:06Z")
This sounds like an awesome thing to do when my stepson comes to visit!
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### Author:  [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/16 "2016-09-04T11:50:14Z")
I’ve done it twice, from two different companies.
The first one we ‘won’ with about a minute to spare. The scenario was a library from which we had to escape. It was extra cool because the last clue resulted in the exposure of a lever, that, when pulled, swung open a bookcase revealing the escape route. Very nice touch.
In our second outing we were in a prison. The room was divided by iron bars with a padlocked door. One side of the room was the warden’s office, the other was a cell. Our group was separated, half in the office, half in the cell. The folks in the cell were handcuffed to the wall. Task one was to release the handcuffs, task two was to open the dividing cell door.
We failed at escaping this one. I liked the set-up, but I found the clues were way too difficult (the success rate for this room is around 5%). Still had fun, though.
mmm
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### Author:  [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/17 "2016-09-04T13:01:53Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> I’ve done it twice, from two different companies.
I did a pirate-themed one last month where the final riddle was to play a precise sequence of notes on an upright piano - at which point the entire piano slid over to reveal the exit. It was \*tres \*cool (and very difficult).
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### Author:  [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/18 "2016-09-04T15:13:46Z")
I’m trying to plan one with in the next couple weeks with some friends, but I can’t get people to commit to a specific time. Will report back if and when it happens.
> [@Alessan](#):
>
> I did a pirate-themed one last month where the final riddle was to play a precise sequence of notes on an upright piano - at which point the entire piano slid over to reveal the exit. It was \*tres \*cool (and very difficult).
Pirates had access to pianos? I didn’t know that was a thing.
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### Author:  [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/19 "2016-09-04T17:22:02Z")
Blackbeard, they say, was particularly fond of Chopin’s etudes.
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### Author:  [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2016, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-anybody-ever-done-a-real-life-escape-the-room-game/761474/20 "2016-09-04T19:13:09Z")
> [@faithfool](#):
>
> Yes. They are absolutely the best. I would endlessly recommend them yo others.
You quoted my post, but I don’t think you were trying to respond to it.
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