A Technology Market We Didn’t Expect to Boom This Year: Escape Rooms

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A Technology Market We Didn’t Expect to Boom This Year: Escape Rooms

When I wrote the headline, I probably should have put “re-boom,” since escape rooms were already pretty popular before COVID-19. We were writing about them becoming a viable market for integrators back in 2017 — and we sadly expected them to disappear for a while during the pandemic. But that’s not exactly what happened.

True, as of the June 15th, over 175 escape room venues have been permanently shutdown and over 700 of them remain indecisive over the next course of action, according to escaperoom.com.

“But unlike most of the entertainment businesses, Escape Rooms have shown an unmatched level of resilience and creativity and have come up with brilliant ways to help people breakout of their monotonous routines, while ensuring their safety and health are never compromised,” says a release from that website.

What has this highly-experiential market done to stay afloat?

The straightforward, online experience

In these sessions, players use streaming services such as Zoom or Google Meet, watching an actor inside a room and instructing them to engage with the environment. Essentially, this feels like a live-action RPG video game.

As of June 15th, 52 brands in the US and over 150 across the world are offering these experiences and more plan to jump on the bandwagon, according to the website.

“Online escape room experiences have provided some amazing experiences almost on par with the on-site escape games. This was an unexpected but pleasant surprise and we are seeing a slow but steady adoption of the online adventure format. Escape room enthusiasts are no longer confined to the selection of games in their locality and seek out escape experiences located anywhere,” Says Gopal Soora, President, escaperoom.com.

Other solutions that integrators may be able to help with:

Web-Based/app-based Escape Room Games: Brands provide applications which allow the players to interact with various set pieces in the virtual world as they move about in the game and solve the mystery. It’s a great escape room alternative for the people who love video games. Amazon Prime Video recently collaborated with The Escape Game to create a digital puzzle game based off of their famous series Hanna.

Onscreen Puzzle Prints: Escape Room brands share various kinds of puzzles on the screen and the players need to solve them within a specific time based on the guidelines provided by the escape room brand. These are single player games but could include complex challenges to be solved.

Puzzle Kits / Portable Escape Rooms: This escape game alternative is similar to the rent a movie experience. Players can rent a puzzle kit to play. After the game is played, the puzzle kit is returned to the escape room company. It’s a great way to enjoy different kinds of puzzles with friends and family.

 

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