Designing Escapes: The Art of Captivating Players!

The Escape Room concept's flexibility allows almost anyone to set it up without a substantial budget or designated area. In fact, you don't even need a physical space!

With their remarkable flexibility, setting up your own thrilling room is achievable for anyone. You won't need a mountain of money or even a dedicated space – the possibilities are endless! 

If these requirements are met, you can commence your design journey. You'll have the opportunity to impress your friends, family, and colleagues at your next meeting!

Here's everything you need to consider...

Rationalize and rationalize again

Regardless of whether you're building garden furniture or remodeling your kitchen, the DIY process always begins the same way. You need to sketch out the steps before doing anything else.

Exercise caution to avoid losing yourself in the narrative's rabbit hole. Adding unnecessary steps and tangents creates a labyrinth that often ends up in a complete overhaul when things inevitably get messy.

It's your first attempt; so keep it simple and clear!

Your target audience?

What's the first word that comes to mind when you think of Escape Rooms? Complex? Complicated? Confusing?

Since Escape Rooms are intentionally challenging, it's only natural to assume that crafting one must be difficult. The truth is, the level of difficulty depends entirely on you and, most importantly, who your audience could be.

Family, friends, or colleagues? No one knows your potential audience better than you - with all their abilities and limitations. Don't create a frightening and complex crime narrative for your five-year-old niece and her friends!

Puzzle selection

Suppose you're not interested in breaking the bank. Your home has lots of cheap tools, devices, and gadgets to tackle those challenging Escape Room puzzles.

Start by crafting coded messages with invisible ink. Next, employ a variety of locks, be it keys or combinations. Don't forget to hide intriguing objects and utilize patterns. Enhance your escape room with intriguing arithmetic challenges and wrap up the excitement with captivating card games.

All of these are common Escape Room puzzles that you can incorporate into your narrative with just a penny! Just remember to integrate them into your theme, and you're good to go!

Test and test again!

Great job! You've made an Escape Room with a story, puzzles, and a big finish. Now, play the game from start to end to test it.

During the testing phase, you might discover certain puzzles that don't function as smoothly as you'd like. No worries though, as recasting will address this. That's precisely why the testing phase is necessary.

Discovering any issues now is far preferable to facing them in front of an audience!