3 Ways To Experience an Escape Room Without Leaving Your Home

First appearing at physical locations around 2010, Escape Rooms have maintained their popularity for over a decade now. The combination of a group activity, puzzle-solving, the stress of a time limit and perceived danger make these games hard to resist. There are some drawbacks, however. First, If you are a big fan this can quickly become an expensive hobby as escape rooms are not cheap. Second, there are restrictions on the number of players in any given scenario; this might result in your group of friends having to be split up or, if your group is small, having to share an hour-long lockdown with strangers. Third, due to the expense of creating new physical escape rooms, owners of these businesses do not change their scenarios very often, so it can be difficult to find new challenges when you have exhausted facilities options. So what is an escape room enthusiast to do? Here are 3 ways you can enjoy escape rooms, without ever leaving your house.

Play Online

If you want to stay in the comfort of your own home, or would like to share the game with distant friends or relatives, you may want to look into playing an online escape room. Through video conferencing, you can share the fun of an escape game with anyone you'd like, regardless of where they are located. You'll get all the excitement of the mystery, puzzles, and time limits that you would in a physical location for a significantly lower cost. You also won't be forced to share the experience with people you don't know as your online adventure will be exclusive to your group.

Go Old School

You can't get more basic on game night than pulling out a board game. There are tons of different escape-style games available. Some games are very basic in design using common items like a deck of regular playing cards. Other games are much more elaborate and might include a variety of props and even scenery to make the experience more immersive. There are several games on the market right now that include a dedicated app that adds a level of complexity to the game and the illusion of physical expansiveness.

Build Your Own

If you are creative and handy with tools, you might want to consider a do-it-yourself option. This would be a big project, but building an escape game might just be more fun than playing one.

You would need to start by creating your own story-line. Your choices are wide open from stories based on classic literature, mystery, fantasy or even actual history. You'll need to be good at puzzles because once you have your story, it'll be up to you to make up the mysteries and secret codes that the players will need to solve in order to escape.

You'll have to scour your basement or garage for interesting items that can be transformed into props for your game; things like old books that might contain mysterious clues, or old luggage that can hide important hints. You'll definitely want to pick up a collection of locks with keys or combination locks at your local hardware store.

You can set your game up in your living room, or you can take it outside if you want a more expansive setting. You can even consider renovating an old garage or large garden shed into a space devoted entirely to your creation. You can make this as intricate or as simple as you choose. The possibilities are unlimited.

Versions of escape room games have been around forever, from the early computer games like Myst to board games and everything in between. These types of games are not likely to lose popularity anytime soon. They cater to the love of communal activity, the fantasy of role-playing, and the addictive draw of a good mystery. You don't have to leave the comfort of your home to take part in one of these compulsively entertaining adventures. Try one of the choices listed here, or try them all! You're guaranteed to have a lot of fun along the way.