Escape Room Tips & Tricks for Winning the Game

**Are You Ready? This Is What To Expect, But Not Our Escape Room…Can’t Give Away Any Hints!**

We put together our own personal list of the best escape room tips and pointers after years of running escape room adventures. if this is your first time or you are just trying to raise your skill, these tricks and advice we be invaluable!

First, a little escape room backstory!

An escape room can be a fun and challenging way to spend an afternoon with friends. But if you’ve never done one before, the task of solving all the puzzles can seem daunting. We are going to go over some tips and tricks to help you get a head start in your game. From working as a team to thinking out side the box, an escape room will challenge your problem solving skills, and make you a better communicator!

Escape Room Boom

At the present time, there are 2500+ escape rooms in the U.S….a giant jump from 2014. It almost seems hard to go to any midsize city and not be able to find an escape room to enjoy. Make sure to read our story about the real history of escape rooms here.

What influenced the escape room boom?

Human Instinct

A lot of what draws people to the idea of an escape room can be traced to the roots of ancient Greece. When we look back, it seems like humans have always enjoyed creating puzzles and trying to find our way out of them. From the labyrinths in early Greek mythology to the garden hedge mazes popular in the 16th century to the corn mazes of today, we can’t get enough of getting lost, finding our way out, and getting lost again.

An Escape From Reality

A huge contributing factor to the overwhelming success of escape rooms is the ability to escape your reality and fully immerse yourself in a scenario or character (similar to live action role playing, a popular activity for gamers). There is also a theory that the digital overload in society causes us to want to retreat away from digital experiences for entertainment. Why experience something as a video game character when you could experience it in real life?

Team Building

In the United States, team building plays a big role in the success of escape rooms. Businesses started to realize that employees having to work through an escape room together provided applicable real life scenarios similar to problem solving on the job. Escape rooms emphasize collaboration, effective communication, task delegation, and quick creative thinking.

Unlimited Options

Like we mentioned, there are thousands of escape rooms across the U.S. While this makes for some healthy competition, no two escape rooms are the same. Even if there are two escape rooms on the same block, visitors could go to both of them and have completely different experiences.

Our Best Escape Room Tips

So, after all the time we have spent working at a local escape room location and guiding our guests, we have learned a lot of tips and trips for your next escape room adventure. Read below for our escape room pointers, hints and tricks.

Look and Search “Everywhere” – The first tip is to search the room, not kidding. It doesn’t take long and you don’t want to miss anything that may help in solving puzzles or finding the key to open the creepy cabinet on the wall to see what’s inside. You’ll especially want to notice items that relate to each other, i.e. a map and a compass or a fuse and a power panel.
Notice Inputs. “You Know What You’re Looking For” – Noticing inputs or solves, such as locks and whether the combinations are a 4-digit number or 5-letters is super helpful. For example, the turning of a pillar, or some sort of switch that can be moved up or down should be noted for sure, so when you have a clue for up and down indicators, you’ll know where to go. If you locate (or are given a story with) directions or city names, it’s really a good idea to notice a globe or map, or something that has north, south, east, or west appearing upon it, a direction puzzle is heading your way.
Don’t Stop at the First Thing You Find – Don’t stop at the first thing you find. Search, note, and collect what you found then keep going. Simply locating one of the three things you’ll be wanting to see and collect isn’t all that helpful. Use this technique: some people go left, some go right, don’t stop when you meet in the middle but continue around and search what has been or what you think has been searched already. And don’t forget to make sure the group knows what everyone has found. Speaking of which….
Look High and Low, Not Just Eye Level – Eye-level is just too easy, so make sure to work the whole room both high and low. Things often get placed where you wouldn’t think to look (obviously).
Communication Is Key – Escape rooms are a group experience (I suppose you could do one by yourself if they let you, but most people don’t) and when you do anything with a group, having clear lines of communication is essential to your success. When you solve a riddle or puzzle let your team know what you were awarded. Oftentimes, it’s the piece someone else needs for what they are looking at.
Think Inside the Room – What makes escape rooms such a unique experience is the stories that come with them. Most escape rooms come with a story or theme. While those stories help heighten the sense of urgency that makes escape rooms so thrilling, they can also play a role in the puzzles you’ll be solving. When playing an escape room, make sure to keep the main parts of the story in mind, as they may be essential in cracking codes or solving riddles.
Switch – One of the best things is to SWITCH roles within a puzzle. When working together on a puzzle, for example, if one person is reading directions to the other or trying over and over (and over again) to get a combo lock to work, it might be time to switch spots. This works great, as now both you and your partner will have an understanding of what the other was/is trying to accomplish, and communication is enhanced.
Place Stuff You’ve Found – Find a spot, like a table or desk, to place the stuff you have found. Taking just a little time to group items is huge. For example, things like maps and compasses or small pictures that may have the same frame. And make sure to flip items over and check the back.
Have a Discard Pile – Have a discard pile for used items after solving a puzzle. This way, your group won’t accidentally keep looking at the same thing over and over.
Know The Rules – A game master will explain the rules such as: “don’t touch stickers,” or “there is nothing under chairs,” and the like. While fun to look at anyway, it won’t help you complete the game. Also, it’s very important to understand how to get clues. You don’t want to find yourself yelling at the wall for help, only to find out that there’s a button that needs pressing.
Don’t Shy Away from Hints – You’re going up against the clock. Anytime you get stuck, and stop working toward your goal, the clock starts winning. When you have the ability to ask for hints, use them to your advantage. If your group gets stuck for more than a few minutes, ask for a hint. Getting a few hints is much better than not completing the game altogether.