Take the horror in your stride and solve the mystery before time runs out!
Are you looking for an escape room adventure that’ll seriously test your limits?
Searching for a mystery room escapade that’ll push you and your team to the limit?
Wondering whether you have it in you to conquer fear and solve a scary escape room mystery in time?
Then this is the blog post you’re looking for!
How to win a horror-themed escape room challenge
Before we get into the good stuff, let us tell you a little bit about escape rooms that feature chills and fear in the storyline and gameplay.
There are many ways to turn an escape adventure scary.
One is to introduce classic horror elements like jump scares into the game path.
And then there’s the Brainxcape kind.
The Brainxcape escape experience
Sometimes, the only option is to look under the bed…
Here at NYC’s #1 escape room, innovative set designers and game designers from all around the Big Apple come together to craft heart-pounding experiences that challenge and satisfy everyone from first-timers to experienced adventurers.
From thrilling game plots to atmospheric chills and some sudden scares – we combine numerous elements of fear to create our adventure experiences.
With that being said, let’s now take a look at how you can win and enjoy horror-themed escape room adventures.
Know what you’re getting yourself into
Gif via giphy.
Hang on, you may be thinking.
Why are these guys telling me this when I had already decided to go on a horror-themed escape adventure (well, sort of)?
Here’s the deal.
Many a time we’ve seen folks start out with bravado – after all, they have all their friends with them, and it’s all a game; what could possibly go wrong?
However, once they actually step inside the adventure space – which is most often dark and enclosed – courage and confidence start to ebb.
In particular, if you have medical conditions that could be aggravated by claustrophobia or jump scares, you should talk with the escape room before finalizing your plans.
You can expect the puzzles to be fairly uncomplicated
Well, not as simple as this – but still…not as complex as you may be thinking.
What? We can hear you exclaim.
You’re telling me choosing a horror-themed escape room means proceeding through the game will be shooting fish in a barrel?
So I’ll be able to just breeze through the puzzles and ciphers and locks and the rest of them?
No, not at all.
Here’s the deal.
There are many ways of building a mystery room challenge that you’ll enjoy.
Puzzle complexity is only one of them.
However, with horror-themed escape rooms like us, the atmosphere, the set design, enmeshing the narrative, and the actual game prove crucial in setting the tempo.
On the other hand, reduced visibility and higher stress levels due to the scares will make it a little difficult to focus fully on the puzzles.
So, you can expect the riddles, ciphers, and locks to be on the easier side in horror-themed rooms.
Discover more of our blog posts on escape rooms and activities in and around New York City.
Allow yourself to be fully immersed
No, not like that.
If you didn’t know, immersion – the adventurer investing themselves fully into the game environment – is a key element of any escape room game.
And given the entire point of a horror-themed escape room is creating a chilling experience, it is crucial that you allow yourself to be fully lost in the game environment, and be fully engaged with your teammates.
Stay focused on spotting clues
First-timer or otherwise, if you know what an escape room is, you know that being on the lookout for clues is a pretty big part of the event.
So, you may well wonder why we are mentioning this as a specific way to win a horror-themed escape room mystery.
Here’s the deal.
If you’ve read the blog post till now, you’ll have noticed that we’ve referred to the atmospherics and gameplay being a major part of the proceedings.
With things like flickering lights, sounds, and other game design elements bringing in the chills…
To say nothing of the odd “surprise around the corner” that you may well face,
Keeping focused on finding the clues will become a real challenge.
From artifacts in the room to comments made by in-game actors, anything could be a clue.
Make sure you pay attention.
Dress comfortably
Yeah…an escape room is supposed to be a thing to enjoy with family and friends.
Doesn’t matter if this is your first time; you’re hardly going to dress like you’re attending a board meeting, right?
So, what gives? Why are we mentioning “dress comfortably” here?
Here’s why: When we say “dress comfortably”, we don’t mean party clothes.
If you didn’t know, some of these games could require you to crawl through spaces that are a tight fit, run and maybe even climb.
Plus, there’s always the odd spot of fake blood that could find its way onto your clothes.
Keep those in mind when you choose clothes and shoes.
Follow instructions
Time pressure is a key element of any escape room.
A scary escape experience piles gripping storylines, jaw-dropping special effects, and bone-chilling atmospherics into the mix.
Keeping calm and following instructions can prove difficult in such a situation.
However, it IS crucial that you follow instructions from the game masters and also from the in-game actors, if any.
Don’t succumb to pressure and start doing things like unscrewing light bulbs unless you have a very good reason. And if you’re asked, stop.
Don’t run if you’re not asked to
Remember, large parts of the game will almost certainly take place in dark or semi-dark environments.
It is absolutely CRUCIAL that you don’t start running unless you are asked to by the game master/in-game actor/a clue.
You may think this obvious stuff, but over our own experience running horror-themed adventures, we’ve been met with folks doing everything from running into walls to tripping over themselves.
Don’t hurt in-game actors
Some players get so agitated they start taking swings or flinging things at the in-game actors.
Don’t do that.
Please remember in-game actors are just escape room employees doing their jobs.
Enjoy the chills, but please refrain from freaking out and getting violent.
Speaking of getting agitated and freaking out,
Stay safe!
While we haven’t been through every escape room website out there, we would happily take a bet that any escape room worth its salt will have an FAQ on its website about whether players can leave the game mid-way for any reason.
There’s a reason for that.
An escape room is meant to be an extraordinary event. The point is to set off a whole range of emotions in you, ranging from excitement to wonder to nervousness…and even some fear, in scary escape rooms.
Now, sometimes evoking such a range of emotions can make you feel unwell or uneasy, and liable to freak out.
If that’s happening, please don’t hesitate to ask for help or just request for the game to be halted.
Remember, your game master is not there only to give you clues – they’re there to watch over you and help you out if you run into trouble.
So, if you feel overly stressed, call for a pause and even for help if you feel it’s necessary.
Stay safe!
Winning a scary escape room challenge – key points
If Halloween can’t come quickly enough for you and your friends,
If your choice for movie night is SAW,
If you’re on the lookout for an escape room that challenges you just that teeny bit more…
It’s horror-themed and scary escape experiences like ours that you’re looking for.
As long as you can keep your wits about, stay sharp in the face of flickering lights and fake blood, and watch for the twist around the corner…
You’ve got a pretty good head start on solving the mystery before time runs out.
Now it’s time to put all this to the test.
Book one of our escape room games today, and feel the thrill for yourself.
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