Here are a few escape room tips to help you do well and enjoy the experience and game.

1. Look and Search Everywhere

     1.2 Notice Inputs

     1.3 Don’t stop at the first thing you find.

     1.4  Look High and Low, Not Just at Eye Level

2. Communication Is Key

3. Think Inside the Room

4. “SWITCH”

5. Place Stuff You’ve Found

6. Have A Discard Pile

7. Know the rules

8. Don’t Shy Away from Clues

1. Look and Search “Everywhere”

Let’s start with the escape room tips in searching for an Escape Room is to search everywhere, not kidding. It doesn’t take long and you don’t want to miss anything that may help in solving the puzzles or miss 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. 

1.2 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 find a clue that has up and down indications. you’ll know right where they go. If the column contains symbols, you may want to think, “what relates to these symbols and how can I get an order?” For the switches, “do I see something that relates to up/down or off/on?”  

If you locate or are given a story with directions or city names, it’s a really good idea to notice a globe, map, or something that has north, south, east, or (you guessed it) west appearing upon it, a direction puzzle is most likely heading your way. 

This process can assist in understanding what you’re looking for in the solution. As you find clues and information, knowing the input helps to recognize whether clues are useful or needed at the moment. Simply put, you know what you’re looking for.

1.3 Don’t stop at the first thing you find.

Don’t stop at the first thing you find. (This is something we have difficulty with, we get excited.) Search, note, and collect what you found, then keep going. Simply locating one of the three things you’ll be wanting to see or collect isn’t all that helpful.

Use this technique—some people go left, some go right. Then, 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.

For example, that nail you found maybe a button. “Why didn’t I press the darn button? Oops, it even says ‘press’!”

It’s amazing how a different set of eyes will recognize and find clues missed at first glance.

And don’t forget to make sure the group knows what everyone has found! Speaking of which.

1.4 Look High and Low, Not Just at Eye Level

We consider ourselves, not the best searchers. Then watching players in our escape room I realized we fell for the trap.  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.

2. 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.

If you find an object, call out to the rest of your group to let them know what it was. To help reduce chaos use a collection spot (see Tip #6).

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. Be prepared to let everyone know how you figured it out—We all want to know what you did.

3. 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 a theme. While these stories help to heighten the sense of urgency that makes escape rooms so thrilling, they also can 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.

For example: if the game is laboratory-themed, you may want to look for test tubes and or specimen jars. Noting if there are slight differences in them that will produce a pattern. ie; colors, number of items, or simply numbers that show up (maybe using a black light flashlight).

4. “SWITCH”

One of the best escape room tip can offer is to SWITCH roles within a puzzle. When working together on a puzzle-like one person reading directions to the other, or trying over and over (and over again) to get a combo lock to work—switch spots!

After struggling to get the wires in the right place or move the maze pieces around, my wife will call “switch!” (This is usually her, as I’m sometimes too stubborn). We exchange spots and go to town. This works great, as now we both have an understanding of what the other was/is trying to accomplish, and our communication is much enhanced in fact this works both as an escape room and life. “Try it’s a miracle”

5. Place Stuff You’ve Found

Find a spot, like a table or a 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 are great to keep together while figuring out what to do with them. 

Combine this tactic along with communicating the items as you find them.  Make sure to flip items over and check the back. We have been caught on this a few times.

Expert Tip: Always flip over an hourglass. It’s amazing what can be hidden in the sand.

6. 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.

7. Know the Rules

A game master will explain the rules of the escape room such as, “Don’t touch stickers or that there is nothing under chairs and the like. While super fun to look at anyway, it probably won’t help complete the game.  Also, and very important is to understand how to get clues, you don’t want to find yourself yelling at the wall for help – to then find out there is a button that needed pressing. Also, the GM’s will go over how to use any locks that you may not be familiar with, “trust me” pay attention to this. which leads us to the last hint and maybe the most important. 

8. 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.

Take Your Skills for a Test Run

Escape rooms are thrilling experiences, and now you have so good escape room tips and knowledge that can help you to complete the game in the allotted time and “win”.

By following these escape room tips, you’ll be able to take on any convoluted code your game throws your way.

Ready to take your new sleuthing skills out for a test run?   We’ve got you covered.

Ready to take your new sleuthing skills out for a test run? We’ve got you covered. Check out our thrilling escape room today.