After covid closed escape rooms, these game designers made a virtual one
After covid closed escape rooms, these game designers made a virtual one
After covid closed escape rooms, these game designers made a virtual one
July14, 2022
By Jonathan Lee
Summary
"Escape Academy" is an adventure game about a student at the eponymous academy, which has a sprawling campus filled with environmental puzzles meant to train the next generation of escape room masters.
Bushnell and Salyh first met in 2017 at Two Bit Circus, an amusement center in Los Angeles with arcade machines, carnival games and real-life escape rooms.
Prior to Two Bit Circus, Salyh worked as a game designer specializing in mobile games at Disney, Zynga and Age of Learning.
"Escape Academy" is still intended to be played with friends but it's the first time that Coin Crew made a video game designed to be played in your own home, which posed some unique challenges.
The modern day escape room, part of a broader genre of location-based games, was actually inspired by video games such as the 1993 adventure game, "Myst. In"Myst," players explore the eponymous island and unlock its mysteries by solving a series of elaborate mechanical puzzles spread throughout the landscape.
Unlike today's escape rooms, "Myst" was strictly single-player and had no time limits on any of the puzzles, meaning individuals could enjoy the game at a comfortable pace.
By taking the mounting tension and group problem solving mechanics developed in modern escape rooms and boomeranging them back to the original video game genre, Coin Crew is hoping to create a virtual experience that captures the magic of a real world session.
Reference
Lee, J. (2022, July 14). After Covid closed escape rooms, these game designers made a virtual one. Retrieved July 21, 2022, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2022/07/14/escape-academy-virtual-escape-room/