Escape Rooms Move Online So Players Can Stay Safe At Home
BOSTON (CBS) - An escape room company has moved online so players can take part from the safety of their own homes.
"All of a sudden COVID-19 comes. Do we lock everything down and open up in four months, or do we try to reinvent who we are?" Bryce Anderson told WBZ-TV.
Anderson is the co-founder of Breakout Games, the largest escape room company in the United States. The company's Massachusetts locations in Marlborough and Woburn closed down when the coronavirus pandemic hit.
"We got to work and figured out a way to create the experience of an escape room while allowing people to stay in the safety of their homes," Anderson said.
A game host in a real escape room now guides players via video.
"They're in that room turning tables over, unlocking drawers, flipping over chairs. They are the hands and the eyes and the feet of your team," Anderson explained.
Each team needs a minimum of three players or as many as eight, and have one hour to "break out." There are never any strangers in the game and players must be invited.
"People think you have to stop making memories because you're in quarantine or you're sheltering in place. We don't think you have to, we think you can have fun memories coming out of this very difficult time."
The cost to play is $99 per game and up to 8 players can split the cost. If you are playing with a loved one who is deployed, Breakout Games will pay for your session. Reservations to play are required. Check out breakoutgames.com/boston for a full list of instructions on how to set up a game.
