What Not to Do in an Escape Room

There are plenty of blogs on what you should be doing in an Escape Room, but today let’s have one on what NOT to do, as there are bound to be things you definitely shouldn’t be doing. With our tips, hopefully, you’ll be able to conquer the Escape Room and be a winner.

If it says ‘don’t touch’ then don’t touch.

The rooms are designed to provide the perfect game of find-the-clue with carefully secreted clues and puzzles just about everywhere. Most of the rooms follow a pattern in how they are laid out and there will be some items you are not meant to touch, so if you see a sticker with ‘Don’t touch it’ what it means is definitely don’t touch it. There may be props which will have these stickers on, and in order to keep you ahead of the game and focussed, it’s a good idea to just leave the bits you aren’t supposed to touch alone. 

Don’t break things in order to find the clues.

You may feel increasingly frantic in your efforts to discover the clues and work them out, especially if you don’t have much time left. However, ripping apart each piece you suspect has a clue underneath it won’t help, so don’t do it. Let’s stay calm and stick to what you can move freely and pick up without ripping it from its hinges.

Don’t take anything away with you.

You may find you’ve really enjoyed your experience here. If this is the case, you may be tempted to stick a few things in your pockets to take away as souvenirs. Please don’t, it costs us money to replace all the things you take away with you each time. We do have replicas, but they soon run out if they keep getting taken.

Don’t climb all over the furniture in case you cause any damage.

Don’t climb over all the furniture if you can avoid it, it can cause irreparable damage and means we have to replace the damaged items - at a cost. Also, please don’t turn up to play the game under the influence of alcohol, we may have to ask you to leave.

Don’t disobey our rules, they’re there for a reason.

Don’t disobey the rules, they’re there to help you win the game successfully and to stop us from having to interrupt the game to tell you to stop what you’re doing. This wastes precious time you could be using to play the game, find the clues and enjoy quality time with friends. 

Escape Stoke – for the best Escape Game there is.

So now you know all the things you shouldn’t do, how about all the things going on at our Escape Games. We think we’re our don’ts are evenly matched by our do’s, as we like our players to have the best time. Book your room either online or over the phone – we can’t wait to see you.

Escape Stoke - Escape From Your Studies

We get a lot of students coming to Escape Stoke, and one reason for this is that it’s a great form of escapism for them, getting them away from the rigour of academic study and a welcome relief from deadlines and endless online research. It’s only an hour, so it doesn’t take them away for too long, but it’s a welcome distraction where they can get to know new friends and unwind with old ones.

Get away from the studying and endless reading

Escape Stoke provides the best antidote to the daily grind of every day student life. Yes, it can be fun, but it can also be extremely stressful. One way of counteracting this is to take time out, and our Escape Rooms is the best way of doing it. It’s also an ideal opportunity to spend time with friends you don’t see often enough and to make new ones. There are bound to be those stuck in halls who’ve not had any opportunity to socialise yet, so inviting them along is a perfect opportunity to break the ice.

Talking, socialising, no social media necessary

You’ll be locked in a themed room of your choice and you’ll have to search for clues, collect them and then once you have them all, work them out. This way you get to unlock the door. It’s an opportunity to talk, socialise and to put away your iPhone, your iPad and laptops and actually speak to each other. It’s also a great opportunity to bone up on your communication skills and practice some team building. This will set you up nicely for job interviews in the future.

Find the clues, watch the clock, forget the university

Before we forget, all you have is an hour in which to find and work out the clues to unlock the door. So, you really are up against the clock. It’s perfect for really shutting down the anxiety and worry of study and disappearing into another world where only escaping the room is your priority. We love it for that reason, and we see so many students come here, not just once but over and over again because they love it so much.

Naturally, the emphasis is on working together, because when you do that, you’ll have a far better chance of getting out. It’s the perfect getaway and so beloved of all our visitors, regardless of whether they’re students.

Escape Stoke – for the best hour of escapism

Students love to come here and get away from the daily grind of study. So, if you’ve been thinking coming for a while and you think you might be able to use the Escape Rooms as the ideal escape route you’ve been looking for, why not get down here? We can’t wait to see you and we know you’ll have a brilliant time, so ditch the books and the laptop and make your way down here to us – for just one hour out of your life.

Why are Escape Rooms So Popular?

There are many reasons why Escape Rooms are so popular and we’re going to be talking about that today. What we find is that the Escape Rooms serve a variety of different purposes and succeed at all of them, which really explains to us why they’re so popular. We get a real cross section of people coming here in Stoke to use our Escape Rooms, and we know that they all thoroughly enjoy the experience, and we can’t wait for you to do the same.

Team building.

Corporate teams really find our Escape Rooms useful for their team building. The foster a sense of team working and while in the room the team are able to use a variety of skills that may have been left dormant at work. They can utilise them here and will include communication, delegation, problem-solving, analysing and also helps to break the ice between new team members. All of these skills are crucial when you run a business, so by encouraging them in your team, you’re helping yourself too. It’s also an ideal opportunity for a team leader to identify strengths and weaknesses so they can help encourage and develop them.

Imaginatively chosen themed rooms.

Escape Rooms are also popular because of the unique way we individually theme each room. Each theme is taken from a game or movie from popular culture. We then furnish and decorate the room in the theme we’ve chosen, sometimes we’ll use two of the same, and then once the team is in there, they’ll have to find the clues within this specially prepared room. These well thought out cultural themes help to make our Escape Rooms really popular and capture the imagination of our customers.

Celebrations are popular.

They’re also great for celebrating milestones, birthdays and anniversaries – and we get so many people turning up here at Stoke to do just that. They all have a great time and once they’re done, they can go out to eat or just spend an hour down the pub discussing the entire experience.

Escape Stoke – for the most imaginative, unique and original time spent in one hour.

So now you have a pretty good idea of why our Escape Rooms are so popular, you’ll be eager to book a room yourself and discover why everyone loves it so much. We want you to be as impressed as the last person who visited, and we’ll give you a warm welcome when you come. You can book your room online or over the phone, all you have to do is choose which theme you like the most, which one appeals to you? Once you’ve chosen and then booked, all you have to do is turn up – and we can’t wait to see you!

Escape Room FAQs

We know that people have a lot of questions before they come and take part in our escape games. So today, we’re going to be answering some of the most popular questions we get asked and posting them here. That way, you can read them, decide whether you still want to come (and we sincerely hope you do) and then come on down and enjoy yourselves! All your questions will have been answered and hopefully you’ll be feeling confident about trying us out. 

What are Escape Games?

We realise that some of you know very little at all about our Escape Games so we’re going to tell you something about them, how they work etc and that might help you have more understanding of what to expect when you come. 

Our Escape Games are team-based games where you and a group of friends or family will be locked in a room. The room is usually themed, and the theme is taken from popular culture, usually movies. There’ll be clues and puzzles dotted around the room, carefully concealed, and it’s up to you and your team to find them, once you have, you work them out to unlock the room and escape. Oh, and you have an hour in which to do it. 

Why do people love this type of game?

The Escape Room phenomena has gained in popularity because it’s such an original and unique idea. It’s fun, it’s great as an ice breaker, and it’s also used heavily by corporate teams who use it to test their team’s skills, help break the ice with new team members and help with identifying individual skills e.g. who’s good at problem-solving, communication, etc plus who needs help. 

What age restrictions are there?

There are no age restrictions although we normally suggest that those under the age of 16 are accompanied by an adult and that it might be a little too much for children under 10. There are some games which come with warnings that they may not be suitable for the under 16s, this is rare depending on the game. 

If I suffer a little with claustrophobia, should I come?

The rooms are bigger than you’d think, however we realise it still may be a little stuffy for you, so we usually suggest that you leave the door open or just leave it unlocked, and that way you can leave whenever you want. 

How many people can come and play?

We’d suggest that in order to enjoy it fully you bring a team of at least 6, no less than 2. That way you’ll be able to enjoy the game better and immerse yourself. 

How much time do I need?

You’ll need to set aside about an hour and a half and that’s without the time it’ll take to get here from wherever you live. We usually advise that people arrive early so we can go through health and safety and brief you on any other relevant points, then you’ll have your 60 minutes the room. 

Escape Stoke – for great times and memories

If you have any other questions other than the ones we’ve answered here, then always contact us, we’re here to help. Once you’re happy, book your room, and you can do this either on the phone or online from our website. We’ll see you soon!

The Benefits Of Brain Teasers And Puzzles

If you thought the only advantage of coming down to Escape Stoke was the fun of the game, then you couldn’t be more wrong. Taking part in live interactive games as well as online and live board games you’re giving your brain a real workout. This is important, because as people are discovering, the benefits of brain teasers and puzzles are that it helps to keep people’s brain active and staves off dementia.

It’s important to keep your mind active and using it again and again with taxing, testing stuff. It’s much better in fact than sitting staring at the TV and not moving on the sofa, by having an active mind you’ll have a healthy mind.

Try and mix it up a little too by doing different activities. Variety is important in keeping your mind active, by doing the same thing over and over again, your brain gets a little bit lazy. By changing what you do from week to week or month to month, you’ll find that your mind will be tested just that little bit more and it’ll freshen up those old neurons!

You can do all sorts of mental activity, through reading and learning new languages, but what brain teasers will do is perhaps get your mind to work in a completely different way, a way that is really good at keeping your mind active – for longer.

Escape Stoke – for ultimate brain teaser.

We’d like you to come down to Escape Stoke and test your brain power on the best brain teaser of them all – in our humble opinion. You’ll be locked in a room for 60 minutes with your friends or family and search high and low for some cleverly hidden clues. Once you’ve found them all, you’ll need to work them out to unlock the room and escape within the hour – what’s not to love?

And we think your brain will be well and truly tested and refreshed once you’re done. See you there! YOU can book online or over the phone.

How to be successful in an Escape Room

Today we’re talking about some of the skills you made need if you’re to successfully escape in time. Hopefully by the time you’ve read it you’ll be ready to take on the escape rooms. 

Strong team with a lot of different key skills are required.

Because you’ve only got an hour to do it in you need to get a strong team together to tackle it and they need the right kind of skills to win. Once you’ve gone into the room and the key has locked behind you, the clock starts ticking. You must find the clues in order to get out. They’re well-hidden and you’ll need to collect all of them before you can unlock the door. Work them all out together using razor-sharp problem-solving skills, excellent communication skills and good analytical prowess.

Search everywhere and don’t leave any stone unturned.

You’ll have to search everywhere, so if you’re not thorough enough you could possibly fail. You’ll need to put all your clues in one central place to go back to once you do find them. If you lose one it could mean the difference between winning and losing. 

Getting stuck on one stubborn clue doesn’t mean you have to abandon the rest of the game.

If you get stuck on one clue, leave it and move on, don’t dwell on it. Too much time spent on one clue could be precious time lost. Come back to it towards the end when you may find that after walking away you’ve now been able to see it with fresh eyes. 

Don’t let domination ruin the game.

Don’t let one person dominate the entire game, it’s a game where all team members are able to make a valid contribution so don’t let anyone take over. Everyone should have their say, and they should all be able to contribute with their thoughts and ideas on where to start and where to look. 

Escape Stoke – where the fun starts.

So here you’ll have the best fun of your life with friends, colleagues or family. Remember to look out for each other, let everyone make a contribution and look everywhere for those all-important clues, and you should give yourself a fighting chance of escaping. Remember that having fun and enjoying the game is also another great way to be successful. 

What are Escape Rooms?

We’re talking about what exactly escape rooms are, and how you can enjoy them as much as everyone else. Why is that? Well, escape rooms are becoming extremely popular and all kinds of people are enjoying them. And we attract all kinds of different groups here, anything from gamers to families here to celebrate birthdays, or wedding groups on a hen or stag do. 

Different rooms, different themes

An escape room is one room with only one door to get out. When you come, you’ll all be in groups and you can have more than one and use more than one room, or you can just come in one group and occupy one single room. You’ll be locked in the themed room of your choice. Here at Escape Stoke we have Sherlock Holmes, Prison Break, Crime Scene, Homicide Unit, Spy Mission and Safari Jungle, and anyone of those rooms will offer the same set of clues and puzzles in relation to their theme, and you will have to find them first, and then work them out in order to find the key to escape. 

Sixty minutes is all you have

You’ll have just an hour to find and then solve all the clues and puzzles. Yes, 60 minutes isn’t long, so there’s an emphasis on team working and cohesion so if you all work together you have a far better chance of escaping than just working as an individual. Don’t worry, if you need to get out of the room anytime, then we can let you out, we pay attention to what you’re doing the whole time and if at any point you find it uncomfortable, we can let you out before the hour is up. Therefore, you’re not really locked up without being able to escape permanently, there’s always a way out.

Can you beat the clock?

For the purpose of the game however, you have exactly an hour to find and work out the puzzles – question is can you work against the clock and win? Do you have what it takes, and does your team? There’s only one way to find out and that’s by taking part. 

Escape Games Stoke – for the best in escape games

If you like what you’ve seen so far, why not book an escape room with us here at Escape Stoke? We’ve got all the rooms ready, we’re just waiting for you to join us. It’s easy to book online or by giving us a call, and you’ll be all set, the more of you there are, the cheaper it is to book, so what’s stopping you?

5 Fantastic Team Building Activities

We’ve been working on escape games now for some time, and we know better than anyone how popular they are with corporate teams. However, what other games are there that you and your team can benefit from? We’re going to be going over 5 of the best and then you can decide which one best suits your team. 

1 Zombie Escape

This doesn’t have to mean even leaving the building. You can do it from your corporate HQ. Just book a conference room for the afternoon and then lock yourselves in. Select someone out of your team to be the zombie. They’ll be tied to a rope in the corner and gradually you can allow the ‘zombie’ closer to the rest of the team as you try to work out some clues and puzzles. The longer it takes, the closer the zombie gets, and eventually you’ll need to find a hidden key, before the zombie reaches you!

2 It’s a Knockout

A tried and tested game based on an old theme. There are a number of obstacles, most including water and soap, and your team must work their way through them all to get to the finish line, whoever gets there first is the winner. It’ll involve getting your team out of the office to an outdoor facility that does this type of thing, and there are a few venues that do. However, no doubt your team will be grateful for the opportunity to get out of the office for the day. 

3 Military Team Building Exercises

These are proving popular. They involve going through a series of obstacles (again!), most having been designed by ex-military and are meant to truly test your physical agility and mental prowess. Those with physical impairments may not enjoy this type of activity, especially for those who aren’t particularly fit either, but it’s up to you to decide whether your team is up to it. It can be tremendous fun and an exhilarating experience. 

4 Scavenger Hunt

You’ll organise your team into separate groups and then draw up a list of fun things for them to do with one mission in mind, and that is to find something at the end, like a prize. Each item that is completed on their list is ticked off and the first group to finish is the winner. It could be spotting landmarks or certain items within a landscape which they must photograph, and then eventually they get to the final one. It’ll be a route that everyone will follow. 

5 Escape Games

Here at Escape Stoke, you know the drill, we lock you in a room and you have 60 minutes to escape. You do this by solving a series of clues and puzzles which you work together on as a team. Working quickly, communicating well and bonding and icebreaking are things you can utilise, and you’ll be able to spot which skills your team are good at and which are not. We’re bound to think our team building activities are the best, and we’re bias we know. But you really will have a great time! Book your room today!