The Escapery, a new escape room venue, held its grand opening Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016.
I wasn’t expecting much upon arriving at The Escapery. It’s in a relatively modest location, and the outside didn’t drawn me in. Upon entering, I definitely wasn’t expecting much either. It’s oddly decorated and seemed very compact for all the space the venue could hold. However, looks can be very deceiving.
One of the aspects I was most impressed with was the amount of employee involvement. In addition to acting as the “Game Master,” who watches over patrons attempting to solve the room, they are involved in the actual creation of the room. They are responsible for many of the design aspects, artistry, electronics, creation of puzzles, and marketing.
I am an escape room newbie, so I was unprepared for how challenging the puzzles would be. Participants work in groups of a maximum of seven to solve roughly twenty puzzles to exit the room. I was expecting to be in and out of the escape room in less than the hour that my group and I were given. It’s definitely not impossible, but you must apply yourself. I didn’t really understand the theme of the room established at the beginning of the 60 minutes, but it didn’t take away from the fun of puzzles.
The location is an ideal distance for both campuses to access.
“We chose this location to appeal to KSU students. We really would like to work closely with KSU,” said owner, April Simmons.
There are already several things in the works for how KSU students can be involved at The Escapery. Simmons is currently working with professors in the marketing department. Marketing students will be given the chance to present marketing campaigns in class as part of a competition and the winner will be awarded a paid internship at the venue.
That is not the only way students will be able to get involved. They are currently looking to hire KSU students. In addition, “We will be sponsoring a group of game design students to go through the escape room complimentary and discuss real life game design as opposed to on the computer,” said Simmons.
Interestingly enough, for anyone who didn’t have the Valentine’s Day of their dreams, there is a chance for redemption. The Escapery will be hosting an “Escape Date” event in March. For those who are single and looking, this is probably one of the best ways to get to know someone. Groups of three men and three women will attempt to escape the room. This activity will test each participant’s method of thinking, patience level, and ability to work in a team, amongst several other attributes that are critical to know about a future partner. If you find yourself interested in someone in the group, you indicate who you would like to hear from, and only an e-mail address will be shared. Snacks and coffee will be provided.
The site seemed compact because there is a lot of bare space in the venue which will be converted into more rooms. Once the rooms are completed, there can be up to six rooms operating at once. Some of the themes expected are Cold War-Silo and Jack the Ripper.
I was expecting the prices to be a bit cheaper because of the location and due to the company being so new, but the price is $28 per person, which slightly disappointed me. That price is higher than that of other escape rooms in the Atlanta area, which is both surprising and disappointing considering the styrofoam props and cramped puzzling area.
There are a lot of plans set in place, but I definitely see a lot of potential in this place. It’s already off to a very exciting start.
