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F you have ever wanted to be in a spy movie as the hero who has to open a locked cupboard by figuring out a code hidden under a doormat and written in hieroglyphics that can be read only using a mirror, then make your way through a maze, discovering secrets along the way, rush to your nearest escape room.
No, it’s not an app on your smartphone, although it is a version of “escape the room” computer games. This is a real-life game that takes place in actual bricks-and-mortar buildings.
Brought to life in a crafty mix of mystery, puzzle-solving and thrills, it is Mission Impossible meets The Bourne Identity with a hint of MacGyver, starring you and your friends or colleagues. Set in spaces decorated and furnished to resemble locations like haunted castles, libraries or prison cells, escape rooms come with clues and puzzles that must be solved before players can get out.
The concept is an international hit and several escape room venues have popped up in South Africa, including Lostland in Rivonia. I took a friend and we tried an hour-long session called Prison Break. Blindfolded, handcuffed and locked in a “prison cell”, armed only with a walkie-talkie to ask staff for clues, we were left to our devices with a clock counting down 60 minutes. includes laser mazes, tiny doors, coffins and more.
With other local venues named HintHunt, Hashtag Escape and i-ChallengeU, it might seem to be a hipster craze — but fans of Angela Lansbury in Murder, She Wrote would enjoy it. “You’ve discovered a secret door in your garden, leading to a mysterious room that has been untouched for more than half a century. Who was the owner? Why did they leave? Work together to solve the mystery and escape! Difficulty — 4/5” says Escape Room in Dunkeld, Johannesburg.
Lostland owner Virginia Shang first experienced the thrill of an escape room in China. “We were there for our wedding and were a bit bored with all the planning. A friend took us to an escape room and we had so much fun, we decided to take our whole wedding party to one after the ceremony.”
Between two and six players over the age of 12 can play, and the average cost is about R200 per person. Shang said games were designed to promote teamwork and co-operation. “You’re working against the clock and you have to use all of your senses to solve the challenges you face. It’s very exciting.”
A team-building exercise found Aasif Dangor in Lostland’s Mission Impossible room. “We had an hour “I went with an open mind and without any preconceived idea of what to expect. It was a great team-building exercise. We all had to think of ways to solve the puzzles and everybody contributed to get them solved. I think everybody in the team solved at least one of the puzzles, which were quite difficult but exciting.”
Shang said the puzzles were designed by her husband, and would evolve. “There are different levels of difficulty, so people can choose their challenge. In China now, the third generation of escape rooms are more mechanical and even include virtual-reality concepts.”
While escape rooms had their roots in Asia, they have spread virus-fast.
“There are more than 40 escape rooms in Los Angeles alone, so we know South Africans will also love the thrill of the game,” Shang said.
Visit lostland.co.za.