Reference
Reference
This section explains the terms that anyone heading to an escape room or horror attraction will come across. It is split into three topics: formats, mechanics and puzzles, and safety. Different operators may use different names for the same formats, so we describe them by how they work rather than by what the sign says.
Operators use words like "escape room" and "horror" in different ways. That is why what matters is not the name of the game but what its description and rules say.
Formats
- Escape room
- A game in which a team solves puzzles against the clock to get out of a room or complete a mission. One of the first known formats is Real Escape Game, run in Kyoto in 2007 by the Japanese company SCRAP (Takao Kato); the format then spread around the world.
- Immersive show
- A format centred on live interaction with actors and on the story. There may be fewer puzzles, and the rules on contact with actors are especially important.
- Horror quest
- An escape game built on tension and scares: darkness, sound, sudden appearances. Many such games have age limits; the rating is set by the operator.
- Haunted maze (horror attraction)
- A route you walk through past scary effects or actors. There are usually few or no puzzles; the focus is on movement and atmosphere.
Mechanics and puzzles
- Hint
- Help from the game master or staff when the team is stuck. How hints are given and how many you get is up to the operator.
- Linear and non-linear games
- In a linear game puzzles are solved strictly one after another; in a non-linear game several tasks can be tackled in parallel, so it makes sense for the team to split up.
- Meta-puzzle
- A final puzzle that requires the answers to several earlier puzzles.
- Game master
- The person who monitors the game, gives hints and stops it if necessary.
Safety
- Safe word (stop signal)
- A word or gesture agreed in advance that stops the game. It is worth finding out how it works in a particular game before it starts.
- Camera monitoring and contact with the game master
- The way the game master sees what is happening and can step in. It is worth asking about this in advance, as well as about the emergency exit.
- Consent-to-contact rule
- Games with actors usually follow a "no touching without consent" rule or have clearly agreed contact. The line is stated in the rules; if it isn't, ask.
- Strobe light
- Flashing light that can trigger seizures in people with photosensitive epilepsy. Such players should be warned in advance, and you should ask the operator about strobes.
- Fight-or-flight response
- The body's response to a scare: the sympathetic nervous system is activated, adrenaline is released, and pulse and breathing speed up. It is a normal reaction that passes once the trigger is over.
Articles on the topics in this section
- Practical guides
How to choose and play a horror escape room, step by step, plus a catalogue of upcoming articles.
- Questions and answers
Short answers on what to do before the game, during the game, and how to cope with fear.
- Reading lists
Reading lists: your first escape room, a group of first-timers, escape rooms without horror.
- Guide sections
A map of the guide: formats, preparation, safety and well-being, groups and roles.
Related sections
- Questions and answers
Short answers on what to do before the game, during the game, and how to cope with fear.
- Reading lists
Reading lists: your first escape room, a group of first-timers, escape rooms without horror.
- Latest updates
A dated feed of new publications in the guide.
Sources
- SCRAP / Real Escape Game: history of the format
- Encyclopedic sources on the physiology of stress
- Epilepsy organisations' guidance on photosensitivity
- Escape room operators' visitor rules
Information is current as of the date it was prepared. Rules, formats and age limits for escape rooms and attractions change, so always check them directly with the operator, on their website and in their visitor rules.