10+ Top Tips for Solving Escape Rooms and Games

Try these tips for solving escape rooms and games to help you conquer your next escape room!

I’ve completed about seven different escape rooms with my friends and we’ve become huge fans. Below I’ve pulled together my top ten plus tips for winning and solving escape rooms or games whether you’re visiting an escape room company or trying to solve a DIY one at home.

10+ Top Tips for Solving Escape Rooms and Games

Listen Closely to the Introduction/Backstory

Listen and watch closely the introduction and backstory video and anything the staff tells you as you start your game. There will be information that can help you solve clues and they always have good reminders to keep in mind while playing.

Examine The Room Thoroughly

The first time I did an escape room I really didn’t even know where to start. That’s OK. Just start by examining the room you’re in thoroughly and engaging with whatever “puzzles” or items there might be. Move things that are moveable (don’t force anything!), check out shelves and every little corner. You’ll start to naturally find items or clues that help you determine what you should be doing.

Don’t Be Too Proud For Hints

Most escape rooms provide a few hints as part of the experience. Don’t be afraid or ashamed to use them especially if it’s one of your first escape games.

Don’t Overthink It & Walk Away When Needed

If you’re working on a puzzle or clue and just can’t seem to crack it, it’s okay to walk away. Let someone else try. They might have a fresh perspective that’s needed to solve it. Or it might be a puzzle that you can’t solve until you finish something else.

At a recent game, 5 out of 6 of us tried solving a certain puzzle and when my brother stepped in to try it he immediately saw it because he was actually taller than the rest of us and literally saw the solution because he was viewing it from a different angle!

Puzzles May Have to Be Solved Exactly

When you are solving a puzzle or task, be mindful that you might need to solve it very specifically. By this I mean, if you’re lining up some items that look like they’re fitting together well, keep adjusting them until they’re perfectly in place.

There have been times when I’ve been putting pieces together and it looks really good, but it needs to be completely exact for the puzzle to actually be solved and reveal the next item. So again, this might be a situation where you need to take a step back and let someone else adjust the pieces. But on the other hand…

Don’t Force Something

You should never need to force a puzzle together. The clues and puzzles should easily click or fit together, so don’t use a bunch of force and accidentally break something just because you think it should work. Instead, move on to something else.

Communicate!

Communication with the group is vital. Keep talking with everyone else while you’re working through clues and solving items. For starters, this makes the game more fun and exciting to be really involved with one another. Plus, you might be working on something that actually ends up being a clue or the key for what another person is working on. You won’t know this unless you communicate.

Look for What’s Out of Place

When scanning the room, keep your eyes peeled for items that seem out of place. If there’s a pile of papers and one of them is in black and white while the others are in color, start reviewing the B&W one first. Sometimes those differences are subtle, but this will hopefully draw your attention to items that are clues or puzzles to solve so you can keep moving forward in the game.

Don’t Go Hungry

You need to be able to focus, which is not possible on an empty stomach. Plus, I get pretty cranky when I’m hungry and my partners in escape don’t deserve that kind of attitude from me.

Spread Out!

If you’re with a group, spread out in the room. There’s no need to be on top of one another. If anything you can pair up to have two sets of eyes on everything, but the group should space out so you can cover more ground.

Divide and Conquer

Divide tasks up between the group so each person has an assignment. This doesn’t need to last the entire game, but when there’s a puzzle that’s been identified, let one person or two take on that part of the process while another person searches the room for what they need. For example, if someone finds a key, let them take the key to each lock to test it while others in the room are identifying where are the locks are. This keeps things organized and helps from overlapping work or missing things.

Have fun!!

Don’t forget to have fun. Don’t be the person taking things too seriously that you’re trying to run the show all by yourself or you’re hard on others for not getting a clue as quickly as you. Escape games are meant to be fun and challenging, and if you don’t solve it the first time you can always go back.

Who Should Visit an Escape Room or Game?

I’ve had the most fun visiting escape rooms with my friends. Usually we’ve been in groups of 6 which I think is just the right amount. Any more and the room might be crowded and any less it might be kind of hard to solve! But, most places have options for smaller and larger groups. I also think escape rooms are a great family activity as well as a team building activity for corporate outings.

What’s the Best Escape Room Game?

Out of all the escape rooms I’ve tried, I can easily attest for The Escape Game as by far the best one. It’s incredibly immersive and they have really fun and different types of rooms. I find their escape rooms to challenging, but not impossible and the attention to detail within the room is really thoughtful and fun. Plus, I love the wide variety of rooms they offer and that they regularly create new rooms.

Need more date night ideas?

Try these date night ideas at home or these Spring date ideas.

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