Unveiling the Origins of Escape Rooms!
Tue, 26 Nov, 2019
Escape room games are highly popular and can be found in most cities around the world. From Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Sydney, Australia, the enthusiasm for escape rooms knows no bounds. More and more people are seeking to test their skills in an immersive world.
But where did it all start? Escape games didn't become what they are today overnight. Let's take a look into the past to discover how a simple puzzle led to the creation of modern escape rooms.
When was the first escape room built?
To answer this question, we need to take a brief look into the past:
The earliest puzzles date back to 3000 BCE when 49 game pieces were found in the southeastern mound of Basur Höyük.
Egyptians painted a Tic-Tac-Toe-like game on roof tiles for entertainment in 1300 BCE.
King Louis XIV of France had an elaborate labyrinth created for his son in 1664.
"Tennis for Two" - the first video game was invented in 1958 by American physicist William Higinbotham.
"Crimson Room" - the first video game in escape room style, invented by Japanese designer Toshimitsu Takagi in 2004.
Finally, in 2007, the first real escape room was opened by SCARP in Japan!
Real Escape Rooms Today!
The first real escape rooms were quite basic, featuring minimal facilities and a simple design. These early room concepts set the foundation for the games we have today. Players gathered in a locked room, solved puzzles, found clues and hidden objects, and had to escape before time ran out. Quite simple, right?
If we consider what we expect from an escape room nowadays, in 2019, the answer is quite different!
There are now over 8,000 escape rooms worldwide! The competition between companies is enormous, constantly reinventing innovative and groundbreaking ways to attract customers. Before this boom, an escape room was an activity for puzzle enthusiasts and adrenaline junkies who didn't mind the pure tricky aspect available at that time.
Today, escape rooms come in all shapes and sizes, quite literally! Whether outdoors or indoors, in ancient ruins, decommissioned airplanes, or even underground catacombs. There are even many mobile escape rooms that can be found anywhere today. The genres of escape room games are extremely versatile and can be adapted to any theme imaginable!
Escape rooms can be family-friendly, involve real actors, have a strong emphasis on immersion, or even incorporate VR technology, all with a variety of puzzles. And guess what? They are continually evolving!
If you haven't had the opportunity to visit one for any reason, stop what you're doing right now and simply book one, today and now!
