Have you ever wanted to do something with friends that does not involve staring at screens or playing flashy games on the internet? If so, you are in luck. Real-life escape room games are becoming extremely popular in Bengaluru with a slew of outlets that offer an opportunity for participants to play Sherlock Holmes or be transported back in time to the timed tasks of the crystal maze. MetroPlus profiles some of the most popular escape room games in the city.
Escape Rooms
IT engineer Kiran Shivappa and his wife played real-life escape room games in the United States when they were staying in the country and felt that it should be brought to India.
Kiran says: “In November 2014, I discovered that the concept was very new in India and decided to set up an escape room in Bengaluru. To make things easier, I took up the Bengaluru franchise of the popular Malaysian company, Escape Room. We have created some of their most popular games in our space.
Though the games are standardised, we hope that Indian variants emerge in the long run. Most of our clientele are students from colleges and people from corporates who see it as part of their team building exercises. Social media has also helped in the growth of the escape room concept in the city.”
Visit: www.escaperoom.com/bangalore
Price: Starts from Rs. 400 per head
Location: 2nd floor, No. 138, 1st A Cross Rd, 5th Block, Koramangala
Breakout
Financial analyst Hareesh Moothi was working with HP and was introduced to the concept of real-life escape room games on a trip to Poland. “We did not have much to do and decided to head to a place that offered an almost realistic escape game experience. I fell in love with the concept when I played in escape rooms at the Czech Republic,” he says. Hareesh went on to play similar games across the world and eventually decided to take the plunge and start an independent project in India. “I quit my job and focussed all my energy on putting out an escape room game with a difference. I believe it is a good way to get people to work together as a team and be entertained as well. Building the games took time, since we had to set a good plot and viable scenarios in place. It was not just a task of placing some clues in a room and forgetting about it.”
Hareesh contends that game scenarios ranging from solving murder mysteries to sorting out secret service missions offer an opportunity for players to behave and work like their reel-life heroes. We have many corporate employees and college students coming back to try out different games. We are in talks to set up franchisees across the country.”
Visit: www.breakout.co.in
Price: Starts from Rs. 449 per head
Location: 27, NMR building, 100 Feet Road, Koramangala
Riddle Room
Venkat Raman and his wife Nishita Shah launched the Riddle Room, an interactive game in which players are locked inside a room and have to unearth clues, examine unassuming objects and decoys to make it back out within 60 minutes. Venkat says, “We discovered this concept when we were holidaying in Thailand and were fascinated. We wanted to give people something that does not involve staring at a screen. So we developed something that will require only the use of your mind and not Google to find solutions. ”
He elaborates: “We offer two games at present. It took us almost a year to set them up and create the plotlines. We wanted to create it on our own and not opt for the franchisee model. In the laboratory, a team is sent in as agents of the government to save Romania from an imminent biochemical attack. In the tomb, players are part of an archaeological team sent into the tomb of Ramses, to try and recover five pieces of the mystical golden capstone. We also provide occasional clues to help players who find themselves stuck at a particular juncture. We make small changes every three months to ensure that returning customers find something different. We have made an attempt to provide an authentic experience. For the Ramses game, we sourced material from Egypt. It can be played by a group of people more than three and less than seven.” Venkat contends: “I think that such a concept strikes a chord with a lot of our customers from IT backgrounds and college kids. It is a mind game and many people are keen to try something like this out. We plan to add more games once the concept becomes more popular.”’
Visit: riddleroom.in
Prices: Start from Rs.450 per head
Location: Raheja Arcade, Koramangala
