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ENTERTAINMENT >> ESCAPE ROOMS
ESC KEY
A BRIEF HISTORY AND PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
Escape Rooms W R ITTEN BY CA MERON COBB
Escape rooms: where people line up to get inside a room so they can be challenged to get out. And although the continuous growth of escape rooms doesn’t put their popularity into question, curiosity begins before the game even starts: where and when did escape rooms originate?
HISTORY: Although the first documented escape room didn’t open up until just 10 years ago, the concept has been around for decades. In the 1980s and ‘90s, television shows about similar adventures and mazes aired in the U.K. with some of the on-screen challenges closely resembling modern-day games. Heading in a more interactive direction, the 1990s saw the beginning of some of the first 3-D escape puzzle video games. In the early 2000s, “escape the room” pixel games were officially 74 |
OUR TOWN MAGAZINE
JULY/AUGUST 2017
given a name and style (with some still existing online to this day). In 2007, a company called SCRAP (also known as “Real Escape Game”) opened the first-ever escape room in Kyoto, Japan. And although Asia will forever be home to the original, it didn’t take long for others to follow. In 2012, the United States welcomed the activity with open arms and open, eager minds. SCRAP set sail for California, with the game’s first location in the U.S. being San Francisco. With their presence not just limited to larger cities, more places across the globe will likely provide a place for escape rooms. There are even a couple of escape rooms in Gainesville, along with many others in neighboring cities. Escape Key features rooms designed with different themes SOURCE: ROOMESCAPEARTIST.COM