An escape room is a fun and challenging game that tests individual intelligence and teamwork to collectively and cooperatively solve puzzles, discover hidden clues, and complete tasks. Escape rooms are a great opportunity to bond with your friends, family, and co-workers, but the race against the clock has to be swift and efficient. Finding the right clues and getting the right combinations will help you get to the end faster but, what is the best way to solve an escape room game? 

Here are five key ingredients for a successful escape. 

Obey the Rules

Before you begin any escape room, make sure you understand all of the rules. A team member from the escape room will usually cover all of the instructions that need to be followed by all of the participants during their session. Most rules from one escape room to another are the same, but different locations will have their own variants, so don’t just assume you know what is allowed and what isn’t. If you are looking to solve the puzzles faster and more efficiently, it is important that you stick to these rules and not try to find a way around them. After all, knowing the rules will help you build your strategy to successfully escape and work better as a team.

Divide and Conquer

Team members can split up and designate different members to solve different problems based on their individual skills. Someone who is good at logical reasoning can go after the riddles while someone that possesses sharp attention to detail can search for clues. By dividing your skills, you will be able to save quite a bit of time and speed up the progress of the game, which will lead to a successful escape.

Be Time Conscious

When taking on any escape room, it is easy to get into the zone and lose track of time. Since all escape room games are timed, you are only allotted a limited amount of time to solve all of the puzzles and get out. It is always a good strategy to designate one of your team members to keep an eye on the time so that they can notify the team of how much time they have spent and how much time they have left. Just remember, focusing solely on the time remaining can lead to frustration and anxiety that will only get in the way of your problem-solving and your enjoyment of an escape room. 

Communicate

Communication is the most important factor in solving most escape room puzzles. Team members should always notify each other on what stage or step of the game they are on so that tasks are not repeated and time is not wasted. If you are working on a clue or puzzle, you can brainstorm with your other team members so that you can harness the brainpower of everyone on the team. Every idea and suggestion needs to be vocalized and addressed in order to win as a team.

Ask for Hints

Some escape room games allow for a limited number of hints to be shared that will help you finish the game. If you are spending too much time on a puzzle, do not hesitate to ask for tips. Some people don’t take advantage of these hints, as they feel their escape isn’t true unless it was unassisted. Just remember, these hints are part of the rules, and should be utilized as a part of your strategy to overcome especially difficult or time-consuming tasks.