Reality Escape Pod - Escape Rooms & Immersive Games

Blackwell Manor is a magnificent horror game created by New Mexico Escape Room in Albuquerque, New Mexico.   In this preview we explore the extreme level of detail that was put into this game, and some of the challenges that this devotion created.   You can find the rest of this Spoilers Club episode by supporting us on Patreon at patreon.com/roomescapeartist

"Bait for the Curious" We’re no strangers to covering secretive experiences. Escape rooms continue to guard their mysteries closely, because a large part of the joy is in the discovery. And yet, because escape rooms generally follow a relatively standard structure, we have a framework when it comes to discussing them. Interviewing Yannick Trapman-O'brien was a bit of a gamble. We knew that we coul...

In this episode, David's wife and business partner, Lisa, joins us again in the Bonus Show to reflect on 10 years of Room Escape Artist. She paints a picture for us of the early years, when it was just David writing reviews in their living room.   They talk about how their writing style has changed as they've added more writers to the team, and we discuss some escape room industry trends. There's...

“Room Escape Artist has built a community within this industry.” The year is 2014. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie just got married. Facebook is the largest social media platform. Celebrities everywhere are doing the Ice Bucket Challenge, and somewhere in New York City, Lisa and David Spira have just written their first review about a new activity called escape rooms. It’s hard to believe that it’s a...

In this episode, Jeroen van Hasselt, co-creator of Demise of the Grisers, joins us again, and we talk about escape room waivers in the USA versus Europe, discuss some of the clever design choices in Demise of the Grisers, and David talks about trying to balance mystery versus consent, and what it means for game design and safety. In this preview of our Patreon exclusive Bonus Aftershow. We talk ab...

“It’s entertainment to experience the emotion of fear.” I creep out from the relative safety of the control center. Keeping to the shadows, I stealthily make the journey through an abandoned train yard. Somewhere in the sprawling tangle of train cars, a gricer is hunting me and my team. I complete my mission, and immediately I hear the clang of footsteps approaching. Before I even register what my...

In this Patreon exclusive Bonus Show, Brooke Breit joins us again to talk more Jackbox Games. We talk about takeaways from party games that escape room designers should consider and she also gives us some recommendations for her favorite puzzley video games. In this preview, we talk about why defective mechanics are difficult to incorporate in escape rooms.    If you enjoy these previews, I hope y...

“We set players up to be the stars of the show.” We’ve gathered a group of 4-6 players to try some collaborative games with mechanics that appeal to a wide variety of skills. These games are hilarious and we emerge feeling smart and witty. No, I’m not talking about the latest escape rooms. We have just finished a session of Jackbox Games. Jackbox Games are games for large groups of people who can...

In this clip, we talk about David's adventures in solving the beautiful and tiny titanium jigsaw puzzles of Lazels. These things are incredibly cool.  If you enjoy these previews, I hope you’ll consider joining our Patreon . For only $5 a month, you’ll get access to our Bonus Aftershow, where we continually release new episodes, even in our REPOD off-season.

“User Centric Design” If you asked me to list some of the skills a good escape room designer should possess, it would look extremely similar to Robert ‘Fro’ Myers’ resume. With a background in theater set design, and a degree from MIT in mechanical engineering, it’s little wonder that David calls Fro’s escape room company Boxaroo “a total package company.”  Boxaroo's creations encompass a wide var...

Escape from Godot is a wildly experimental experience that's half escape room and half theatrical show. This is an event that asks a lot of everyone involved. The multiple actors must be word-perfect. The guests must figure out when to be a passive audience and when it's time to become an active player. In this clip, Andy and Jeff Crocker of Mr & Mischief joins us and we talk about the intenti...

In this clip, we talk with magician David Kwong about social media videos that reveal the secrets behind magic tricks and the implications for the future of the art.  If you enjoy these previews, I hope you’ll consider joining our Patreon . For only $5 a month, you’ll get access to our Bonus Aftershow, where we continually release new episodes, even in our REPOD off-season.

“Storytelling is really what sells the magic trick.” When David Kwong was a young child, a magician performing at a pumpkin patch fooled his father with a classic magic trick. From that moment, he knew he wanted to be a magician. He has since performed worldwide as an acclaimed magician and even consulted on many movies and TV shows like Now You See Me and After Party. Fast forward to today, David...

In this Bonus Show Preview, Elan Lee, CEO of Exploding Kittens, joins us again for a conversation about Taskmaster, growing as a leader, and he gives us an exclusive scoop on the Survivor card game he's developing alongside Jeff Probst. In this sneak preview, he tells us the origin story of Poetry for Neanderthals, one of my favorite games from Exploding Kittens.   If you enjoy these previews, I h...

“We don’t just make entertaining games. We make the people you’re playing with more entertaining.”  “Do you want to play again?” This is the only question Elan Lee asks when playtesting his games. Millions of people have answered yes, which explains why the Exploding Kittens games have dominated the best seller lists for almost a decade. Elan has now set his sights on conquering the world of enter...

"Incredible from the minute you walk in." While we’re in off-season for the podcast, we still continue to produce episodes of our Bonus Aftershow for Patreon Supporters. This summer, we decided to go all-in reporting on our escape room adventures abroad. Nothing excites me more than journeying to far off places in search of delicious foods, wondrous sights, and of course, renowned escape rooms. Da...

Season 8 is coming very soon. In the meantime, Peih-Gee was recently interviewed for episode 100 of Brentfast with Brent Pope: "Brent sits down with the delightful and witty Peih-Gee Law, best known for appearing on Survivor (two different times!) and co-hosting the Reality Escape Pod! They discuss: Growing up Asian in the 90's, being on 2 different seasons of Survivor, the allure of escape rooms,...

In this clip, Brian Corbitt - game designer of Treasure Island at Brain Games in San Pedro, California - talks about the original, unused plan for the finale puzzle and why he decided against it. Brian is most well known for the raunchy, actor driven game Miss Jezebel, and he also talks about how that game completely changed his design philosophy. He also gives us a preview of the new game he's wo...

In celebration of RECON LA, we are releasing our Bonus Show with Michael Borys. We hope that you enjoy and consider subscribing. https://www.patreon.com/roomescapeartist     In this episode, David & Peih-Gee were joined by guest Michael Borys, creator of The 49 Boxes. David share stories about his own pool hustling days and educates everyone on how to not be "a jerk." They also talk about the...

"Why is there blacklight from the killer helping me?" We groggily wake up in a dingy bathroom. It's creepy and dark with an ominous sense of dread. Our kidnapper comes on the screen and explains what will happen to us. "I am also an escape room enthusiast and a horror fanatic. Therefore, I built a horror themed escape room. You are about to experience my masterpiece." While these words are uttered...

To sleep, perchance to dream… Sleep No More, the seminal immersive theater piece from Punchdrunk, has inspired countless immersive creators, including Haley and Cameron Cooper of Strange Bird Immersive. Haley and Cameron make no secret that it has heavily influenced their acclaimed escape room  The Man From Beyond . When we heard that Punchdrunk would close Sleep No More’s New York location, we de...

There's a reason Los Angeles is known as the City of Dreams. It's a town populated with dreamers and makers. They concoct fantasy worlds filled with quirky characters, dashing heroes, and tormented villains. Oftentimes, the backdrop of Southern California serves as inspiration itself, with its wide sandy beaches, snowy mountaintops, and the desolate wilds of the Mojave desert. In honor of RECON Lo...

In April, David and Peih-Gee were guests for two episodes of The Infinite Escape Room, a comedy puzzle show where a group of pals sit down, have a drink, and work together to solve an audio escape room. This time around, they needed to escape a giant, flaming wicker man, and all sorts of silliness ensued. The game episode is now available on the Reality Escape Pod feed: And you can find the follow...

We're sharing a little bit of our Patreon exclusive Bonus Show from S7E12 with Tommy Wallach and Terry Pettigrew-Rolapp of Hatch Escape. In this clip, Terry talks about the qualities that intrigue him the most when playing Escape Rooms and how Immersia and Escaparium, located in Montreal, Canada, fit the bill. Listen to the rest of the Bonus Show now by becoming a patron today at patreon.com/roome...

"Where Terry and I live is between games and theater." If you ask any escape room enthusiast to recommend a must-play game in Los Angeles, you'll hear about Lab Rat. When it first opened in 2018, it was ranked #8 in the world on the TERPECA list. It has maintained a ranking in the top 100 games ever since, which is no small feat. Hatch Escapes' highly anticipated new game, The Ladder, has wowed th...