Escape games have exploded in popularity in recent years as more people have introduced their friends and family to the experience.
The thrill of solving timed challenges like you and your friends are on a game show or in a horror scenario from a TV show is immensely enjoyable.
There are many ways to play an escape game. Some go out to specialized escape room venues, while others use phone apps as a way to play an escape game wherever they are.
But playing escape games can be intimidating for new players. So we put together this list of ice-breaking escape games that you can play from the comfort of your home.
Keep reading to find out the best escape room games for newbies!
1. Unlock!
Unlock! is a strategy escape room cooperative card game where players work their way through a 60-card deck to solve escape room-inspired puzzles.
There are three different adventure scenarios that players can choose from while working together as a team.
“The Noside Show” is a setting where players must stop Professor Noside from infiltrating and sabotaging a circus.
“Lost in the Timewarp!” requires that players find clues as to why Professor Alcibiades’ time machine is malfunctioning.
Finally, in “Arsene Lupin and the Great White Diamond,” players cooperate in running a jewel chase in the streets of Paris in the 1910s.
Unlock! is an escape game that the makers recommend for 1-6 players aged ten or older, with each game lasting around 60 minutes. It is a perfect introduction to escape games for beginners because it is easy to learn and comes with a free companion app for ease of play.
2. Escape Tales
Escape Tales is an escape room-inspired series of games emphasizing narrative choice.
Each game in the series has 60 or more endings that allow players to be a hero, a villain, or something in between.
The concept of these games is for you and your friends to immerse yourselves in a mature and engaging dark fantasy narrative, where your choices give you and others agency over the story’s progression.
Players will solve tricky riddles that require you to activate your creative thinking and pour over every detail to find an out-of-the-box solution. Players will also find items and characters to aid them on their journey through Escape Tales.
Since this game is more mature in theme, the creators recommend players be 16 years of age or older.
The game supports 1-4 players and boasts over 450 minutes of total play time (thanks to all the endings).
3. Curio: The Lost Temple
Curio: The Lost Temple offers a faster-paced, escape room-like experience for newbies confident about their puzzle-solving skills.
In this game, players cooperate to solve puzzles while roleplaying as archeologists attempting to escape from the depths of an ancient forgotten temple.
Each match the players undertake will consist of rapid-fire rounds lasting 15 minutes. In these short matches, players will crack codes and solve clues to progress forward.
Players are dealt clue cards that contain strings of letters. Players can share their information with other players and get bonus points for solving clues quickly.
Narrative is not a big focus in this escape game. This puzzle game is great for new players because it cuts out all the extra stuff and makes solving puzzles the meat of the experience.
This game is a good choice when trying to see if a new player will enjoy escape games as a whole. The rounds are quick, so choices will feel more impactful.
4. Escape Room in a Box: The Werewolf Experiment
Escape Room In a Box: The Werewolf Experiment is an escape room-inspired game that emphasizes cooperation.
Players have to work as a group to solve 19 mental and physical challenges in 60 minutes. Otherwise, a mad scientist will turn your group into werewolves!
This game is immersive, and is capable of connecting to your Amazon Alexa so you can enjoy an enhanced experience through sounds and narration.
The great thing about the Werewolf Experiment is that there are so many great 2D and 3D puzzles to solve – 19, to be exact. Many of these escape games only include 2D puzzles, but this escape game offers a wider variety.
People can play this game in a group as small as two players or as large as eight players. This versatility means that you will never have to worry about making players sit out or canceling game night because not enough people showed up.
The time limit is pretty strict in this game, with many reviewers reporting they only had seconds to spare when completing the challenge (even if they were escape room veterans!). Escape room games work best when a healthy balance of tension is struck, so players feel pressured to make quick decisions without feeling like the scenario is hopeless.
Conversely, when escape room challenges are too easy or only one person has to contribute, it can ruin the fun of the escape room concept for new players who don’t feel the impact of their contributions. This game helps strike that balance perfectly so beginners can feel challenged but not overly stressed.
5. Deckscape
Deckscape is an escape room card game series wherein players are locked into a room or a desperate situation. Deckscape themes include robbing a casino and then getting away, breaking out of prison, and escaping from a desert temple. Players have to solve logic games, puzzles, and challenges to discover darker secrets within the plot.
The great thing about this escape game is that it has solutions to many puzzles on the back of cards, which allows the game to keep moving at a speedy pace. This is helpful for beginners who can’t figure everything out themselves, but don’t want to lose too much momentum or feel too slowed down.
Deckscape works as a pocket-sized escape room alternative that can be carried everywhere. The rules are simple, and the game is designed from the ground up to be intuitive. The game’s description even boasts that players can begin a game without even having to read the rules. The accessibility and portability offered make this game an excellent choice for new escape room players that hope to develop their escape room skills.
The makers of Deckscape suggest that this game is appropriate for players aged 12 years and up. The game supports 1-6 players and has an estimated session time of 60 minutes.
6. Exit: The Game
Exit: The Game is a series of escape games with different themes. Sometimes players will be locked into a spooky cabin. Other times, they will be trapped on a speeding train.
Up to 4 players will work together against the clock to solve riddles, crack codes, and uncover clues that aid in solving puzzles.
This game series has a rich narrative and plot that helps the player feel more invested.
But each game can only be played once, because players need to mark and tear game pieces to solve different puzzles. This feature reduces the replayability of the game but also enhances the feeling of freshness in each new session.
Some versions of the game support up to 6 players, and the play time can range between 1 and 2 hours.
7. Escape Room: The Game
Escape Room The Game is a thrilling mystery adventure game that brings the escape room experience directly to your home.
Each box contains four different adventures, each featuring three distinct parts. Each adventure has an escape time limit of 60 minutes and features different levels of difficulty.
Setting up the game is easy – players select a challenge, set the time on the provided Chrono Decoder, and the escape room app takes care of the rest.
The app provides integral sounds and music to enhance the escape room experience.
The creators designed the game for 3-5 players ages 16 years and up.
Overall, this escape game provides a true to form escape room experience without too many distracting details. The four scenarios included in the base game include game pieces that, once completed, can be incorporated into current and future expansion packs.
8. Scooby-Doo: Escape From the Haunted Mansion
Scooby-Doo: Escape from the Haunted Mansion is a kid-friendly take on the escape room experience. The creators of this game recommend players only need to be ages 8 years and up, which will make it more appealing to kids and family environments.
But don’t let the kiddie exterior fool you; this game has a lot of depth, with over 50 clues to decode and a two-part mystery that can change on each playthrough.
Players choose one of the Mystery Inc members to play as, then work together to solve puzzles through clue cards and a unique code revealing system.
With five narrative books, each game has a distinct plot that is easy to pick up and engaging.
Final Thoughts
These escape games are a great way to inject casual fun into a game night or family function.
Escape games test everyone’s cooperation in a fun way, where nobody has to be the opposing team. When everyone works together toward a common goal, the experience can be great fun for people who are otherwise turned off by the competitive nature of board games.
Pick up one of these fun escape-themed games for your group next game night – you won’t regret it!