Solving puzzles, cracking codes and opening locks to get out of a room in less than an hour is the basis of playing an escape room game.
Instead of going to an office building or converted warehouse, Salli Renz and Jacob Renz will bring you an escape room.
The mother-son team from Spring Grove presents Eureka! October escape game 1.
“We just [COVID-19]people stay at home instead of going out,” Sally said.
They wanted a business idea that would bring the party to customers, not the other way around, she said.
Sally said Jacob’s overall enjoyment of escape rooms made the idea come to fruition.
“The idea was born from there and upgraded from there. We took it to a different level with a portable escape game,” she said.
So how do portable escape rooms that aren’t actually rooms work?
Renzes teamed up with an escape room design company that made three portable units for them. About the size of a large office copier, the game can fit on a coffee table or dining table.
Each game includes parts of the escape room that people would expect, including solving clues that open up the next part of the game, Jacob said.
Each game has 14 different puzzles to solve to beat the game, he said.
“They’re a play unit. They’re pretty big units with hidden drawers, codes and puzzles, and video technology. It’s akin to a high-tech escape room you go to,” Jacob said.
These units are small, compact and mobile.
“It’s a game you play, with elements similar to” a traditional escape room, Salli said.
Jacob is the master of the game – traveling to the backcountry, setting up the game and instructing the player how to play the game out of the box.
Like a normal escape room, Jacob can remotely provide hints and help players so they “don’t get mesmerized for too long,” he said.
Currently, they have three different game settings, Salli said: Jungle, Deadly Hallows and Bomb Disposal. She wants to add a fairytale-themed game in the future.
Groups can book the service online, and Jacob brings the game to wherever people gather, Salli said.
The games are challenging and have some more mature themes, Sally said. They recommend that players be in junior high school or above.
For information, visit www.eurekaescapegames.com.