In this article, we will look at the fascinating variety of escape room types. From horror to fantasy and beyond, escape rooms offer a wide range of experiences for players.
This will help you decide which type of escape room suits you best and which adventure you want to experience next – so just read on and get inspired!
Escape room types: different worlds
Escape rooms cover a variety of themes and genres to provide players with a range of different experiences. The most well-known escape room types can be categorized into the following elements:
- with drama
- small to XXL playing surface
- Radio play elements
- Creepy and horror
- Virtual rooms
- Other unique escape room types
Escape rooms with drama
Escape rooms with drama are very rare in Germany, but an absolute premium upgrade! In Hamburg, OPOLUM is one of the market leaders for Escape Rooms Hamburg with acting. The first decisive factor is how you want to involve the actor in the escape room. An immersive introduction when entering the location is desirable, but must also be logistically compatible with other groups. At OPOLUM, the foyer is already themed and can be set to the right immersive mood at the touch of a button. Ideally (unfortunately this does not always work), only the group and the actor are in the thematically appropriate setting in the foyer during the introduction. During the escape room, the question then arises as to how the actor will appear. If he is always present, the group cannot puzzle in peace, if he comes into the room for no reason, the group thinks that he only wants to provide assistance, which frustrates the group. This is why there are story-based passages that move the story forward at the right moment. The group gets deeper into the story and can then explore the next room and solve puzzles with new impressions.
Escape rooms with actors are rare because the infrastructure for suitable staff is not available in every city. In Hamburg, it is possible to find the right staff. However, it should be said that not every actor can play in an escape room. OPOLUM has more than 8 years of experience in the field of acting and escape rooms. Today there is a very special requirement profile for OPOLUM actors.
OPOLUM is probably the only escape room in Hamburg that uses actors because of this extremely special way of building escape rooms and hiring actors with very special skills. And at premium level to boot.
Small to XXL playing surface
When the first escape rooms were launched in 2013, a playing area of around 12 – 35 square meters quickly became established. As escape rooms can only be played once, the floor space was deliberately kept small and yet up to 8 people were crammed into such a small room. If you play particularly small escape rooms today, then these are rooms from this period that are still on offer. The life cycle of an escape room is around 10 years.
The escape room scene has continued to develop throughout Europe. International awards for special escape rooms were also added. Over the years, the motto in the escape room industry has been “bigger, more immersive, more exciting”. New rooms were therefore designed to be bigger. OPOLUM has built its rooms in line with this trend. So we are following the new trend of XXL escape rooms with immersion, drama and lots of fuss. Our escape room “Smuggler” is about 90 square meters in size (3x the size of an ordinary escape room in Hamburg). At 120 square meters, our “Chainsaw” escape room is even 4x the size of a normal Hamburg escape room.
Size is crucial! Several changes of scenery can create much more immersion, suspense and drama. What a pity: an ordinary mini escape room today costs almost as much as the OPOLUM XXL Escape Room Hamburg
Escape rooms with radio play elements
This trend existed for a while in escape rooms in Germany between 2017 and 2022. It was intended to provide more story and give the escape room a new touch. The problem: players want to solve puzzles, not stand around and listen. That’s why the escape room operators had to react and switch off the lights in the room during the radio play passages. The players were therefore in the dark and had to listen to the story whether they wanted to or not. Radio play escape rooms have therefore become a niche market. For some players, a perfect complement to the escape room. Not so much for the masses.
Creepy and horror escape rooms: the fascination of terror
Scary or horror escape rooms create a particularly intense and nerve-wracking experience. The trend is coming to us in Germany from mega-awesome horror escape rooms in Athens. Here, players looking for adrenaline kicks and thrills get what they are looking for. The gloomy atmosphere, eerie noises and unexpected moments of shock will keep you on the edge of your seat. This mixture of fear, excitement and the urge to find out what happens next has a particularly large fan base.
A particularly exciting type of horror escape room is a game where actors in terrifying masks suddenly intervene in the action. You quickly forget that it’s all just a game, and your blood pressure and pulse rate suddenly increase.
With its actors, the OPOLUM is predestined for a horror escape room experience. The makers of OPOLUM have not yet ventured into this special escape room format. The escape room “Chainsaw” is available in a scary version. There is no outright horror on offer here. However, the antagonist can make an appearance with his chainsaw at any time. If you can get involved, the horror is more likely to be in your own head. Nevertheless, it is not impossible that one day there will be a horror escape room from OPOLUM. In any case, the actors already have their hooves in the air.
VR escape rooms: virtual worlds
The most modern of the escape room types is the VR escape room. Here, virtual reality (VR) is used to create a maximally immersive and interactive experience. As early as 2016, resourceful escape room operators and large companies started working on virtual escape rooms and then published them. The aim: a small playing area in which a wide variety of games can be played. High replayability was the aim of this concept.
The VR escape room has not really caught on yet. There are many reasons for this. Firstly, the graphics in the virtual world are usually not as “realistic” as we would like them to be. You can’t expect 4K graphics here. There are also different headsets. Everything from ancient to completely modern. You are not told this before your visit. The danger: motion sickness. Then you get dizzy. Sometimes for several hours. It can happen, but it doesn’t have to.
But the biggest problem with VR escape games is actually the reason why escape rooms were invented in the first place. The idea was to bring computer games into the real world and make them tangible. Real touches, real sounds, sometimes even smells! That’s what escape rooms are all about. For many, a VR escape room seems like a step backwards or a copy.
Perhaps the problem is not the VR escape game itself, but the VR glasses as such! We’ve been told for 10 years that the breakthrough is coming very soon and that everyone will be wearing one of these things on their nose. At the latest since Marc Zuckerburg threw his Metaversum in the garbage can, it should be clear to everyone that the VR trend is probably not coming after all. The next big thing: AR glasses. Digital elements are projected into the haptic world! It’s going to be a shoe-in! Perhaps also for the science fiction escape room.
Other unique escape room types
Outdoor Escape Rooms
Outdoor escape rooms take place in the open air and allow you to explore a specific environment such as a park, a forest or a city, e.g. Hamburg’s Speicherstadt.
The puzzles that you have to solve in this type of escape room can be found in the real world. Incidentally, outdoor escape games have now established themselves as an exciting alternative to conventional sightseeing tours!
Mobile Escape Room Boxes
Mobile escape rooms are – as the name suggests – mobile and can be unpacked at various locations, be it in private rooms, at events or at companies.
This type of escape room allows you to experience the game wherever you feel like it and it’s easy to play.
Education-oriented escape rooms
“Learning through play” is the commendable educational approach here. These escape rooms are often used in schools or other educational institutions to promote playful activities and impart knowledge in certain subject areas in an entertaining way.
Escape room types: how to choose the right one
What do you like? What do you expect from an escape room? What themes are you interested in? Do you prefer adventure, crime puzzles, mysterious puzzles or science fiction and horror?
Once you have clarified this point, think about what level of difficulty you want to master and what level of adrenaline rush you want to experience.
It’s best to research on the internet to find out what types of escape rooms are available in your area. Also read the comments of players who have already visited them. As an escape room beginner, however, it’s best to try out lots of different escape room types first to gain experience and discover your personal favorites.
Ready for an escape room with an XXL play area?
There are many types of escape rooms. They often try to reinvent the wheel! At its core, it’s all about conjuring up varied and creative puzzles in an impressive setting. At OPOLUM, we even garnish this with live acting in a class of its own!
Take a look at our Escape Room Hamburg now! We look forward to seeing you!
