Room Escape Artist

It’s become a holiday tradition that we visit the Room Escape Divas podcast in December. In today’s episode we talk about our latest news, tease some upcoming awesomeness, and discuss many other things (all relating to escape rooms!). This is a conversation among friends, with some deep musings on game design in the mix.

Room Escape Divas Episode 80 – The Escape Room Scene with Room Escape Artist

Thank you, Errol and Manda, for the lovely discussion. It’s always a pleasure!

New Microphone Setup

In related news, we have greatly improved our microphone setup… So listening to us should be a more pleasurable experience. 

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Conversation Cheatsheet

00:01:45 – Patreon, expansion, and publication schedules

00:04:30 – Kickstarter & crowdfunding 

00:06:00 – 4 years of REA and the process of making our first video

00:06:45 – Children in escape rooms. David misremembers how he first met Errol… and Errol corrects him.

00:10:00 – Project management with Trello & our stash of content ideas

00:11:40 – Bringing on new writers (Steve Ewing & Sarah Willson), paying them, and the REA Style Guide 

00:16:30 – Patreon perks, why ours are set up as they are, and planning for success in crowdfunding

00:22:21 – Errol tells a story about how he’s dumb.

00:24:00 – 2018 Holiday Buyers Guide and some of our favorite gifts for it

00:31:45 – Announcing the 2018 Golden Lock-In Awards live, the best post-game photos ever, and how David saved Manda in Amsterdam

00:36:50 – Suspension of disbelief

00:41:15 – Our wild experience at Escape Woods

00:46:55 – Puzzle complexity, immersion, and pacing

00:52:10 – Establishing expectations, “the curve of judgment,” and horror vs “horror”

 00:56:38 – Designing for what you can build well

00:59:00 – Being picky or forgiving about the limitations of what a company can legally do within their physical space

01:00:10 – Taking phones and charging phones… and why forced surrender of mobile devices still angers David

01:04:40 – Do any escape rooms still lock players in?

01:06:48 – Do not touch stickers

01:13:22 – What it’s like playing with Errol

01:18:45 – Teasing the next Escape Immerse Explore Tour

01:19:26 – 2019 conferences that we’re attending, meetups, real life community interaction, and escape room travel

01:23:40 – Where is the escape room industry going in 2019?

01:31:00 – The importance of community in the industry

01:32:00 – The notion of first- and second-wave escape room enthusiasts

01:36:20 – We all torment Manda while she tries to deliver the conclusion of the podcast.

Listen to the Conversation

Room Escape Divas Episode 80 – The Escape Room Scene with Room Escape Artist