Room Escape Artist

Lisa and David were out of town for most of May… visiting Laval (RECON prep!), Boston, and Prague. Check out our Travelogue videos on Patreon for our in-the-moment reactions to some of the games we played. And stay tuned for the reviews to publish over here in a couple of months. But this month we’re highlighting a few reviews from Matthew’s recent European travels, among other things.

RECON Speakers Announced

This month we announced quite a few RECON speakers.

The talks at RECON Laval will help you address business questions like:

• Is your escape room business running you?
• How do you project manage ridiculously awesome things?
• What if your aren’t constrained to four walls and sixty minutes?
• What’s an escape room business worth?

And creative questions like:

• Can puzzles improve your storytelling?
• How much does sound design matter?

We’ll explore all of this and more as a community, through these talks, and also through the discussion sessions, products available in the exhibit hall, and games embedded in RECON. You don’t want to miss this event. Tickets are on sale now.

Reviews

🔒 Golden Lock Winners

Sleep, Down the Hatch (Voorburg, Netherlands) – A hybrid of interactive narrative and immersive theater, Sleep stretched the limits of escape rooms as a storytelling medium. (Review by Matthew Stein)

The Rubicon, Roomsmiths (Plymouth, United Kingdom) – The Rubicon is a Portal-inspired, challenging, puzzle-focused escape room with a relentless sense of humor. (Review by Matthew Stein)

Escape Rooms

IAMAI, clueQuest (London, England) – IAMAI was the epitome of a high-tech escape room and a true playground for puzzle lovers. It is a new top game in London. (Review by Matthew Stein)

The T.U.R.D.I.S., Portaclue (London, England) – The T.U.R.D.I.S. is an amazing escape room in a porta potty. It is the property of Dr. Poo and his companion, Number Two. (Review by David Spira)

Play-At-Home

The Escape Game by Marissa Meyer & Tamara Moss (book) – This YA novel is a murder mystery set on an escape room competition show – created for escape room fans by escape room fans. (Review by Jayna Shea)

PAX East 2026: Games and the Gaming Lifestyle – REA reports back from PAX East 2026. There are lots of great puzzle games releasing soon! (By Andrew Reynolds)

Podcast

Imagineer & Puppeteer, Terri Hardin (REPOD S11E6) – Podcast interview with Terri Hardin: puppeteer, creature builder, performer, sculptor, and Disney Imagineer.

PG’s Playhouse E44: Belgian Waffles – Podcast episode about Belgian waffles, featuring puzzles about food and guest Joan Spira, David Spira’s mom. Happy Mother’s Day!

Recommendation Guides

• Updated: Amsterdam

Commentary

Lock Mapping & Why It’s Essential in Escape Rooms – Lock mapping is good escape room design. Here we explain what it is and why it’s important for players, gamemasters, and owners. (By David Spira)

More Escape Rooms Should Be Like Andor – Andor shows that compelling escapes result from feeling trapped in a believable world where our actions matter. Escape rooms can do this too. (By Richard Burns)