Room Escape Artist

“… cause anything can be art.”

 ”If it’s art, it can be a puzzle, which means anything can be a puzzle, ’cause anything can be art.” This sentiment inspired The Conundrum Museum, one of Boxaroo Escape Room’s puzzliest games.

 Boxaroo co-founder Fro Myers walks us through the creation of Boxaroo’s second game, from the years spent refining its design to the team’s goal of seeing just how many puzzles they could pack into one space. He researched art galleries, frames, placards, and pedestals to ensure they were realistic. They also layered in playful art and cultural references with a healthy dose of escape room self-parody.

Conundrum Museum really starts with a bang, and then it’s off to the races. Much of the Boxaroo team is deeply involved in the annual MIT Mystery Hunt, both as players and as writers. And winning comes with condolences… Congrats! You get to write the next year’s Hunt. Conundrum Museum is exactly what you’d expect from a team steeped in the Mystery Hunt tradition. There are dense, layered puzzles, clever connections, and plenty of humor along the way.

In this Spoilers Club, we dig into all the puzzle hunt influences sprinkled throughout the game, including a type of meta-puzzle that you normally only see in puzzle hunts. If you love more puzzley escape rooms, make sure to check out Conundrum Museum the next time you’re in Boston, and if you’ve already played, consider joining the Spoilers Club to hear all about the design decisions behind the creation of this game.

To hear more from Fro, check out our interview with him on Reality Escape Pod (REPOD S8E3), and to hear more about Conundrum Museum, read our review.

To hear more about the MIT Mystery Hunt, check out our interview with the captain of the team that wrote the 2025 MIT Mystery Hunt titled “The Case of the Shadow Diamond”, James Douberley (REPOD S9E1).

How to Listen

When you support Room Escape Artist on Patreon at $15 per month (or above), you get access to the Spoilers Club, our exclusive podcast where hosts David Spira and Peih-Gee Law chat in depth with creators about iconic escape rooms… spoilers and all!