We played only 34 real-life escape games in 2020.
While our play count doesn’t come close to that of past years (which peaked at 258 in 2017), we found some incredible gems on our two international trips, and in our own home market. We’re excited to announce these winners, which would haven been strong contenders in past years as well, and deserve the recognition.
In addition, in 2020 we played many digital and remote escape games. For the first time this year, we’ll recognize our favorites in this category too, out of the more than 50 we played.
Rules
- We established no arbitrary minimum or maximum number of rooms that could win the award.
- A company could only win once for the year.
- We (either of us) had to play the room during 2020.
- To be eligible for the “Online” category, games had to be playable from home, without any shipped components.
- To be eligible for the “Real-Life” category, we had to visit the venue in person to play the game.
There is no such thing as the perfect escape room, but these are the ones that we wish we could play again. Here are our 17 favorite escape rooms (9 online, 8 real-life) of 2020.
2020 Golden Lock Winners
Category: Online
Listed chronologically in the order that we played them (which is not necessarily chronologically equivalent to when we published the REA Hivemind review):
The Lost Temple
CU Adventures in Time & Space – Urbana, Illinois, USA
In The Lost Temple, CU Adventures in Time & Space integrated crafty printable puzzles with an inviting and well-organized digital interface, such that playing this style hybrid felt entirely seamless. It was an impressive and innovative take on escape room gameplay.
The Truth About Edith
Mad Genius Escape Co. – Portland, Oregon, USA
With its custom interface, The Truth About Edith required a team of 4 players to coordinate individual actions to collaboratively complete a mission. Mad Genius Escape Co.’s worldbuilding added tons of energy and personality to this quirky game.
Pursuit of Assassin Artist
Omescape – San Jose, California, USA
Pursuit of the Assassin Artist took advantage of the online format with scenes that wouldn’t work in real-life escape gaming. Omescape’s elegant execution of a time loop mechanic, combined with amusing actor interactions, ushered in what we expect to be a jumping off point for future creativity in escape rooms.
Miss Jezebel Online
60out – Los Angeles, California, USA
60out’s edgy blend of over-the-top character interactions with traditional escape room gameplay in an absurd setting worked brilliantly in its avatar-led online adaptation. Miss Jezebel was uproariously funny with outstanding acting – perfect for any adult audience comfortable participating in raunchy humor.
Avatar Stalker
Project Avatar – Ukraine
Project Avatar was a groundbreaking hybrid of video game and avatar escape game. Their silent avatars imbued the role with personality, while also acting as stuntmen. Avatar Stalker was an absurd scavenger hunt/ choose-your-own-adventure game with a bonkers story and hilarious cutscenes.
The Hot Chocolate Incident
Improbable Escapes – Kingston, Ontario, Canada
The Hot Chocolate Incident was serious about being adorable. With their family-friendly holiday game, Improbable Escapes designed a staging specifically for online play, with streamlined searching and inputting, and the illusion of tech, enabling their bumbling, excitable elven avatar to focus on holiday cheer.
Club Drosselmeyer 1943
Green Door Labs – Boston, Massachusetts, USA
For its 1943 installment, this annual Christmas spectacle was reimagined as a radio show, complete with music, character interactions, branching narrative, and mailed (or printed) puzzles. Club Drosselmeyer 1943 created the frenzied energy of the real-life event through an impressive modern back end that orchestrated a digital experience which felt true to the period of the narrative.
The Beast
Emergency Exit – Greater Manchester, England
Emergency Exit reinvented their real-life games into an extraordinary online adventure in The Beast. The narrative foundation, cinematography, and in-game audiovisual trickery, combined with a skilled avatar – plus cameraman – afforded this game new opportunities to shock.
Super Squad
Trapped Puzzle Rooms – St. Paul, Minnesota, US
Trapped Puzzle Rooms used the audio medium to its fullest for clever situational puzzles. The magic of Super Squad was a fantastical world where we could try anything, however ridiculous, and it just might work, because the gamemaster embraced creative off-the-wall solutions and rewarded us with rich, improvised responses.
Category: Real-Life
Listed chronologically in the order that we played them:
Wigwam Escape
Washington – Washington, Connecticut, USA
In Wigwam Escape, every design decision had purpose. Solving through a day in 1518, we learned through gameplay, and marveled at novel interactions that surprised and excited us. There was a ton of innovation crammed into Wigwam Escape.
The Lost Island of the Voodoo Queen
Escaparium – Laval, Quebec, Canada
Escaparium’s blockbuster escape room took place aboard a ship with a breathtakingly detailed set. The Lost Island of the Voodoo Queen induced a child-like urge to explore and discover, and solves were rewarded with outrageous effects and dramatic moments.
The Reflection of Madness
Codex – Montreal, Quebec, Canada
The Reflection of Madness captured the epic feeling of Lovecraftian cosmic horror. It wasn’t a particularly scary game; it played with the boundaries of human perception and expectation. While Codex was one of the victims of 2020, this game remains eligible for a Golden Lock because it was purchased and will live on.
The Grand Immersia Hotel
Immersia – Montreal, Quebec, Canada
The Grand Immersia Hotel was a narrative-driven, blood-pumping adventure through a set that became increasingly compelling around each bend. Immersia built tension, excitement, and momentum with each discovery and solve.
The Sanatorium
Lockhill – Athens, Greece
Lockhill’s The Sanatorium (2.5 hours on Midnight Mode) was an enormous, beautiful, menacing experience with surprises around every corner. Traversing the environment and interacting with the actors felt like living a survival horror video game.
El Exorcista
No Exit Escape Rooms – Athens, Greece
In El Exorcista, with each transition we were terrified, shocked, awed, and delighted… and this repeated on loop for the 90-minute theatrical escape room. No Exit Escape Rooms’ talented actors made this exorcism story come alive.
The Bookstore
Paradox Project – Athens, Greece
Paradox Project’s epic second adventure (at 200 minutes!) took inspiration from classic escape room sets and gameplay, but opened up in unexpected ways. Although grand in scale, The Bookstore was composed of intimate scenes connected by outstanding reveals and exciting transitions.
Ghost Light
Myss Tic – Brooklyn, New York, USA
In Ghost Light the lighting was beautiful, but also elegantly designed to focus our attention on the elements that mattered and deprioritize everything else. It was subtle, but genius. With strong puzzle design realized through classic escape room gameplay, Myss Tic reminded us why we love escape rooms.
Congratulations to the 2020 Golden Lock Award Winners!
Past Golden Lock Awards
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