Escape rooms are becoming a breakout form of entertainment

[Zorro]

With black hoods over their heads, five people trapped in a chain-link enclosure listen to an ominous monologue.

"Hello, my delicious friends," the voice purrs. "I've lived here for five years, and I've spent much of that time collecting delicate morsels like yourselves to help me with my little experiments."

Edward Tandy, the homicidal cannibal who has caged this group in his basement, lays out the rules of his game: They have 45 minutes to solve the puzzles inside and escape. Once time runs out, gas will be pumped in, putting the captives to sleep.

"Then the feast will begin," he whispers. "I'll be counting the seconds."

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-escape-room-boom-20160417-story.html

This "entertainment" seems like a sign of the coming Apocalypse to me.

[Warpy]

1. Yeah, the "whodunit?" games were a lot better

when you'd go to a party and one of the guests would turn into a corpse and somebody in a cop costume would come in and prevent you from leaving until the murder had been solved.

It enjoyed limited popularity because it took money to set up and the guests needed to have working brains and we all know how seldom the intersection of money and brains happens.

The escape the cannibal game just sounds sick.

[mucifer]

2. I think it's a human fascination with murder and mayhem

Last edited Sun Apr 17, 2016, 05:05 PM - Edit history (1)

You can listen to old time radio shows in the 1930s and it's there. It's in Sherlock Holmes mysteries at the turn of the century. It's nothing new.

I can understand that this must be insanely upsetting to victims families to know people watch and enjoy tv shows like "criminal minds" and "CSI" "Law and order" etc. Lots of torture porn.

[Warpy]

3. "Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?" creeeaaak

"The Shadow knows!" I think a lot of it is being able to figure out a puzzle, the corpse only being the plot device to make the puzzle worthwhile.

[Scootaloo]

8. There's a book, "The Invention of Murder"

It's a pretty neat examination of how murder got sensationalized into public spectacle in the Victorian era.

[hollysmom]

4. they also had the dinner theater alternative.

Took my ex to one once and all he did was complain that the actors were not of broadway caliber. Such an ass. Went to another with a friend and we had a way better time.

[snot]

5. I think it's 'cuz most of us DO feel trapped by sociopaths, only

we're not sure where they are, how they're doing it, or how to escape.

[X_Digger]

6. Meh. Electronic 'escape' games have been going since.. the apple IIe?

"You wake up in a strange room, in front of you is a nightstand, to your left a dresser. There is a rug on the floor."

Examine rug.

"The rug is nothing special."

Take rug.

"The rug is to heavy to carry."

Move rug.

"Under the rug, you find a trap door, locked with a brass lock."

.. etc etc etc.

[Warren DeMontague]

7. If by "coming apocalypse" you mean people interested in problem solving, interactive entertainment

as opposed to plopping down passively for 3 hours in front of some network tv crappy laugh track sitcoms with every night, I agree society is careening to hell in a handbasket.

[DawgHouse]

9. Doesn't sound like fun to me but to each their own.

[Volaris]

14. Agreed, for the following reasons:

If I want to sit down and play 'escape the Crazy' I can do that on my Playstation BY MYSELF ( I'm an introvert so mostly to hell with Games With Co-workers) and if I MUST play Games With Co-workers, give me an orienteering or treetop ropes course over this nonsense anyday.

This is a live-action version of Saw..which as far as I'm concerned is just about one of the worst films ever made.

Besides, who in Cold Hell would want to have to rely on the intelligence of their co-workers to 'save their lives'...I'm not so sure I trust my co-workers to do their jobs correctly half the time and they've been TRAINED to do that lol

but like I said above, I'm an introvert and I get that other people need stuff like this. I don't.

[Brickbat]

10. What bothers you -- people solving puzzles and "breaking out," or the scenario?

There are plenty of puzzle rooms that don't rely on grisly plots. Is that what bugs you?

[Dr Hobbitstein]

11. We have a local one.

Some days, it's escape the room full of zombies.

Others, it's a CSI sort of thing. They have different themes.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

12. I have been to a few of these

I'm not sure I entirely "get it" and the quality varies enormously. But some of them were fun.

[Jeffersons Ghost]

13. odd "entertainment" indeed...

[eShirl]

15. sounds like a tv movie plot with horrible writing

its a 'ticking bomb' plot device to add suspense to a puzzle-solving activity.

just doesn't seem that fun to me