Escape Rooms are now part of the Immersive Experience conversation, and they deserve to be heard
In 2019, Gord had the privilege of attending the Escape Room Industry Conference (or ERIC for short), and thoroughly loved the experience. Sadly, I (Liz) wasn’t able to attend, and have been seething with jealousy ever since. ERIC was a place for escape room creators (or hangers on like us) to gather and teach, inspire, learn, or just have a good old-fashioned knees-up, as they say. Of course, we all know what happened the following year, but even when the world re-opened, it didn’t look the same, and we thought ERIC was possibly no more.
But last year, in 2024, ERIC re-emerged, like a phoenix from the flames, this time partnered with the Immersive Experience Network. We weren’t able to attend last year, but when ERIC once again returned to the IEN Summit, this time with a dedicated program stream, we debated long and hard about whether to attend, after all, it’s not cheap. But Escape Rooms are now part of the Immersive Experience conversation, and they deserve to be heard.
In the section of the IEN Summit’s webpage that describes who the conference is for it lists Immersive & Interactive Theatre, Immersive Audio, Live Action Roleplay, Location based AR &VR, Themed Attractions, Scare Attractions, Alternate Reality games, just to name a few. (And of course, Escape Rooms. Can’t forget those) But just how relevant is the content outside of the ERIC programming stream to Escape Room creators? Well, actually, it’s incredibly relevant.
WHY ATTEND?
Those that have never played an escape room, or only ever played one in 2014 and never looked back, might think that it’s just a room with a bunch of padlocks on the furniture and a sudoku or two slapped on the wall, but the truth of the matter is that the format has evolved far beyond that. Rooms being developed now blend elements from a variety of other immersive experience formats. Just look at the horror rooms in Europe – these are escape rooms, yes, but they are also scare attractions. Magnifico’s Circus is an escape room, yes, but it is also interactive theatre. I could go on, but you get the point: Escape Rooms are not just one type of immersive experience, they are all of them.
In the main IEN program stream, there was a talk that showcased the importance of on-boarding, and off-boarding, players (and tips for how to do it). Another covered the challenges of safeguarding performers in immersive experiences. There were more on environmental storytelling, narrative design, the importance of sound in an immersive experience, sustainable set design… I could go on. There were even workshops for the “boring stuff” – like shaping up your marketing or 1-to-1 business mentoring. All of these things, despite being for “other” immersive experiences, have important points that can be adapted to take the next generation of Escape Rooms to the next level.
Of course, the Exhibitor’s Area, with clever tech from last year’s MIT Mystery Hunt, a chance to learn more about COGS, a booth from the Escape Workshop, and even an Escape Room – focused insurance agent – No Spoilers (not to mention, the chance to finally experience The T.U.R.D.I.S, from Porta-clue), was a section not to be skipped.
And that’s totally ignoring the ERIC programming stream, the main reason most Escape Room creators would even consider attending. With so many interesting and inspiring talks from some of the biggest names in the Escape Room Industry today, the ERIC portion of the IEN Summit was definitely worth attending. Jonathan Driscoll’s conversation with Sera Dodd gave so much insight into creating (some of) the best games in the world – and the highs and lows that go along with it. David Spira got a bit spicy, and despite insisting that most designers in the room would never win a TERPECA, gave examples of games that are trying anyway. Nick Moran’s talk focussed on the importance of world building and making the player a character. Charlie Bond rounded it out with the inspiring story of Deadlocked Escape Rooms and finished with the demand to “make weird sh*t.”
And then there was the networking. The chance to meet so many creators, from all different types of immersive formats, and pick their brains in an informal setting, is honestly, invaluable, even from the perspective of an Escape Room blogger. The chance to learn what else is out there, so that you can get the creative juices to create something truly special, is priceless.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Escape Rooms are now firmly cemented into the world of immersive experiences, and while there are so many things the Escape Room Industry can learn from their other immersive counterparts, Escape Rooms also have so much to teach. After doing my own networking, I hear rumblings that there are plans to make Escape Rooms an even bigger part of the Immersive Experience conversation in the future. Here’s to ERIC and IEN Summit ‘26; We look forward to seeing you there.
The Immersive Experience Network Summit ’25 took place at Woolwich Works in London on 21st and 22nd October 2025
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