Blog #
20

Looking Back

Have you ever been sitting down… and Record scratch

Freeze frame. You think to yourself “How in the world did I get here!?” Well, that moment hit me, and hit me, and continues to hit me every day when I think about how I ended up being the youngest owner here at EDscapade Games. Now… that was quite the journey. It all started in the boiler room of a billionaire’s mansion, when ninja spies flew off the walls firing blasts at the EDscapade team whilst we were attempting to secure the Jewel of Orion- just kidding. In actuality, we find ourselves on a jagged sidewalk, getting in a brisk run down the road.

At one point during a daily jog with the CEO and a fellow EDs member, a question was poised that would lay the foundation for my life today. “How would you feel about joining EDscapade as a Stakeholder”. I pondered for a second- then thought “What are you even thinking for- SAY YES!” And so I did, and from that day forth would be joining the EDscapade team. That original team consisted of nine friends and educators that came together after years of falling deeper and deeper in love with escape rooms to create the foundations of EDscapade. Those foundations, established by the nine owners, would be supported by other friends who’d join as Stakeholders, such as my self. Stakeholders have been just as crucial to the development of EDscapade, working to one day convert themselves into owners themselves.

Now, that begs the question- How did I become the 10th owner? For years, I had also been fascinated with escape rooms, in particular with the variety of game designs that each location offers. Some places focus primarily on providing interesting puzzles to solve. Others place more importance on the interactiveness of the room itself. Then there are the escape rooms that just want to immerse you fully into the story that you are entering. I was into it all. As a film student, escape rooms really have the feel of a live action film- where you are the stars. After several escape room tours playing the highest rated escape rooms all across California, so many random ideas popped into my head. On one particular flight back from Los Angeles- alongside with our CEO, the two of us went back and forth spitballing ideas for our games. And in an hour, sat miles in the sky, we had laid the groundwork for what would be “S.S.S.H” (More about this experience to come!). “S.S.S.H“ would eventually be placed on the back burner for “The Nursery”, our latest escape experience. But more than the game itself, we found ourselves a partnership that would be in charge of leading the designs for all our future experiences- premiering with “The Nursery”. Long story short, after months of working together, I found myself in a valuable position along with the rest of the owners. After a negotion period with the entire team, and as a culmination of designing games, taking over as video content creator, and being the initial member in our first cohort of stakeholders- I was converted into one of the *now 10 owners of EDscapade.

This left defining a title, which would become the Director of Game Design, as I would work alongside our CEO to lead the creation of the story, puzzles, and flow for our future games. But the design team is far from the end all be all. At EDscapade we pride ourselves on highlighting all aspects of the escape experience. From game flow, to puzzle design, to aesthetics, to technological advancements, to Game Master engagment- these components are all integral in creating, what we hope to be a fun and immersive escape experience. Each department is helmed by a specific EDs member and the combination of all our efforts becomes the collaborative final product that you may find yourself enjoying! So please, come on down to EDscapade and join us for the experience of a lifetime. See you soon!