Real-Life Escape Games: 3 Daring Historical Escapes Made by Women

Mary, Queen of Scots in captivity

In the list of Great Escapes, you’ll notice a lack of women’s names. But that’s definitely not because women didn’t commit a whole lot of impressive escape feats. Handily, Krakit Vancouver Escape Game is here to fill that gap with this list of three of the most daring escape efforts made in history—all done by women.

1. Mary, Queen of Scots, escape: 1568

Mary, Queen of Scots did a lot of things most women didn’t do during the 16th century, like rule a country, get involved in a murderous love triangle, make enemies with Elizabeth I, and be taken political prisoner.

In 1568, after one year locked up in Lochleven Castle following a rebellion of Scottish nobles, she disguised herself as a laundress and tried to make her break by boat. Alas, she was recognized and turned back to her cell. However, that didn’t stop her from making a second escape, two months later, with the help of an orphan kid she befriended and a horse she stole from her captors. This time, she was successful.

Despite her penchant for daring escapes, Mary unfortunately would be no stranger to prisons throughout her life, ultimately being executed in 1587.

2. Harriet Tubman, escape: 1849

Harriet Tubman was born into a life of slavery in 19th-century Maryland. When her master died in 1849, instead of going to work at the neighbour’s house, Tubman took advantage of the disarray and made her escape to Philadelphia.

However, she didn’t stop there. She returned to her former home to help her family escape, along with dozens of other people. When the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was passed, she returned to her knack for arranging escapes, helping get people across the border and into British North America (now Canada) along the Underground Railroad.

Because Tubman was just an overall badass, when the Civil War came around, she joined up as an armed scout and spy.

3. Countess Andrée de Jongh, escape: 1941

An active member of the Belgian Resistance during WWII, Countess Andrée de Jongh made her escape from Belgium at the age of 21, crossing the Pyrenees Mountains on foot to reach Spain. Like Tubman, de Jongh really did not stop there. Instead, she organized the Comet Line, an escape network that helped captured Allied soldiers escape occupied France and Belgium and reach safety in British-owned Gibraltar. All in all, de Jongh made 30 double crossings, escorting 116 escapees.

Following the end of the war, de Jongh worked in leper colonies in several African nations, and was ennobled as a countess in 1985.

Plot your escape in one of Krakit’s four Vancouver escape rooms by booking here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Escape Games and Treasure Hunts: The 12 Riddles of Byron Preiss’s "The Secret"

Cover of Byron Preiss's The Secret

We’re sure many people will agree with us here at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game when we say what the world could use a bit more of these days is a good spot of wholesome mystery fun. That’s where people like the author and publisher Byron Preiss step in.

Though responsible for publishing many children’s books, Preiss’s 1982 project is the one that most people remember him for. Titled The Secret, it’s a puzzle book featuring 12 poems and 12 highly detailed fantasy paintings. But the most interesting part? Why, that would be the 12 related treasure boxes Preiss buried in parks across North America.

Each of the 12 ceramic boxes contains a key, which the treasure finder can trade in for a jewel worth $1,000 (with the casques they’re kept in also worth a good bit of coin). To this day, only two of Preiss’s Secret boxes have been found: one in Chicago in 1983 by a group of students, and the other in Cleveland in 2004 by members of the Quest4Treasure forum. Tragically, Preiss was killed in a car accident in 2005, but the rest of the jewels are kept in a safe deposit box in New York City for any future treasure finders.

Where exactly are the other boxes? Well, you’ll have to read The Secret and piece together its clues to find out. The 12 verses are linked to the 12 paintings, which each depict a different group of immigrants that came to the United States throughout the country’s history. The idea is to match the images to the poems, and piece together the exact location of the treasure boxes.

Unsurprisingly, the Internet has allowed Secret treasure hunters to band together to try and solve the locations of the remaining ten boxes (you can find The Secret wiki here). Along with more information on how to begin uncovering the mystery of The Secret, you can find a map of the most recent suspected treasures locations.

Test out your mystery-solving skills in one of Krakit’s four Vancouver escape rooms. You can book you and your treasure-loving friends a lot here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Escape from Vancouver: 5 Best Spooky Shows Filmed in the GVRD

It is no secret: Greater Vancouver acts at the stomping ground for many a fictional character, especially those that live inside our television sets (or computer screens, as it may be). While a lot of TV shows film in Vancouver, it seems like we have a special skill for attracting shows of the spooky variety, whether that’s sci-fi, mystery, or straight-up horror.

Below, we list our five fave shows that use the GVRD to create their creepy backdrops.

For your own spooky time in the Vancouver area (in Burnaby, on the border of Coquitlam, and right next to Lougheed SkyTrain, to be exact), book yourself in for a horror-ific time in one of Krakit’s escape rooms.

5. The 4400

This highly rated sci-fi series lasted only four seasons and ended in 2007, but it still has a strong fanbase that hopes it will one day return to production. One day near Mount Rainier, 4,400 people who had previously vanished without a trace are returned to Earth. Unsurprisingly, it’s not hard to disguise Vancouver as the Mount Rainier area, considering we’re but a stone’s throw away—which exactly what American Zoetrope did for this TV series.

4. Bates Motel

Still being filmed in Aldergrove, BC—where they built an exact replica of the Bates Motel film set that stands on the Universal Studios lot—Bates Motel turns the very famous horror film Psycho into a serialized tale of unsettled minds. Starring Freddy Highmore and Vera Farmiga, this critically acclaimed series is a prequel to Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 classic.

3. Fringe

Like Battlestar Galactica and Stargate Atlantis, the TV series Fringe (ended 2013) is a well-beloved sci-fi show that was very rooted in its Vancouver filming location. Created by J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci, Fringe follows the odd couple of an FBI agent and institutionalized scientist who must explain a bunch of unexplained phenomena. Which brings us to number 2 …

2. X-Files

Who doesn’t love the X-Files? But really, who doesn’t. Sure, the comeback tenth season was a bit of a dud, but the other nine contain some of the most high-quality spooky sci-fi to ever be broadcast on television. It was all filmed here, with, apparently, Vancouver’s constantly drizzly weather responsible for David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson’s notoriously frosty relationship.

1. Supernatural

While X-Files may arguably be the bigger show, Supernatural is perhaps more near and dear to many Vancouverites’ heart—and delivers consistently strong and entertaining episodes, despite being in its twelfth season. Basically no other show has managed to do this after being on air for more than a decade. It all may have something to do with co-stars Jared Padalecki’s and Jensen Ackles’s completely loveable personas, both onscreen and off.



Create your own spooky Vancouver scene in one of our horror-themed escape rooms. Book here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

10 Reasons You Should Play an Escape Game RIGHT NOW

1. Escape rooms are fun fun fun

Let’s just get this most obvious reason out of the way. Why play an escape game? Because it’s 45 minutes of pure fun, from the word go to the last second on the timer.

2. All the kids are doing it

Although people of all ages love a good escape game, they’re especially popular with millennials. Clearly, hitting an escape room is the hip thing to do.

3. Escape games work out your brain

Not just fun and popular, escape rooms offer a chance for you to put to work brain muscles you might not have exercised since high school. Keeping those synapse firing and your logic gears working means escape games provide great brain care.

4. You can impress your date with your bravery

Not only can you show your new beau how smart you are, you can impress him with your bravery when the zombies begin snapping their teeth at you, with only 5 minutes left on the clock …

5. Being under pressure is good for you

There’s proof that pressure makes us accomplish more, helps our brains work better, and turns us into more resilient people. Thanks, escape games!

6. Escape games make for some serious bonding

Need to make a team gel? Throw them into an escape room. Then see what a well-oiled machine they are after working together to crack all the codes and clues we throw at them.

7. A little scare never hurt anyone

Although not all escape games are scary, our favourite ones sure are! Here at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game we currently have three horror-themed rooms to get your blood pumping. Extra shot of adrenaline, coming up!

8. Belly laughter is the best medicine

What follows a jump scare or a seriously fumbled clue but serious laughter? You and your friends are guaranteed at least three giggle fits with each escape game you play.

9. You get your money’s worth

Pound for pound, a ticket to an escape room provides you with more than any movie ticket or baseball game (especially on Cheap Tuesdays at Krakit!). Why? Because immersive entertainment is more fulfilling and memory-making.

10. Escape is good for the soul

Taking some time for a little fantasist escape is necessary to staying sane in today’s hyper-paced world. It’s like Dungeons & Dragons come to life! What’s not to love.

Test your skill in one of Krakit’s four Vancouver escape games by booking here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Escape Game Forefathers: 4 Not-Famous but Very Famous Codebreakers and Codemakers

Lewis Carroll's Alphabet Cipher

In the long history of codebreaking, there are few highly famous codebreakers. Probably has something to do with the secrecy that surrounds cryptography … but we try not to focus on that here at Krakit Escape Game!

One of the best-known codebreakers of all time is definitely Alan Turing, who led the team at Bletchley Park (which was home to several other famous codebreakers) to break the Enigma Cipher. And though he may be fictional, Sherlock Holmes is another person that comes to mind when thinking of secret codes.

But along with these few famous cipher sleuths, there a whole host of non-famous cryptographers, who are, paradoxically, also quite famous.

1. Johnny Cash

That’s right—the Johnny Cash was no stranger to codes and ciphers. During his time in the United States Air Force, the future music icon was a Morse Code Intercept Operator for the Soviet Army. Basically, Johnny Cash eavesdropped on Russian spies. Now we know one of the reasons he was such a badass. We're also pretty sure he would've been a major horror escape game fan.

2. Lewis Carroll

The man who wrote Alice in Wonderland was a fan of riddles and tricks of logic, and he also developed his own cipher. The code he made was called the Alphabet Cipher, a simple polyalphabetic substitution that is nevertheless quite clever.

3. Charles Babbage

You may not be very familiar with his name, but you’re certainly very familiar with his work. Charles Babbage built the first successful automatic calculator and made scientific contributions that led directly to the computer. He also was a highly successful codebreaker—although this wasn’t known until a century after his death, due to the military keeping it hush-hush. Now Babbage is fully recognized for solving the Vigenère Cipher during the Crimean War.

4. Galileo Galilei

The man who confirmed that the earth went around the sun was also rather fond of making his own codes. Perhaps not surprising from a scientific mind such as his. He was also onto the fact that other people were aware of his brilliant brain—and probably wanted to steal his ideas. So, he simply coded his correspondence with other science geniuses, including Johannes Kepler. Problem solved.

Try your own hand at solving codes and other riddles at one of our four Vancouver escape games. Book here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Your Top Ten Creature Characters!

It’s that spooky time of year, when dimensions descend upon one another and the energies of heaven and hell collide into our physical realm. Some call it All Hallows Eve, All Saints Day Eve, Allhallowtide, or Allhalloween. Whatever you call the old Gaelic Harvest, it’s a perfect time to test your psychological terror threshold with a visit to Vancouver’s best escape room.

While ringing the church bells for the souls in purgatory, noticing the jack-o-laterns on guard to ward off evil spirits, or watching a flick before heading to Krakit, it’s a day to honour and recount the top ten movie creatures that go bump in the night, i.e. our worst fears manifested.

10. Tyrannosaurus Rex - The evil, dragon-like badass still holds his rein of terror on this list for one simple fact: the T. Rex is real (and, he’s been dancing since he was twelve).

9. Werewolf/Werecar - On the full moon, men and women having been bit or influenced by a werewolf, with wolf’s blood coursing through their veins, undergo and powerful transformation and rampage until dawn. Weres are endowed with the spirit of a superpowered, half-human, half-lycan; or, auto parts from various evil vehicles. The werecar? “Bender” from Futurama is a robot that changes into an evil, bloodlusty car with parts from the most sinister movie automobiles.

8. Jigsaw - Let’s face it, we’re here for a reason. Jigsaw is the nefarious serial killer who made all of this awesomeness at the Burnaby Escape Room possible.

7. Ghosts and Ghouls - Who is the most sinister? The ones from Ghostbusters, the Babadook, Thirteen Ghosts, The Ring, The Grudge, or Ghost Dad? My vote is an undead Bill Cosby—who knows what that is capable of!

6. Aliens/Predator - Especially HR Geiger’s Xenomorphic, hive-minded abomination who, in its singular form, is the a prized capture of the Predator—another dark, violent creature inside Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett movie mythos. See also: Independence Day and Mars Attacks.

5. Vampires - Sensual and violent, these date-rapey (see Bill Cosby, above) creatures roam the night, looking for human victims. Who did it best: Dracula, Lestat, or Blade? 

4. Gremlins - When you buy anything from a pop-up shop in Chinatown, you’re going to have issues. From mythical Mogwai to venomous gargoyle, these creatures will make you watch out for the wet spots for more reasons than a slip-and-fall danger.

3. Zombies - They started out slow, they moved into space, now they’ve evolved into fast moving, ever multiplying, brain-sucking scum. Watch out, they’re coming for you! Best movies: Event Horizon, Dawn of the Dead, and 28 Days Later.

2. The Undead - The difference between zombies and ghouls—versus simply ‘undead’—is clearly articulated in Pet Cometary. Please, bury your children responsibly. 

1. Party Monsters - These creatures are number one because they aren’t included on most lists. There’s nothing more terrifying than the real-life events experienced by characters from Requiem for a Dream and Trainspotting.

Halloween in Vancouver: Horror-Themed Escape Rooms—Zombie Apocalypse

Krakit Vancouver Escape Game—Zombie Apocalypse

Our four themed escape rooms at Krakit are fun to play at any time of year, but we have to say, we really shine at Halloween time. You may have noticed we have a little bit of a thing for the macabre, and the eerie ambience that October brings—the lengthening nights, the murmuring winds, the deep dark shadows, and, of course, the ghosts and ghouls and goblins—makes the creepy factor triple.

One of our longest running and most popular rooms is the Zombie Apocalypse Room—and for good reason. For fans of George A. Romero, 28 Days Later, and The Walking Dead, the Zombie Apocalypse escape game puts you in the middle of the end times: infection has taken over, the city is crawling with undead, and it’s up to you and your team to find the serum that will save the human race.

With only 45 minutes on the clock—and a live zombie or two to rattle your nerves—solving the puzzles of this escape game can be almost more pressure than a person can take. Luckily, you and your team are able to ask an expert for a few hints along the way, just when you need them most.

Crack all the clues and unclick the last lock, and you—and the rest of the human race—will live to see another day. If you don't … well, let’s just say, it’s in your best interest to try your very hardest.

Halloween time is for horror movie marathons, menacing costumes, candle-lit midnight parades, and getting yourself as good and scared as possible.

So, do yourself a favour and get your Halloween off to the right start with an immersive entertainment experience. Why not settle in for the premiere of The Walking Dead Season 7, next Sunday, October 23, and then head to Krakit Vancouver Escape Game’s Zombie Apocalypse Room for your own taste of the adrenaline rush that facing down a walker brings.

Or, better yet, book you and your friends in for a game on the night itself—All Hallow’s Eve—when the Krakit staff will be truly upping the ante.

Our horror-themed rooms feature live actors and haunted house experiences. Book here for a Halloween to remember, while spots last: http://bookeo.com/krakit

Mystery, Intrigue, and Cryptology: 5 Codebreaking Books/Films for Escape Game Fans

Inferno, the third installment of director Ron Howard’s film version of the wildly successful Da Vinci Code book series, is due to hit theatres in just a few weeks. As most everyone knows—due to the massive phenomenon that was Dan Brown’s first novel back in 2003—the series centres on symbologist and general code nerd Robert Langdon, played by Tom Hanks in the films.

This got us thinking about what other codes and ciphers have gotten audiences as excited about cryptology as we are here at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game on an everyday basis.

While you’re waiting patiently for your codebreaking fix with Inferno (which is out October 28), here are five other book-to-film adaptations to check out in the meantime. Read the book, watch the movie—or do like us and do both. Plus don’t forget to try your own hand at cracking codes by playing an escape game.

1. Sherlock / The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Where would cryptology be in popular culture without Sherlock Holmes? Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s no-nonsense detective has been cracking cases since 1887, when the first Sherlock novel, A Study in Scarlet, was published. And cryptology abounds in the BBC’s Sherlock series. For example, in the 2010 episode “The Blind Banker,” he and Watson investigate—and make cool—a cipher based on an ancient Chinese numeral system.

2. A Beautiful Mind

Like Inferno, A Beautiful Mind is directed by Ron Howard (the man must have a thing for intrigue). Unlike the Da Vinci Code series, however, this story is based on fact, not fiction: it narrativizes the life of John Nash, a brilliant mathematician and Nobel Laureate in Economics, whose obsession with patterns led him to cracking code for the Pentagon. Sylvia Nasar’s book, also called A Beautiful Mind, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

3. The Imitation Game / Alan Turing: The Enigma

Another true story of impressive mathematical feats, The Imitation Game, starring Benedict Cumberbatch (aka Sherlock Holmes), is based on the biography of Alan Turing. The logician and his team at Bletchley Park were responsible for cracking one of the hardest codes ever known—the Enigma cipher—which helped to end WWII.

4. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Like The Da Vinci Code, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has proven as popular in film form as in book form. Though this series isn’t as completely focused on codebreaking as some of the other entries on this list are, a cipher plays an important role in the mystery the main characters, Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander, must solve. In this case, they come in the form of extremely creepy encrypted Bible verses.

5. Zodiac

The director behind the US version of The Dragon Tattoo film, David Fincher, is also the man who took the story of cipher-loving serial murderer the Zodiac Killer to the big screen. Definitely one of the darkest cryptography-related stories out there, we recommend having a strong stomach when viewing or reading this one.

Book one of Krakit Vancouver Escape Game’s four themed escape rooms here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Halloween Escape Games: 11 Best Haunted House Films

Here it is: October—the most wonderful month of the year. While we at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game are no stranger to horror movie marathons, this month is for going all out on spooky flicks.

In honour of our Haunted House for the Halloween season (book online here—no lineup required!), we’ve put together a list of our favourite haunted house films.

Like our escape rooms, there’s something here for everyone, from kids to adults, from newbies to horror film freaks, and from unshakeable, unspookable stalwarts to those who will only watch from between their fingers.

First, the classics:

1. House on Haunted Hill (1959)

When someone offers you an obscene amount of money to stay in a haunted house, there’s probably a reason the reward is so large. Especially if the person asking is horror king Vincent Price. Remember to just say no.

2. House (1977)

In this Japanese cult classic, a girl and her six friends go on a trip to her aunt’s house in the countryside. It’s full of fun things like totally non-dangerous wells, clocks, pianos, and kitty cats.

3. Poltergeist (1982)

If you insist on putting a housing development on ancient burial grounds, you’re probably going to have a problem. Not least of all with your electricity and cabinetry, as it turns out.

Next up, the gore fests:

4. Thir13en Ghosts (2011)

The title alone lets you know that this is the silliest film on our list. But if you’re looking to be grossed out while you get your haunted house fix, the 13 incarcerated ghosts of this film will help you out with that.

5. Amityville Horror (2005)

Like Thir13en Ghosts, this Amityville Horror is a remake of an older film. But the remakes have much better special effects—and in this case, the added bonus of a shirtless Ryan Reynolds. A purportedly true tale of a family who moves into the site of a recent mass murder to find the killing isn’t quite over yet.

For those who like it a mite more psychological:

6. The Woman in Black (2012)

Blood and gore not your thing? The film version of the stage play of Woman in Black has tense moments galore, as a city lawyer travels to the countryside—and a massive old house—to escape his painful past. Unfortunately, he finds his future is actually to be a whole lot worse.

7. The Conjuring (2013)

Yet another purportedly real family has the misfortunate of moving into a rickety old house that holds a lot more than they bargained for. In this case, the family has the added bonus of encountering not just a ghost, but a ghost witch. Bad luck.

8. Stir of Echoes (1999)

This under-the-radar '90s thriller might just be the most psychologically tantalizing story on the list, as Kevin Bacon masterfully pulls us into his character’s unwinding as he becomes obsessed with one particular ghost—and one particular house—after being hypnotized.

And last but not least, for young and old alike:

9. Casper (1995)

Kids these days might not care who Christina Ricci and Devon Sawa are, but it’s not too late to teach them. Bonus points for cartoonish CGI that has stood the test of time.

10. Monster House (2006)

Like the eponymous house itself, this film is somewhere between a haunted house film and a monster flick—but it’s such a good time we’ve added it to the list anyway. Three teens set out to prove that the house next door is a-a-a-live!!

11. Beetlejuice (1988)

This entry on our haunted house list should be self-explanatory, but in case not:



Book your slot at Krakit Escape Game’s Vancouver haunted house—on for the Halloween season only—here: http://bookeo.com/krakit

Haunted Escape Rooms: Top 5 Things Every Haunted House Must Have

It’s the most wonderful time of the year—at least according to us at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game. When the nights grow longer than the days, that means one thing: more time for creepy crawlies and spooky ghouls to do their thing. Namely, scaring us human types.

To celebrate the fall season and the approach of Halloween, we’re making one of our escape rooms into a full-fledged haunted house experience. So not only do you need to use your brain to solve the puzzles and escape the room, you also need to watch your back, because you never know who—or what—might be lurking, just out of sight ...

As every horror fan knows, there are certain elements that every haunted house needs, especially these five.

5. Ambience

Dry ice? Spooky music? Low lighting? A chilling draft coming from somewhere unidentifiable? That’s all part of building the truly eerie haunted house experience. If your haunted house doesn’t have at least one element that raises your hackles before the experience even begins, they’re not doing it right.

4. Loud and sudden noises

There’s nothing more frightening than walking around a darkened and silent room when—bang!—there comes a sudden pounding from the other side of the door. This incredibly vital haunted house element is a big part of the next item on our list ...

3. The jump scare

The jump scare is a staple of horror cinema—and Krakit’s haunted house-inspired escape game, too, of course. These all-important rushes of adrenaline come courtesy of sudden loud noises and the unexpected emergence of a masked menace from a corner you previously thought empty.

Remember: no haunted room can be called complete without at least one live actor to scare the bejeesus out of you when you least expect it.

2. Perfect timing

You’ve got your horror-soaked ambience, you’ve got your Method actor going mad in the break room, just waiting to drag their fingernails across an unsuspecting guest’s back—what else do you need? Absolutely perfect timing.

The best haunted houses have a perfect tension between empty moments that build the tension and all-too-sudden events that make your heart pound.

1. A good story

Everything else won’t work the way it’s supposed to if there’s not a good narrative to go along with it. More than anything, haunted houses—and escape rooms, too—are about engaging the imagination. An immersive story to get you hooked from the get-go will make every shadow deeper, every noise louder, and every sudden scare that much more heart pounding. Accept no imitations this Halloween.

Above is just a little of what you can expect when you book your haunted house escape game with us here in Greater Vancouver. Grab a slot here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Under Pressure: Timed Escape Games and the Benefits of Stress

Out here on the West Coast of British Columbia, we like to think of ourselves as people who live a relaxed, go-with-the-flow lifestyle. But maybe sometimes we take things a little too easy.

As it turns out, a bit of stress can actually be a good thing. And in the controlled environment of a Vancouver escape game, it can be a fantastic thing.

There’s nothing to get those brain cogs turning like knowing a clock is quickly ticking down to your ultimate failure or success.

1. Healthy pressure makes us accomplish more

Although the phrase “I strive under pressure” sounds like something made up just to impress at job interviews, it’s actually true.

Quite simply, when we’re under the gun—like have 45 minutes on the clock and a mad doctor waiting to lobotomize us—we’re more likely to really, really, really try to accomplish the task at hand. In the case of escape games, pressure pushes us to make our way through all the puzzles and unlock the last lock that leads to freedom.

2. Low-level stress makes our brains work better

No, really. When you’re stressed (but not too stressed), your brain will pump out more chemicals called neurotrophins. These work to strengthen the connections between neurons in your brain, meaning you will start to sort out all of those escape game puzzles a lot faster.

Basically, what this means is that the time limit we place on you at Krait Vancouver Escape Game only really helps you to win. So, you’re welcome.

3. Dealing with pressure makes you more resilient

The more you put yourself in situations that are a little stressful, the better you will be able to cope with the next one.

So instead of that super calm, uber relaxing yoga retreat deep in the forest, perhaps the best way to deal with real-world pressure is to exercise your stress reflexes within the controlled (and fun!) stress of an escape game. Maybe even a weekly regimen is in order!

See how well you do under the gun at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game in our brand new Wonderland Room. Book here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.

Escape Game History: The Art and Science of Cryptography

When you play escape rooms, there’s a good chance you’ll encounter a cryptography-based puzzle. Cryptography is the art of writing and solving codes—so you can see why it’s a favourite tool for the creators of escape games.

Although people have been writing codes to protect their secrets for literally thousands of years, cryptography as a science has only been around for about a century. That’s because it really took off during the World Wars. With a vast network of telephones and telegraphs and even carrier pigeons encircling the world, code writing suddenly took on global proportions during the Wars.

But we’re jumping ahead.

The first known use of a code goes way back, right to the ancient Egyptians and the tomb of the nobleman Khnumhotep II. Written around 1900 BCE in hieroglyphs (which proved to be their own code for Egyptologists to crack!), this burial script features symbols that don’t appear anywhere else in the language—intentionally obscuring the message.

The first use of encryption to deliver messages, however, is attributed to a man famous for many things: Caesar. The army general used a simple substitution cipher to send encrypted messages to his top men at the front. Known as the Casear cipher, this code shifts the letters of the alphabet over three, so “A” is written as “D” and “B” as “E” and so on.

It’s not the toughest code to crack, is it? That’s why, when electricity started making automated codes easier, there arose intensely complicated ciphers, such as the famous Enigma code of WWII. Any cipher becomes a race between the codemaker and the codebreaker, and in the case of war, crypotography plays a life and death role.

Information sent through wires continues to be encrypted (including the messages you send from your computer), making cryptography a daily part of our modern lives—and not just when we’re playing an escape room.

However, remember that escape games don’t take a degree in cryptography to crack. Any single puzzle definitely isn’t meant to take up all of your time, so if it’s starting to do that, you’re probably overthinking it. More than likely, the puzzle is of the Caesar variety rather than the Enigma.

Try your hand at the codebreaking at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game by booking a spot here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.