10 Best Virtual Escape Rooms To Channel Your Inner Detective

Arianna Gary • December 24, 2020

Get your thrills right from the comfort of your own home!

Escape rooms have taken the world by storm in recent years, offering one-of-a-kind immersive experiences for people of all ages. And now, escape rooms all over are going online so that people can enjoy the fun from the comfort and safety of their own homes! There is something for everyone, from murder mysteries and heists to adventures through classic stories.

Take your Skype sessions with friends to the next level or have a game night with family as you sort through the clues sent to you through a multitude of virtual channels. Put your inner detective to the test as you solve the mysteries and uncover the secrets that each of these exciting stories holds. It’s the perfect way to get your thrills this season without having to leave the house!

Here are 10 virtual escape games you definitely don’t want to miss:

1. The Heist (The Escape Game: TEG Unlocked)

The Escape Game goes virtual with this two-volume series of heist games, which you can choose to do individually, or together as a pack! In this series, you and your team work as secret agents as you try to uncover the true identity of an infamous art curator and suspected art thief. Work with the help of an Intelligence Agent as you follow your suspect into the world of stolen art all the way to the Silk Road.

Participants: 1 – 4 players

Duration: no time limit

Cost: $10/person

2. Texting Experience Game (SubText)

Someone is texting you for help after being kidnapped. Do you trust them? Do they trust you? Will they make it out alive? This is a one-of-a-kind Alternate Reality Game that plays out in real time through actual texts, phone calls and emails that you receive from the characters. Solve puzzles, break into systems and use those street smarts to unravel the story piece by piece. Played at your own pace (usually over 2-4 days), this game will have you questioning what’s real and what’s not!

Participants: 1+ players

Duration: 2-4 days (3 hours of interaction)

Cost: $7/person

3. Murder at the MTV Awards (Online Cluedo Mystery Game)

Step onto the red carpet and solve a crime at the TV Music Worldwide Awards. Eccentric King of Pop Michael Johnson has died rather mysteriously, and it’s your job to conduct the investigation! Work with your team to find out who is to blame. Will the culprit be among the stars? Is it all a trap? There’s only one way to find out!

Participants: 5+ players

Duration: 2-3 hours

Cost: $12/person

4. Escape the Mad Hatter (Ryptic)

Go down the rabbit hole into the world of Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland. Relive the nostalgia of this childhood classic with a whole new twist: now you’re the one who has to find your way out! Work with your team and your live host to solve the clues and find your way out of 4 different realms before the Mad Hatter keeps you at his tea party for good.

Participants: 4 – 12 players

Duration: 90 minutes

Cost: $30/person

5. Missing Call (Online Cluedo Mystery Game)

This online mystery game takes you to a nostalgic reunion of friends who met last year in Berlin in a student exchange program. Everyone is excited to finally catch up, but one person doesn’t join the call. Did something happen? This not-so-ordinary meeting, led by a talented actor, takes you on a fun and thrilling journey. Hop on the call to find out exactly what’s going on!

Participants: 4+ players

Duration: 2 hours

Cost: $14.99/person

6. Rogue Scientist 1990 (The Escape Game: TEG Unlocked)

Get ready to be transported back to the year 1990, where scientist Dr. Humphreys has gone rogue and started performing dangerous experiments. He must be stopped before he goes too far, and the experts need your help! Solve clues using the evidence provided and do some digging of your own to track him down before it’s too late.

Participants: 1-4 players

Duration: no time limit

Cost: $10/person

7. Escape the Aliens (Ryptic)

This virtual escape room will have your hair standing on end as you work through the clues with your live host to solve the mysterious disappearance of Dr. Tim F. Hatt from his UFO research lab. But you’ll have to be quick! Your team of private investigators only has 60 minutes to solve the puzzles, explore the different rooms you uncover and (hopefully) escape the aliens!

Participants: 4 – 12 players

Duration: 90 minutes

Cost: $25-30/person

8. Dream Gallery (Live Streaming Escape Room)

Have you ever woken up clinging to a dream that almost instantly slips away? This unique escape room is played on an app specially designed for the experience. The story takes you to Dream Gallery, where a painter has gone in a desperate attempt to recover the memory of a masterpiece stuck in a lost dream. Unfortunately, the painter, or Patient 144, didn’t read the small print and he now needs your help to escape the terrible fate that awaits him if he fails his mission.

Participants: up to 8 players

Duration: 40 minutes

Cost: $65

9. Murder… without a CLUE! (Virtual Murder Mystery Show)

This comedic murder mystery takes you and your group back to the groovy 60s. You will play one of the generous millionaires in attendance at Colonel Grady Pupon’s Benefit Auction Gala, where something may or may not go awry. Put on your best acting shoes and get ready to decipher the clues (emailed to each character before the show). Nothing has happened yet, but this experience will certainly be one killer adventure!

Participants: 1 – 2 players

Duration: 2 hours

Cost: $30-35/person

10. Sherlock Holmes: Murder Mystery (Ryptic)

Enter this expansive world of 19th century Victorian England, where your team has been contracted by the one and only Sherlock Holmes to help solve his latest murder case. This virtual event is based on the popular 1980s ‘choose your own adventure’ games, making each investigation totally unique. Grab your team and get ready to interview suspects and explore the crime scene like a proper private eye.

Participants: 10+ players

Duration: 90 minutes

Cost: $40/person

[Featured image: Unsplash]