Hex Room

October 10 2017

Resident Artist: Dan Litzinger

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If you have made it down to Cross Roads Escape Games, you may have noticed the fun poppy art of Dan Litzinger for sale on the wall, or on your very own Hex Room t-shirt! Dan Litzinger is a painter and film editor living the dream in beautiful Glendale, California. Originally from Atlanta, Dan discovered his love for painting and pop art while attending the prestigious Savannah College of Art and Design and Graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2003. His addition to popular fiction and film leads him to create simple but bold art based on his passions. A frequent contributor to the Los Angeles group art exhibit scene, he loves to bring a retro cool and fun energy to works that revel in his storytelling fetish.

Litzinger’s fun horror themed paintings are a perfect complement to the games at Cross Roads. We always hear such high praise for Litzinger’s art when guests come in, so we sat down with him and asked him some of the common questions we hear among our players.

CREG: What got you interested in art?
DL: Starting in first grade, I dreamed of being a newspaper comic strip artist. Then in seventh grade, an art teacher (Ms. Kimberly Robinson!) showed me Roy Lichtenstein’s work and that was a real game changer for me. Comics were “real art” in museums! I got my Bachelor of Fine Art from Savannah College of Art and Design with a major in Film/Television and I’ve been a working editor for 8 years.

CREG: Why do you focus on horror?
DL: I’ve been interested in horror from a young age – probably too young, because my older brothers would show me movies that were a bit too scary for me. But I loved and still love the feeling of being scared in the theater, when you know you’re in a safe place. I do believe in ghosts, so I’m a real sucker for haunted house movies.

CREG: What about pop art inspired you to create these paintings?
DL: The first large painting I did was a direct parody of Lichtenstein’s “Drowning Girl” painting, but with young Jason Voorhees drowning instead. I just thought it was funny and I hadn’t seen it done before. I took the painting around Monsterpalooza and it got such a great response, I continued working on pop art paintings of films. I’ve had my own booth at Monsterpalooza for a couple years now!

‘Drowning Boy’ by Dan Litzinger, 36″ x36″, Price: $400

CREG:What is your favorite type of horror?
DL: Slasher. They’re generally very simple and visceral. The creativity comes from the kills and that’s what brings the audience in, even though you should be rooting against the villain. I think sometimes horror films are a safe way of dealing with real life horrors we see on the news.

CREG: What is your favorite movie and/or director?
DL: My favorite movie of all time is Die Hard. But for horror it’s Sam Raimi’s “Evil Dead 2.” For me, it strikes the absolute perfect balance between horror and comedy.

Dan Litzinger’s art and t-shirts are for sale on his website HERE or at Cross Roads Escape Games. Litzinger also is the designer behind our popular Hex Room t-shirts available in both men’s and woman’s styles sold only at Cross Roads Escape Games in Anaheim. Dan updates his art at our location, so make sure to stop by and see some of this amazing pieces in person! We currently have the original Twilight Zone “You Unlock This Door With The Key Of Imagination” showing in our lobby and available for $425. All proceeds go straight to the artist.

Madison Rhoades
CEO, Co-Owner, & Creative Director
Cross Roads Escape Games

September 25 2017

Escape Rooms vs Haunts- What to choose this Halloween Season?

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Horror goes hand in hand with escape rooms, in fact, most of our guests think all escape rooms are scary. While not all escape rooms are horror-themed, Halloween is a great time to seek out the ones that are.

Escape Rooms are designed to be thrilling experiences that involve teamwork and communication. Only those with a level head, common sense, and calm under pressure can make it. What better way to test those skills then with a life or death situation?

Describing an escape room almost sounds like describing the plot to a movie from the SAW franchise: you are locked in a room where you must solve puzzles to escape. Other horror movies with similar trapped or hostage plots reinforce the idea that escape rooms can be scary places. Indeed, horror helps increase the tension, suspense, and urgency. This is what people love about horror themed escape rooms: the stressful situation tests your skills just like you are in a real horror film.

Hex Room review

This Halloween season, you probably have a few haunts already planned, and although haunts are fun, escape rooms really take the intensity and realism to the next level. In a haunt, you are probably going to be in a train of people with masked monsters jumping out at you from the left and right. As fun as this is, it does get dull rather fast. Horror themed escape rooms put you right in the action. You are completely immersed; you can go wherever you want and touch whatever you want.

You can’t make choices and you can’t lose in a haunt. Horror escape rooms are a thrilling experience with a payoff in the end. Escape rooms give you a sense of accomplishment when you finish. Whether you win or lose, your team can look back at what you accomplished in the time allotted.

Our horror themed game, The Hex Room, puts you right in the center of your own horror film. First, you are cast as a stereotypical horror movie character: Jock, Prom Queen, Virgin, Nerd, Rebel, or Detective. From there you are placed in a room on your own. It is up to you to rejoin the rest of your teammates or be left behind. Who will live? Who will die?

I highly recommend adding a horror escape room or two to your list this Halloween season. Make sure to book your Hex Room game early, we will sell out!

Madison Rhoades
CEO, Co-Owner, & Creative Director
Cross Roads Escape Games

August 14 2017

What Makes The Hex Room So Unique?

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Since The Hex Room opened back in January of 2016, it has received rave reviews from fans and critics who consistently claim it as their new favorite escape room. But what makes The Hex Room so unique and popular? Is it the room’s dedication to absolute immersion? Is it the set design perhaps? Though these aspects play a huge role in people’s experience, I believe that the number one reason for the Hex Room’s popularity is its unique style of game play.

Owner and creator of The Hex Room, Madison Rhoades, says, “My husband and I created The Hex Room because we wanted something new. We played about 50 escape rooms, and they were starting to all blend together. We wanted something that gave each player an individual experience and their own moment to shine, without having to battle over it with other players. We also wanted to create an escape room that was replayable. We love escape rooms so much, but once we played one we really enjoyed, it was impossible to replay it with new friends without already knowing all the answers. It was a huge challenge to create this unique design, but after a lot of testing, it all came together in the end!”

In a standard escape room, you and your team all start in a single room with clues to find and puzzles to solve. You are told to communicate and work as a team, but not everyone needs to participate. Sometimes there aren’t enough puzzles for the number of people in the room. Sometimes people are shy and let the more assertive players take the lead. Either way, it is possible for parts of your team to do all the work while other parts of your team do very little. This is the biggest difference between the standard escape room, and the Hex Room.

In the Hex Room, each person is divided into separate rooms based on a personality quiz that is taken before entering the room. Each person is given costume pieces based on which stereotypical horror movie character their personalities best match; such as the Detective, Rebel, Jock, Nerd, Prom Queen, and Virgin. You are then led into the rooms one by one. Once divided, it becomes each player’s imperative to try and escape their individual room. Though the team is divided, everyone must still work together to escape. Each player must search their rooms for clues to help themselves and their team mates.

HEX_Characters

In the Hex Room, everyone must work as a team and effectively communicate between their individual rooms. They must be able to tell their team mates what they see and what they have; they must ask for and pass clues between their rooms; and they must actively participate throughout their experience if they are to have any chance of escaping alive.

When six players enter the Hex Room, they will leave with six completely different experiences; each of them feeling a sense of accomplishment for their contributions to their team. There are no passive observers in The Hex Room, only active players!

Once each player is inside their room, they are instructed to remove their blindfolds and are instantly immersed within their own horror film. Cross Roads is dedicated to making each player feel as though they have stepped out of their normal lives and into the extraordinary adventure. This engaging environment makes players want to participate and see more of what the room has to offer. I have, on several occasions, had a player admit to me that they normally just stand around and let their team mates do all the work, but in the Hex Room they felt so completely immersed and engaged in the experience that the thought of standing around never even occurred to them. This is the magic of the Hex Room.

As mentioned before, The Hex Room is also the only replayable escape room in SoCal. Because each player has such an individualized experience, you can come back and play again as a different character and enjoy the game all over again with new friends or family members. We have had multiple guests play up to 6 times because they wanted to experience every room.

The Hex Room has a stressful and demanding style of game play that requires each member of the team to push themselves to escape. When this is combined with our movie quality set design and immersive ambiance, players are compelled to suspend their belief for an hour and experience what it feels like to step into the shoes of a horror film character. This completely unique style of escape game is exactly why the Hex Room has become the #1 escape room in both Orange County and Los Angeles.

If you are a fan, or even if you have not played yet, make sure to check out our pinned post on our Facebook page for a chance to win 2 free tickets and an awesome box of horror swag by tagging who you and your friends would play as in The Hex Room! Contest ends September 4th.

Jason Sakal
Manager & Game Master
Cross Roads Escape Games

July 17 2017

My First Escape Room and Why I’m Still Escaping

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If you’re reading this blog, chances are you have at least a vague idea of what an escape room is. Escape rooms have become increasingly popular just over the past few years. Thinking back, it’s strange how only three years ago, I wouldn’t have any idea what an escape room is. What makes these experiences so captivating and why are they becoming a staple for friend and family gatherings?

My name is Geoff, I am a Manager at Cross Roads Escape Games, and I am an Escape Room Enthusiast. I began working here as a game master with a few escape rooms already under my belt. Now I have experienced more than a dozen rooms, but I still remember my very first escape room. The first escape room I ever played was a zombie-themed room in San Antonio, Texas. There are similar rooms across the country: you are locked in a room with a zombie that is chained to the wall. Every few minutes, the chain gets longer and you must work harder to avoid getting eaten while still trying to solve puzzles.

Needless to say, we had a blast (And, yes, we escaped… with 3 seconds remaining). The team consisted of five coworkers, two complete strangers, and myself. It was a great way to test our multitasking abilities, our communication, and our ability to keep a cool head under pressure. It even showcased our ability to interact with and include strangers, which is something I find very important when doing public games. I think we also strengthened our relationships with each other, were inspired to create memorable experiences, and just plain had a great time. Teamwork, unusual puzzles, the rush that comes when you open a lock, and the total immersion into a new world; all of it made for an addictive and thrilling experience. That experience is what began my obsession with escape rooms.

After I moved to California, I got to play more escape rooms with friends. The first room I did with my friends was Cross Roads’ own Hex Room. I was the Prom Queen. We escaped with nearly 12 minutes remaining! To date, The Hex Room has been my favorite room because of its unique design and attention to detail. It was easy to picture myself as the star of my very own horror film, determined to escape before being brutally murdered. I really enjoyed being able to work on my own puzzles but still have friends nearby if I needed any assistance.

The ability to work together with friends, family, and strangers to solve puzzles and fully engage in a story is what keeps me coming back.

I think that’s why escape rooms are so popular: they are engaging, requiring the participants to use problem-solving skills and critical thinking, while building relationships and developing teamwork. In an age where most of us, me included, spend a lot of time interacting with screens, it’s nice to unplug for a while and use your hands. Not to mention, escape rooms aren’t mindless entertainment: You need to think, engage, interact, and be present. Plus, no two escape rooms are exactly alike. You get to experience and star in new and exciting stories every time. It’s fun to enter new scenarios and imagine you are really in this world, even if it’s only for an hour.

If you haven’t done an escape room yet, I think you should. They are a great way to do something a bit out of the ordinary while hanging out with friends or family, a wonderful alternative to going to the movies because you are still able to interact with your group, to have fun, and to laugh together. It’s an inspired way to spend time with family because a wide range of ages can participate. After the game is over, you’ll be talking about it for days, meaning you’ll never be wanting for conversation.

I believe escape rooms filled a niche for people who want to go out and do something together a bit out of the ordinary, offered an experience for people who love solving puzzles, and provided a place for businesses to offer their employees a fun and innovative way to work on team building.

I think it’s safe to say we’ll be seeing escape rooms for quite some time. I know I’m excited to try my next one.

Geoff Durham
Manager, Game Master, & Most Likely To Barely Survive A Horror Film
Cross Roads Escape Games