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What we learn from KIds in an escape room

What We Learn From Kids In An Escape Room

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Cross Roads Escape Games is one of the few escape rooms in Southern California that has a game specially designed for kids! We find it shocking that more escape rooms don’t cater to kids because they are GREAT at escape rooms!

Adults have a way of overcomplicating a simple puzzle. We see this all the time in Fun House KIDS where adults will get stuck on a problem and overthink a very simple answer. Often times, when kids are correct, adults shoot down their idea and try to rationalize a much more complicated solution. Here are some of the things we have learned from kids that adults should learn too.

#5 Be open to weird ideas

Escape rooms are often full of crazy scenarios that have you doing things you would never be doing in real life; that is why we love them. Kids are great at coming up with creative problem solving and it usually works! Be creative in an escape room and let yourself be open to the most ridiculous ideas. Even if it is not 100% right, it might at least get you started on the right track. It is always worth a try!

#4 Don’t get stuck on one idea

We see this a lot in The Hex Room, where someone will try what they think is the right answer and a lock won’t open so they will give up. Try thinking of new ideas! Don’t get discouraged, normally you are just overlooking something obvious.

#3 Don’t get frustrated- ask for help

In a Fun House KIDS game, kids love talking to Zoltar, who is a magical talking painting that can provide guidance in the game. If you are stumped on a puzzle, there’s no shame in asking for help from either your group or your game master. Escape rooms should be fun, so if you find yourself not having fun, ask for a hint and move past it so you can start having fun again!

#2 Don’t overthink

True story: An adult got a random bunch of letters with no order and started turning those letters into numbers based on their placement in the alphabet. They then started comparing pictures that had that number of people in the picture to the letter on the block. This is overthinking. Meanwhile, as an adult is doing all this, a kid comes along to use the letters to spell out a common word. When there seems to be no connection between one clue to another and you are mixing your own hunch in there, you are overthinking it. Kids are great at taking the information they have been given and connecting the dots without using any outside knowledge.

#1 Your main goal is to have fun

Adults can become competitive and want to race the clock and make the leaderboard, but often times they blow through a room and end up missing all the fun and funny moments. Remember that you are here to have fun. Soak in the atmosphere, play with the cool props, step back and watch your friends solve a puzzle, remember that you are here to have fun.

Do you play escape rooms with your kids? What are some valuable lessons they’ve taught you that we all could learn from? Leave a comment below or on our Facebook!

zoltar_ game of thrones

Summer Is Coming

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Hello again, dear reader. T’is I, Zoltar the Great, the Seer of Secrets, Solver of Locks, Knower of Unknowns, and today I am your guide to staying inside!

            Now you may have realized that our winter is coming to an end and summer is nearly upon us. The temperature is rising, and the children are no longer held at bay by their educational overlord. This means that we must, once again, face the question of what to do with our summer break.

            The days are growing longer and hotter and many people are looking to escape rooms to help them beat the heat. And why wouldn’t they? Escape Rooms are a fun and immersive way to challenge your brain while enjoying the cool, relaxing comfort of modern-day air conditioning. If you worry about your flawless complexion as I do and are looking to get away from the deadly laser that is the sun, then come on down to Cross Roads Escape Games.

            We have three exciting games here that can be played by enthusiasts of different ages. If you are 16 years or older, and you are feeling particularly brave, you can try our Hex Room where your wits and bravery will be put to the test! If you are 14 years or older, then you can attempt to assist Dr. Griffin in his mind-bending new experiment in the Psych Ward. And of course, if neither of those rooms fit your needs, then we have the one and only Fun House! The Fun House is a game for all ages, but we recommend the adult version for those that are 13 years or older. If your magician youths are under 13, then we do have the Fun House for Kids where we change some of the puzzles around to make them a more appropriate test for those who are younger than most!

            So why burn in the heat like one of the common clowns when you can thrill yourself and test your wits like the marvelous magicians that you are? And if you walk away with only one piece of information that you remember from this, then let it be this… Outside is hot and full of terrors! I should know: I’m a painting!

Till next time dear reader. Stay Cool.

Zoltar the Great, Amateur Meteorologist, Fortune Teller, and Avid Indoor Dweller 

Fun House KIDS

Family Escape Rooms

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Greetings and salutations dear readers. ‘Tis I, Zoltar the great, the seer of secrets, knower of unknowns, and your guide to a great holiday escape.

Are you wracking your brain trying to think of activities to keep the family happy while they are visiting? Do you want to be the cool mom or dad that takes the family to try something new this week? Well worry not, dear reader, your friend Zoltar has you covered! After all, it can be incredibly difficult to find an activity that everyone can enjoy doing together. The Fun House is a perfect blend of challenging mental puzzles, wacky antics, and good clean family humor. The Fun House is guaranteed to be the hip new outing that you’ve been looking for.

We have two versions of the game, making it versatile for any age ranges. If you “grown-ups” are looking for great fun and good laughs, then we can set the game to challenge even the wittiest of you. However, if you are bringing a bunch of youngster magicians into the room, then we can alter the game to our Fun House KIDS version! We are happy to be one of the only SoCal escape rooms that caters to groups of all ages.

In the Kids version we take out some of the more complicated puzzles and replace them with puzzles that are more appropriate for those under the age of 12, as well as adding in a scavenger hunt! So, keep an eye out for those carnival tokens when you are in the room!

You see dear reader, here at Cross Roads Escape Games we are dedicated to making your experience as thrilling as possible. And if you are feeling a bit more daring, then you can check out our Hex Room! But remember that room is for ages 16 and up.

Till next time dear reader.
-Zoltar the Great

Flight Deck

Top 5 Fun Things to do in Orange County

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Orange County has much more to offer then just Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm. I have been craving adventure lately, but also didn’t have $100 to drop on amusement park tickets, so I began exploring. I found a lot of really great things to do in Orange County! If you are in the OC area, I highly recommend checking out these 5 adventures!

 

FLIGHT DECK

Suit up and get ready to fly your own jet! You and your friends get trained on how to fly a plane… for real. You each get your own fighter jet and a 40-minute experience to blow each other up and try to land your plane successfully.

What I loved most about this experience was how immersive it was. Everyone got their own pilot jumper, individual cockpit to sit in, and headset. The controls were much more different than what you would use for a video game, and although they were difficult to learn at first, I appreciated them keeping it as realistic as possible.

You get time to fly around and learn the controls and then you get to start shooting down your friends in an intense air battle! After completing the FOX 1 mission, you can come back and learn more intense maneuvers for FOX 2 and FOX 3.

Ages: 11 and up
Address: 1650 S. Sinclair St, Anaheim, CA
Website: https://flightdeck1.com/fighter-jets/
Phone: (714) 937-1511
Price: Fighter Jets- $59 per person

 

GLOW ZONE HB

My husband and I went twice in one week! Our first time it was just the two of us, and we had a blast. Later that week we brought our 5-year-old nephew to join us! This place is great for all ages. Glow Zone HB is an indoor entertainment center complete with a full bar, cosmic blowing, arcade games, mini golf, bumper cars, and a few more stand out adventures listed below.

Are you a fan of ‘American Ninja Warrior’ TV show? Because this place has a Ninja course ready to wear you out! This course has some fun challenges straight from the show that my husband and I always wanted to try. The course is really difficult, but also extremely fun. It also gives you good motivation to go back to the gym…

After you are done being a Ninja, you can go test your secret agent skills at the laser maze. Weave your way through a room of lasers while racing the clock! A fun thing to do in teams and race for the best time.

We also really enjoyed the Bazooka Ball. It’s a good cross between paintball and laser tag and completely painless. You are split into two teams and you have to protect your home base while trying to score points on the opposing team. Let’s just say my 5-year-old nephew and my 29-year-old husband both kept wanted to go back to play again.

We highly recommend getting their unlimited pass and paying by the hour. They also have a lot of great deals if you go during the week! Prepare to go hard and be exhausted by the end of it all.

Ages: Both adults and kids will love this
Address: 7227 Edinger Ave, Huntington Beach, CA 92647
Website: http://hb.glowzone.us
Phone: (714) 316-0775
Price: $20 for 1 hour or $35 for 2 hours.

 

ALIEN DESCENT

Using wireless virtual reality technology these experience puts you in the center of the action for an intense and adrenalin filled 20 minutes of terror. The VR headset transports you to a new world where you can walk and interact with your surroundings and your friends! It’s an exciting and fun thrill ride enhanced by environmental effects, motion platforms, and other surprises!

You are part of an elite squad of Colonial Marines sent to investigate a distress signal from a Weyland-Yutani mining outpost. Just before losing contact, the facility reported some sort of infestation. It’s up to you and your squad to contain the threat, quarantine any survivors and get everyone off-world safely.

You truly feel like you are on a different planet trying to defend yourself against an outpour of Xenomorph aliens. I screamed the entire time while, lucky, my husband kept a level head. This experience was so much fun, we went and did it again the following week! If you are a fan of shooter video games and/or the Alien movies then you will LOVE this experience.

In downtown Disney you can find a similar experience- The Void, which is Star Wars themed!

Ages: 10 and up
Address: The Outlets at Orange, Suite 806, 20 City Blvd W, Orange, CA
Website: https://www.aliendescent.com
Phone: N/A
Price: $22 per person

MEDIEVAL TIMES

Dinner and a show! If you haven’t experienced Medieval times, you must. You are teleported back to an age without silverware and where knights jousted and battled for the love of a princess. I recently went with my whole family including my 7, 10, and 12 year old cousins. The girls loved seeing the horses dance and getting thrown a flower from a knight, while the boys loved the battles and falcon that flies just above your head.

The food is also great! A whole dinner is included in your ticket, along with my favorite Dragon’s Blood soup. Beer and wine are also available.

Medieval Times is a magical place that is fun for all ages!

Ages: Both adults and kids will love this.
Address:7662 Beach Blvd, Buena Park, CA 90620
Website:http://www.medievaltimes.com
Phone: (888) 935-6878
Price:$62 for adults & $37 for kids.

CROSS ROADS ESCAPE GAMES

There are a lot of escape rooms to choose from but the #1 rated escape room in SoCal is right here in Anaheim! Cross Roads Escape Games was recently voted the #1 escape room in SoCal and #3 in the nation by USA TODAY! With 2 great games to choose from, there is something both adults and kids will love!

The Hex Room is an intense horror themed game for age 16+.  Each player will take a quiz before the game to find out which character they are: The Nerd, Virgin, Jock, Rebel, Prom Queen, or Detective. Your team will be divided up into separate rooms where you must work individually and as a team. Can you survive a horror film?

The Fun House is a silly and wacky game for teens and adults with a special KIDS version great for ages 13 and below. Step right up and see if you have what it takes to become a magnificent magician! In this room filled with trickery and illusions, you and your team will be put to the test. Work to beat the clock as you search for clues and solve mind boggling puzzles in a topsy turvy experience of a lifetime! Now all you need to do is ask yourself, do you have the wits of a magician? Or are as clueless as a clown?

Ages: The Hex Room is for ages 16+. The Fun House is for all ages.
Address: 4245 E. La Palma Ave., Anaheim, CA 92807
Website: www.CrossRoadsEscapeGames.com
Phone: (714) 572-1004
Price: $32 per person Wednesdays-Thursdays, $35 per person Fridays-Sundays

Do you have any favorite experiences in Orange County? Let us know in the comments below! We would love to check them out!  We hope you enjoy these 5 great adventures this Summer!

Madison Rhoades
CEO and Creative Director
Cross Roads Escape Games

Fun House KIDS

A Magical Birthday: Escape Room Birthday Parties at Cross Roads

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Is your child’s birthday quickly approaching? Are you looking for a way to make their party extra special? Well, come on down and test your wits in our FUN HOUSE!

An escape room is a great birthday party idea because they are an interactive group experience that emphasize and strengthen many skills including teamwork, communication, and problem solving, while still being an entertaining and immersive game.

The Fun House is a topsy-turvy experience filled to the brim with laughs, mystery, magic, and excitement! You and your team must work together to find clues and solve puzzles before time runs out. The light-hearted nature of the game makes it an ideal party destination, full of puzzles that allow groups to work together or break into smaller teams.

If your team consists of young children with dreams of being magicians, have no fear! The Fun House KIDS provides the same whimsical fun and puzzle solving experience but is an alternate version designed for younger players between the ages of 8 and 13-years old. However, it is never too early to send your children off to the circus and children of all ages can play the game! We’ve added some hands-on puzzles to this version of the game so that everyone, no matter what age or height, will have something to do.

What could be better than running off to prove yourself at the circus? Why, how about a party afterwards! Cross Roads Escape Games offers a beautiful lounge that is a comfortable, private space where your group can unwind, talk about their experience, eat some cake and ice cream, and open presents. Along with the lounge rental, we can provide cups, plates, napkins, utensils, balloons, and even take care of clean-up.

Speaking of food, what could possibly go better with a birthday party than pizza? If you need catering for your party, we offer a special escape room package from Top Class Pizza that includes three Large 1-Topping Pizzas, two 10” cheesy bread sticks, two 10” cinnamon sticks, and two 2-liters of soda.

Parents love having their child’s birthday party at Cross Roads Escape Games because they know the kids will have a great time interacting and using their brains and not being distracted by phone screens. Kids love escape room birthday parties because they can be clever, solve puzzles, and win prizes in a unique experience. If you’re looking for something out of the ordinary for your child’s next birthday, try the Fun House for a truly memorable party.

The Fun House and Fun House KIDS is for 4-8 players and is one-hour long. If players are 13 years or younger, they must be accompanied by an adult in the game. Both of our games are private games, meaning your group will not be paired with strangers. Our lounge is available to rent for an extra fee and comfortably fits up to 13 adults. We also do bachelor parties, proposals, baby announcements, and other celebrations! If you have any questions about parties at Cross Roads Escape Games or you would like to book your party, give us a call at (714) 572-1004.

Geoff Durham
Manager, Game Master, Party Animal
Cross Roads Escape Games