The thought of being trapped in a room for 45 minutes and not knowing how to escape might sound terrifying to most people. However, there are some people who actually pay to be put in that situation. If you are someone who finds this concept interesting, then Excido Escape Room is the place to go.

For those who are unfamiliar with Excido Escape Room or escape rooms in general, it is a place where you can go with a group of friends, co-workers, family or even strangers and be challenged to solve different riddles or challenges in order to escape the room that you are trapped in.

Leo Bui and Jeremy Zeller, the owners of Excido Escape Room, got the idea from other escape rooms in Los Angeles and realized that there was not much to do in Ventura County for families and friends, let alone any escape rooms. This idea led both Bui and Zeller to design their own escape room in Moorpark.

Even though there are some common misconceptions about escape rooms, both of the owners believe that it is a fun experience that you will not regret.

“A lot of people’s hesitation is that they will get claustrophobic or they have tried one before and didn’t get into it, but we had a friend who wasn’t sure he liked the idea of being locked into a room come over to try it out and absolutely loved it,” Zeller said. He thoroughly enjoyed it and we have others who have been skeptical about trying it, but after they loved it and are hooked.”

There is a minimum of two participants due to some activities requiring physical involvement that is difficult for one person, but each room is made up of at least six participants.

“If you come with a group of six there is definitely more of an advantage because more people find more things compared to two, but we do have groups of two that do complete it so it really just depends on the groups,” Bui said.

There are two different escape rooms to choose from at Excido Escape Room. The first room, which is currently rated the most difficult room, is Studio E. The room setting takes place in a TV news studio with a green screen in the background and only 45 minutes to escape.

The other room is called The Casino Club and this room was inspired by many different popular movies. The room setting is in a casino and you also have 45 minutes to escape.

If your group does not make it out after the 45 minutes, the game is over and a worker will tell you how far along you were and show you the rest of the riddles.

The escape rooms are not like others, according to Bui and Zeller. They both wanted Excido Escape Room to be a family and friend-oriented place instead of other escape rooms that are meant to scare people.

“I have not yet been to Excido but I have been to a couple of escape rooms before and I have enjoyed all of them. The thing that sounds interesting about Excido is that it seems like it is meant for all ages. I don’t have to worry about bringing a date there because she might get scared, nor do I have to worry about going with family because either way it sounds like fun,” Brian Alex, a student who has participated in past escape rooms said.

Since it is a family and friend-oriented place, it allows the owners to help make the experience more enjoyable.

“We try to intervene the least amount as possible, but if there is a group that is stuck or are asking for hints, we may nudge them on because we ultimately want people to have fun,” Zeller said.

According to Bui and Zeller ,families, friends and co-workers have all tried to escape from the rooms. However, only 30 percent of all participants have successfully escaped.

According to Bui, the fastest time that it took to escape a room was around 22 minutes, about half of the time allotted. With more and more people interested in the concept of an escape room that time will be challenged.

If you think that you are up for the challenge and would like more information, it can be found on the Excido Escape Room website.

On the website, you can look up more information about the experience and reserve a room for your group to solve the riddles, as well as receive a limited time promotion of $10 off your purchase.

Alec Sprague
Staff Writer
Published March 2nd, 2016