
Episodes

Monday Jan 27, 2025
Leaked Bonus Show! The Escape Ventures (S8E8)
Monday Jan 27, 2025
Monday Jan 27, 2025
We're sharing one of our many Patreon exclusive Bonus Shows. We put a lot of love and have a ton of fun continuing the conversation after each episodes. We also record many extra episodes in-between seasons. All of this is available exclusively to our Patrons at patreon.com/roomescapeartist. Curtis Ratliff and Derek Townsley join us for more discussion about The Escape Ventures. They share an absolutely outrageous escape room story that we couldn’t put on the main feed. We talk more about game stores and the importance of inclusivity. David gives an argument against longer games, and we also get into the regional differences between Orlando and Los Angeles in terms of escape room culture and design. I also end up learning all about Bucky's.
Episode Sponsors
Thank you to our sponsors Morty, Buzzshot, & COGS by Clockwork Dog:
Morty
Morty is a free app for discovering, planning, tracking, and reviewing your escape rooms and other immersive social outings.
Morty News:
- Morty now features haunt attractions
- Morty for Android is here
Special Badge for REPOD listeners:
You can learn more at morty.app/REPOD to sign up and get a special badge for our listeners (works for existing users also).
Buzzshot
Buzzshot is Escape Room Software, Powering Business Growth, Player Marketing, and improving the Customer Experience. They offer an assortment of pre and post game features including robust waiver management, branded team photos, and streamlined review management for Yelp, TripAdvisor, Google Reviews, and Morty. Buzzshot now has integration with the other REPOD sponsors: Morty and COGS.
Special Offer for REPOD Listeners:
REPOD listeners get an extended 21-day free trial plus 20% off your first 3 months, with no set-up fees or hidden charges. Visit buzzshot.com/repod to learn more about this exclusive offer.
COGS
COGS by Clockwork Dog is an easy to use software/ hardware platform for running interactive events, including escape rooms, and other immersive experiences. They have plug & play hardware that seamlessly integrates with their software so you can create a show with lighting and sound cues without having to write a single line of code. Map all kinds of inputs to outputs by building up simple logic steps which determine what you want to happen and when.
Special Offer for REPOD Listeners:
REPOD listeners can get the COGS Starter Set for only $130 + free shipping to the USA. This bundle is usually valued at $257. You can learn more and purchase your Starter Set at cogs.show. Use code REPOD at checkout.
Production Credits
Hosted by David Spira & Peih-Gee Law
Produced by Theresa Piazza
Supported by Lisa Spira
Edited by Peih-Gee Law and David Spira
Music by Ryan Elder
Logo by Janine Pracht

Wednesday Jan 22, 2025
Escape Room Difficult - Hatch Escape's The Ladder (Spoilers Club Preview)
Wednesday Jan 22, 2025
Wednesday Jan 22, 2025
Terry Pettigrew Rolapp and Tommy Wallach of Hatch Escapes in Los Angeles, California joined us to talk about their overwhelmingly ambitious game, The Ladder.
In this clip, we talk about the genesis of The Ladder, and the design philosophy behind this game, exploring the nature of difficulty.
You can find the rest of this Spoilers Club episode by supporting us on Patreon at patreon.com/roomescapeartist

Monday Jan 13, 2025
CU Adventures S1E4 Throwback with Anne & Chris Lukeman
Monday Jan 13, 2025
Monday Jan 13, 2025
We're trying something new and doing a throwback episode. Season 1, Episode 4 was an early darling amongst REPOD listeners. Guests Anne and Chris Lukeman of CU Adventures were such delightful guests.
Back then, neither David nor Peih-Gee had played their in person games (but they loved their digital and tabletop games). Since then, David has gone to Champaign-Urbana, and fell further in love with their work.
With that in mind, Room Escape Artist is hosting Escape Immerse Explore: Time & Space 2025 (Chicago to Champaign-Urbana) in the spring of 2025.
Tickets are available now for Session 1 (Sunday, April 27th – Tuesday, April 29th 2025) and Session 2 (Tuesday, April 29th – Thursday, May 1st 2025).
Get your ticket now, while supplies last.
Production Credits
Hosted by David Spira & Peih-Gee Law
Produced by Lisa Spira
Music by Ryan Elder
Logo by Janine Pracht

Sunday Jan 12, 2025
PG's Playhouse 3: Roadside Attractions (ft CU Adventures)
Sunday Jan 12, 2025
Sunday Jan 12, 2025
This is the final preview for PG's Playhouse being released on the Reality Escape Pod feed. Please go subscribe to PG's Playhouse wherever you get your podcasts to listen to future episodes.
What's a roadtrip without a visit to that Giant Ball of Twine or a glimpse of a giant Muffler Man? If the sign says "World Famous" anything, I'm pulling over for it. Our guests today are Anne & Chris Lukeman, owners of CU Adventures in Time and Space, an escape room company in Illinois. They love roadside attractions, and in fact, their escape room business was inspired by a road trip to House on the Rock. Our game today is about regional foods, where they've been replaced with words that rhyme. David then gives us a short history on roadside attractions, and I learn about the World Famous Muffler Men – an icon of the road trip era.
Production Credits
Hosted by Peih-Gee Law & David Spira
Puzzles by Peih-Gee Law
Produced by Theresa Piazza
Supported by Lisa Spira
Edited by Peih-Gee Law
Music by Matt Farthing
Logo by Theresa Wagner
If you enjoyed this episode, you can also hear more from Anne & Chris on Season 1, Episode 4 of Reality Escape Pod and consider joining the Escape Immerse Explore Time & Space Tour.

Monday Dec 30, 2024
PG's Playhouse #2: Y2K with Tommy Honton
Monday Dec 30, 2024
Monday Dec 30, 2024
In between Reality Escape Pod Season 8 and 9 we are starting a brand new show. PG's Playhouse.
Remember Y2K? The end-of-the-world that came and went without a hitch? Guest Tommy Honton joins us again to explore what really went down in this episode of PG's Playhouse. Our game today is called New Beginnings, where we take the names of old fads and transform them into something new by changing the first letter. David then walks us through a short history of Y2K, the fear mongering about a global shutdown and how the prevention plans went off without a hitch (mostly). Tommy also brought a game testing our knowledge of Greek metric prefixes.
If you enjoy the show, please subscribe on your podcast app of choice.
Production Credits
Hosted by Peih-Gee Law & David Spira
Puzzles by Peih-Gee Law
Produced by Theresa Piazza
Supported by Lisa Spira
Edited by Peih-Gee Law
Music by Matt Farthing
Logo by Theresa Wagner

Wednesday Dec 25, 2024
Designing & Maintaining 60Out's Wizard's Treasure (Spoilers Club Preview)
Wednesday Dec 25, 2024
Wednesday Dec 25, 2024
Wizard's Treasure designer Grant Leucke joins us to take a deep dive into his design philosophies, he talks to us about how he built this game.
In this clip, we talk about the importance of testing and maintaining your games.
You can find the rest of this Spoilers Club episode by supporting us on Patreon at patreon.com/roomescapeartist

Monday Dec 23, 2024
PG's Playhouse #1: Is Die Hard a Christmas Movie?
Monday Dec 23, 2024
Monday Dec 23, 2024
In between Reality Escape Pod Season 8 and 9 we are starting a brand new show. PG's Playhouse.
In the inaugural episode of PG's Playhouse, Peih-Gee Law and David Spira are joined by immersive creator Tommy Honton to explore the controversial topic of whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie. We kick off with a game called "Christmas-fied" where non-Christmas movies are transformed into Christmas-themed titles by adding festive song lyrics. We also discuss Die Hard's Christmas credentials, and its tight writing and unique casting choices.
If you enjoy the show, please subscribe on your podcast app of choice.
Production Credits
Hosted by Peih-Gee Law & David Spira
Puzzles by Peih-Gee Law
Produced by Theresa Piazza
Supported by Lisa Spira
Edited by Peih-Gee Law
Music by Matt Farthing
Logo by Theresa Wagner

Thursday Dec 19, 2024
On the Importance of Working With Nice People (Bonus Preview)
Thursday Dec 19, 2024
Thursday Dec 19, 2024
This week, we're joined again by episode guest Victor and Francine from Sherlocked in the Netherlands. They tell us about the escape room they built for Hotel Zoku during the pandemic, and we also explore outdoor escape room style adventures, what to call them, and some logistics to consider when designing them.
We also talk about escape room tour logistics, especially when it comes to a potential Netherlands Tour. Finally, Victor and Francine talk about an at home escape room design kit that may be an upcoming Sherlocked product.
This is the end of Season 8, but we will continue to produce bonus shows for Patreon backers, even in the off season.
And be sure to keep an ear out for our new show, PG's Playhouse, launching very soon.
In this clip, we discuss Victor and Francine's Recon Talk, about working with a variety of contractors while building their top rated escape room, The Alchemist. And the importance of working only with nice people.
If you enjoy these previews, I hope you’ll consider joining our Patreon. For only $5 a month, you’ll get access to our Bonus Aftershow, where we continually release new episodes, even in our REPOD off-season.

Monday Dec 16, 2024
The Wonder Factory: Francine Boon & Victor van Doorn of Sherlocked (S8E12)
Monday Dec 16, 2024
Monday Dec 16, 2024
“A vision into the future of what I want escape rooms to be.”
After 1,200 escape rooms, it certainly takes something remarkable to capture the #1 spot on David Spira’s list of favorite games. As he tells us in this episode, his favorite game shifts from moment to moment, but in this particular moment, that game is The Alchemist, created by Francine Boon & Victor van Doorn of Sherlocked Escape Rooms in Amsterdam.
David had this to say about The Alchemist:
“It's a wonder factory. It is filled with impossible moments and machines, and it made me weep with joy during the finale each time I watched it. I think I saw the finale three times when I came to visit. I just love this game and it feels like a vision into the future of what I want escape rooms to be.”
It’s not the first time that Sherlocked has created a game that has shaped the future of the escape room industry. Victor started playing escape rooms in 2012 when the industry was still in its infancy, and a few years later, he started Sherlocked, along with a few other partners. Sherlocked's games The Architect and The Vault are noteworthy for the level of immersion they created at the time. They used actors and “cold starts" to truly create the feeling that players were in a movie.
We can see the influence of Sherlocked throughout much of the escape room scene in The Netherlands today. Many of the games there make use of actors, with immersive onboarding. Additionally, many are set in historical buildings, just liked Sherlocked is. Victor and Francine are creative alchemists in their own right, combining their skillsets to create wondrous, magical games.
This is the season finale for Season 8 of Reality Escape Pod. Season 9 will launch in April. Meanwhile, we are excited to release some off-season content. Plus, keep an ear out for PG's Playhouse, a new show launching this winter. If you want more content, we have over 100 episodes of the Bonus Aftershow available to Patreon Supporters, as well as our Spoilers Club, which offers in-depth coverage of iconic escape rooms. Thank you so much for supporting our show!
Episode Sponsors
Thank you to our sponsors Morty, Buzzshot, & COGS by Clockwork Dog:
Morty
Morty is a free app for discovering, planning, tracking, and reviewing your escape rooms and other immersive social outings.
Morty News:
- Morty now features haunt attractions
- Morty for Android is here
Special Badge for REPOD listeners:
You can learn more at morty.app/REPOD to sign up and get a special badge for our listeners (works for existing users also).
Buzzshot
Buzzshot is Escape Room Software, Powering Business Growth, Player Marketing, and improving the Customer Experience. They offer an assortment of pre and post game features including robust waiver management, branded team photos, and streamlined review management for Yelp, TripAdvisor, Google Reviews, and Morty. Buzzshot now has integration with the other REPOD sponsors: Morty and COGS.
Special Offer for REPOD Listeners:
REPOD listeners get an extended 21-day free trial plus 20% off your first 3 months, with no set-up fees or hidden charges. Visit buzzshot.com/repod to learn more about this exclusive offer.
COGS
COGS by Clockwork Dog is an easy to use software/ hardware platform for running interactive events, including escape rooms, and other immersive experiences. They have plug & play hardware that seamlessly integrates with their software so you can create a show with lighting and sound cues without having to write a single line of code. Map all kinds of inputs to outputs by building up simple logic steps which determine what you want to happen and when.
Special Offer for REPOD Listeners:
REPOD listeners can get the COGS Starter Set for only $130 + free shipping to the USA. This bundle is usually valued at $257. You can learn more and purchase your Starter Set at cogs.show. Use code REPOD at checkout.
Production Credits
Hosted by David Spira & Peih-Gee Law
Produced by Theresa Piazza
Supported by Lisa Spira
Edited by Steve Ewing
Music by Ryan Elder
Logo by Janine Pracht

Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Thursday Dec 12, 2024
In this Bonus Show, we're joined again by guest Sarah Dodd. We cover a whole range of escape room topics, including well-crafted small scale escape rooms, whether we should introduce more categorization in escape room awards, and we also talk about taxonomy and the jargon of escape rooms.
In this preview, we talk about designing for neurodivergent friendly escape rooms and the importance of accessibility options
If you enjoy these previews, I hope you’ll consider joining our Patreon. For only $5 a month, you’ll get access to our Bonus Aftershow, where we continually release new episodes, even in our REPOD off-season.