“So, a mum called up and told us that her family was really excited to do an escape room. However, her child was neuro-diverse, and when they’d been to places like theatres and exhibitions in the past, he’d really benefited from knowing exactly what was going to happen - how many people would be there, any surprises that might occur, that kind of thing. She said she knew it was December and probably a really busy time for us, but was there any chance that clueQuest could show her son the space beforehand?
I said, ‘If you come by twenty minutes before your game starts, we’ll see what we can do!’. So she and her son arrived before the rest of their team. I could see that he was really scared. His mum was holding his hand while I talked him through the suspenseful moments of the game, trying to reassure him. In the world of clueQuest, there is nothing scary, nothing with horror, but there are moments of surprise. I said to him, ‘Do you want to know what those moments of surprise are?’, and he said ‘Yes’ immediately.
I took him to the room he would be playing and showed him a few things, and told him that the clock on the wall counting down their time would start flashing red when they reached ten minutes to go. I think we took about ten minutes going through things! But I could see how relaxed he was once he knew what was going to happen.
When the rest of the team arrived, I gave them the brief and put them in the room. They needed a few clues as they went, but you could tell that the kid was leading the team - and not just in the things that he already knew! They needed extra time to evacuate, and I’d told him that I’d be able to give them time to complete everything (but that it was our secret!). It took a bit of time for his family to listen to him, but they worked really well - as the pressure started to increase he remembered the things they needed, and his family were able to carry out the tasks - he’d tell them what they needed to do, it was really great to see the different skill sets working together.
The mum loved it too, she told me afterwards. It just felt like a really happy experience.”
When Brent isn’t keeping clueQuest running smoothly, he can be found reading and singing with his baby boy, Robin. If you’re looking for fun activities to do with your family, why not try one of our four rooms here on Caledonian Road? Book your experience here!