Module 4: Virtual Escape Rooms guidelines - Learn

1. VER1 - Game of Phones

Student player (SP) is asked to go into the virtual world and use his/her virtual phone to find a box that contains something valuable. The problem is the student’s phone has been hacked. He/she must solve a series of problems and answer a number of questions in order to find his/her way to the mystery box. Solving the problems and answering the questions will require discussion and collaboration between the SP in the virtual world, and those in the classroom. As the game can take a bit of time to complete, or since you may wish to restart from a different point in the game, when you first enter the SP will find themselves on a landscape that looks a bit like Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland. There are 3 options available to the SP: 

1. To start the game: move across the stones towards the tower on the right. Stand in front of the tower and you will be teleported to the starting point 

2. To restart from the monkey and the tree: move towards the tree. Stand in front of the tower and you will be teleported to the tree 

3. To restart from the cathedral: move towards the cathedral. Stand in front of the door and you will be teleported to the door of the cathedral 

4. To restart from the house: Stand in front of the building with the round stained glass window. Stand in front of the door and you will be teleported to the house
   
   

Scene 1 – Inside the castle 

There are three closed doors marked A, B and C. The SP has to switch on his/her virtual phone to navigate his/her way around the world. There is an icon for ‘Maps’ on the phones but when pressed, a menacing red face appears on the screen on the phone and says:

“Welcome to ‘A Game of Phones’. I am your new teacher. You must do exactly what I tell you. No arguments! Now, choose a door to continue. But choose wisely. My dragons are always hungry, and they are not vegetarian.”

The SP has to explain the message to the other students. After 20 seconds or so, the red face appears on the phone again and says:

“Would you like me to repeat my instructions?” A message appears saying YES / NO. If the SP presses YES, the first message is repeated. If the SP opens Door A, he/she sees a brick wall with some graffiti on it that says GO HOME!

 If the SP opens door B, he/she sees a wall of fire at the end of the passageway. He/she also hears the terrifying sound of a dragon. (If the SP chooses to go towards the fire they will automatically end up at the start of the game). If the SP opens door C, he/she sees some steps going down into a dark tunnel. No sounds. This is the correct path. 

Scene 2 – The tunnel

A narrow, dark tunnel with some flaming torches on the walls. The SP has to teleport himself/herself along the tunnel. After a while he/she comes to a large metal gate (again, like a portcullis). There doesn’t seem to be a way through. The red face appears on the phone and says:

“To raise this gate, at least some of the way, you will need to write the correct word on the wall.”

The SP has to look around. On the wall beside the gate there are some bricks. Four of the bricks are marked with one of the following letters: R A T S - Students have to work out that they need to remove the bricks and put them back in the correct order. In order to do this you need to make a fist. It can be a bit tricky to put the stones back, so be patient. Hold the stone at the front with one hand and on the tip with the other. If or when the SP spells S T A R the gate is raised, but only about halfway. The SP has to crouch down in order to get under the gate. The aim is to get to the top of the tower which is on the left.

The SP continues to the end of the passage and has the option to go left or right. If he/she takes the right option, he/she eventually comes across another metal gate and hears the sounds of dragons. No way through. Alternatively, if he/she takes the left option, they arrive at some steps. He/she climbs up and up, and eventually reaches an open doorway. They need to jump over the threshold to be able to enter the space. Here they find a wooden ladder going straight up. In order to climb the ladder they need to place their hands on the rungs. A white dot will appear, then SP can make a fist and reach up for the next rung. If SP climbs on the wrong side of the ladder they will reach the stone ceiling. To move to the correct side, use the right joystick. 

 Scene 3 – The tower (or the castle battlements)

Once at the top of the tower the SP finds themself on a terrace at the top of a tower, looking over the mountainous landscape with some lava flow. There is also one small tree visible. The red face appears on the phone and says:

“Describe this landscape, what can you see?”

Students share ideas about how to describe the landscape.
Meanwhile, a keyboard icon starts flashing on the SP’s phone. He/she has to work out that he/she needs to write the description on his/her phone/keyboard. He/she has to write at least two of the following words: mountain / snow / lava / fire / rock / sky / grey / tree

If the SP doesn’t write the necessary words after two minutes, the red face appears and says “Come on, it’s not difficult!”. If the SP writes the correct words, an old biplane appears high overhead and drops a ball with words written on them. The ball has the following message: ‘Write enter on your phone.’ But the message is coded and actually says: 3 = upgrc clrcp ml wmsp nfmlc (It’s a simple Caesar cypher where C, i.e. letter 3 = A, and so on). Students should be able to work out how the cipher is made. If not, the teacher can help. When the SP writes ‘enter’ on his/her phone, he/she is transported to a spot beside the small tree. The castle and tower are now visible in the distance.

Scene 4 – The tree

The SP looks around but can’t see any more clues. After 30 seconds or so, the red face appears on the phone and says: “So, you made it to my tree. Well done. Now, do you have any idea what you are supposed to do next? (Pause) No, I thought not. Well, here’s a riddle which might help: What rhymes with ‘tree’ but ends in ‘y’ and is half of an animal? I’ll say it again: What rhymes with ‘tree’ but ends in ‘y’ and is half of an animal? If you think you know the answer, write it on your phone. But you only have three chances.” Students have to work out that the answer is ‘key’. If or when the SP writes this on his/her phone, a monkey appears up in the tree with a large key in its hand.

If the SP doesn’t get the right answer after three attempts, he/she will find himself/herself back on the terrace of the tower and has to start again. Once the SP has spotted the monkey and the key, he/she has to persuade the money to drop the key. How? There are some nuts on the ground (they are red). The SP has to pick up a nut and throw it up to the monkey. The monkey reaches for the nut and drops the key. The SP picks up the key. But what does it open? The SP looks around and discusses options with the other students. After a minute the red face appears on the phone of student B and says: “So what are you waiting for? Can’t you find the door? Seriously? Here’s a clue: It’s not in the tree. Does that help? (Pause) No? OK, here’s another clue: what rhymes with ‘phone’?” Students have to work out that the answer is ‘stone’. The SP sees two large stones and they need to pick them up. They are covering a keyhole. The SP places the key in the lock and turns. A door opens and the SP sees a void. The SP jumps into the void and lands at the bottom. The door closes behind them.

Scene 5 – The cavern

When the SP reaches the floor of the cavern, a message appears on his/her phone that says ‘No signal’. The icon of a torch also appears on the phone. The cavern is very large and quite dark. The SP has to use the torch on his/her phone to see the way. In order to get off the initial cavern floor the SP needs to jump. You need to walk down the stairs, then you will see some writing on the floor. It says “Dragon’s Den. Leave now if you want to live.” Another message says “Listen, what can you hear? Could that be your way out of here?” There is the sound of some lava in the distance. The SP needs to walk towards the two arches and then walk through the first one and down the stairs. Follow the path to the sound and you see a lava stream. They need to look for a message on the floor. One message says ‘No entry’ and there is another message that says ‘No exit’. Students have to discuss what to do. If the SP takes the no exit route he/she goes down a flight of steps and eventually comes across another iron gate blocking his/her way. There is a message on the gate that says: ‘Seriously? Didn’t we tell you there was no exit this way?’ The SP then has to turn around and go back. If the SP takes the No Entry route, he/she has to climb up some stone steps, walk through another arch. When they reach the lava stream they need to be careful to use the stepping stones to cross and go through the wooden arch in front of them and eventually they will reach the old castle. If they fall into the lava they will end up at the start of the scene. 

Scene 6 – The old castle 

There’s a door in the castle wall and a light on in one of the windows. A message appears on the phone that says: ‘Signal restored.’ The red face appears on the phone and says: “Where have you been? This isn’t a pleasure trip, you know. Have you forgotten what you’re supposed to be doing? “Get moving. Now!” The SP approaches the door. There’s a bell beside the door. The SP pushes it and a bell rings. A few seconds later a female voice from inside the house says: “I don’t care what you’re selling, we’re not buying. Go away!” The students don’t know how to respond. The SP has to ring the bell a second time. This provokes a response from a different voice, a male, from inside the house. It says: “Mother, it’s probably just some more of those students. Let’s invite them in and see how clever they are.” The female voice responds saying. “Oh, very well, if you must. But don’t let them bother me!” The door opens and the SP goes inside. 

Scene 7 - Inside the old castle

There is an avatar of a young man standing and waiting for the SP. As the SP approaches, the avatar says: “Greetings young student. I know you are on a quest, and I know you need my help. But first you have to answer three questions. Don’t worry, they’re not difficult. You have to write the answers on your phone. Shall we begin? Question number 1: What is the square root of 876,096? Oh, I’m sorry, you’re a language student, not a maths student. My mistake. Let’s try again:

Question number 1: Write three of the most frequently used verbs in the English language.” Students will probably need to consult. The SP has to write three of the following: be, have, go, get, do, say, make, take, see. When the SP gets the answer right, the avatar says: “Very good. Now let’s continue. 

Question number 2: What happens if you heat water to a temperature of 100 degrees? Wait a minute, that’s a science question, and you’re a language student. But come to think of it, it’s so easy, I’m sure you know the answer. Let me repeat the question for you, just in case you weren’t listening the first time: What happens if you heat water to a temperature of 100 degrees? Write the answer on your phone.” Students may have to consult. The SP has to write: ‘It boils’ If the SP doesn’t write the answer correctly, the avatar says “Come on, I’m waiting. What happens if you heat water to a temperature of 100 degrees?”The avatar then says; “OK, good. That kind of sentence is called a zero conditional. It’s the sort of thing scientists use a lot. Another example would be: If a bee stings you, it dies. Poor bee.

Question number 3: How many other forms of conditional sentences are commonly used in the English language? Write the answer on your phone.” Students have to write: three or 3. If the SP doesn’t get the answer right after a minute or so, the avatar says “Come on, I haven’t got all day!” The avatar then says; “OK, good. You passed the test. Now, I believe you have a key that a monkey gave you. Can I see it?” The students don’t have the key and say so. After 20 seconds or so the avatar responds saying: “Seriously? You haven’t got the key? So how are you going to get into the cathedral? Oh well, you’ll just have to work it out for yourself. Now listen carefully. I shall only say this once. Go outside and turn right. Follow the path until you come to the cathedral. And don’t drop your phone, you’ll need it.” 

 

Scene 8 – The garden path. 

The SP teleports himself/herself down a path surrounded by trees and exotic plants. He/she continues along the path and will be teleported to the cathedral. There is a large door that is firmly closed. Students discuss what the SP needs to do next. After a while, the red face appears on the phone and says: “Stuck again? Really? Don’t you have the key? Seriously, you’ve lost it? Well, there is one option, although it’s not a good one. The lock on this door is sound sensitive. By which I mean, it responds to sounds. If you want the door to open, you’ll need to sing to it. Yes, that’s right, sing. And not any song either. You need to sing the first two lines of a song called ‘Yesterday’ by an ancient pop group called the Beatles. In case you don’t know them, here are the lyrics. If your singing doesn’t work the first time, keep trying!” The lyrics appear on the phone: ‘Yesterday. All my troubles seemed so far away. Now it looks as though they’re here to stay, oh I believe in Yesterday.’ The SP has to sing. If he/she doesn’t know the song, or is too shy, the other students can help. The red face appears on the phone and says: “Goodness me, that was awful, just awful! I don’t know if your singing worked. Let’s find out. Try writing the word ‘Yesterday’ on your phone.” If the student spells it correctly, the cathedral door slowly opens, and the SP goes inside. 

 

Scene 9 – Inside the cathedral

The red face appears on the phone and says: “Don’t forget, you’re looking for a box.” The SP looks around. On the left he/she can see a large, brightly painted, wooden box high on a shelf. The problem is, the SP can’t reach it, as it’s too high. Students have to work out how to reach it. The SP looks around and finds part of a ladder. He/she puts the ladder together using the other pieces, but it doesn’t reach. There is a bow on the floor plus some arrows. The SP has to work out that if he/she fires the arrow and hits the box, he/she should be able to make the box fall down.

The SP may need 2-3 attempts, but eventually manages to hit the box and it falls down and breaks open when it hits the floor. An object rolls out of the box. It looks a bit like a football, but it’s made of shiny metal. As the SP approaches, the ball rises into the air to around face height where it stays, hovering. If the students try to touch it, the ball moves away. The red face appears on the phone and says: “Don’t try to grab the ball, it might disappear completely. Find a cushion, put the cushion on the ground under the ball, and then try to persuade the ball to land on the cushion.” The SP has to relay these instructions to the other students. The SP finds the cushion, puts it on the ground under the ball, and then tries to work out how to persuade the ball to land. It doesn’t. After a few minutes a message appears on the SP’s phone. It says: “Are you having trouble getting through to the ball? Never mind, try writing the answers to these questions on your phone.

 

Question one: What shape is the ball?” The SP has to write ‘round’ ‘a sphere’ or ‘spherical’.

Once the SP has done this, the ball drops a little way towards the cushion. The next question appears on the phone.

Question two: now write the names of two more shapes. Possible answers: square, rectangle, triangle, oval, cube, pyramid. If correct, the ball drops a little further. The next question appears on the phone.

Question three: Write three of the world’s most widely spoken languages. Possible answers: English, Mandarin, Spanish, Hindi. If correct, the ball drops a little further. The next question appears on the phone.

Question four: Approximately how many languages are there?

a) 4,200

b) 5,400

c) 7,100

The correct answer is C

If correct, the ball lands on the cushion and it opens. Inside the ball is a letter. The voice reads the letter: “Correct. There are more than 7,000 languages, but sadly, over 3,000 are in danger of extinction.  The country with the most languages (840) is Papua New Guinea. The EU has 60 languages. We’re delighted that you’re learning one of them. Now, dial 54321 on your phone.” The SP enters the number and is immediately transported back to the starting point. A fireworks display (or similar) appears on the phone, followed by a message that says: “Congratulations! You have passed your test! And that means you have passed this part of your English course. Well done!” 

2. VER2 - Burglar Puzzle

The student player (SP) who enters the virtual world is a private detective. His/her objective is to solve a burglary by looking for clues. The burglars have broken into a mansion and have stolen some very expensive jewellery. As a PI this kind of case is what gets your heart racing. Pick up the phone and try to solve the mystery.

As the game can take a bit of time to complete, or since you may wish to restart from a different point in the game, when you first enter the SP will find themselves on a landscape that looks a bit like Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland. There are 3 options available to the SP: 

1. To start the game: move across the stones towards the two doors that lead to an underground bunker. Stand in front of the tower and you will be teleported to the starting point 

2. To restart from the police station: move towards the middle image "Precinct". Stand in front of the building and you will be teleported to the police station 

3. To restart from the detective's office: move towards the last image on the left. Stand in front of the door and you will be teleported to the detective's office 

Scene 1 – Detective Agency Office

When the SP first enters the virtual world, they hear a telephone ringing and they have to press “answer call” on their wrist. The call is being made by the owner of the mansion.

Hi is that …? 

There’s been a burglary at my house and a very expensive necklace is missing.  We arrived home to find a broken window in the sitting room.  Strangely, after looking at the CCTV footage we could see a man entering the house through the sitting room window but could not find the footage of him leaving.  We also found this partly ripped blueprint of the house, which we believe the burglar used to navigate around the house.  Could you come now?

SP presses “On my Way” and is teleported to the empty street where the mansion is located. 

The SP needs to walk down the street using the joystick on the left controller. Enter through the gate on your right and head towards the open window on your right. The sitting room window has been broken and that is the only access point. There is a stone block under the window. Jump onto the block by pressing the “A” button on the right controller and pushing the left joystick forward at the same time. Once on the stone reach up with the right hand and grab the window frame. You will see a white dot - press both triggers to make a first. Then put your the left hand higher up on the left side of the frame and do the same thing. Once you are in the window frame move yourself forward with the left joystick (you can also pull the right joystick back and teleport yourself  into the room if you find climbing through the window too challenging) Now you are in the house.

You will hear the parrot talking: “Behind the old man”. Let the SP walk around the area and notice that they can't open any of the doors. There is also an NPC pacing on the left next to one of the doors / he says “That picture gives me the creeps”. On the floor, near the parrot there is a blue print - the SP should pick it up. 

The room with the old man picture is marked on the blue print together with the code 1234 on the back. The SP needs to make their way to the door with the blueprint in hand and open the door. They need to locate the picture of the old man - remember what the parrot said? (It’s behind the old man). In fact there is a safe behind the picture. Let them try to move the picture, but they won’t have any luck. They need to find a way to move the picture.

Maybe there is a secret switch or button? If they don’t notice the red button under the desk, point it out to them. When pressed this moves the picture and they can see the safe. BUT there is a code that needs to be entered. On the back of the blueprint there is the code. They need to enter the code 1234 and the safe opens. Inside there is another blueprint with the CCTV room marked on it. 

They need to take the blueprint and open the door to the CCTV room. The door will not open unless they have the blueprint in their hand. Once inside the CCTV room they will see a bank of monitors. Let them have a look around and explain what they can see. There is another door in the CCTV room, but to access this door the SP needs to go back into the living room. 

In the living room near the fireplace there is another blueprint with how to access to the basement marked on it. The SP needs to pick up the blueprint and move back to the CCTV room and open the door that they saw before. This will lead them to the door to the basement. While they are in the living room looking for the blueprint, they should have noticed that the parrot was now saying “1001 Nights” rather than the original message “Behind the old man.” If they didn’t hear the message get them to go back to the living room and listen to what the parrot says. Once they have heard “1001 Nights” and they have opened the door, they need to head down the stairs. When they get to the bottom of the stairs all they see is two bookcases. There seems to be no door, but just these two bookcases.

Remember what the parrot said? They need to remove one of the books to make the bookcase open to reveal a hidden room. The book ‘1001 Nights’ is the key to opening the door. The door opens to reveal the suitably distraught criminal sitting at the table together with the stolen necklace. They could describe how the burglar might feel now that he has been caught. 

After a minute if the SP looks at the right wrist there is a message that says “Call the police.” 

The SP presses it and the call is made. They are transported to the the police station, to an interrogation room, where the mystery continues. 

When the SP arrives at the police station, they find themselves inside the interrogation room. The criminal is sitting silently at the table, refusing to speak. On the table there is a piece of paper with “Tomorrow morning, meet me here I6 PW” written on it. If they pick up the note a voice says “New evidence. A note from who?”

If they leave the interrogation room, they can walk down the corridor. There is a room with riot gear and the area where the cells are. On the right there is a flight of steps. Go down the steps and there is a police officer there.

Listen to what he says, “Take a look at his belongings. People sometimes leave clues where they don’t realise.” On this level there are a number of rooms. In the police bull pen you will find the burglar’s phone. If you pick it up there are SMS’s as well as a Voice Message. Check them both.    

A recent message from “PW” contains a riddle:
“With a shiny shell and wings to fly, I scuttle on the ground and reach the sky. My name’s shared with a famous band.”
(Answer: Beetle / Beatle – the make of the getaway car.)

The voice message says: “We meet as planned. No mistakes”

In the captain’s office there is a train ticket on the table. If you pick it up you hear a message: "train ticket - need to learn more." 

If they leave the policeman says “that train ticket may not be what it seems” or “we need more details” 

There is a room with a map on the wall with numbers and letters and the names of 4 stations on it. If the SP touches the incorrect station a voice says “not correct, check evidence again”. The clue “I6” should lead you to Central Station. If you press on the name Central Station your wrist screen prompts you to “go to Union Station.” Tap the screen and you are teleported there. If the SP struggles to decode the coordinates, you can give them a hint: “That ticket might not be what it seems…”

In the train station there is an NPC (police woman) and an arrivals board. If you approach her she will tell you: “pinpoint the train PW is arriving on, on the train schedules board over there”. A voice then says “what were the clues again?” Remind the students of the clues from the mobile phone - The SP now checks the train schedule posted on the wall. They must find which train arrives at the target station at the same time mentioned in the note (“Tomorrow afternoon”). 

 Go back to the police woman and she says “lets go find the getaway vehicle”. Your phone rings and you press it to go to the parking garage. There are a number of cars there but only one beetle. If you approach the NPC she will prompt you to find the getaway vehicle. Once you have gone to the beetle go back to the NPC and she says “Thank you. Now we have everything to catch PW”. Your phone rings again with the word 'continue'… on the screen. You are now teleported back to the detective agency office.

The SP returns to the detective agency. On the desk in front of them is a stack of letters, a newspaper, and a small pile of case files. The SP should pick up the newspaper first. The article mentions the CEO of a major company who recently declared bankruptcy and celebrated a birthday “last week.” This detail will be important later. Note the date on the newspaper. 

There is also a photo on the coffee table. One of the people is circled in red. If the SP picks up the photo, there is a message on the back: “You crook, you owe me my investment. Watch out!” This indicates that someone was blackmailing the CEO. The phone on the SP’s wrist rings and you hear a recorded message. At the end of the message a voice says: "There is nothing here. I need to go back to the mansion". Press on the word 'mansion' on your wrist. 

In the mansion, the SP finds themselves in an empty room with two doors. One opens but the other doesn’t. Open the door and you enter the study. Open one of the doors and you find yourself in a dark room with some photo prints hanging out to dry. There is nothing else in the dark room. Go back into the study. There is a door with a code pad next to it. The code is that date of the CEO’s birthday 1803. (remember the date on the Newspaper was 2403 but he celebrated a week ago 24th -7th =18th 

On the table there are a number of photos plus a photo album. When the SP picks up the photo album, they find a UV light. Press the button to switch on the UV light. There is nothing else in the room, but maybe there is something in the dark room. In the dark room there is another photo with a red circle around someone. The SP picks up the photo and there are 4 names on the back, but nothing shows up when they shine the light on it. Let them figure out that they need the room to be “dark” for the UV light to work. Get them to turn off the lights. Now they look at the photo with the UV light and they see the words “PERT SWEATER” this is an anagram of one of the names - Peter Waters. Get the students to think back to the initials on the phone messages - PW. 

Now the SP finds themselves back in the police station. The police officer says “We’ve tracked them down. The real mastermind is the CEO’s accountant. Looks like PW wasn’t working alone."