Frequently Asked Questions

What is a VR Escape Room?

VR - Virtual Reality - is a computer generated world. We’ll send you there using a headset. Once there you’ll have a mission or task to carry out, the object being to escape a given fate within a fixed time frame. You’ll use all the same skills to solve puzzles and progress as you would in a traditional escape room. Where a real world escape room is constrained by physical space and can only push imagination so far, VR allows for more varied environments. That’s not to say VR Escape Rooms are better than real world escape rooms! We’re fortunate to have many great escape rooms in the Southend, Chelmsford, and Basildon area. We hope you’ll think of VR Escape Rooms as just a different type of Escape Room. A type with a few less padlocks, and a few more sharks and dragons.

I wear glasses - how will that work with a VR headset?

Most glasses can be worn within our headsets, but there’s no doubt that VR is more comfortable without glasses so contact lenses are your friends if you can wear them. We have a limited number of wider fitting headsets for glasses wearers and will do everything we can to make sure you’re comfortable in the headset. If you wear particularly large frames give us a call to chat and we’ll see if we can make it work. When booking please let us know if members of your party will be wearing glasses so we can prepare appropriate headsets.

Will there be other people in our game?

No. Your booking is for exclusive use of our room.

Are your games suitable for children?

None of our games are horror themed although Manor of Escape does lean that way so we suggest 14+ for that one. For the rest of the games we advise 12+. Some of the puzzles are challenging and require team work, communication, and persistence to solve. Please note the difficulty levels on the games. All groups MUST include a responsible adult (16+). That adult does not need to be a participant.

I love escape rooms, but I’m not into computer games. Will i like these rooms?

Absolutely YES! If you like Escape Rooms this is for you. While the room you’re in is computer generated, in every other respect these rooms have more similarities with physical escape rooms than they have with computer games. You don’t need to know how to use joysticks or lots of fiddly buttons. You’ll use all the same skills you use in a physical escape room, but you’ll be somewhere more unusual. The games focus on collaborative puzzle solving and cooperation between players. They’re perfect for families and groups. Just think of the VR headset as a costume you’ve put on to play the game.

I’m a gamer, is this for me?

YES. It’s a game, and it’s great fun. Your gaming skills won’t give you any advantage over a non gamer. The games are specifically designed for ease of use and accessibility. We aim to immerse you in the virtual environment. The puzzles will test your brain far more than they’ll test your speed or hand/eye coordination. We love gaming too, but these games are all about playing with your friends in the same large space, and there’s something very special about taking on a challenge with a group of friends in a faraway place.

Are you Covid safe?

We require all guests to use hand sanitiser on arrival and all equipment is sanitised between sessions. Other than when our operator is briefing you you’ll be alone in the game room. You’ll be the only group in the building. (we ask arriving groups to wait outside until the previous group has departed.)

We’ll have been out for a drink and are then coming to play, will that be ok?

No it won’t. No one gets to play while under the influence. If our operator has reason to believe you are intoxicated you will not be allowed to play. This is for your safety, your group’s safety, and the safety of our equipment. You will not be offered a refund.

How do you keep the headsets clean?

The VR headsets have removable silicon faceguards which are switched and sanitised between uses. The headset exterior and controllers are anti-bacterially wiped between uses. We have two full sets of VR headsets which we rotate.

Is this a VR Arcade, can I play other games?

This isn’t a VR arcade. We offer Escape Rooms and we use VR as the tool with which to play them. Like all Escape Rooms, the rooms are custom made to suit a particular space. They are designed to be played as a group in a single space. We’re huge fans of VR and VR gaming, but if you’re after a Beat Saber session or a zombie shooter, we don’t offer that.

What happens if I arrive late?

Our sessions are booked to follow on from each other so we cannot let a session over run without unfairly impacting someone else’s game. Getting everyone into their headsets takes a minute or two, but once the game begins it is not possible to join your group. If you miss your time slot you will not receive a credit or refund. (Think of us as a theatre - we provide a timed live performance.)

Can we cancel or reschedule?

PLEASE NOTE: 2023 - COVID TERMS

While the pandemic continues there will be no charge for rearranging if a member of your group comes down with COVID. This it to ensure that you DO NOT ATTEND if you or a member of your group has COVID. Please help us to look after vulnerable guests and staff.

(STANDARD TERMS: Currently suspended due to COVID

Booking our room is like booking a cinema ticket. We don’t issue refunds for changes of minds or for friends letting you down. Rescheduling, without charge, is often possible as long as we have a minimum of 96hrs notice. If we are unable to find a suitable date we reserve the right to cancel your booking without a refund.

If you cancel less than 96hrs from the booking there will be a £20 rearranging fee (a contribution to the staffing cost of a room we’re unlikely to be able to resell at short notice.))

Will VR Escape rooms cause motion sickness?

We’re yet to find anyone who has felt motion sickness in our games and we don’t expect to. “VR sickness” can come about when the motion our bodies are feeling doesn’t tally with what our eyes are seeing. Typically this can happen in games where you move by pushing a joystick. You’re standing still but your eyes tell you you’re moving and your brain doesn’t like that! (The same feeling comes about for the opposite reason when reading in a car. Your eyes see you in a stationary space but your brain senses that you’re moving.) At VR Escape you are free roaming. In the headset your eyes tell you you’re in a big room and you need to walk to the other side, and in the real world you’re in a big room, and you just walk to the other side. It feels very natural.

Who can’t play these rooms?

We are sorry but you cannot play our games if:

You suffer from epilepsy or similar seizure disorders.

You have a broken leg or arm.

You are heavily pregnant..

I am a wheelchair user, are your escape rooms accessible to me?

To a degree, yes.

The building is accessible, and we play in a 6m x 6m chair safe empty space. There may be elements of the games that rely on height or motion that could be problematic, and you’ll have controllers in your hands which some may find awkward when moving. The biggest gameplay risks come in the shape of your teammates. Although you see each other within VR you don’t have full peripheral vision and of course your chair won’t be visible in the game so there is a risk of collision. If this is something that would be of concern in the real world, it is a concern in VR.

We operate within another business’ office and workshop, with access to their toilets for our staff. (and for customer use if needed.) The toilet room itself is sizeable but access may be too tight for some chairs. It does not have transfer equipment.

If you are a wheelchair user and would like to help us become more accessible by playing our games and giving us feedback and guidance as to what works, what doesn’t, and how we can make our games as accessible as possible we’d love to hear from you. Please give Craig a call on 01702 412733 or contact us on one of the social media channels.

Do you offer physical escape rooms too?

No. There are so many great escape rooms in Southend, Chelmsford, Basildon and all over Essex that we really don’t think we’d have much to offer the physical market. Our virtual reality escape rooms offer something new to the area that we hope will appeal to escape room fans as well as anyone yet to travel in VR. Don’t forget, we started VR Escape because we love VR and we’re huge escape room fans. If you’ve played a great physical room recently please tell our operator about it, because we’re always on the look out for new rooms to play.

Can we just turn up and play?

No. Bookings are online only as VR Escape’s admin is not handled at The Colour Barn. That’s not to say you can’t get a last minute booking, but you need to book it online before coming to the game.

Do you have a viewing area or waiting room?

We do not provide facility to watch others while playing. We find that it is important that players know they are alone with only their group (and the gamesmaster overseeing events.) That said, we will always do our best to accommodate parents/carers when needed and by prior arrangement.

We’ve got a special occasion. Can we book an entire evening and play for longer?

If a group wants to play a few rooms back to back we will happily accommodate. Please contact us to discuss what you’d like to do and we’ll always do our best to help.