Hochatown Escape Games, Broken Bow

One way to get gamers to put down the controller is to have them take part in a real-life gaming scenario. Hochatown Escape Games envisions its offerings as a group effort toward a video-game-like objective: escaping from the room by finding clues and solving puzzles as a clock ticks down.

In its primary room, participants have set off a silent alarm by entering. The room's owner, Mr. Holtz, is extremely paranoid and sure the government is after his secrets; in defense of those secrets, the alarm triggers the release of toxic gas after 60 minutes. To convince Mr. Holtz that they're on his side, team members must solve his puzzles to find a hidden cell phone. If they can reach Mr. Holtz in time, he'll disable the deadly security system.