We didn't use them all, but there will be some authentic representation there."Ī former executive at a defense satellite communications firm, Barcz went into the escape room business after retiring and taking part in the experience on a trip to see his family. "I used the mission's original checklist to figure out which switches had to be in the right position. "I did the research on what position the toggle switches should be in at launch," Fongheiser told collectSPACE. ![]() Everything is accurately depicted."įor the purposes of the game, Fongheiser worked with Barcz to integrate buttons and lights that were not part of the original spacecraft, but they also found ways to incorporate some of the real controls, too. "How many people get to sit in an Apollo command module or stand in a lunar module? I think they will appreciate stepping into it. ![]() "I can never get over how big these things actually were," Fongheiser said. Working initially from his office in Ohio, Fongheiser employed VR modeling to ensure the full-size spacecraft panels he was fabricating would fit into the Escape Hunt room. In addition to commissioning prop makers in New Jersey and Indiana to fabricate the Mission Control consoles and equipment, Barcz sought the expertise of John Fongheiser, president of Historic Space Systems, who creates spacecraft exhibits and simulators for space museums nationwide. Our other game rooms were one-tenth the cost of this one." "This will be our eighth room in this facility. "This far exceeds what we normally invest in putting in a game room," Barcz said in an interview with collectSPACE. It also banks on its realistic recreations of Mission Control and the Apollo spacecraft. "We feel that this is going to be a flagship game for us, so it really deserves to be authentic."Įxclusive to Escape Hunt Houston, the "Houston, We've Had a Problem" escape game relies on more than just role play and inspired puzzles to bring the Apollo 13 mission to life. "Immersion is part of our brand," said Jim Barcz, owner of Escape Hunt Houston. The crew talks to the ground using headsets, and the capcom (capsule communicator) relays the solutions devised by the room to the astronauts. The other group members staff the consoles in Mission Control. Teams of six to 12 people can embark on the mission, with three members taking on the roles of Apollo 13 astronauts Jim Lovell, Fred Haise and Jack Swigert in the command module Odyssey and lunar module Aquarius. Your country is counting on you and the world is watching. "Accurate communications and teamwork are critical for you to be successful. ![]() "You must complete six major mission assignments in less than 60 minutes to be successful and escape the room," a recorded mission briefing explains at the start of the game. Just like the historic April 1970 "successful failure" (and the 1995 movie it inspired), participants are challenged to bring three astronauts safely back to Earth after an explosion crippled the Apollo spacecraft on the way to the moon. and now it is your turn to try to solve it.Įscape Hunt, an "escape room" amusement center located in midtown Houston, is now inviting the public to step into - and get locked inside - NASA's Apollo 13 mission.
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