Two years ago, we launched an April Fools Day prank involving a virtual reality version of our puzzles: PNVR.

It was great fun to both imagine how our puzzles would be reinvented by VR and to lampoon the idea of VR puzzling by creating pictures of solvers riding their bikes while wearing VR headsets, puzzling alongside interactive robotic companions, and more.

And more than a few people fell for the prank, given the explosion in VR technology when it comes to gaming and interactive entertainment experiences over the last few years.

Not only can you buy full VR rigs like the Oculus Rift system, but there are plenty of programs and peripherals available that allow you to turn your smartphone into a VR screen, immersing yourself in unusual situations and gaming scenarios.

Some video games have already embraced the technology, and more are sure to do so in the future. But it’s not just video game companies that are getting in on the VR trend.

Escape rooms are as well.

Ubisoft (the company responsible for the Assassin’s Creed video game series) offers a series of game-inspired VR escape rooms in locations around the world.

From an advertisement for their latest room, Beyond Medusa’s Gate:

Two or four players team up and have 60 minutes to find a way out of a vast Aegean coastal cave where the legendary ship of the Argonauts is anchored. To successfully escape, players must use cooperative teamwork, problem-solving skills and precise timing to solve riddles and find their way out of this room-scale experience. Players start the adventure by choosing their avatar from among six diverse characters, and can customize them with Ancient Greek accessories.

Although the VR environment means that the focus is more on VR action than puzzle-solving, there are several mechanical puzzles to unravel and virtual rooms to escape, either on your own or with the help of another player. From descriptions, it appears to feel more like playing a video game than conquering an escape room, but it’s still an impressive step forward in VR technology.

I wonder how far we are from being able to experience an escape room from home. Whether it’s fully immersive and you can manipulate objects or you’re simply piloting a person or robot remotely through the VR interface, I suspect we’ll see a puzzly experience like that sooner rather than later.

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