WORCESTER—Amanda Paquin said that she was part of a “very creative, artsy, theater, painting family.” So in 2015, when her father Michael pitched the idea of opening an escape room, she and her sister Sabrina were all in.
“The idea bloomed from there,” Amanda Paquin said.
They created their first escape room in their home basement and tried it out at Thanksgiving with family.
Paquin acknowledged that nearly a decade ago, there were not a lot of other places to reference. But that did not stop the trio from moving forward.
“We pride ourselves on originality,” she said.
When they opened Live Action Escapes in 2016, it was the 129th business of this type in the U.S.
At its height in 2020, she noted, the nation had thousands of escape rooms. That number dwindled significantly during and after COVID. (They survived following a three-month closure with a lot of cleaning and sanitizing and limiting participants to close circles).
The Paquins started the business with two games and expanded to offer six by 2019.
By 2023, the venture had grown so much that they went in search of a space featuring the needed criteria of a hallway with rooms off the sides of it. The location on 415 Main St., 3rd floor, in Worcester was the perfect fit.
“We were ecstatic locating smack dab in the middle of downtown Worcester with a lot of businesses around us,” Paquin said. “There is a lot more foot traffic.”
In addition to families and friends looking for entertainment, corporations turn to Escape Rooms for team building activities, making the downtown location convenient.
The Paquins switch out games based on popularity, keeping old favorites and introducing new concepts, which she said involves a lot of preparation.
Paquin said an idea starts out on paper, figuring out the room layout and décor. From there, they go in and add props and implement puzzles, doing beta testing with family members and/or escape room regulars to see if everything flows. One last test engages the public.
“So much work goes into it. It is not an easy turnover… taking four to eight months to finish a game,” Paquin said. Ideas for plots can be inspired from video games, movies or brainstorming.
Current offerings include Art Thieves, Something in the Closet (Victorian era) and Cold Case Re-visited. Future themes are “Alien Crash Lab,” an extraterrestrial mystery searching for a downed UFO and This Side/That Side, two single puzzle room experiences that have different outcomes.
Although escape rooms are not designed specifically for employee bonding, Paquin said, “it just so happens they are fantastic for it…Some people are very linear and focus on one thing leading to the next…but communication is necessary for any group.”
The games are designed to accommodate either a maximum of six or eight people from ages eight and up. They are classified as either moderate or challenging and are public post pandemic. That means occasionally the group may involve collaborating with strangers, a scenario Paquin said is rare but “works out well with everyone getting along.”
An upgrade to private is available for participants who would rather restrict it to family and friends.
Mobile option is medieval adventure
The business goes off-site by request with “The Quest for Golden Keys,” a medieval adventure game. The mobile option can be done in gyms, outside of schools, office buildings, parking lots and other sites.
The game is suitable for a maximum of 25 people per hour. Larger groups get split. The Quest has participants traveling to stations, collecting and competing for points.
“The Quest for Golden Keys,” is also available in Leominster through a collaboration at The Gate Escape there.
Paquin expects the current staff of eight to grow as the business expands.
Splatter Lanes, the newest feature
Live Action Escapes’ latest component is called “Splatter Lanes,” which opened in late July.
Originally planned as a smash room, Paquin said the team had to “pivot…as we have done with everything.” The result is an activity that involves “throwing paint-covered things at a canvas,” that participants then take home as their created art masterpiece.
Paquin said the new business has experienced an amazing response, popular for date nights as well as family fun. Splatter Lanes is so popular that a second location in Westborough will open in January or February of next year.
“As far as we know, Splatter Lanes is the only type of thing like this in the United States,” Paquin said.
While some places have people throwing paint at each other, Paquin thinks being able to use a canvas to create something in this manner is unique. Players can let off steam but also walk up to the canvas and touch up their paintings with supplied brushes.
Each player is supplied with goggles, shoe covers, an apron, five paint colors in squeeze bottles and an 11” x 14” canvas (larger canvases are also available). The $35 admission ticket gives you 30 minutes of lane time.
Once the second Splatter Lanes is established, the Paquins will locate a second Live Action Escapes establishment at that Westborough location.
It will feature all new games, whose themes are secret.
In addition, Splatter Lanes now features an art gallery showcasing the talent of local artists. All displayed art can be purchased.
Paquin said the experiential entertainment at both Live Action Escapes and Splatter Lanes works because it dovetails nicely with a world of Internet scrolling and technology.
“It is a different way to get out and do something enjoyable with friends, family or co-workers,” Paquin noted. “You can only go bowling so many times . When you go to the movies, you sit in silence. This way, you get an experience every time you play. It’s hands on, works your brain and gets your adrenaline going as you solve puzzles,” she added.
For more information, hours and pricing, visit https://liveactionescapes.com.
Susan Gonsalves is currently editor-in-chief of a mental health trade journal and a freelance writer/editor specializing in education, medical/health and business. She previously worked at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and has contributed to publications at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and College of the Holy Cross. At the Worcester Telegram, she covered the town of Leicester and wrote for Business Matters. She can be reached at smgedit@comcast.net
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