There’s a new game in town – Mythic Escapes. Located at the Vancouver Mall, this local “escape room” is the first such business in Clark County, and is the product of local ingenuity.
“We’re really proud of what we’ve accomplished,” said James Omelina, co-owner and director of marketing and communications for Mythic Escapes. “It’s the first escape room in Clark County and is owned, designed, built and operated entirely by Clark County residents.”
Portland is home to several escape rooms, where participants race to beat the clock and escape from a locked room by solving multiple puzzles. Mythic Escapes opened in June, and business has grown 300 percent in just the past four months.
“We’re the hottest thing at the Mall,” claimed Omelina, who also reported the business has received “overwhelmingly positive reviews” from Yelp and TripAdvisor.
At heart of Mythic Escapes’ success, said Omelina, is the owners’ commitment to “elevate the escape room experience beyond what anyone has seen.” In pursuit of that goal, the company is doubling their square footage to 5,000 square feet, adding a corporate headquarters and additional escape rooms on the upper level of the mall; their existing lower-level space is near the life-size chess board.
Additionally, Mythic Escapes has just agreed to lease “4,000 to 5,000 square feet” of space at the Three Rivers Mall in Longview, with plans to bring the escape room experience to Cowlitz County around Thanksgiving time.
Back in Vancouver, the company currently operates two escape rooms, which feature puzzles, clues and codes. “Blackbeard’s Brig” is a pirate-themed 60-minute adventure for four to eight people, while “Mission: ESCAPE!” is a Mission Impossible-themed 20-minute adventure for two to four people. Both are suitable for entire families to participate, and Omelina compared the experience to playing a team sport – solving the puzzle and escaping is “a way to have fun with your family – it’s mentally challenging and you must work as a team.”
Besides the company’s offices, the additional space upstairs will be devoted to new escape adventures. With a soft opening planned for this weekend, “USS Dark Horizon” will feature aliens and a derelict space ship. Additional seasonal adventures will be available for Halloween, Christmas and other holidays.
“We offer something totally different than going to a movie or going bowling,” said Omelina. “People get excited when they’re part of the game.”
Mythic Escapes’ rooms are cinematic experiences, where the participants feel like movie stars. Omelina said the room designers are “passionate about immersion.”
“In “USS Dark Horizon,” Omelina said, “You’re in an alien movie, and you’re about to get eaten. You’d better figure it out!”
Another new aspect of the business, Omelina explained, is corporate team building services. He said that working as a team to solve the puzzles and escape is a great way to build rapport and also gives managers a way to evaluate team effectiveness and problem-solving skills.
All the company’s adventures, said Omelina, are specifically designed to appeal to the learning styles of different people – some use math skills, some use kinesthetics, some use logic. The Mythic Escapes team includes engineers, a graphic designer, and even someone with a background in psychology. Over time, Omelina said, the company’s goal is to not just make escape rooms, but also to provide props to the industry. In the process, he said, the business will support local engineering and fabrication firms.
“We’re looking to expand by leaps and bounds,” said Omelina, a Washington State University Vancouver alumnus.
The company leverages the combined gaming experience of the co-owners, all of whom are avid gamers and have been involved with Salmon Creek’s Mythic Realm Games (which has won awards for being Vancouver’s best game store).
As the company adds space and services, they are looking to hire several additional staff over the coming months.
“Everyone is really hungry to make this something great,” said Omelina.
Honoring those who serve
As a way to say thank you for their service and sacrifice, Mythic Escapes allows active duty military, police and firefighters (and their group of up to eight players) to enjoy an escape adventure at no charge. All that is required is an official ID.
“This is just one small way we can express our gratitude to our servicemen and women,” said James Omelina, co-owner and director of marketing and communications for Mythic Escapes.
Mythic Escapes
8700 N.E. Vancouver Mall Drive, #106 www.mythicescapes.com
