Escape Simulator News

Attention Crewmates!

We’ve received an emergency call from The Mini Skeld! They seem to be running into some issues with the ship. Could there possibly be an Impostor amongst the crew? Time to board the ship and help the crew escape in this new official Among Us-inspired room, available now for everyone!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

You and your Crewmates have to work together, solve puzzles and make your way out. However, now that you’re stuck in space, the stakes may be even higher! Or, maybe you and your friends are all just hard-working, puzzle-solving, qualified space adventurers and you have absolutely nothing to worry about.

⬇️Get Among Us DLC FREE to your library.

[h2] Lightning fast escape [/h2]

Taking care of a spaceship is never easy. Especially when you have a lot of things to worry about such as the O2 running out, reactors in meltdown or the worst of all, no internet connection. For the Crewmates that want a real challenge, if you’re able to escape from the ship within an hour, you’ll win a special trophy!



[h2] Non-suspicious Steam Sale 💸[/h2]

To celebrate this Among Us DLC release, both the base game and soundtrack of Escape Simulator are on sale with a 25% discount. If you want more Escape Simulator after playing this free one, you can get the Steampunk & Wild West DLC with 10% off and try our other free branded Portal Escape Room.

[h2] No escape from the festive season🎄 [/h2]

December means festivities and holidays! The Among Us DLC is already a lot to celebrate, but we’re not stopping here! We’re counting down to Christmas on Twitter and revealing something every day, so be sure to follow us and keep an eye out. 👀



[h2] Join our dedicated community [/h2]

That's it for today's announcement! You can come talk to us and other community members on our official Discord server or on our subreddit. We hope to see you there!

[h3]

[h2]Are you ready to get fully immersed? 👀[/h2]

Wait, has it really been six months since we officially revealed Escape Simulator VR? Well, guess we owe you an update on how the development is progressing, right? Luckily, we bring good news as the development on this VR version of Escape Simulator is going smoothly and hopefully the wait for its full release will be over sooner rather than later!

[h2]VR When? 👀[/h2]

Well, now, but not entirely. So, 'not yet' is the best answer. However, we do have a nice surprise as Escape Simulator VR is part of the Steam VR Fest. Which means you can actually play the demo RIGHT NOW!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2440240/Escape_Simulator_VR

The demo is available till December 11 as part of Steam VR Fest! Since this is our first VR game ever, we are treating the demo more like an open beta. We're curious to hear your feedback, as it will greatly help us in making the final game the best VR experience it can be.

Be sure to download the demo via the store page by clicking the link above and definitely share any feedback you might have about the demo over on our official Discord server!

[h2]Escaping the simulator; for real! 😱[/h2]

As for the VR devices supported, the demo will be playable through Steam VR (or the new Steam Link App) on the most popular devices like Meta Oculus Quest 2, Meta Oculus Quest 3, Steam Index, HTC Vive and more.

Additionally, we aim to support as many VR devices as we can in the future after the official release of Escape Simulator VR. Any feedback and suggestions to improve the player experience on your headset of choice is highly valuable to us and would be greatly appreciated!

You can share any comments and feedback over on our official Discord server or our subreddit.

[h2]Advent Month 🎄[/h2]
We're not even 4 days into December and we already announced two surprises! With the opening of the advent calendar (and our first surprise) we announced the build-a-room #5 contest, where rookie builders and experienced builders can compete with each other by building the coziest escape room of them all!

You can read all about the build-a-room #5 contest here:
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1435790/view/3814047346173395597?l=english



See you in another reality!

[h3]Pine Studio

[h2]Introducing… the Pine Festive Month![/h2]
The holiday season has arrived, and here at Pine Studio we’re celebrating with a special Escape Simulator advent calendar!



On the days marked on the calendar we’ll be opening each door to reveal surprises that could range from giveaways to exciting special events. To find out what’s behind each door as it opens, follow along on our Discord and social media channels!

As you can see, the door for day 1 is already open, revealing…

[h2]Build-A-Room #5 - Will you build the coziest room of them all?[/h2]
It's time to get festive, room builders!

With holidays approaching, it's the perfect time of the year to get nice and comfy. Whether that means you'll be spending your time reading a good book by the fireplace or by getting together with your friends and family, December is the perfect month to kick back and relax a little!

Now, we know the room builders from our community have been eagerly awaiting the next contest, which is why we are pleased to announce the final Build-A-Room of the year! This time round, we want to challenge the builders from our community to channel all of their coziest vibes into a room worthy of the holiday season. Think fireplaces, hot cocoa, warm blankets, wooden cabins, comfy easy chairs and extremely good gameplay of course! Doesn't that just sound wonderful? 😍

Since it's the season of all things cozy, we wanted to shake things up a little for this Build-A-Room and introduce some new prize categories with a special place for new builders to get comfy.

For Build-A-Room #5 there will be: 2 distinct prize categories and a community award:

• Rookie Builders Category
  
• Experienced Builders Category
  
• Community Award

[h2]🏆 Prizes[/h2]
As always, we will be rewarding the greatest creations (and their creators) with some astonishing prizes! This time around, room builders will get a chance to win the following rewards in the new categories:

[h2]Rookie Builders Category (RBC) [/h2]
Is this your first Build-A-Room competition? Then we have some great news! A special set of prizes reserved exclusively for first time competitors!

• BC first place winner gets a Meta Quest 3 + a surprise gift
  
• RBC second and third place get a 100$ Steam gift card + a surprise gift
  
• Fourth and fifth place get a surprise gift
  

Who is eligible for this category? This must be your FIRST submission for an official Escape Simulator competition. This means any of the four Build-A-Rooms or the Build-A-Thon competition. You can have other workshop submissions for Escape simulator under your profile. You are automatically qualified for this category if you meet the above standards, in addition to being entered into the Experienced Builders Category. You don’t have to choose which category you want to enter.

[h2]Experienced Builders Category (EBC)[/h2]
This is the main set of prizes. Every submission is qualified for this category and will be taken into consideration. Note that you cannot win in both categories - if you win an EBC prize, you won’t be eligible for any RBC prizes even if you’re a first time competitor.

• First place winner earns 1000$ in cash + Meta Quest 3 + a surprise gift
  
• Second and third place get a 100$ Steam gift card + a surprise gift
  
• Fourth and fifth place get a surprise gift
  

[h2]Community Award[/h2]
After the submission deadline has passed, we will open a poll containing all rooms that were submitted. Voting will last until the Winners Announcement Stream on December 21st.

• The Community Award winner gets a 100$ Steam gift card + a surprise gift
  

Everyone is eligible to win the community award. Vote for the map you had most fun playing, the one that charmed you and stuck to you the most.

[h2]📑 Rules[/h2]
Other than the new prize categories, the rules for Build-A-Room #5 are the same as usual. Entries must have a cozy theme.

• Create a cozy escape room that's worthy of the holiday season in the Room Editor.
  
• To submit a room for the competition, post a link to your room in the #💾build-a-room-submissions channel in the Pine Studio Discord.
  
• You can only submit one room. Multiple submissions will not be counted.
  
• Multiple builders can work together on one room, but there will be only one prize for them.
  
• It has to be an escape room.
  
• The gameplay should ideally be under 30 minutes, but it can be longer.
  
• You can make your room as big as you wish.
  
• You need to record a video walkthrough and post it on YouTube or similar video sharing site.
  
• You are allowed to bug fix your room after submission, but can not resubmit an entirely different
  
• All references to existing IPs (including names, images, models and sounds) must be edited, parodied or otherwise modified to infer a likeness to the original IP without directly copying it.
  
• Use models, textures, sounds and other assets that are either Creative Commons (CC0) with attribution, that are from the ES library, or that you have paid the license for.
  
• Copies of other players' rooms are not eligible.
  
• Keep it fun/clean! No profanity, racism, hate speech, sexually suggestive content, etc.. Rooms that might be considered offensive in any way or form will be disqualified.
  
• The Pine team will choose the winners for the Rookie and Experienced Builder Categories this time! The Community prize will, naturally, be decided by community votes.
  

[h2]Dates:[/h2]

• Submissions are open until December 18th 8PM CEST / 2PM EST
• We'll play and review all the submissions before December 21, which is when we will host a stream to announce the winners. More info about the stream will follow later!
  

[h2]General guidelines for your submission[/h2]

• Less is more. Keep the map short. 15 to 30 minutes is ideal. If you aren’t sure if a puzzle is good or not, redesign it, or even better, cut it from your room. It’s better to have 3 amazing puzzles, than 10 mediocre ones.
  
• Test test and test. Join the community in discord. Share your room and test it before submission.
  
• Less is more considering size. Walking simulators aren’t preferred. This is a puzzle game after all. :)
  
• Try to gear your map towards the average audience.
  
• Don’t forget to create a good looking thumbnail and room description.
  
• Ask for help on discord. Most builders are willing to help.
  
• Don’t forget about color blindness and hearing impairment when designing your puzzles.
  
• Try to show what happens when you solve a puzzle in the immediate vicinity. If you solve a puzzle, and a door opens in the other room - that’s bad design.
  
• In the end it’s all about fun. Your room can have the most complex puzzles, or the shiniest graphics and amazing sound design, but if it’s boring it won’t work!
  
• These are only guidelines that might help to make your room better. You can choose to ignore them all and go with your own flow.
  

[h2]It's to time start building your cozy rooms! ⛄[/h2]
We hope you are excited about this final Build-A-Room contest of the year and we can’t wait to see all of your cozy creations! Don't forget to join us over on our Discord or our subreddit where you can talk to other builders and exchange tips. Our December Festivities will be shared across our Discord and social media channels, so we hope to see you there!

[h2]🎄 Pine team[/h2]

[h2]For your consideration! ✔️[/h2]



The end of the year is approaching fast, which also means the Steam Awards 2023 are just around the corner! Even though Escape Simulator has been out on Steam for more than two years now, we have been adding as much interesting content to the game as possible and we aren't planning on slowing down any time soon! Just this year alone, we released 3 room updates for free and of course, the Portal Escape Chamber DLC, which is also available free of charge. Additionally, we are still improving on the in-game room editor by offering even more tools and utilities to the community room builders!

With that in mind, we would like to bring to your consideration that Escape Simulator is still eligible for a nomination in the Labor of Love category! If you want to show us some additional love and support, please consider nominating Escape Simulator for this category. You can cast your vote by checking the box at the top of this announcement. It would truly mean a lot to all of us here at Pine Studio!

[h2]Start escaping today! 🍃[/h2]



Don't own Escape Simulator yet, but have you (and your friends) been interested to try it out? Good news, because both the base game and the DLCs are part of the Autumn Sale which just kicked off! You can currently pick up the base game with a 25% discount or you can get the Steampunk and Wild West DLCs with a 10% discount!😉

[h2]Join our dedicated community![/h2]

That's it for today's announcement! We hope you will consider Escape Simulator for the Labor of Love award and if you'd like to talk to other escapists, be sure to join our community! You can come talk to us and other community members on our official Discord server or on our subreddit. We hope to see you there!

[h3]♥ Pine team[/h3]

[h2]Even more monthly picks? 🤯[/h2]



That's right, we've prepared yet another batch of freshly picked community rooms for you to check out! In case you missed out last week's special Spooky Edition of our top community room picks, be sure to check it out right here. If you're not up for anything spooky right now, we've got plenty more room suggestions that might be just what you're looking for. So without any further ado, let's dive right into our monthly picks for October!

[h2]A mysterious talisman![/h2]



Napoleon's Lost Talisman by MajesticWind takes place at a museum featuring an exhibit on the life of Napoleon Bonaparte. We always love a good museum room, but what makes this one special is that it's based on a real-life escape room that was designed by the builder of its digital counterpart. Interestingly, we haven't seen a whole lot of escape rooms that were rebuilt in Escape Simulator so far! Now... who will be the first person to recreate an in-game community room in the real world? 👀

[h2]What a twist! 😱[/h2]



Sometimes, the title of a community room doesn't really require any further explanation from us. Case in point: A Space Room... With A Twist! by bigTbone59. The title pretty much says it all, doesn't it? It's a space room with a twist! What could that twist be? Why, you'll need to find out for yourself, of course! 😉

[h2]An insightful escape room[/h2]



We always love to see it when the room builders from our community manage to create a unique experience and that's exactly what Brush$troke achieved with No Escape. No Escape features a narrative that explores a darker theme by putting players in the shoes of someone who's diagnosed with depression. It manages to tell a very personal and immersive story, which really sets it apart from most other community rooms.

[h2]It's a cat-astrophe! 🐈[/h2]



APOCATLYPSE by ilybitch definitely isn't the first cat-themed room to ever get featured on our monthly picks and we hope it won't be the last one either! APOCATLYPSE features excellent humour and some VERY interesting puzzles. Absolutely purrrrrfect for cat lovers and enthusiasts!

[h2] Don't let this sale escape! [/h2]
Surprise! Escape Simulator is currently discounted with 25% off until November 13. Don't let this sale escape you, and get yourself a copy of the game to start your big brain adventure!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1435790/Escape_Simulator/

[h2]See you next month![/h2]

And that's it for all of October's monthly picks! We hope you'll all enjoy these rooms as much as we did. If you would like to talk to some of the amazing builders featured here, then be sure to join us on our official Discord or come talk to us on our subreddit. We hope to see you there!

[h3]♥ Pine team[/h3]