Finland’s – or perhaps the whole world’s – first live art escape room game HOLE will be piloted in Jyväskylä. In traditional escape room games, the aim is to follow cues and to leave the room by a certain time limit. HOLE wants you to escape deep not only to its world, but also to the depths of your inner world.
HOLE is a space that breaths from the interaction of light, sound and objects. Instead of instructions and gameplay that happens through spoken and written language typical of escape room games, HOLE activates its players with non-verbal cues, tasks and moods.
In addition to the gameplay experience, HOLE has a built-in experiential and multi-sensory dimension, where the roles of player and spectator can intermingle. HOLE aims at linguistic and geographical accessibility, allowing the game format to act as a gateway to art experiences for audiences who might not otherwise look for them.
– It’s great to be able to combine 20 years of experience in making multidisciplinary performance art into my personal and the team’s game fixations,” says the project’s game designer and artistic director Seija Hakkarainen.
– HOLE is the culmination of a long period of planning and dreaming. What particularly attracts me about the project is bringing together the mechanical and artistic aspects of making. The mobility of the game allows for the game to be experienced in new contexts,” continues Sasu Paakkunainen, game designer and producer of the team.
In technical terms, HOLE is a room within a room, which is mobile by van. The game can be implemented in almost any indoor space with electricity, of about 45m2. HOLE is designed for two players at a time and the duration of one game is about 25-45 minutes, depending on the players.
The pilot period will take place at the Piippuranta club in Jyväskylä, Finland, 29.11.-4.12.2022. It is realized in collaboration with the City of Jyväskylä’s Inclusion Services. After the pilot HOLE will be finalised and opened in Helsinki in spring 2023. In 2023-2024, HOLE will continue to tour various parts of Central Finland.