How To Create An Escape Game

assassin's creed syndicate

Source: Ubisoft

Not every enemy can be defeated, and not every enemy should — at least not immediately. As gamers we know that just because the henchman has his back to us, doesn't mean his friends won't notice a knife enter his jugular and his body slip back over a stack of boxes amid muffled screams.

So sometimes instead of killing, you need to evade enemies. Sure, you can keep to the shadows, hide around corners, and watch their patrol patterns, but every now and then you want a more elaborate solution, just to keep things from getting boring.

With that in mind, we assembled some of our favorite elaborate escapes and evasions from the gaming world. These are things that, even if they worked in real life, you might want to leave to the professionals. Why do you need to evade enemies anyway?

To be clear, these are the best evasions, commands, and techniques for getting out of a hairy situation. We didn't include broken games and cheats that, while plausible, go against the true spirit of the game. And while teleporting is cool, it's fairly cheap. So we left that one out too.

1. Perfect splits

The flexibility and stamina of Splinter Cell hero Sam Fisher is legendary. Those legs have gone a decade without getting tired, suspending out here well out of sight in conveniently narrow spaces. You may not appreciate it as much as you should, especially when you consider you can place old Sam between two rafter and leave him holding that pose while you make a bathroom run, come back, and he'll still be there 10 feet above oblivious enemies.

Then you can just drop him down into some elaborate spine- and soul-crushing takedown that will leave his body as crumpled and useless as any normal human who tried to do his acrobatics in real life.

2. The box

Snake's legendary box: the product of numerous Internet gags, and an integral but simultaneously irrelevant part of any Metal Gear Solid game.

The idea of our well-trained hero crawling around under a box like a confused cat during moving day is more than just a little funny, especially when you take into consideration how easily baffled enemies are. Maybe as gamers we've seen it enough to know: If you're holding a building hostage and a cardboard box looks out of place, fill it full of holes and ask questions later.

3. Bat smoke

Smoke grenades are a part of many covert games, but culturally Batman was really the first to do smoke clouds perfectly. It's no surprise then that smoke is such a well-executed touch in all the Arkham games. While you won't be completely disguised or protected in a cloud of smoke, it causes realistic chaos as enemies blind fire and swing wildly, sometimes hitting each other in the confusion.

It's enough to make a quick exit if you feel overwhelmed, or to even out the odds until you whittle down the enemy's numbers. And remember, if a henchman looks like he's feeling left out, you can always grapple him into the party and watch him flail — until the smoke disperses, that is.

4. Making it rain (coins)

Assassin's Creed as a franchise has left tons of marks on the gaming world, some good, some bad. But for all the functions it pioneers — interactive environments, reactive combat — the one no one has appreciated fully is the coin bomb.

Whether you're using a handful of coins to cause a crowd to move erratically for fun, or filling a narrow alley with people to disguise your escape, or just being generous with the locals, it's really no different: Make it rain, and they'll come running.

5. Jedi mind trick

Ever since Obi-Wan first waved his hand to those stormtroopers, we've wanted to use the force to influence minds of those around us. While most of the games in the Star Wars universe use mind tricks to temporarily make a stormtrooper fight his compatriots on your behalf, there are exceptions where it's truly used to diffuse situations and help you benefit without combat.

Knights of the Old Republic used it on plenty of occasions, including the humorous exchange above. We're not saying we don't appreciate a good blaster at our side, but sometimes gunning and cutting your way through objectives doesn't feel as satisfying as walking straight out of trouble without lifting a finger.