Upping the Ante - How one man blew his teen youth group's minds!

Hear from the man himself!

James Tate customized the Rebel Revolt kit and ran it for his teen youth group of twenty kids! We interviewed him to find out how he pulled it off.
Watch this video where he runs us through his game, step by step.

Q1: How did you introduce the game to engage your teens' attention?

"I regret to inform you that not everyone in this room will live to see tomorrow."

Just kidding, I didn't say that. After I had broken them up into groups of teens, I showed them a box with a combination lock. I instructed them that the team who can figure out the combination will receive the GRAND PRIZE.

"Upstairs you will find a room with your team's color on it. Once you are inside that room, your team moderator will give you Packet number 1. Each packet contains a series of puzzles and challenges. There are 3 packets and you must complete one packet in order to get the next one. Once the packets are complete, the game is not over, but you will know what to do once you have finished. DO NOT get discouraged by any noises or if you think a group has already finished before you. Just because they are ahead of you does not mean they are going in the right direction."

Q2: What was the atmosphere like?

The atmosphere was very high energy.

There is something about multiple groups competing that energizes people. It was not just a clock they were trying to beat but also their other friends.

Q3: Was it difficult to ensure that a mashup of teens were all involved?

The smaller groups really helped more people get involved.

In hindsight, I would have tried to add a challenge to each pack that everyone had to try. Even in a small group, it was easy for a few to try and "dominate" the challenges.

But everyone still had fun.

Q4: Was it difficult keeping track of multiple groups?

It was easy keeping track of the groups...

... because for the challenge packets, they were in rooms close to each other. I also had an adult moderator in each group that knew what was going on, had a cell phone that could check the group's answers with the neat website that Lock Paper Scissors provides, and of course, I was close by snapping pics as they went along.

Q5: What did your teenage crew think of the game after they finished?

They loved it!

It was neat because, even though the last group was about 10 or 15 minutes behind everyone else, they still ran in thinking they were in front and still enjoyed it even though they were far behind.

(Make sure you don't come in last too - check out our top tips and tricks for beating every escape room)

Q6: Did your youths surprise you with the way they went about solving the puzzles?

Yes! There were times they would get the answer quicker than I thought. And there were other times that they were WAY off in their approach.

On the last challenge they were supposed to be looking for the "king of the choir room" which was a box with the picture of a king on it. But when the first group came into the choir room, they found five coins taped to the lectern (which I did not place there, lol) and ran to the box thinking the combination had to do with the coins. When it wasn't enough numbers, they looked back at the clue and realized they were going in the wrong direction.

Q7: What did you like most about running the game?

From my standpoint...

... it was great because I got to enjoy watching all the groups work the puzzles.

The adult moderators were responsible for their own teen group, so I was able to oversee the whole event. Of course, I had a lot of work beforehand, but the way I ran the game was fun!

Q8: How confident were you that your group would enjoy the customisations you added to the game?

I knew they would like them because they made the game fit the setting better.

The fact that it was so customizable was the reason I bought it in the first place and I was VERY glad that I did. It had enough room to make it your own, but gave you enough stuff (images, puzzles, etc.) that it really made it nice and easy to put together.

Q9: What will you remember about this day in the years to come?

How fun it was to do something like this...

... how nice it was to be able to host it and not have to travel anywhere, and how easy it is to entertain a larger group of people because the set up gives it the small group feel.

Q10: Any advice for someone who wants to run this game for their group?

Try to add a challenge per packet that requires everyone to make an attempt.

They don't all have to get it right, but just make an attempt. That gets everyone involved and no one feels like dead weight.

Any last comments?

I was skeptical at first, but this was VERY MUCH worth every penny.

If you will take the time to customize this for your group and your setting you will be looking and wanting to do it all over again!

How to buy and play the game with your own kids

If James' story inspires you, maybe it's time to start planning your own epic escape party! He used the Rebel Revolt game kit.

Rebel Revolt scales perfectly to your group size and it can be used for almost any occasion. So, it may be about time to mix things up, make a splash, and give your group an experience they'll be talking about for years!

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