Ford Motor Company and the popular experiential game Escape the Room are teaming up to create the largest game experience yet – the first-ever driveable game that will challenge participants to use the latest technology and features of the 2017 Ford Escape to figure out clues and solve puzzles in a way that’s never been done before.
This Thursday, Ford invited us to an exclusive VIP preview experience of the first ever Ford Escape NYC drive, the largest Escape the Room event. Escape the Room is an interactive game in which groups are trapped inside a room and rely on teamwork and clues to escape under minutes.
Upon entering the 35,000 square feet Moynihan site, also home of New York Fashion Week, we were equipped with motion RFID badges to track us through the Ford driving adventure. After a hands on orientation of the new Ford Escape, including new features that would come in handy in the puzzles, we were ready to embrace the Escape the Room challenge.
Some highlights of the new 2017 model included handsfree activated hatchback technology, active park assist that helps with the tightest parallel spaces, and the customizable Applink which lets you control the vehicle from anywhere in world with an internet connection. The course, designed for groups of four, involved a series of puzzles and challenges staged in cultural hubs of New York City that required teamwork and knowledge of the new Ford Escape features in order to escape the room. Being able to physically drive the vehicle, making it a such a unique and memorable experience. In addition to the creatively constructed rooms, actors were also featured to make the maze more immersive with active storylines. At the end of the course, groups were able to see times posted on a digital board as well as take a group photo with custom made road signs.
Although the game is free to the public, the 1,000 available slots have already quickly been taken. However, Ford is accepting limited walk-ins if you weren’t lucky enough to grab one of the slots. The Ford Escape the Room experience is open from June 23-26 in New York City.