Most popular answers to the questions related to Escape Room concept and our policies

All games are private, regardless of the number of players. 

When you place a reservation, it will automatically be private, no other people will be added to your game. You’re welcome! 

According to our statistics and surveys, the difficulty level is based on the player's experience. It will fit any experience level and the number of players can be decided at your personal discretion but follow the guidelines below and consider your team’s experience level.

If your team consists of mostly novice players (played from 0 to 5 games), it would be an Advanced difficulty level escape game for you. We recommend having from 5-8 people in your team. 

If your team is experienced (played over 10 games), it would be a Moderate/normal level of difficulty. Therefore, we do not recommend coming in larger groups because you can complete the game faster than it’s designed to be. 

We feature challenging, yet fair escape games. They do have some complex, layered puzzles but they are well-clued and smooth as long as you follow the plot. Plus they’re especially satisfying to solve! Working for the win is accompanied by “aha” moments and accomplishment feelings. 

In general, it’s a newbie-friendly game and the following tips provided by escape room gurus would help you in getting into the concept smooth. It’s great for the whole family, team building activity or friend’s night out!. 

Since our goal is to let players to experience the adventure from the beginning to the end, we do our best to provide necessary help if needed - we do not have limits on clues, so ask for a hint as many times as you need (unless you target the leaderboard. Top teams must solve without help). 

And we give some additional time if the schedule allows us to do so (if we do not have another reservation right after you).

Although the Train Robbery Game can be played from 2 to 10 players, average team size is typically about 5-6 people. The general rule is to have more players for beginners and smaller groups for experienced players. Only super-experienced folks can play with just 2 people. 

Minimum number of players on Saturday is 4. The reason for that is that Saturday is the busiest day of the week and it always gets booked out. This does not allow us to provide groups with just 2 people with any additional time to complete all puzzles.

Just remember that solving puzzles takes some effort and beginners can get overwhelmed with the information and get tired. So it’s better to grab a couple friends with you! Remember, escape rooms are team-based activities and require a team effort to accomplish. Puzzles have a simultaneous flow, meaning that several clues will come at the same time, so there would be stuff to do for everyone. 

We’re handicap Accessible. The facility is located on a ground level with a handicap parking spot near the entrance. There are No steps and it’s accessible for visitors on a wheelchair or crutches. Restroom is ADA compliant. 

Attention: “Train Robbery” game has a small area in a room which is not wheelchair accessible (area behind the bar). And the “Space Guard” game has a partially grated floor with a metal grid pattern similar to a street pedestrian pathway which may be inconvenient for crutches, walkers, and knee scooters with small wheels. But there is a solid floor runner in the middle of the room. 

All of our Games last full 1 hour. 

It’s possible that you could accomplish the game before the 60 min run out. 

And sometimes teams might need extra time to finish the game. We may provide additional time to your group only if we don’t have another reservation right after you.

It is illegal to completely lock people in a room. Our Games are mission-based and do not require players to find a key from the main door to get out. I know, I know... One may ask, why is it called an "Escape Room" then?  However, we believe that the time of chaotic searching of random keys and struggling with padlocks needs to be gone. It is the time for new Games of a higher level that are scenario-based with truly immersive sets, themed environment and, most important, a logic that leads you throughout the Story-line and puzzles.  And yes, it is also done for the safety purposes of our visitors. 

We have spacious Gaming rooms that would comfortably fit the declared max amount of people in a booking system. 

Once the time is over, the Game is over, sorry. But... the good news is that If we do not have a reservation after your time-slot, we will let you play longer! That is another reason to come play on weekdays instead of weekends that are typically fully booked. 

None of our Games are scary or horror-themed. They are all family-friendly but don't think they are boring. The Games were designed to entertain all, from teenagers to elderly groups. They were made to bring you joy and excitement! Some puzzles may make you jump but rather from being surprised than spooked.  

It is also not dark in the Rooms. We understand that not everybody has the perfect vision and it might be hard to interact with game objects in a dark environment, thus we made sure to provide necessary lighting throughout the gaming experience. Nevertheless, lighting is a crucial part of immersiveness and it plays an important role when it comes to visual effects, so we do manipulate with lighting during some parts of the Game. If you have a serious concern about been in the dark, please address it to the Game Master in advance, so we can assist you at this matter. 

 

Absolutely not! The participants are not required to be dressed a certain way or bring anything with them.  You will not need to be crawling on the floor or climbing to the ceiling, unless you really want to, in order to successfully complete the Game.

Oh, but dressing up is always welcome! Did you know that we do a photo session after each Game? Yes, it is done right in the themed gaming environment with props and sets! The Game Master will assist the players by becoming a photographer. 
However, players are not allowed to take pictures on their cameras or phones, or do any  video recording of the Gaming Rooms. 

Yes! You can purchase a Gift Voucher on our website: https://dcescaperoom.com/escape-room-gift-vouchers

You can choose between 3 different forms of Vouchers:

1. Electronic Gift Voucher – Just like a Groupon gift certificate, it gets Emailed. Choose value, place a custom message and this is it! The receiver will get an immediate Email with a Voucher code which can be applied once ready to place a reservation. It can be printed or forwarded by email.
2. Printed Voucher – Comes printed on a hard paper card and placed in the gift envelope. You can pick it up in 2business days.
3. Printed Voucher and shipping - Comes printed on a hard paper card and placed in the gift envelope. You can have it delivered by First Class USPS Mail with a tracking provided. Please allow 2 business days to process your request.

Adventurous people who like activities, trying new things, enjoy bonding with like-minded crew mates, and are up for challenges. Our venue patrons are groups of friends, families and colleagues who get together to solve the mysteries of the games. The difficulty level is designed for teams of mainly adults. If you get excited by solving complex problems and admire coming up with clever solutions in the heat of the moment, you will love the concept of these games.

We sure do! Many local big and small companies chosen us for their private event needs. Select one of the Team bonding packages, reserve a Party Room. If desired, order catering and bar.

Of course, you can arrange a birthday celebration at our Escape Room center! Select one of the Birthday Party packages, reserve a Party Room, bring your own food, order catering and bar.

Escape Room games are fun interactive live-games created to entertain and provide unique experience where players find themselves as characters of some adventures movie. Here is a typical procedure you need to follow when you decide to try it out:

Step 1 

Decide on the number of players first. You can have from 2 to 10 players. Average team size is usually around 5-6 people and we recommend gathering more players, if your group doesn’t have a lot of experience.

Step 2 

Alright, let's assume you got your team in. Now you decide on a Date and Time for your reservation. We’re open 7 Days a week and run games by schedule from 10AM till 10PM. Discuss with your group members and pick a convenient day/time so everyone can attend. It’s very important to ensure that everyone can show up for the agreed time, there are No refund if someone drops out.

Step 3 

It’s time to book a game. There will be 2 games available: “Train Robbery” and “Space Guard”. If you haven’t played any, you will need to start with the “Train Robbery” first. You can sneak peek at some pictures and videos of an actual room provided on our "Book now" page.

Make a reservation online by clicking the "Book now" button. Our booking system allows you to book 3 months in advance. If you are planning ahead more than three months, please call us at (571) 598-5908 and our team will take care of that.

Price is based on the number of players (from 2 to 10 players). Click between numbers of participants to see the price per person.

If you have a special event, you could also reserve our Party Room. Learn more about Party Room packages here: https://dcescaperoom.com/private-party

By following the steps of booking, you will successfully complete the reservation. Double check the details before placing your order. A confirmation email with details should be received within 1 min. That email will have a URL link for our Liability Waiver that you need to share with all participants (or send them to our website to fill out the Waiver http://web.cyberwaiver.com/59/cyber-raccoon). 

Step 4

Plan your trip and familiarize with our website "Directions" page that has parking instructions, pictures, and other useful information. If you are in charge of a group event, it is the time to show your team building skills and share all the above information with all participants that you are planning to bring with you. First time players may find the following gaming tips very useful: https://dcescaperoom.com/blog/escape-room/escape-room-tips-and-rules  

Step 5

Come for your reservation at least 15 minutes in advance.

And last but not least 

Don't forget about our photo session after the Game, so dressing up is welcome. We take photos on professional camera and email a link to them within the next 3 business days. We send the team photos to the email you mention on your Waiver form.

Step 6

We are huge escape room enthusiasts and concept fans! Thus, our goal is not only to provide a great unique experience to every visitor but also to bring our vision into the industry with a different approach.

If you like our games and would like to support us in this effort, please leave your honest review on the below listed media. This will help us to be a trusted venue and will help with ranking on the Internet. We would love to create new cool games for you to come back to, if we see that people like them and recommend them to others.

Google: https://g.page/cyber_raccoon/review?rc

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/cyber-raccoon-escape-room-falls-church-2

TripAdvisor: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g57722-d15230604-ReviewsCyber_Raccoon_Escape_Room-Falls_Church_Virginia.html

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cyberraccoon/

The nature of the business and booking system associated with it does not allow us to provide any additional time to your gaming experience. It is very important that you come at least 15 min before the adventure so we can start the game on time. That 15 minutes will be spend for preparation, such as coat check and lockers, restrooms, filling up waiver forms (in case if you did`t do it in advance), brief introduction by the Game Master, additional payments (if needed), pre-game videos related to Story line, dress up, photo booth photographs (if desired), and so on. 

If you booked an entire Room and your team arrives late, unfortunately we will not be able to provide any extra time, thus that time will be deducted from your reservation. 

In some rare situations, the reservation could start late due to our fault. We strive to make sure it does not happen. That could only happen in situations when previous team delays the game and so Room reset time extends, or we experience technical difficulties. In such situations we do our best to provide you with most comfortable waiting time by offering complimentary beverages and our Party Room, if its not booked for a private event. 

All sales are final and No refund will be issued in a case of cancellation. 

We use third-party services for booking and payment processors and we don’t have access to the payments until weeks after. This makes it difficult to process quick refunds. Therefore, the payments are non-refundable.

We also can not offer a partial refund if someone from the group didn’t show up or arrived late. No refunds for no-show.

You have the right to reschedule your reservation at least 24 hours before the booking. You can reschedule your booking for any time in the future. If you don’t have a certain date in mind yet, you can have an open-date. Your reservation will be valid for up to a year from a date of purchase. Just give us a call to reschedule. You may only reschedule a game one time.

It is absolutely Not allowed to play under the influence of alcohol or drugs. We reserve a sole exclusive right to cancel your reservation without any refund or rescheduling options, if you come not sober. No exceptions allowed! 

In a case of a  Private Event, when groups are allowed to bring beverages, drinking is only allowed after the Game and Not before the Game. This is every strict policy that we always abide so please take it into consideration. 

When you book a game, you reserve it for a certain number of players (from 2 till 10). Maximum number of people per game at a time can Not exceed 10.

However, if you initially reserve for a smaller group and then decide to add players, you can do so for additional charge. Please pay the difference when you come and contact us in advance to warn about extra people.

FAMILY BONDING  

We offer family friendly but challenging games. All ages can participate in mixed groups of kids and adults, such as families. Adults are the main players but children also contribute with joy.  

KID’S BIRTHDAY PARTY  

Parties of just youths have a minimum 16 years old age limit. All participants must be 16 years old or older. This minimum age is set due to the difficulty level of the games.  

Since our games are suitable for young adults, no guardian is needed to be present in a game. Yet a parent or a guardian must fill out a waiver form for the minor participant in advance.  

Please understand that it's impossible to create a game that is equally fun and challenging for groups of 10 years old and 30 years old players, so we had to choose. Most puzzles are just too complex for younger children to solve.  

Read more about this policy on our blog: https://dcescaperoom.com/blog/escape-room/escape-rooms-are-not-for-kids

BRINGING BABIES  

Infants are allowed too. Please take into consideration the risks for newborns. Escape Room facility is a crowded indoor area with germs, loud music and noise. Please take all necessary precautionary measures in advance. We do have a baby changing station in one of the restrooms. However, we currently do not provide high chairs or booster seats but allow strollers in the Gaming Rooms so bring a carrier or a stroller inside. Of course, there is No need to purchase a ticket for a baby.  

IS IT SCARY?  

There is nothing scary in our rooms that is meant to frighten the players. There are no jumpscares or zombies. But we do use sound and lighting special effects that could possibly scare some younger impressionable children.