Is 'The Blank Graduation Ceremony and the Final Lie' the pinnacle of Real Escape Games?

I love the 'Real Escape Games' by SCRAP.
Among them, the ones created by Saori Kida always move me to my core.

'Escape from the Forgotten Laboratory',
'Escape from the Sinking Luxury Liner',
and this latest work in the #YouthEscape series.

'You Disappeared with Tomorrow.'
'Goodbye, Our Magic Hour'
'Searching for You in the Forgotten Snow'

All of them are stories woven with the film club of Fujiyama High School.
Summer, autumn, winter, and finally, spring.

First of all,
it is wonderful that spring is the end.

The following contains spoilers for the work.
If you haven't played it yet, escape here.

Why are the works she creates
so emotional and
heart-stirring?

It is surely because
she makes youthe 'protagonist you admire'.

You must save yourself.
That goes without saying.

On top of that, you must save 'someone'.

Such narrative experiences are packed into her works.

The novels and manga I have read.
The protagonists I have admired
were not people who only wanted to save themselves,

but were always 'heroes' who saved someone.

#GraduationCeremonyEscape

Finding a way for yourself to survive
should not be that difficult.

In fact, this time there was a very careful guide path,
and I think it was designed so that even puzzle-solving beginners could reach a 'successful escape'.

...However.

That was by no means 'my own power alone,' but because she was there, calling out to me again and again.

The life she saved,
now I must save her.

It's not something as grand as saving the world.
That's precisely why it's more concrete and realistic.

The last 10 minutes.
The experience of 'becoming the protagonist' begins—

I love it.

Like the 'habit of touching one's hair when lying'.

I didn't miss that line!
I had to keep a close eye on it!

Thinking that,
it wasn't a solution,
but the foundation of the story,
I love it.

The fact that the final 'key'
was pinned to my chest the whole time,
I love it.

And then, the end credits arrive.

This gave me,
goosebumps that deserve a standing ovation.
It truly made my whole being stand up!

Have there ever been end credits
like this before?

The staff credits roll with the singing voices of all the participants.

It's revolutionary,
and even if someone thought of it, it should be difficult to realize.

Especially the hurdle of making Japanese people 'sing'.

The mechanism to make that work was also brilliant.



First, it had to be a song that anyone could sing.

At the beginning, you get to sing a little bit,
and just when you're getting into it, it cuts off.

And then at the end, you really
get to sing.


This feeling of 'getting to' do it.
That is where the cleverness of the emotional design lies.

The people in the seats behind me
were buzzing the whole time,
saying things like 'What! We can't sing?' or
'Can we sing this time!?'

Come to think of it, even that feeling
is somewhat nostalgic.

There were even people heckling
while Tsuzuki-chan was talking.

'Listen quietly for now,' I thought,
but somehow,
even that was a feeling I had experienced
in that gymnasium back in my school days.

Wrapped in the atmosphere of that venue.
For a little over an hour, unknown experiences and nostalgic memories
were mixed together in a jumble.

I only came to solve puzzles.
What is this feeling?

* * *

Unlike traditional hall-style games,
there are no tables or team assignments.

It is designed to be enjoyed by friends,
as well as by individuals.

This, too, is very beautiful.

It also serves as a solution
to the (commercial) challenge of puzzle-solving performances being [non-repeatable].

And then, the graduation certificate handed to you at the end.

Written on the back was the actual
action plan for a fire.

I trembled.

SCRAP has turned 'puzzle-solving' into a game,
given it a story, and elevated it into an experience.

And now, with this work, they have gone beyond the experience—
they have even come to increase the survival rate of people living in the real world.

Mobile battery ignition.
The phenomenon of flameless fires.
The meaning of continuing to call out.

The fear felt in this work
can calmly arrive in everyday life as well.

That is why,
you must truly 'escape' when the time comes.

This was not just a graduation ceremony,
but truly arehearsalfor reality.

With real-time interaction with characters, much like Turtle Talk,
this work is full of charm in various aspects of its production.

Even now, after having had so many experiences,
it feels this new.

If this were
the first participatory entertainment experience of my life,
how shocking would it be?

Next time, I want to bring someone who has never been before.

I believe this is
one of the pinnacles
of 'Real Escape Games'.