Hey Escapists!We hope you enjoyed our first longform devlog on YouTube; expect another one soon! 👀One of our favourite staples of Escape Academy 1 was the multiplayer interactions that led to silly moments, or gave way to fun conversations with players. Bringing people together is fun! I mean, it’s even in our motto. So far, we’ve had a few questions on the topic of multiplayer interactions:
Will there be online multiplayer?
Splitscreen couch co-op? 🥺
Toggleable splitscreen?
To put the answers shortly:
There’s also a couple of things we’re adding to change up the way duos will explore the Academy - both to help with interacting in an open world, and to make the multiplayer experience that much more interesting. Let’s take a look 🧐
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a….ping?
When it comes to an escape room, things are a lot more localized. You can say “Hey, come check this out!” and walk a few feet over to your partner. Maybe your duo will point out something “over there, by that desk.” But when you’re exploring a giant sprawling campus, “over there” becomes a bit….confusing. Pings have quickly become a staple in many multiplayer experiences, and we think that bringing them into the world of Escape Academy will help make solving puzzles together less frustrating, while also leading to some silly interactions.
That’s a fair argument. If you’ve been keeping up with our devlogs and short-form content, it’s a very real concern. Escape Academy is the leading academy in the art of Escape, after all! While many multiplayer games might opt to leash you within a certain range of the first player, we don’t want players to be limited to any single area - that can take away from the open world experience. So instead, cutting-edge Academy technology will allow you to see where your partner is on campus at any given point!
Still struggling to find eachother? That’s okay. The gazebo in the middle of campus is an excellent place to relax and meet up before planning your next escape.
Every good Escapist needs a way to express themselves. We’re bringing emotes to Escape Academy as a way to help players communicate, for the better or for the worse. Solved that difficult puzzle? That deserves a thumbs up! Struggling with a spinner lock? Seems like the perfect opportunity for a sarcastic clap.
One of the complaints from playtesters we’ve gotten is that splitscreen modes in online gameplay can be a little disorienting. So, just like in Escape Academy 1, you’ll have the option to switch between the splitscreen and widescreen views if motion sickness is something that affects you.
Partner taking a little too long to unpause in couch co-op? Time to take things into your own hands.
Lastly, to keep things from being a little too janky (or asking for a little too much out of your computer), players will have to enter escape rooms together. Always remember that two minds are better than one! Usually.
We’re hoping multiplayer features will give just the right amount of sass to multiplayer interactions, and help to immerse you in the world of Escape Academy a little bit. If you have anything on your wishlist for Escape Academy 2 features, just let us know in the comments!
That’s all from us - for now. Stay tuned for another longform devlog coming soon, and don’t forget to…
With Love,
Coin Crew Games💛💜