Escape rooms will soon be a part of Universal Orlando Resort’s CityWalk.
Universal confirmed long-running rumors Monday by officially revealing Universal’s Great Movie Escape. Calling the experience “escape adventures,” the first rooms debuting this fall based around “Back to the Future” and “Jurassic World.”
Universal said in a press release: “Concepted and designed by the same creative masterminds responsible for the wildly immersive haunts of Halloween Horror Nights, Universal’s Great Movie Escape will bring two distinct and extraordinary escape adventures to the heart of Universal CityWalk. Through interactive state-of-the-art missions, captivating storytelling and intricately detailed sets, guests will be swept into the dinosaur adventures of ‘Jurassic World’ or the time-traveling chaos of ‘Back to the Future’ as they solve their way through a multi-sensory experience like no other.”
Theme Park Tribune has separately confirmed with sources that the new experience will be built in the space once occupied by The Groove nightclub at CityWalk. The club was already seeing declines in attendance before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down CityWalk’s nightlife. The Groove never reopened after March 2020 and construction walls went up around the space last November.
Universal previously flirted with escape room-style experiences with The Repository, an upcharge attraction at Halloween Horror Nights in 2016 that also included a virtual reality component. Surveys distributed to Universal guests in 2017 asked for opinion on themed escape rooms.
Great Movie Escape gives Universal an opportunity to add attractions to its shopping and dining district, matching what Disney has done with the larger Disney Springs with the now-defunct Void VR experiences. Great Movie Escape could be periodically updated, with faster builds and lower costs compared to permanent theme park rides offering the chance to feature new intellectual properties.