Escape Simulator 2 news & patch notes

We’re excited to announce the first DLC for Escape Simulator 2. Apocalypse DLC is coming later this year, but you can wishlist it today!

This DLC takes you into a near-future world devastated by an unknown catastrophe. Civilization is gone, but the clues are still there. Your goal is to follow the trail, solve your way through what’s left behind, and search for Sanctuary.

The DLC will include:

• 4 new escape rooms

• 4 new Darkest puzzles

• New character outfits

• A bunch of new Room Editor props for builders

More details soon. -Pine team

Hey everyone,

We’ve just pushed a new update for Escape Simulator 2, featuring a brand-new, completely free official level: The Illusion Room.

Set inside a mysterious museum, this one is packed with visual tricks, strange exhibits, and perspective-based puzzles. Expect it to take around 60 minutes if you're playing solo, or about 45 minutes in co-op.

For those looking for an extra challenge, we've also included the Illusion Darkest Room.

For the Builders

We’ve added a bunch of new Room Editor props straight from the Illusion Room, so you can start messing with perspective and illusions in your own custom rooms right away.

Patch Notes & Improvements

Along with the new room, this update includes:

• 2 new outfits (plus 2 new "Darkest" outfits)

• Fixed ending poses in certain rooms

• General performance optimizations

• Various translation fixes

• Smaller bug fixes and improvements

What’s Next?

We’ve been doing a lot of behind-the-scenes cleanup to prep for the upcoming VR Update. We'll have more details to share on that soon.

We also have plenty more rooms in the works. Our first major DLC for Escape Simulator 2 is scheduled for later this year, bringing over 4 hours of new gameplay. Plus, we're working on another free room that will drop before the end of the year.

Escape Simulator 2 is on Sale

Just a quick heads-up that the game is currently on sale. If you’ve been holding off on getting it, or want to grab a copy for a co-op partner, now is a great time to jump in.

Escape Simulator 1 on Xbox

One last thing: Escape Simulator 1 is officially out on Xbox, and it’s included with Xbox Game Pass! If you play on console or have friends who do, you can check it out here: Escape Simulator on Xbox

Thanks as always for playing, and have fun getting confused in the Illusion Room!

–Pine team

Our first round of Escape Simulator 2 Community Picks is here!

Since the release of Escape Simulator 2, we’ve been watching the Workshop fill up with clever puzzles, ambitious stories, eerie mysteries, and some seriously impressive uses of the new Room Editor.

It’s been exciting to see familiar builders return with bigger ideas and more polished presentation, while newer creators are already surprising us with fresh mechanics, cinematic moments, and creative puzzle design.

For this first selection, we wanted to highlight a mix of standout rooms: detective stories, creepy cabins, strange laboratories, word-based puzzle gauntlets, underground sewer systems, and more. Some are short and focused, some are longer and more challenging, but all of them show just how much potential the Escape Simulator 2 creator community already has.

So grab a friend, or go in solo, and check out our first batch of Escape Simulator 2 Community Picks!

Jack the Ripper - Part 4: From Hell

By Dutchy | Difficulty: Medium | 1-4 Players | <30 min

The fourth entry in Dutchy’s Jack the Ripper series takes you back to the eerie alleyways of Whitechapel, where you investigate a string of grisly murders while trying to track down the elusive killer.

You play as a detective drawn deeper into a disturbing case, where every clue seems to raise more questions than answers. We really enjoyed the investigation-focused puzzle design, tense atmosphere, strong voice acting, and cinematic final encounter.

The story has plenty of twists, so we’ll avoid spoiling anything here. You can enjoy this room on its own, but if you want the full experience, you can also check out the rest of Dutchy’s series here:

https://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198050741554/myworkshopfiles/?appid=2879840

Puzzles Galore 4: Use Your Words!

By Wollo | Difficulty: Medium | 1-8 Players | 30-60 min

Great Wollo returns with another brain-teasing entry in the Puzzles Galore series. This time, the focus is entirely on language-based puzzles, with each room built around its own clever wordplay twist.

These puzzles can be real head-scratchers at first, but they are very satisfying once everything clicks. A good understanding of English is strongly recommended for this one.

If you enjoy more challenging puzzle rooms, especially ones with optional extra-difficult tasks, this is an easy recommendation.

You can explore more of Wollo’s Escape Simulator 1 rooms here:

https://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198008028672/myworkshopfiles/?appid=1435790

Mad Scientists Laboratory

By Gamergoat & emmapowerbug | Difficulty: Medium | 1-3 Players | <30 min

You wake up dazed inside a strange laboratory with no memory of how you got there. To escape, you’ll need to work through a series of unsettling experiments and, somehow, bring a cadaver back to life.

What stood out to us most was the inventive use of light and shadow, smart asset reuse, and several cinematic set-piece moments that give the room a strong sense of pacing.

It is creepy, creative, and the finale is absolutely worth reaching.

CASE ZERO: The Wife

By Minderfreak | Difficulty: Medium | 1 Player | <30 min

You play as a detective responding to a report of a burglary. But once you enter the house, it quickly becomes clear that something much stranger is going on.

As you investigate, you’ll search for evidence, hack into computers and phones, collect forensic samples, and piece together the truth behind the case.

This room stands out thanks to its high production values, custom voice acting, cinematic cutscenes, and straightforward but satisfying puzzle flow. We especially liked the epilogue, which adds a new layer to the events you’ve just uncovered.

Kidnapped - Part 4

By Green Hand | Difficulty: Hard | 1-4 Players | >1 hour | Features jumpscares

Break into a creepy cabin in the woods and uncover what is really hiding beneath the surface. What starts as a familiar investigation quickly grows into a much larger and stranger experience.

This is a longer and more difficult room, so come prepared. The deeper you go, the more the map opens up, with clever contraptions, cryptic symbols, custom voice acting, cutscenes, and interactive details like holding a flashlight.

Kidnapped - Part 4 feels like a big step up in production quality for the series. Green Hand makes excellent use of Escape Simulator 2’s lighting, props, and atmosphere to create one of the most memorable horror-leaning community rooms so far.

You don’t need to have played the previous entries to enjoy this one, thanks to a quick story recap at the beginning.

You can explore the rest of Green Hand’s Kidnapped series here:

https://steamcommunity.com/id/TheGreenHand/myworkshopfiles/?appid=1435790

The Murder of Jayton Square

By ♥Maya♥ | Difficulty: Medium | 1-4 Players | 30-60 min | Features jumpscares

A murder has taken place in broad daylight in Jayton Square, but nobody is willing to name the perpetrators. It’s up to you to search the town, study the clues, and uncover the truth.

Instead of being limited to one room, this map lets you explore an entire town square with multiple homes and suspects. You’ll cross-reference evidence, investigate residents, and work out who committed the crime, how they did it, and why.

The larger scope could easily become overwhelming, but Maya keeps everything focused and well-paced. The result feels like a town-wide detective puzzle with a clear structure and strong sense of progression.

We were also surprised to learn this was Maya’s first Escape Simulator 2 room. It’s an impressive debut.

The Sewer System

By Lycargus | Difficulty: Medium | 1-8 Players | >1 hour

Explore a decaying underground sewer network filled with locked doors, tight vents, hidden mechanisms, and plenty of secrets to uncover on your way back to the surface.

The room features a wide mix of puzzle types, including memorable puzzle chests, hidden UV ink, and a physics-based crate puzzle. It also has a longer runtime, so expect this one to take around 90 minutes or more.

If you’re looking for a bigger, more immersive community room with a lot of variety, this is a strong pick.

Note: This map includes some color-based and audio-based puzzles, so it may not be accessible to all players.

Coming May 28th: Illusion Room

By Pine team | 1-8 Players | 60/45 min

Before we wrap up, we also wanted to share what’s coming next for Escape Simulator 2.

Next week, on May 28th, we’re releasing a new free official room together with a new update: Illusion Room.

Set inside a mysterious museum full of illusions, strange exhibits, and perspective-bending puzzles, Illusion Room is a bigger official escape room designed to take around 60 minutes solo, or around 45 minutes with more players.

We can’t wait for you to get your hands on it!

That’s it for our first round of Escape Simulator 2 Community Picks!

We’re already impressed by the creativity, effort, and clever ideas coming from the builder community. If you enjoy any of these rooms, consider leaving a thumbs up or sharing feedback in the comments. It really helps creators and makes it easier for more players to discover their work.

There are already plenty of great rooms out there, and we definitely couldn’t include everything in one post. If you have recommendations, or if you’ve made something yourself, feel free to share it with us on Discord.

Happy puzzling, -Pine team

Hey Escapers,

We know it’s been a bit quiet from us over the past few months. We’ve been busy behind the scenes working on multiple things at once: polishing Escape Simulator 2, preparing upcoming content, and building out new features, and also working on new content for ES1!

Here’s what we’re working on next:

• A new free room is coming next month, set in the Illusion Museum

• Another free room is already in production and planned for later this year

• We’re deep into development of the first DLC, coming later this year

• A free VR update is currently in the works

Today’s update focuses on improving the overall experience, with a wide range of fixes, improvements, and new tools for builders.

Thanks for sticking with us and for all your feedback!

Full Changelog:

Core

• Engine update

• Added Autorun option

• Added 2× cursor size option (for Ashyda's parents)

• Split “Hide Item Hints” and “Mute Item Hints” into separate options

• Added option to mute footsteps

• Fixed visual glitch when cutscene triggers while zoomed in

• Added skip button on end screen if picture already exists

• Fixed rendering issues on some M1 Macs

• Lobby chat now notifies when a player uses a hint or opens the walkthrough

• Removed “The Builder - Try the room editor” achievement (too many players though they need to upload the room to get it)

Lobby

• Added trophy for completing the Tutorial

Levels:

Starship EOS

• Hibernation Pods

  • Fixed RFID sliders disappearing when overlapping

  • Hologram names now update correctly after loading a save

• Bridge

  • Adjusted colliders around solar panel puzzle

  • Fixed gun laser alignment in multiplayer

• Cargo Hold

  • Fixed elevator speed scaling with framerate

  • Fixed interacting with symbols while checking solutions

• Into the Unknown

  • Improved pickup for alien world token

  • Fixed star key sequence issue

  • Symbolic link visuals now update correctly after loading a save

  • The "difficult" token should be easier to collect now

Pirate Ship

• Tavern

  • Removed redundant hints

  • Fixed drink interactions

• Island

  • Improved pickup for items on symbols chest

  • Fixed magnet puzzle rotation

• Hideout

  • Fixed rope puzzle desync issues

  • Fixed pillar trigger bugs

Dracula’s Castle

• Courtyard

  • Fixed picking up key before solving puzzle

• Feast

  • Improved token visibility

  • Knight armor puzzle can now be solved before assembling the metal dish

• Crypt

  • Fixed coffin drop audio

Other

• Removed empty rooms uploaded by players

• Various minor fixes and improvements

Room Editor – New Content

• New logic component: Animation Field Animate numeric fields on objects or material properties.

• Multiple optimizations

• New Room Config options:

  • Trophy Time

  • Toggle Player Nameplates

  • Toggle Item Nameplates

  • Enable / Disable Proximity Chat

  • Enable / Disable Reflection Probe

Room Editor – Improvements & Fixes

• Improved material animation system

• Corrected target field naming

• General UX improvements

• Improved Props tab usability

• Better object highlighting in target lists

• Added constrained scaling option

• Added “Add Delay” option for behaviour targets

• Expanded Lookable activation/deactivation options

• Switch between perspective and orthographic camera via axis gizmo

• Added UI for position/rotation editing in Animation mode

• Rename materials via right-click

• Added “Can Swap” option for slots

• Warning shown when Token ID is already in use

• Fixed Volumes not saving correctly

• Improved Lock input fields UX

• Upload now excludes all folders except _CustomModels

- Pine team

Hello, Escapers!

We have some big news to share today! Not only do we have an update on the development of Escape Simulator 2, but we’re also growing our family.

🤝 The Pine Studio Family is Growing!

We are incredibly excited to announce that Somnium Games has officially joined Pine Studio!

If that name sounds familiar, it’s because we’ve been "unofficial" partners for years. They were the creative minds behind the fan-favorite ES1: Magic DLC and collaborated with us on the Faraway series. By bringing their talented team into Pine Studio, we now have 28 people working under one roof.

What does this mean for Escape Simulator 2? It means more content, faster development, and more polish. With this expanded team, we can provide much better support for both games simultaneously. To celebrate this union, we just released a brand-new free room for Escape Simulator 1, inspired by the unique “paper and ink” world of Somnium’s Inked: A Tale of Love.

🗺️ What’s Cooking in ES2?

We know you’re hungry for more details about the future ES2 updates, so we wanted to share a look at what the team is currently working on:

• Two New Free Rooms: We have two free rooms in active development. The first, set in a museum of illusions, is planned for release on May 28.

• Our First DLC: Work has already begun on the first official DLC for ES2, featuring four brand-new rooms with a unique theme. We are even ready to release a community favorite: the classic "blurred screenshots" teaser!

• VR Update Progress: We know many of you are waiting for the VR experience. We are making excellent progress! If everything goes smoothly, we are aiming to have the VR update out by the end of this year.

• Summer Building Competition: For our creative community, get your thinking caps on. We are preparing our next big competition for builders this summer!

• Double the Love for ES1: We aren't leaving the original behind! We are also working on a brand-new DLC and a free room specifically for the first Escape Simulator.

🔧 Why We’re Skipping the Roadmap

You might notice we aren't sharing a calendar with fixed dates. We’ve learned that rigid roadmaps can lead to unnecessary pressure on our team. Instead, we’re focusing on quality of life and quality of content. We’ll share the exact dates and trailers as soon as each piece of content is polished and ready for you to play.

We’re so glad to have you on this journey with us. The addition of Somnium Games is a huge milestone for us, and we can't wait to show you what 28 passionate puzzle-lovers can build together!

- Pine Team

We’ve just pushed a small hotfix for the Holiday Update🎄

This update focuses on polishing the Christmas rooms, fixing a few gameplay blockers, and improving some details in the lobby and Room Editor. Thanks for all the reports, they really help us smooth things out.

The full changelog is here:

Room Editor

• Added additional Christmas props

Core

• Fixed an issue where exiting to menu could not be declined in Darkest rooms

Lobby

• Token Jigsaw puzzles no longer start scrambled

• Fixed Christmas object reflections in mirrors

Christmas Room

• Cookie delivery now triggers after the first dialogue line

• Fixed turkey slot issue

• Added missing item names

• Fixed various colliders and navmesh issues

• Fixed books spawning open in their slots

Christmas Darkest Room

• Fixed an issue where dropped items would respawn

• Fixed books spawning open in their slots

The Feast

• Fixed an issue where no player would enter the dome

Tiny Turkey Update There was a bug where, in some cases, players couldn’t take the turkey out of the fridge. This has been fixed in the next update (v18159). Sorry about that!

-Pine team

Hey everyone,

The holidays are here, and we’ve got a little gift for you! 🎁

We just released a brand new cozy holiday escape room, playable solo or with friends. It’s inspired by classic Christmas movies and full of warm lighting, festive details, and that relaxed winter vibe. A short, comfy escape made to be enjoyed together.

This room is our virtual holiday card to all 300,000 of you already escaping in ES2. Thank you! 💌

🎄What’s in the Holiday Update:

• A new holiday themed room

• A new Darkest puzzle

• New festive outfits

• A new festive soundtrack

• 100+ new holiday props for the Room Editor, perfect for building your own cozy winter escapes

🛠️ Room Editor updates

We also shipped a bunch of fixes and improvements to the Room Editor, focusing on stability and quality of life. The full changelog is available at the end of this post.

And if you’re looking for great community rooms, don’t forget that there’s now a Build-a-Room Winners category in game, where you can quickly jump into all the winning rooms from our last competition.

🎁 Holiday Sale

One more thing before you go. Escape Simulator is on sale! You can grab Escape Simulator 1 with 40% off and Escape Simulator 2 with 20% off, (or both games in a bundle deal!) which makes it a great last minute gift for friends or family you want to escape with.

Happy holidays, and enjoy escaping together!

- Pine team

Full Changelog v17103:

Room Editor:

• Added new Christmas themed props

• Added a Line connection type option with tweakable settings

• Fixed Line connection scaling

• Improved Lua safety by checking 0 index usage when defining array variables

• Removed the unnecessary “None” option when selecting light cookies or sprite sheet textures for Displays

• Fixed and cleaned up some prop names

• Fixed transparent material rendering on Displays

Core:

• Fixed an issue where some custom rooms would fail to load

• Disabled level saving and drop-in multiplayer on rooms that use Lua scripts to prevent issues

• Fixed model count jumping when loading custom rooms with custom models

Lobby:

• Fixed custom level collection ordering

• Improved error messages when failing to join a Steam lobby

Build-a-Room Competition

We just wrapped up our first ES2 Build-a-room competition, and the results are incredible. We received 112 submissions, far more than we expected, and the creativity on display was amazing. This was our very first competition, and we already plan to run the second one soon.

After many hours of testing and discussion, here are the results:

🥇 First place – Going Home by kukelia & Frama

Kukeli and Frama did it again! This room takes home 5000 USD, our biggest competition prize so far!

Stranded after a catastrophic malfunction, your spacecraft crashes into the remnants of an ancient alien civilization. A cinematic story mixed with unique language-based puzzles creates a powerful and memorable experience.

🥈 Second place – Meltdown by Duc

Explore an abandoned nuclear facility and prevent a full reactor meltdown. Strong atmosphere, creative tasks, and striking brutalist architecture define this room from start to finish.

🏅 Finalists (in no particular order)

Love&Escape by namo_krub

You become the star of a chaotic 1950s TV show. Playful, surprising, and full of varied puzzles that keep the pacing quick and fun.

Still life by Dr Krank

A surreal journey through paintings that spring to life as you follow your grandmother’s trail. Artistic environments and unusual puzzle ideas make this one special.

Call of the Deep by Benny Lane (environment) & Jack Bell (scripting)

Descend into a sunken temple and manipulate ancient energy streams with intricate, evolving puzzles. Perfect for players who enjoy deep logic challenges.

The Hidden Handrawn Hideaway by Objitude

Explore a mysterious manor filled with hidden layers and dimension shifts, built entirely with custom hand-painted assets.

Pirates End by Mr_ Tesseract_(:

A treasure hunt on a forgotten pirate island, created entirely with the standard ES2 props. Balanced pacing and classic puzzle design make this a joy to play.

Shadowed by CharredButter

A clever set of light-based puzzles that make great use of ES2’s lighting engine.

Token Demon by Ariel

A humorous, cinematic twist on token hunting, built around one of Escape Simulator’s most iconic mechanics.

Hunter by Cico

Lost in the woods and trapped in a decaying cabin, you uncover a dark story through tense atmosphere and dynamic events.

Synchrony (Co-Op) by Ravn A sci-fi co-op adventure where two players must work in sync to escape a time loop. Fresh synchronized puzzle ideas and clever timing challenges define this room.

✨ Honorable mentions

There were so many great rooms that couldn’t fit into our top list, and each one brought something special to the competition. The creativity across all submissions was impressive, and we want to highlight a few that stood out in their own way: Keeper of the Lost Light, Ascending Valhalla, Captured by the Lock Witch, Witch House, Overslept – A Wizarding Escape, Abduckted (probably the best intro scene), and 12 Candles.

All winning rooms are now available in the game, and you’ll find them in a new Build-a-room Winners tab for easy access.

🎄 Festive surprise

We also have a gift for everyone! On December 16, we’re releasing a brand new holiday-themed escape room inspired by classic Christmas movies. Cosy, warm, and full of seasonal details. Here’s a small sneak peek ;)

🎁 Winter sale

Escape Simulator 2 is now on its first discount. You can get it 20 percent off, a nice Christmas gift for anyone who enjoys puzzles.

🛠️ Room Editor update

The room editor is still in beta and we’re improving it every week. Over the past few weeks we fixed more than 100 issues, added new features, and polished many interactions.

Today we’re releasing another update. You can check the full changelog down below.

Community rooms can get very complex. Some use LUA scripts, custom props, or large logic networks, which can sometimes affect saves or drop-in multiplayer. We’re improving these systems with every patch and plan to keep the updates coming at a steady pace. Thanks for your patience and understanding!

Update v17849 changelog:

• Improved light performance with a new Light Fade Distance option

• Added incremental shadow calculation for smoother lighting

• New shadow render modes: Optimized and Every Frame

• Better support for explicit transparency in materials

• Improved saving and drop-in stability for custom rooms

• Restored OnReturn event for Flip Animation and Flip Button

• Added dashed connection lines to make object links easier to read

• Added loading progress feedback when opening rooms in the editor

Happy escaping! - Pine team

Dear escapers, thanks for all the feedback over the past weeks. We’ve been focused on improving the Room Editor, and this update brings a long list of fixes and updates for it, with more coming in the next patch. A quick reminder that the editor is still in beta, so you might run into some issues with saves or drop-in multiplayer.

While you explore the changes, the first Build-a-Room competition is reaching the finish line. We’ll announce the winners on December 10th during a live stream, along with more Escape Simulator 2 news so stay tuned. ;)

Core

• More stable co-op connections when the host has high ping

• Shader compilation is now more reliable on low-spec PCs

• Improved performance on low-spec Intel CPUs

• Added “Open Game Log” in Advanced Options for easier log sharing (Tnx XenoJiiva for the idea!)

Lobby

• Improved level picker stability for community rooms

• More reliable drop-in for community rooms

• Fixed an issue with gamepad input in the level picker menu

Room Editor

• Improved several prop colliders and made them more rigid

• Fixed light cookies not working in published rooms

• Code editor input is now disabled when the editor is hidden

• Fixed Undo not working after unparenting props

• Fixed transform gizmo not appearing due to GPU optimizations

• Fog settings now reset when loading a new room

• Fixed connection lines disappearing in some cases

• Legacy lookables now work correctly in published rooms

• Local Only props and behaviours now function as intended

• A lock is now checked only once when hit multiple times by the same source

• Footsteps using built-in sounds now follow the camera

• Fixed circular lock connections triggering multiple times without “Always Call On Unlock” enabled

• You can now select a single parent in the Properties panel

• Waypoint changes now apply using the correct object scale

• Animation and button duration can now be edited without a waypoint

• Fixed Slidable initial position scrubber in published rooms

• Added “Open Workshop” in Steam overlay and extra rating buttons

• Delay can now target locks

• .PNG and .png are now both supported in the asset browser

• Tick animations/buttons now respect the “Hidden on Return” setting

• Reject keys can now be set as the initial key

• New option: gizmo movement with snapping now aligns to the room grid

• Polygon tool adjusts correctly based on camera distance

• Dragging polygon vertices now accounts for initial cursor offset

• Fixed empty textures appearing in asset browser tabs

• Improved transparency options in the material editor

• Better display behavior for held items

• Custom Model Animations now handle animation states more reliably

• Restarting a custom level now properly shows room name and preview image

• Added a 'Respawn timing' option and a 'Respawn all items' checkmark for Item Respawner

• Drop-in players now receive correct post-processing and visual effects

Critical Issues

• Corrected fire extinguisher name typo

-Pine team

We’ve just pushed out a new hotfix with a bunch of improvements across the game and the Room Editor. Stability is better, custom rooms run smoother, and we cleaned up several level issues along the way. Thanks to everyone sending us reports and videos, it really helps us track things down.

Build-a-Room Competition

The Build-a-room competition has officially wrapped up and you absolutely crushed it. We received 112 submissions! Thank you Builders for creating so many clever, beautiful and huge rooms. Some of you went all-in with gigantic and complex designs that pushed the Room Editor to its limits. Because of that you actually helped us uncover issues we wouldn’t have seen otherwise.

Over the next few weeks we’ll focus on improving the Room Editor and community rooms. This hotfix is a part of that effort. Just a small reminder that the editor is still in beta so thank you for your patience! 🙏 We already started reviewing all rooms but with so many entries we’ll need a bit more time. Our plan is to announce the winners on December 10th. More details soon.

Gameplay

• Fixed an issue where the in-game timer kept running while paused.

• Fixed inverted mouse not applying while in pose view.

• Fixed reject slot animations not finishing at the correct rotation.

• Fixed large save files from big custom levels causing Steam connection crashes.

• Fixed carriable items disappearing if a player left the session while holding them.

• Fixed lobby failing to load when internet drops during single-player sessions.

• Minor fixes across several official levels.

Room Editor

• Added control over Light cookie size for directional lights.

• Added an easy way to compress custom 3D models to optimize rooms.

• Added a new Lookable type: Distance & Angle.

• Expanded Text logic prop with custom fonts, alignment, outline and more settings.

• Added an option for Slots to reuse the same eject animation for accepted and rejected keys.

• Added the ability to select an empty texture when choosing materials.

• Logic props now collide with each other when placed, helping with stacking.

• Waypoint editing now leaves a ghost marker behind for smoother placement.

• Light prop no longer casts shadows by default, with a performance warning.

• Building tab sections are now collapsible.

• Improved Lock password input UX.

• Optimized performance for animated custom models.

• GPU optimizations in custom rooms are now far less aggressive and can be adjusted with more precision.

• Fixed an issue where props without behaviour could not be accessed in Lua.

• Fixed several prop colliders.

• Fixed items spawning at (0, 0, 0) when dropped over UI while dragging.

• Improved tooltips for several logic props.

• Fixed duplicated objects with Animation or Button not receiving a correct waypoint.

• Fixed legacy Lookable not triggering at 100 percent screen threshold.

• Fixed changelog not clearing when switching rooms.

Levels

• Fixed Dracula Darkest 2 color blind issue.

• Fixed Dracula Darkest 3 FOV issue.

• Something is unlocked now.

• Applied a small puzzle fix in Dracula Darkest 3.

• Fixed LOD issue in Pirates 3.

• Fixed a game breaking issue when a client disconnected while holding a carriable item.

• Fixed Space 2 plasma puzzle.

• Fixed lobby book name.

Pine team ("The Thugs")

We’ve just released a new hotfix (v17073) focusing on the room editor.

We also worked on improving stability, fixing several editor issues, and introducing a few new features for the Builders. Thanks to everyone reporting bugs and sharing feedback, it really helps us make the game better with each patch. Btw the Build-a-room competition is still live!

Room Editor Fixes

• Fixed incorrect changes to prop rotation when entering rotation values

• Fixed hidden lights properly turning on in play mode and restoring their hidden state after exiting play mode

• Only one directional light can now cast shadows

• Texture loading is now supported on Mac

• Custom models now have improved texture and material importing

• Fixed custom model animations playing in reversed order

• Custom props now appear instantly when imported

• When importing a GLTF with many files, a scrolling message now appears so you can click "OK"

• Editor is now more stable when importing the first custom model

• Fixed a bug where some custom props couldn’t be selected

• Ocean direction is now applied correctly

• Cloud direction and speed are now applied correctly

• Fixed visual refresh of textures in the material editor

• Fixed hot reload of textures

• Trigger “isSticky” now fires once for every event

Room Editor New Features

• Added light cookies

• Locks can now optionally send signals even if their state hasn’t changed

• Trigger keys can now target more prop types

• Added ocean caustics

• Added more options for underwater effects

• Added optional GPU optimizations for custom rooms

• Added player head bob option

Lobby

• Fixed community room picker in the Lobby

Pine team

We’ve just released a fresh update for Escape Simulator 2! This one focuses on improving stability, fixing level issues, and polishing both the base game and the Room Editor. Multiplayer interactions are now much smoother, performance is better on lower-end PCs, and we’ve done some early winter cleaning in the lobby – goodbye pumpkins, see you next year!

The Room Editor also got a big round of improvements, from fixing memory leaks to better undo/redo behavior, more reliable scripts, and a bunch of small but important quality-of-life tweaks. Thank you Builders for helping us!

🏆 Build-a-Room Competition Update

The Build-a-Room competition is still live! Due to popular demand, we’ve decided to extend the submission deadline by one week, from November 10th to November 17th.

We can’t wait to see what amazing rooms you’ll create! You can read all the details and rules here.

Base Game

• Various level fixes and general polishing

• Optimized lobby performance (and removed Halloween decorations)

• Improved reliability of slot interactions in co-op

• Improved overlapping interaction behavior in co-op

• Better performance on low-end PCs

• Fixed various game crashes (probably)

• Secret commits 👀

Room Editor

• Fixed memory leak when loading custom models

• Deleting props or changing their behavior no longer breaks the room

• Searching no longer triggers keyboard shortcuts

• Added a dedicated search button

• Fixed waypoint reset button

• onDelay now triggers correctly

• Hiding lights now also turns them off

• Disabled camera WASD movement in certain editor modes

• Transform gizmo now updates properly after undo/redo

• Disabled undo/redo in special modes

• Changed Lua array syntax from {index} to \

• Improved prop rotation while dragging values

• Triggers at position (0,0,0) no longer activate at start

• Keybindings now save correctly

• Script name is cleared when duplicating props to prevent conflicts

• Added error display for duplicate script names

• onLocks now activates properly

• Lock links are now clickable

• Walkthrough button works correctly

• Missing custom models now spawn as empty placeholders

• Added “Save room on play” option to automatically save before playtesting

• Stairs can now be walked on correctly after loading saves

Happy escaping and building! -Pine team

We are incredibly grateful and happy that more than 100,000 players have already entered Escape Simulator 2, only five days since release! The game already has 500 reviews, with 96% positive, and we can’t thank you enough for the amazing support. (Thank you for taking your time to write the review)

We have been working nonstop since launch. This week alone we released 4 hotfixes, fixed over 100 reported issues, and even added new content like a gramophone and Halloween decorations for the lobby.

🛠️ Build-a-Room Competition

Most of our recent updates focused on improving the Room Editor, so it is the perfect time to start our first Build-a-Room competition for Escape Simulator 2!

If you are new to our community, this is your chance to create and share your own escape room. Usually, there is a theme, but this time there is NO THEME AT ALL. That means total creative freedom, as long as it is an escape room.

💡Room Editor Tutorials by Robin

If you are a first-time builder, we have made a video series in collaboration with the amazing Robin, where she explains the basics and shares tips and tricks of the Escape Simulator 2 editor. The series is available here: ES2 Room Editor Tutorial Series by Robin

🏆 Prizes

We have prepared our biggest prize pool ever!!

Place

Prize*

🥇 1st

$5000 cash + next ES2 DLC

🥈 2nd

$1000 cash + next ES2 DLC

🥉 3rd–10th

$100 Steam Gift Card + next ES2 DLC

🎨 Contest Requirements

• Start your room from scratch (no reusing existing rooms).

• Include a video walkthrough (and in-game walkthrough if possible)

• Puzzles must be colorblind-friendly and hearing-impaired-friendly.

• Submit your room before November 17th, 9:00 AM CET

• Bug fixes are allowed after submission.

• Read the declaimer in the end of this post.

📑 Rules

• You can submit only one room.

• Multiple builders can collaborate on a single entry, but only one prize will be awarded.

• The room must be an escape room.

• Ideal playtime is under 30 minutes, but longer is allowed.

• You can fix bugs after submission but not resubmit a new room.

• All references to existing IPs must be edited or parodied.

• Use assets that are:

  • Creative Commons (CC) with proper attribution

  • From the Escape Simulator library

  • Licensed content you have legally acquired

• Give credit where needed.

• Copies of other players' rooms are not eligible.

• Keep it fun and clean. No profanity, racism, hate speech, or sexual content.

• AI-generated content is allowed, but it must not reduce puzzle quality and you should disclose its use.

📢 How to Submit

Hey escapers!

We’ve just released a new hotfix update for Escape Simulator 2. This one brings a cozy upgrade to the lobby (cookies, tea, and a working gramophone), expands the Room Editor with new assets, and includes more than 100 fixes and improvements across all rooms! Thank you all for reporting and helping us! One note: Saves in Space 2, Pirate 4 and Dracula 3 might be deleted after this update. We’re super sorry if that happened to you! :(

We already have 96% positive reviews! If you’re enjoying the game so far, a quick Steam review would mean a lot.💖

New Content

• Added a new gramophone to the lobby with two songs you can play!

• Added cookies and tea in the lobby so you can munch on something while waiting for friends.

• Expanded the Room Editor with new doors, windows, materials, and props.

Improvements

• The lobby now saves token jigsaw progress and other lobby progression.

• Improved FOV support and adjusted hint texture sizes for better performance.

• Enhanced slot cancelation and interaction for smoother gameplay.

• Improved audio across all rooms and fixed overlapping or looping sounds.

• Fixed step sounds and sky rotation in several rooms.

• Multiple localization fixes (thanks to everyone who reported them!).

• Minor optimization and cleanup passes throughout the game.

Fixes

• Fixed lobby puzzles and several spawn points, including in the lobby.

• Fixed the birdcage in Dracula 3 and removed a token from Dracula Darkest 4.

• Adjusted Darkest 4 puzzle 1 and fixed the starchart puzzle in Space 2.

• Fixed the rope solution in Pirate 4.

• Corrected painting materials, photo poses, and chess piece names.

• Fixed manhole collider and multiple hints across rooms.

• Fixed saving logic and added a version check to prevent loading outdated custom levels.

• Automatic conversion to single-player when loading saves with fewer players.

• Fixed issue with picking up dropped key items through objects.

Pine team

Here's another one!

• Fixed unpickable tokens in 2 rooms

• Fixed a room editor issue that caused a crash

• Fixed unpickable goblet in Dracula 2

• Fixed some translation errors

• Saves in Space 3 and Dracula 3 might be deleted after this update. We are super sorry if that happend to you! :(

Thanks again, and happy escaping! 🗝️

Pine team

Wow, what a launch! Huge thanks to everyone who waited (not so patiently) for the release today! 🎉

• Fixed Dracula 2 critical end key bug

• Fixed Pirates 3 critical gunpowder bug

• A lot of translation fixes (thank you for reporting)

• Fixed a room editor issue that caused a crash

Steam Review

We already have 14 positive reviews! If you’re enjoying the game so far, a quick Steam review would mean a lot.💖

Thanks again, and happy escaping! 🗝️

The wait is over! Escape Simulator 2 is officially available. For a limited time, you can get it 10% off! We also released the original soundtrack by our composer Saša Đukić and a bundle with Escape Simulator 1 for everyone discovering the Escape Sim world for the first time.

New Trailer

🧩 What’s New

Escape Simulator 2 is a completely new game built from scratch. At launch, it includes 12 brand new escape rooms, each much larger and more detailed than before. Expect around 50 minutes of playtime per room. There is also a new Lobby, a shared hub where you and your friends can gather before entering the rooms. It is a place to display trophies, photos, and enter the darker puzzles, or just relax between sessions.

This sequel gave us a clean start and allowed us to push the escape room genre further. We explored darker themes, experimented with new puzzle ideas, and rebuilt many core systems like rendering, networking, physics, and animation to make the experience smoother and more immersive.

⚙️ Under the Hood

We upgraded our engine and reworked many core systems. The new autosave system saves your progress all the time. You can leave the game whenever you want and continue later from the exact same spot.

It also enabled drop-in multiplayer, so you can invite friends mid-game and continue playing together instantly. Escaping as a team has never been easier.

🪲 Bugs and Feedback

Escape Simulator 2 is a big project made by a small team. In the last ten days alone we fixed over 1,000 bugs and issues. The game supports 15 languages and multiplayer for up to 8 players, which means a lot of different setups to test.

If you find any problem or have a suggestion, please reach out to us through our Discord, the Steam forums, or by email at [email protected]. We are fully dedicated to improving and polishing the game with your feedback.

A huge thank you goes to all our Closed Beta testers. You truly outdid yourselves and helped us make a better game. 💖

🧱 Room Editor (Beta)

We decided to keep the Room Editor in BETA for now. It includes many new tools and quality-of-life upgrades, but we did not have enough time to polish it to the level we wanted. We will continue improving it in the coming weeks, adding new props, fixing issues, and expanding its options. Thank you to all our Builders for your patience and support. The good news is that after the first week of polishing we will start our first ES2 Builders Competition!!

🔮 What’s Next

Our main focus in the next couple of weeks is to fix and polish everything you report. We are already working on the next free room, which is coming very soon, and we have started planning the first DLC. After that, we plan to continue adding new content to both Escape Simulator 1 and Escape Simulator 2.

We would love to see your screenshots and escape photos (that's a new thing) If you share them on social media, please tag us on X, BlueSky, Instagram, or Facebook. Happy escaping! Pine Team

We’re kicking off something special! Robin, our long-time community member and creator of fan-favorite rooms like It's All Led Up To This, The Glass Garden and Immortal Canvas, has joined our team to create a new video series for Escape Simulator 2 builders. Known for her calm voice and creative touch, she’ll guide you through everything new in the Room Editor 2.0.

This first video takes you through the major upgrade to the Room Editor, showcasing new ways to shape floor plans, build multi-level spaces, add complex logic, use Lua scripting, and craft detailed lighting and atmosphere. It’s the ideal starting point for discovering how much more powerful and flexible building has become in Escape Simulator 2.

Take a sneak peek at what’s new in the ES2 Room Editor:

See you soon in ES2!

Pine team

We are super excited, Escape Simulator 2 is almost here!

The release is just 6 days away, and the whole team is in full-on polish mode, fixing last-minute bugs and making sure everything runs smoothly. But most importantly, we are super hyped to show you our biggest game ever!

So here's everything you should know about Escape Simulator 2 before the release! TLDR:

• 💻 Available on: PC (Windows, macOS)

• 🔓 Release time: Monday, October 27th, 4PM CET / 6AM PT / 9AM CST

• 💰 Price: $19.99 / €16.99 / 14.99 GBP / 2200 JPY / 799 ₽ / 65 ¥ (Launch Discount 10%)

• 🧩 Players: Solo or Online co-op up to 8 players

• 📦 Content on release: 12 all-new (bigger) rooms, darkest puzzles, room editor, more on the way

• 🕶️ VR version: Not on release, but probably coming later as a free update

• 🎮 Gamepad and SteamDeck support: Yes, Yes

• 🌍 Languages: 15, Polish and Russian are new

🧩 What’s inside at launch

Escape Simulator 2 launches with 12 rooms across three themed worlds: Dracula’s Castle, Starship EOS, and The Cursed Treasure. The rooms are quite bigger than those in ES1 so you'll need 45-60 minutes per room.

The game supports single-player and online co-op for up to 8 players, so you can explore and solve puzzles together from day one. There are small but very interesting differences between solo and multiplayer, but that's up to you to discover.

There are new Darkest puzzles for some extra challenge, room editor for the builders, tokens, and a few secrets...

💰 About the price

Price: $19.99 / €16.99 / 14.99 GBP / 2200 JPY / 799 ₽ / 65 ¥

We decided to keep the same price as Escape Simulator 1 to make sure the sequel stays just as approachable. We also made sure that regional prices are adjusted fairly. Also for the first two week we are offering 10% off!

🌍 Languages

Escape Simulator 2 will be available in 15 languages at launch. We chose these languages based on our Escape Simulator 1 player data and the Steam hardware survey to reach as many players as possible.

Translating Escape Simulator is a big challenge. Many puzzles rely on wordplay, hidden meanings, or visual clues that do not always translate easily. Every in-game texture that contains text had to be manually localized, and we spent months making sure riddles still make sense in every language.

We worked with a team of professional translators and carefully checked everything, but we know there might still be a few issues. We will be monitoring your reports closely and will fix any translation problems as soon as possible.

🛠️ Room Editor

The new Room Editor 2.0 launches together with the game. It has been rebuilt from the ground up with faster tools and better visuals... and yes, we've added stairs! We are also working on a video series in collaboration with Robin, focused on educational and tutorial videos for the Room Editor and puzzle design. These videos will be rolling out soon after launch and should help both new and experienced creators get the most out of the editor.

⚙️ Technology and performance

We aimed to make one of the best-looking escape room games ever, while keeping performance solid on a wide range of PCs. After a lot of optimization work, we are happy to say that Escape Simulator 2 runs smoothly on Steam Deck.

The game has full gamepad support, achievements, Steam Trading Cards available from day one, and Steam Cloud saves so your progress follows you anywhere. Family Sharing is also fully supported.

🧠 What’s coming next

We’ll keep improving the game throughout the next month as we gather feedback and fine-tune every detail. After that, our focus will shift to new content for both Escape Simulator 2 and Escape Simulator 1, with fresh rooms and updates planned for each.

We are already preparing new rooms that will arrive after launch, including both free and paid DLCs similar to the first Escape Simulator.

🕶️ VR when? Consoles when?

We are a small team, and Escape Simulator 2 is a big game. Our full focus has been on creating the best possible Steam experience first. Over the next few months, we will keep polishing the game and adding more content. After that, we would love to expand to more platforms.

We love VR, and it’s on our list, most likely as a free update once it’s ready. Consoles are also something we are planning, but that will come later. We’ll have more to share about that next year.

🧩 What’s next with Escape Simulator 1?

Escape Simulator 1 is a similar but completely separate game, with a different vibe. We have a dedicated in-house team working hard on it, and we plan to keep supporting it for quite some time. A new DLC is already in development, and we also plan to release new free rooms soon!

Get ready to escape again!

Wishlist if you have not already, invite your friends, and prepare for release next week. See you in Escape Simulator! -Pine Studio

Welcome to another entry in our Dev Blog series, where we take you behind the scenes of Escape Simulator 2 development. These posts will introduce you to new systems, tools, and features.

Today’s post is written by SuperJura, one of our lead programmers. He worked on many of the game’s core systems, including the complete implementation of Lua scripting in Room Editor 2.0.

⚠️ Note: You don’t need to know any coding to build rooms in Escape Simulator 2. The Room Editor is designed to be simple and intuitive for everyone. Lua scripting is an advanced feature, meant only for our most dedicated room creators who want to push things even further.

Let’s talk about Lua 2.0 in Escape Simulator 2. Or maybe it’s really Lua 1.0, since the original version was technically in beta in the first Escape Simulator 🤔. Either way, we’re rolling out a major upgrade.

Just a heads-up: every image and gif you see here is still work in progress. The UI and UX are not final.

Lua Now Powers All Custom Levels

In ES1, if you ever made a connection like “button opens door,” it was defined in the room.room file as something like “object with ID 1 activates object with ID 2.” In this case, the button had ID 1 and the door ID 2. The verb "Activates" was just one of several options in our system. Others included "PlaySound," "Teleport," "FinishLevel," and so on. Every possible interaction followed this format.

While functional, that system didn’t align well with our broader scripting approach. Our internal levels always used a single script per room, with callbacks tied to specific game events. So for ES2, we decided to unify everything — official levels and community levels — under a single, more robust scripting model.

The solution? We now generate Lua code for the entire level. This Lua script mirrors our internal format, complete with the same callbacks and multiplayer-safe logic systems. (More on that later.) You can access the generated level code here:

Upgraded Lua API via the api Object

The api object was your best friend in ES1 Lua scripting, and in ES2 it's getting a significant upgrade.

In ES1, we exposed many useful APIs for room scripting, but quite a few were missing. For ES2, we built a tool that scans our internal levels and exposes all the APIs we use to Lua. If we can use it, so can you. This will greatly expand the possibilities for custom interactions.

Don’t worry — we’re keeping the familiar tools like api.vector2(), api.levelNote(), and others.

New Callbacks That Mirror Our Internal Events

The api object isn’t the only thing getting an upgrade. We’re also introducing a full set of new callbacks that reflect our own internal level events.

With Lua now powering the entire level logic, you’ll have access to all game-level callbacks. For example, you can track the precise movement of Dials and Turnables, or check whether a player has entered or exited a zoom. We’ll release the full list of callbacks once all components are finalized in the RE 2.0.

Cleaner Lua Script Structure

In ES1, Lua scripts were triggered from start to finish on every event, and you had to check the callType to determine what actually happened. Event arguments were passed in a context object, which varied based on the call type.

After reviewing that system, we decided to adopt a cleaner, function-based approach in ES2. Each callback now has its own function, and arguments are explicitly named — no more generic “context” objects.

Multiplayer-Friendly by Default (If You Follow a Few Rules)

In ES1, multiplayer logic relied on "Level Logic Packets" — networking packets that updated puzzle states. While it worked, it didn’t translate well to custom Lua scripts. As a result, we often had to say multiplayer wasn’t fully supported for scripted levels.

That’s changing in ES2. We’ve replaced Level Logic Packets with a system we call "Non-Desyncable Networking." If your code is written in a “coop-friendly” way, it will sync automatically across all players.

What does "coop-friendly" mean?

• Don’t use random values unless they’re synced

• Don’t change the level state based on a specific player or other local-specific situations

• Avoid changing the level and data in non-synced callbacks

• Change the state of the room in synced callbacks

For example, "Entering Zoom" and "Leaving Zoom" callbacks are only triggered locally for the player taking the action. They’re not synced. We’ll provide a full list of synced vs. unsynced callbacks once the RE 2.0 component implementation is complete.

Full Save System Support

As you may know, ES2 features a full save system, moving beyond the checkpoint-based approach from ES1. This includes full support for Lua-scripted custom rooms.

Lua is a bit unique in that you can define variables in your scripts that need to persist across saves. We’re developing a system specifically for this, including naming conventions to exclude values from serialization when needed.

This also means custom-scripted rooms will support drop-in multiplayer, since it relies heavily on the save system.

Built-In Lua Editor

In ES1, you had to use an external editor like VS Code, Notepad++, Rider, or Visual Studio to write Lua scripts.

In ES2, we’re introducing a built-in text editor for Lua, complete with syntax highlighting tailored to the ES2 API. If you still prefer your favorite external tool, you’re welcome to keep using it — but now, you’ll also have a convenient in-game option.

The editor will also feature a small file picker where you can quickly switch between Lua files, and the ability to create new Lua files directly from the editor.

Small QOL improvements

There are also a bunch of small quality of life improvements like better lua script name validator or the ability to target lua props with other props to call a specific function.

That’s it for today’s update. More dev posts are coming soon, including deep dives into the Room Editor 2.0, multiplayer architecture, the music of ES2, and more.

If you want to stay updated, make sure to follow the game and add Escape Simulator 2 to your wishlist.

Thanks for reading!

- Pine team

Dear players,

Escape Simulator 2 will launch on October 27, six days later than planned.

October 21 turned into one of the busiest release days of the year and we didn’t want ES2 to get buried under all the noise. This small shift gives the game more space to shine and have more players join in right from the get-go.

We know you’re eager to play and we’re just as eager to share it with you. Thank you for your patience and support. October 27 can’t come soon enough!

🕵️ ES1: Spy DLC - Something to play while you wait for ES2!

To make sure you don’t get bored while counting down the days, we’ve prepared something special: the ES:Spy DLC for the original Escape Simulator, launching on September 22!

Step into the golden age of spy films with:

• 4 all-new spy-themed escape rooms (Agency HQ, Quartermaster’s Workshop, Villain’s Yacht, Underwater Rocket Base)

• Spy outfits & new gadgets to use in the room editor

• A cinematic soundtrack to set the perfect covert mood

Your mission: To Escape! -Pine team

Welcome to another entry in our Dev Blog series, where we take you behind the scenes of Escape Simulator 2 development. In these posts, we introduce new systems, tools, and features coming to the game.

Today’s post is all about music and sound. It’s written by Saša (Sasha), our sound designer and music producer.

With a diverse background spanning electrical engineering, mechanical technician work, and teaching, Saša brings a unique set of skills to his craft. His extensive experience as a DJ and music producer fuels his passion for audio experimentation, evident in the custom MIDI controllers and DIY instruments he creates.

Hey! I’m Saša.

From the outside, my life choices might look a bit… random. I’ve thought the same myself a few times. But somehow, every weird turn ended up leading back to music.

By the end of my school years, I had managed to become an electrical engineer, a mechanical technician, and a teacher. Basically, a walking toolbox with a lesson plan. Along the way, I built custom MIDI controllers and DIY instruments; stuff I probably wouldn’t have dared to try if I hadn’t gone down that wild educational path. Turns out, knowing how things work makes using them way more fun.

And the teaching part? I’ve just always loved explaining things (sometimes too much, if you ask my friends).

Music, though - that’s been the main thread through everything. I’ve been in bands since elementary school, started DJing and producing in high school, and never really stopped.

Saša, in his full DJ-ing element

So when a friend asked me if I wanted to make music for his game, I didn’t even blink.

And here I am today; working on Escape Simulator 2! Life is weird. But it kinda rocks.

Everyone at Pine Studio is excited for Escape Simulator 2! And me? I’m over the moon! Seriously, this project is a sound designer’s dream.

There’s so much more room this time to really carve out a story with sound effects and music. The artists are creating these absolutely stunning, atmospheric scenes… and now it’s my job to make sure the audio lives up to that level. No pressure, right?

The vibe is definitely darker than Escape Simulator 1, so the sound and music need to match that intensity. Creaks, echoes, mysterious tones - you name it. It all has to help pull players into the world and keep them on their toes.

And honestly? I’m loving every second of it.

2. From Beats to Ambience

My time as a DJ and electronic music producer turned out to be way more useful than I expected when I got into game audio. Sure, the formats and goals are different, but there’s a ton of transferable knowledge.

As a DJ, you're constantly reading the room. People's body language becomes your feedback loop—it tells you when the energy is dipping, when it’s time to change the vibe, or when you’ve got them hooked. Over the years, you develop a kind of sixth sense: when to switch things up, when to hold back, and how to keep things flowing without boring the crowd.

That same instinct applies to game music. You’re still asking the same questions: Is this too much? Too little?

And of course, track selection matters! Every music producer wants to sneak in their cyberpunk bangers, but let’s be real: not every scene needs neon synths and heavy basslines. Sometimes the best soundtrack is the one that doesn’t steal the spotlight, but subtly enhances the moment. Knowing when to go big, and when to stay out of the way, that’s a lesson DJing drilled into me.

In the end, it’s all about reading the room: whether it’s a sweaty dance floor or a mysterious sci-fi corridor.

3. Darker Themes, Deeper Sounds

Escape Simulator 2 is a whole different beast compared to the first game. The music had to evolve—a lot.

While Escape Simulator 1 mostly lived in that cozy, chill-out zone (with a few exceptions), ES2 is darker, moodier, and carries a heavier emotional weight.

This time around, the music isn’t just there to relax the player. It has a new job. It needs to create tension, a subtle sense of unease, like something’s just a little bit off. Not outright scary, and definitely not panic-inducing, but just enough to make you wonder: “Wait… what’s behind that door?”

That’s been the biggest challenge so far; writing music that balances perfectly between chill and creepy. It has to sit right in that sweet spot where the player feels intrigued, not overwhelmed. Honestly, walking that line has been both tricky and incredibly fun.

Working on ES2’s soundtrack has been an amazing experience. It’s let me stretch creatively and express myself in totally new ways.

I’ve never been afraid to make weird, custom instruments to get the sounds I want. But then someone from our Discord community upped the ante and said, “Hey… what if we used a ship foghorn as an instrument?”

Challenge accepted.

We now have a custom foghorn instrument! And yes, it made it into the pirate ship scene. Because why not?

When it comes to making music for ES2, it turns out the rule is: if it works, it works. Nothing’s off limits. And that’s what makes this project such a joy to be a part of.

4. Behind the Scenes: Designing Sound Effects

Creating sound effects for Escape Simulator 2 is its own kind of challenge. You’re constantly juggling—music, sound design, and waiting for the levels to be ready so you can actually plug everything in. So when it's finally time to dive into SFX, you’ve got to be fast, focused, and still make sure the sounds actually fit the scene.

To help with that, I’ve built my own Frankenstein-ed version of Reaper DAW, stitched together with custom scripts and shortcuts tailored to my workflow. It’s weird, probably terrifying to anyone else, but it lets me move quickly and stay in the zone when time is tight.

But when the schedule loosens up a bit? That’s when sound design becomes pure fun. Like recording bubbling sarma because you need the sound of a witch’s cauldron (true story), or sprinting outside in the middle of a storm just to capture that perfect howling wind.

Or maybe you’re out for a peaceful walk, hear a bunch of crows in the distance, and suddenly realize you’re in the middle of a beautifully eerie, empty soundscape, with no cars, no people. Just you, nature, and your recorder. Priceless.

Those are the moments where game audio feels like a mix of science, art, and a little bit of madness, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

5. Integrating Music and Gameplay

Escape Simulator 2 is bigger in every possible way; especially when it comes to level size and atmosphere. The scenes are more expansive and visually rich, which means the music has to do more to support that world-building.

In Escape Simulator 1, one music track often did the job. But with ES2’s larger and more complex environments, a single track isn’t always enough to capture the tone or keep things engaging. Sometimes multiple pieces are needed for a single level, each carefully chosen to match the specific vibe of different areas or moments.

Thankfully, the audio system has gotten an upgrade too, giving us more control and flexibility. 

6. Personal Favorites: Tracks and Moments

It’s hard to pick favorite tracks so far, but if I had to, I’d say I really loved working on the Dracula theme. There are a few music cues in there that I’m genuinely proud of. Creepy, dramatic, just the right amount of gothic flair.

But at the same time… making music for the pirate levels was just pure fun. I finally got the perfect excuse to break out my custom Kontakt accordion instrument and dive into some sea shanty territory. It was chaotic, quirky, and totally enjoyable. Honestly, how often do you get to write spooky vampire music and pirate tunes in the same project?

7. Closing Thoughts

What to say at the end… hmm, let’s go with this:

I really hope you enjoy Escape Simulator 2 as much as we’re enjoying making it. It’s been a wild, creative ride, and we’ve poured a lot of love (and weird sound recordings) into it.

Live long and prosper 🖖

Welcome to the very first entry in our Dev Diary series, where we take you behind the scenes of Escape Simulator 2 development. In these posts, we introduce new systems, tools, and features coming to the game. Today’s post is all about the new Room Editor.

It’s written by Filip, one of our programmers who’s been focused on improving the editor’s core functionality; from adding full 3D building support to streamlining workflows and making the entire creation process more flexible and intuitive.

Hey everyone! I’m Filip, a programmer at Pine, currently working on the new Room Editor for Escape Simulator 2. In this post, I’ll walk you through how we’ve improved the tools and workflows to help you build even more ambitious and creative escape rooms.

Escape Simulator is known for its endless supply of escape rooms, thanks largely to the built-in Room Editor that allowed the community to create thousands of amazing experiences.

Naturally, we want to make the process of creating rooms as easy, intuitive and enjoyable as possible, giving you the tools to build whatever you envision. Here are some of the major improvements we’ve made to world building.

Disclaimer: The user interface and features shown are work in progress and may change before the final release. What you see here does not represent the final quality or functionality of the game.

Going 3D

One of the most requested features for the original Escape Simulator editor was the ability to create walkable stairs, allowing players to move up and down in a space (for example, a house with multiple floors). However, due to limitations in the system for placing floors and walls, this just wasn’t possible.

Screenshot showing Escape Simulator 1 Room Editor.

Limitations in Escape Simulator 1

While the ES1 building system was simple to use and easy to understand (which was great), it had several major limitations:

The wait is almost over,

Escape Simulator 2 will officially launch on October 27th, 2025!

(previously it was planned for Oct 21st)

Make sure to wishlist the game and try out the demo available right now!

Yesterday we held a special release date announcement stream that you can watch below. We're thrilled to finally announce the date and can't wait for you to experience the full game.

Now, let's switch to some of your most pressing and interesting questions:

Q: VR When? A: We plan to add full VR support, but we don’t have an exact timeline yet. It will likely be added after release.

Q: Will there be an opportunity to pre-purchase the game? A: It would be great if pre-purchase were possible, but that's entirely up to Steam and typically reserved for extremely popular titles.

Q: Will you still focus on content for Escape Simulator 1? A: Absolutely. We’re currently developing paid DLC planned for release this year and we recently launched the a free room, Detective Noir.

Q: Is an Escape Simulator 2 Community Contest planned? A: Yes! We’ll host a major Room Builder contest right after the game’s release.

Q: Will there be puzzles requiring hearing? A: No. We’re committed to accessibility and ensuring all puzzles can be solved without relying on sound.

Q: Is Escape Simulator 2 a horror game? A: Not at all! Although it has a darker atmosphere, you won’t encounter horror, gore, or jumpscares.

Q: How many players can join together? A: Same as in Escape Simulator 1: up to 8 players can play simultaneously.

Q: Will there be microtransactions? A: No microtransactions are planned. We aim to keep the monetization straightforward and affordable.

Q: Will jumping be included? A: Jumping won’t be a part of Escape Simulator 2, as the gameplay is specifically designed around puzzle-solving in carefully designed rooms, avoiding unintended shortcuts.

Q: Why shift away from the cartoon look? A: The updated visual style allows us to explore new creative avenues and develop innovative puzzles.

Q: Can we transfer community rooms from ES1? A: Not directly, but we're working on a tool to help migrate community-created rooms more seamlessly to ES2.

Q: Will there be stairs? A: Yes! Vertical exploration will be part of the new design.

Q: How many rooms will the full game include? A: Initially, there will be 12 detailed rooms across 3 distinct themes, each taking about 45–60 minutes to complete. We also plan to add two additional rooms shortly after release, along with ongoing free and paid DLC.

Q: Will the game support controllers/gamepads? A: Yes, we're already testing and perfecting full controller support.

Q: Will there be a console release? A: For Escape Simulator 1, console versions for Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation are still being developed. For Escape Simulator 2, our primary focus is Steam, but we intend to bring it to consoles faster this time around.

Q: What about Linux and Mac support? A: A Mac version is planned. For Linux users, we'll ensure compatibility through Proton, optimizing for Steam Deck support from day one.

Q: How is the Room Editor in ES2 compared to ES1? A: It will feel familiar but significantly upgraded, with new systems, extended LUA support, and an improved UI based on community feedback.

Q: Will there be an in-room text editor for dialogs? A: We are developing something in that area but can't confirm specifics yet.

Q: Can we customize our characters extensively? A: Yes! Expect diverse hairstyles, body shapes, and outfits, allowing you to recreate even your wildest character designs.

Q: Any collaborations already planned? A: Yes, but we're keeping the details secret for now!

Q: Any inspirations taken from ES1 creators? A: Definitely! Creators like Zesty, Elkondo, Wollo (e.g. his room "Joe’s Garage"), and Sade (who helped us with Magic DLC) have inspired many puzzles. We continuously watch community trends closely.

Q: Are the demo character models final? A: No, they're placeholders. Completely new character models are currently in development.

Q: What about rebinding controller buttons? A: We can't confirm this yet, but it’s something we're looking into.

Q: Will Versus Mode return? A: Likely not, as our focus has shifted to other multiplayer experiences.

Bonus Fun Question:

Q: Zesty, when is Devilish Diorama 3 coming? A: Sometime this year!

If your question wasn’t covered here, feel free to ask us in the community forums or Discord.

-Pine

The wait is almost over. We’re finally ready to reveal the release date for Escape Simulator 2. Join us live during Steam Next Fest on June 9 at 10 AM Pacific / 7 PM CEST for a special developer stream. We'll stream here on Steam but also on our Twitch channel.

Tune in for a live Q&A, a behind-the-scenes look at how we build our escape rooms, and your first glimpse at a few brand-new rooms that haven't been shown anywhere before. If you've ever wanted to ask us if we are working on the stairs or "VR when?", now's your chance!

The demo is already available, so try it now and join us live to learn more about what's coming in Escape Simulator 2. -Pine team

🏆We Won Our First Awards!

🩹Demo Hotfix v813X

• The game now launches in DirectX 11 by default, which should fix several crash issues – especially the one on startup and the crash near the well.
• DirectX 12 is still available but must be launched manually by adding "-dx12" in the launch options.
• The chessboard puzzle has been temporarily locked while we work on a fix.
• Doors no longer trap players (unless it’s on purpose!).
• Mirror mode now works correctly.
• The moon key can no longer be picked up too early.
• Solo players will no longer spawn inside the carriage.
• Added more bugs to fix later.
• Additional performance optimizations and minor fixes.

🔍 FAQ ⁉️