Review of Interactive Media and Language Center Virtual Escape Game at Baylor University

May 2025 – Volume 29, Number 1

https://doi.org/10.55593/ej.29113m1

Title	Interactive Media and Language Center Virtual Escape Game at Baylor University
Author	IMLC Escape Room Developers at Baylor University
Contact Information	i_mlcbaylor.edu
Type of Product	Online software
Platform	Web-based application
Minimum hardware requirements	The minimum may vary depending on the device and the web browser which is used to access the game. It needs Web browsers such as Google Chrome and recommended resolution is 1024×768 pixels to ensure that the game can display all the elements properly without major issues.
Supplementary software	It does not require any supplementary software to run.
Price	Free

General description of the Product

Virtual Escape rooms have been as popular as real physical escape rooms in which people are locked in a room and should solve a series of puzzles to lock out themselves and go to the next room or finish the game in the time assigned. Interactive Media and Language Center Escape Game in Languages at Baylor University was a specific program created to be launched during Baylor’s International Education Week from November 8 to November 12, 2021. The escape game developers invited students, staff, and instructors to take part in the escape game during the event week. The goal was to see how the game can engage students with different levels of proficiency in different activities they have in the game. This project was to inspire other instructors and language teachers to implement technology in language classes to engage learners and enhance their knowledge, ability, and skills in listening, reading, and comprehension.

This escape game is a virtual space in which learners can log in to find hints and clues to solve puzzles and to be able to ‘escape’ the room to the next room until they finish all five rooms and take a screenshot as proof of their escape from the last room in which it congratulates them to be able to do so. The explanation of each of these five rooms can be found in English in the link to the tutorial which is available on the webpage. Each room depicts a different setting. For example, the first one is in a bedroom, and after finding the hints and answering the questions, it takes the player out of the room and to a supermarket.

This escape game is still free to use for anyone who is interested in testing it. So far, IMLC offers the room in Chinese, French, Japanese, Portuguese, and Spanish, and it has listed other languages (Arabic, Italian, and Swahili) as ‘coming soon.’ No room is available in English. All the rooms are the same across different languages regarding the puzzles, clues and themes, and they have been translated into the target language of the room.

To try this escape game, learners should choose the language they prefer, and they will be directed to the starting screen. They do not need to open an account to join the game. As shown in Figure 1, the opening page offers three options: Join Room, Enter on Device, and Spectate.

Figure 1. The Starting Page

When users press Join Room, they enter the first room, they can take a tour to feel comfortable with the controls and to orient themselves in the game . The learners can practice some basic computer skills such as using the keyboard and the mouse to move around the room, get closer to or farther from objects, and view the room from a different angle. If learners are familiar with these functions, they can skip the tour and join the room.

The rooms have different settings, such as a bedroom with different objects, and they use different methods to guide learners to the next clue. For example, in the first room, bubbles are coming out of some objects, which works as a hint that this object is important in the room and can lead to the next puzzle (Figure 2). When the learners move close enough to the object that is sending bubbles out, a link becomes visible and clickable which is accompanied by a click sound and a change of color in the pointer (Figure 3).

Figure 2. Guiding the Learners to the Bookshelf and the Desk with Bubbles

Figure 3. Getting Closer Activates the Link

When learners click on the link, they will be led to a Google Form on which they should answera question such as a multiple choice. If the answer is not correct, they can change the answer and submit a different answer until they find the correct one. And if the correct answer has been chosen, they either provide the next clue (Figure 4) or provide the learner with a link that takes them out of that room and to a new room (Figure 5).

Figure 4. The Correct Answer May Activate the Clue to the Next Puzzle

Figure 5. The Correct Answer to the Last Question Provides a Link to Next Room

Those who participate in IMLC Escape Game in Languages are required to use technology that will allow learners to share their camera or voice, such as a tablet or a smartphone. The level of difficulty of finding the clues increases from the first room to the fifth one. For example, the first room shows the location of the objects with clues and puzzles while in the second room, you should listen to some listening files and follow the instructions to locate next clue and the clues are not as easy to find as the first room (Figure 6).

Figure 6. Listening File as a Hint to Next Puzzle

Although this program was originally targeted towards Baylor University students who are studying a foreign language, everyone can access it through the website, and it does not require opening an account to play the escape game. It enables all learners who are in the room to chat and communicate with other learners by using different functions available in the room which are Invite, Voice, Share, Place, React and Chat (Figure 7). These functions allow learners to invite others to the room, share their pictures or their live video, write on the screen using the mouse, choose an Avatar for themselves, or react to what is happening in the room. They can see who is in the room by checking people on the top right-hand corner of the room. The three-dot option labeled as More can be used for signing in, creating rooms on the hub, changing name and avatar, reporting issues and other things.

Figure 7. Different Buttons Available on the Escape Game Page

After finding all the clues and escaping from the last room (Room #5) they can see the last message “Congratulations” (Figure 8) as the sign of finishing the game. As it was for a specific event, they announced some of those who were able to arrive at the last room and escape the game winners of the game. But the participants now are not required to do so.

Figure 8: “Congratulations” Sign at the End of the Game

An Evaluation of the Product Criteria

The present review has adapted the criteria presented in Leu et al. (2004) to review media and the TESOL Technology Standards Framework (TESOL, 2008), which can provide answer to the following categories of questions:

The relationship between technology and language learning objectives: What technology affordances are used to enhance planning and preparation for language learning?
The Connection between media and the users/learners: How technology is connecting the media to the users and the users to each other to provide them with the opportunity to practice the targeted language and communicate effectively using it?
The kind of instruction it provides the users/learners: How is instruction enhanced through technology to scaffold learners of a language? Do learners know how to orient themselves on the page and how to start an activity? Do they know what they are required to do? What kind of instruction do the learners receive before, while and after the game?
The kind of feedback that users receive to do self-correction to reach the desired result: Do the users/learners receive any feedback if they do something wrong? What feedback they receive if they do something the right way? Does this feedback scaffold their learning and facilitate their being an independent learner?
Assessment and evaluation: What technology is used to assess language learners’ proficiency level and to track their improvement in different language skills before and after the game? Does the activity have effect on their learning and their proficiency level?
The extent to which it addresses multiliteracies: Does this media encourage multiliteracies? What kind of new literacies do learners/users need to be able to work with this media?
Digital citizenship: Is the media promoting ethical use of technology among learners? Is it addressing issues regarding security and privacy?

IMLC Escape Game in Languages is using a virtual space to engage language learners in limited types of practices through technology. The learners are required to know the basic skills in technology such as using the keyboard and the mouse to be able to move in the virtual room they have creates on Mozilla. They should also be familiar with google forms and should be able to locate and click hyperlinks. However, these basic skills cannot guarantee that learners know what they are doing and how to orient themselves on the room, especially when the technology fails or there are glitches on the webpage.

Learners can communicate and interact through different features available on this media such as microphones and camera. They can share their pictures or add some 3D pictures with other learners who are in the room, so it requires the teachers and instructors to make sure that learners are aware of digital citizenship to take care of their security and privacy and to feel responsible to communicate with others ethically. Considering the nature of the puzzles and clues, most of the affordances available on this game seems to be more than what is needed. In fact, the technology which is available to learners may not be needed at all for these very few and very controlled practices of a target language. The reason of applying these many features may be to make an exhibition of the affordances for the instructors to see how technology and new literacy can facilitate language learning and communication.

Although the escape game provides the opportunity for learners to tour and practice moving in the Mozilla Hub, sometimes the learners need more than basic digital literacy to know they have been taken to a Google Form, and that they should go back to the main room again. Orientation between rooms and forms can be tricky for some learners and they may need extra support to locate themselves between rooms.

It seems that IMLC was a short-term project, which can be the reason why focused practices and in-depth evaluation of proficiency level of the language learners do not exist there. No real teaching can be found in the rooms, and the nature of the puzzles is to test if they can use their receptive skills to find clues and solve puzzles. The listening files are of low quality, which may fail to provide learners with enough scaffolding, or even to engage them in using listening skills to find next puzzles. The limited number of puzzles in each room look like controlled drills that not only do not address any teaching, but also do not engage the learners actively in the feedback process for the self-correction. The feedbacks are limited to some phrases and sentences informing learners that the answer is not correct, but they cannot be considered as corrective feedback, and no outcome can be expected from it.

There is no real assessment in IMLC, and learners are not supposed to improve their skills or proficiency levels, which may again be related to the temporary nature of this escape game which was created for an event. It seems to be using gamification more than game-based learning, in that it is applying game design elements while not having specific educational objectives. Some rooms are not accessible anymore, which can mean they haven’t been checked for issues or updated recently. As their website has listed some languages as ‘coming soon’, one can expect that this escape game is still active, which testing the rooms does not support this expectation.

There is no real practice of the languages listed. There is no teaching, which may not be the focus of this escape game which was prepared for Baylor’s International Education Week, and it seems to be more like a fancy introduction to new literacies to attract the students’, staff, and instructors’ attention to consider adding new literacies to traditional language classrooms. The new literacies it can address is the digital literacy because it requires learners to click the links, to use the keyboard and the mouse to move in the room and to use different features available such as the camera and the audio. However, instructors should train the learners of digital literacy which is needed to use the escape game safely and ethically. Mozilla Hub provides the space for different modes of communication, and instructors should train learners on how to communicate safely while keeping their identity and privacy. Although these affordances are hardly needed during the game, providing them in the room requires instructors to inform learners as digital citizens of their responsibility in the technology-related issues.

Conclusion

In IMLC Escape Game, students should use their language skills in controlled practices to find the clues and solve the puzzles, such as vocabulary or solving grammar exercises, which have been created on a virtual platform. Students can work in teams or individually to solve the challenges and progress through the game, but the nature of the puzzles do not require any problem solving for which learners need to communicate with others. No real corrective feedback is provided in the rooms, and it seems that evaluation of the learners’ proficiency is not the focus of this escape game. Although they should communicate in the target language to complete the tasks, they don’t have to do so when they chat or communicate with each other. The rooms provide little opportunity to experience real life even though the themes seem to have been chosen to do so. A French café or a German beer hall cannot make a room authentic if the objectives of making the room and the practices do not match. The feedback is of very surface nature and does not address the need for self-correction and improvement, and the assessment does not seem to be the purpose behind this escape game, as gamification seems to be stronger than game-based learning.

This escape game has the potential to benefit learners and instructors in using new literacies in a language classroom. However, it has done a good job in bringing the new literacies into the students and instructors’ attention and can be a fair demonstration of what can be achieved if a well-planned escape room meets the requirements to engage learners in learning a new language.

About the Reviewer

Golrokh Maleki is a PhD candidate in Language, Literacy and Technology at Washington State University. She has been an English teacher for 19 years, and a teacher educator for 10 years. She wishes to share her experience using educational escape rooms at Washington State University with her fellow language teachers. She has presented on escape rooms at CALICO (2022) and TESOL (2023) and believes that they can be implemented by language teachers to bring more equity and inclusion to language classrooms, and to enhance engagement and learning. <golrokh.maleki@wsu.edu> ORCID ID: 0009-0006-0553-3158

To Cite this Review

Maleki, G. (2025). Review of Interactive Media and Language Center Virtual Escape Game at Baylor University. Teaching English as a Second Language Electronic Journal (TESL-EJ), 29 (1). https://doi.org/10.55593/ej.29113m1

References

Leu, D. J., Kinzer, C. K., Coiro, J., & Cammack, D. (2004). Towards a theory of new literacies emerging from the Internet and other ICT, in R.B. Rudell and N. Unrau (eds) Theoretical Models and Processes of Reading, (pp. 1568-1611). International Reading Association.