Escape the Backrooms

Escape the Backrooms is a first-person horror game set in the puzzling, seemingly abandoned rooms of the Backrooms. Alone or in a group of up to four players, you search for exits, decode clues and evade dangerous creatures. The rooms range from yellow office corridors through water-filled areas to hotels and unusual outdoor spaces.

The game is built around finding your way through uncertainty: not every area follows the same puzzle pattern, and the enemies behave differently too. The goal remains to get every member of the group alive through the respective section.

The PC version began on Aug 11, 2022 in Steam Early Access. The full version 1.0 followed on Oct 23, 2025, including additional areas, alternative endings and a revised presentation. Native console versions followed in 2026: PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S on May 28, Nintendo Switch 2 on July 7.

Secret Mode, together with Fancy Games and Blackbird Interactive, is handling further support. Console versions already released take over the content of the PC version, without taking up separate listings for PS4, Xbox One or Switch 1.

Standalone versions are officially available for PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2. According to the publisher, the four versions support playing together across platform boundaries. The PS5 version requires a matching PlayStation Plus subscription for online co-op; on Xbox, the platform's own online requirements apply.

The Steam edition and the console versions are listed as separate native products. That players can team up across devices does not automatically mean a purchase applies on all platforms.

Players explore over 30 different Backrooms locations from a first-person perspective. Some runs require the right sequence of actions, others finding a way back or spotting dangers. Caution is often more important than direct combat: anyone who meets enemies unprepared must dodge, hide or flee.

The deliberately sparse interface and similar-looking rooms make orientation difficult. From one level to the next, not only the scenery changes but also the rules, escape options and the type of threat.

The game was expanded with additional levels and variants after launch. For December 2026, publisher Secret Mode has announced three more levels. One is called After Party and draws on an eerie party setting; the other two locations have not yet been described in detail. The expansion of the game world is an announced permanent addition, not a new base game.

A specific December date, the final level rules and a separate pricing model for these three areas have not been set in the announcement. Separately, cosmetic content is planned.

For the current Steam version, the minimum listed is Windows 10/11 64-bit, a quad-core Intel or AMD processor at 2.5 GHz, 8 GB RAM, a DirectX 11 or 12 compatible graphics card and 25 GB of free storage. Recommended are Windows 11, a Core i5-10400 or Ryzen 5 3600, 16 GB RAM and a GeForce RTX 2060 or Radeon RX 6600.

These requirements apply to the Windows version and cannot be applied to consoles or other PC operating systems.

Online co-op allows groups of up to four people. Teammates can end up in different areas, so a group does not necessarily stay together the whole time. When escaping, it matters that the other team members also reach the exit.

The built-in proximity voice chat transmits voices based on distance. It serves coordination but is part of the risk: some hostile creatures react to conversations. Secret Mode confirms crossplay between PC, PS5, Xbox Series and Switch 2.

Different hostile entities appear in different areas, and their behaviors must first be identified. Noise can attract attention; elsewhere, line of sight, timing or a safe escape route is decisive. The game therefore rewards learning each set of rules more than a single strategy for every encounter.

The characters' mental state is also a game element. According to the publisher, it can be affected by, among other things, finding exits and using supplies.

Alongside the regular sections, the game offers secret areas and alternative endings that make repeat playthroughs worthwhile. A progression system helps uncover further content. Nightmare mode changes the risk considerably: a single death restarts the run completely.

This distinguishes the harder challenge from normal exploration, where players can first get to know the layout of the levels and the enemies' reactions.

Steam lists German on-screen text and menus, among others, while full voice audio is listed there as English. The PlayStation Store also lists German as the on-screen language of the PS5 version; English voice audio is listed there.

Multiplayer voice chat has an immediate effect on gameplay. Controls and available aids may differ between PC and console; the respective platform page is authoritative for device-specific details.

PC development originally began at Fancy Games. Blackbird Interactive is also named for further development and console versions; Secret Mode handles publishing and communication. Both studios are listed as developers on the official product pages.

The Backrooms motif world is older than this game. Escape the Backrooms is a specific video game adaptation of it, not a collective term for all Backrooms games.