The script is surely familiar to those who have experienced an escape room. Most typically, the door is locked, the countdown commences and participants have 1 hour in which to escape using only their wits, each other and the objects in the room.
But the game turned into harsh reality recently for one 15-year old girl from Nanjing who suffered a palm fracture while playing, leading her to file a lawsuit against the venue and demand compensation.
On the afternoon of 21 April, the first case of compensation for personal injury caused by underage, private-room entertainment in Jiangsu was publicly heard in the Qinhuai District Court of Nanjing.
The case dates back to 28 August of last year, when the junior-high-school student, who cannot be named for legal reasons, bought tickets on Dianping for an escape room in Nanjing’s Xinjiekou with five classmates.
The game in question, called “Scary Electric Saw Escape”, is said to contain “severe horror” and be only suitable for “advanced players”.
Therein, an NPC (Non-Player Character) takes on the role of a “chainsaw madman”, chasing players and creating a terrifying atmosphere.
During the game, the lawsuit’s plaintiff was injured while propping her hand against a door to resist the NPC’s entry. She subsequently spent more than ¥11,000 on medical expenses.
The plaintiff seeks ¥36,059.63 for treatment and associated expenses, plus ¥5,000 in emotional comfort, as The Paper reports.
During the trial, the plaintiff’s lawyer stated their position, believing the content of the game that is the NPC playing the role of the chainsaw madman is dark, scary and unsuitable for underage participants.
Moreover, the lawyer argued that venues which are aware of safety hazards in the games they offer but do not make it mandatory for players to wear a full set of protective equipment are negligent in allowing dangerous situations to occur.
Countering, the defendant argued there is no specific standard for determining the age of players and that they must rely solely on visual inspection.
The defendant believes that, given the plaintiff is a 15-year old child with a certain understanding of the dangers present in the game, their parents also have a guardianship responsibility thereto.
Thus, they claim, it is unreasonable for the venue to assume full responsibility.
Commenting on the case, Tu Yong, a representative of Nanjing’s Qinhuai District People’s Congress and a director of Shanghai Haihua Yongtai (Nanjing) Law Firm, said that the case inevitably sparked everyone’s thinking.
Tu advocates that those participating in escape rooms should be authenticated by real name and transparency measures be implemented so that players are aware of the potential risks in playing such games.
A verdict in the case is scheduled for a later date.