{"data":{"id":"f45ee46c-5ef3-49df-81c8-8e9f7c21fcaf","originKind":"SYNDICATED","title":"A shadow looms over Fort Edmonton Park in newest escape room game","summary":"A hooded figure walks slowly down 1885 Street, horns and branches sticking out from a mask. His cadre of hooded minions have already disappeared into a nearby building, to emerge later in order to harass and horrify players at When Shadows Lies.\n\nIt’s the next chapter in the horror outdoor escape room at Fort Edmonton Park, which launched earlier in June, a follow up to the incredibly popular Where Dark Things Dwell.\n\nFans of the original are getting a chance to continue with the story they loved in two games per night through Sept. 12. Teams of four tackle a series of puzzles while trying to avoid the horrors of the night, armed with only a lantern to battle the darkness and their wits to help them solve the curse.\n\nThere’s a curse at the park? It’s all part of the game that ran for three years starting in 2023, taken to the next step. The new game, When Shadows Lie, continues the same story but moves it ahead 200 years.\n\n“The impetus for doing this sequel came from the players, from the fans. We got a lot of feedback from players wanting to play it again, but it’s not possible,” says Kevin Parnell, head of Creative Production for Secret City.\n\nThe Ontario-based company brought the Where Dark Things Dwell to Fort Edmonton Park, adapting a game they were already running for the Edmonton location. They run escape room games at historic parks throughout the country, mostly in Ontario but with an increasing reach to other provinces.\n\nWhen Shadows Lie features Riley Wilde and Cameron Doyle, descendants of protagonists from the original game. The new setting moves forward two centuries and players’ friends have to solve puzzles, uncover hidden relics, decipher occult writings and work to lift the curse once more.\n\nThe team at Secret City have incorporated the buildings at Fort Edmonton Park, theming puzzles for their location and using the dark, eerie corners to hide a few surprises. The new game fits perfectly with the old, creaky and dark buildings that line the street.\n\n“If you go into those spaces at night it’s inherently scary. Some of the buildings tend to be haunted as well,” says Kaitlin Way, Creative Producer and Game Designer with Secret City. “When you get to add in actors who are great at scaring people, it gets you thinking creatively.”\n\nThe popularity of the last three years has led to a new type of game from Secret City, with teams divided between the two protagonists at the opening. It’s two different paths to explore, providing that re-playability for fans looking to come back later in the year. The ending will be the same, but a second playthrough will reveal the other half of the story along with new puzzles.\n\nSophie Ogaranko played Riley on a recent June evening, leading players through the story and helping them when they hit a wall. She’s a history major at the University of Alberta, going into her third year of working with the escape room games at the park.\n\n“I was a really quiet, nervous person coming into this. But it’s really helped me just interact with people, being more comfortable, starting conversations, and I’ve just really enjoyed helping people in a really unique way,” says Ogaranko.\n\nShe’s one of a half-dozen actors performing every night, rotating through the roles so more people will get a chance to take on the protagonist role over the course of the summer. But it also means Ogaranko will don a mask and cloak, moving through the shadows to terrify players “just go wherever and have so much fun,” she says with a smile.\n\nReaction has been positive so far, with more than 80 per cent of tickets sold for the month of June. Interest has been high for the games scheduled for later in the fall, late August and early September dates where the park is shrouded in real darkness earlier in the evening.\n\n“It’s a really fun way to interact with this heritage space. So it kind of was just born out of lots of people asking for it, and Secret City had been thinking about it,” says Sam Stralak, Event Experience Program Manager for Fort Edmonton Park. “This is like the first really public trial for it.”\n\nSecret City will eventually bring the new two-stream story to other historic locations they work with, but for now it’s only at Fort Edmonton Park where the darkness creeps in and escape room enthusiasts can try their hand puzzles to see if they can help lift the curse.\n\nWhen Shadows Lie When: Thru Sept. 12, Wednesday through Sunday, games at 6 and 8:30 p.m.\n\nWhere: Fort Edmonton Park, 7000 143 St.\n\nTickets: $35 per person or $140 for a group of four\n\nRelated Review: Much is definitely ado as Freewill Shakespeare Festival makes triumphant Hawrelak return\n\nEdmonton writer breaks new ground with picture book for seniors with dementia","url":"https://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/fort-edmonton-park-when-shadows-lie-escape-room","imageUrl":"https://smartcdn.gprod.postmedia.digital/edmontonjournal/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/20260619db011.ej_303874278.jpg","publishedAt":"2026-06-24T15:56:57.000Z","sourceLabel":"Edmonton Journal Music","tags":["Entertainment","Local Arts","Theatre"],"authorName":"Justin Bell","contentHtml":"\"Cursed

A hooded figure walks slowly down 1885 Street, horns and branches sticking out from a mask. His cadre of hooded minions have already disappeared into a nearby building, to emerge later in order to harass and horrify players at When Shadows Lies.

It’s the next chapter in the horror outdoor escape room at Fort Edmonton Park, which launched earlier in June, a follow up to the incredibly popular Where Dark Things Dwell.

Fans of the original are getting a chance to continue with the story they loved in two games per night through Sept. 12. Teams of four tackle a series of puzzles while trying to avoid the horrors of the night, armed with only a lantern to battle the darkness and their wits to help them solve the curse.

There’s a curse at the park? It’s all part of the game that ran for three years starting in 2023, taken to the next step. The new game, When Shadows Lie, continues the same story but moves it ahead 200 years.

“The impetus for doing this sequel came from the players, from the fans. We got a lot of feedback from players wanting to play it again, but it’s not possible,” says Kevin Parnell, head of Creative Production for Secret City.

The Ontario-based company brought the Where Dark Things Dwell to Fort Edmonton Park, adapting a game they were already running for the Edmonton location. They run escape room games at historic parks throughout the country, mostly in Ontario but with an increasing reach to other provinces.

When Shadows Lie features Riley Wilde and Cameron Doyle, descendants of protagonists from the original game. The new setting moves forward two centuries and players’ friends have to solve puzzles, uncover hidden relics, decipher occult writings and work to lift the curse once more.

The team at Secret City have incorporated the buildings at Fort Edmonton Park, theming puzzles for their location and using the dark, eerie corners to hide a few surprises. The new game fits perfectly with the old, creaky and dark buildings that line the street.

“If you go into those spaces at night it’s inherently scary. Some of the buildings tend to be haunted as well,” says Kaitlin Way, Creative Producer and Game Designer with Secret City. “When you get to add in actors who are great at scaring people, it gets you thinking creatively.”

\"

The popularity of the last three years has led to a new type of game from Secret City, with teams divided between the two protagonists at the opening. It’s two different paths to explore, providing that re-playability for fans looking to come back later in the year. The ending will be the same, but a second playthrough will reveal the other half of the story along with new puzzles.

Sophie Ogaranko played Riley on a recent June evening, leading players through the story and helping them when they hit a wall. She’s a history major at the University of Alberta, going into her third year of working with the escape room games at the park.

“I was a really quiet, nervous person coming into this. But it’s really helped me just interact with people, being more comfortable, starting conversations, and I’ve just really enjoyed helping people in a really unique way,” says Ogaranko.

She’s one of a half-dozen actors performing every night, rotating through the roles so more people will get a chance to take on the protagonist role over the course of the summer. But it also means Ogaranko will don a mask and cloak, moving through the shadows to terrify players “just go wherever and have so much fun,” she says with a smile.

Reaction has been positive so far, with more than 80 per cent of tickets sold for the month of June. Interest has been high for the games scheduled for later in the fall, late August and early September dates where the park is shrouded in real darkness earlier in the evening.

“It’s a really fun way to interact with this heritage space. So it kind of was just born out of lots of people asking for it, and Secret City had been thinking about it,” says Sam Stralak, Event Experience Program Manager for Fort Edmonton Park. “This is like the first really public trial for it.”

Secret City will eventually bring the new two-stream story to other historic locations they work with, but for now it’s only at Fort Edmonton Park where the darkness creeps in and escape room enthusiasts can try their hand puzzles to see if they can help lift the curse.

When Shadows Lie

When: Thru Sept. 12, Wednesday through Sunday, games at 6 and 8:30 p.m.

Where: Fort Edmonton Park, 7000 143 St.

Tickets: $35 per person or $140 for a group of four

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