This week, I’m chatting with Keith Dozois, the twisted mind behind the horror puzzle series USB Escape. An escape room enthusiast with a passion for horror and a flair for intricate mysteries, he released his first game, The Knott Family Chronicles: Owen Knott, back in 2020. The highly anticipated follow-up, Clementine, is scheduled for release later this year.
(Meet Your Maker is an interview series featuring creators of puzzle and mystery games and experiences from across the globe. We aim to shine a spotlight on both established creators and those who are just setting out on their journey. Stay tuned for more interviews coming soon.)
Could you please begin by introducing yourself?
Greetings, my name is Keith Dozois, the person behind USB Escape. I started this take-home escape room business in 2020 at the height of the pandemic. I am from just outside of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. By day, I work at a University doing boring things, and by night, I work designing escape rooms and doing very ‘not boring’ things.
The Knott Family Chronicles: Owen Knott was your first game. For those who don’t know, what is it about?
The Knott Family Chronicles: Owen Knott is an escape room game that takes place entirely on a USB stick. It has 8 puzzles and multiple hidden elements to discover. It holds between 3.5 to 4 hours of gameplay in total. The story follows Owen Knott as he returns to his family home to prepare for the sale after his mother’s death. It is an in-depth story that has you sifting through photos, videos, audio files and emails to discover what really happened to Owen’s mother. Fans of horror escape rooms will enjoy its deeply narrative nature.
What was your inspiration?
I have always been inspired by internet rabbit holes like Cicada 3301, Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared, Lasagna Cat and PetsCop. I have a deep appreciation for ARGs and wanted to replicate elements from some of my favourites like One Day Die, The Beast, and The Jejune Institute. Most of my horror inspiration came from films like Hell House LLC, The Platform, and Saw.
Was it always intended to be a one-off game?
Not quite. It was initially planned as a three-part series, with the perspective shifting to the sister and then a prequel involving the mother. I had the second season all ready to go, but found myself more interested in the easter eggs than the actual core game. I knew it was time to kill my darlings. But I still have the footage, so I suspect I will try again very soon.
I’m sure you get asked a lot – why did you choose to make it available exclusively in a physical format?
You are right, I do get that a lot. The answer to this question is rather simple and it has two elements. I love the idea of having a memento, something strange to plug into your computer. Something almost wrong that you know you shouldn’t do but are too curious not to attempt. The second reason is that I figured if someone hated the game, they could just delete the files and have a useful USB stick available for office work or whatnot.
A cool feature is the ability to personalise the game. How does this work, and have you had any crazy customisation requests?
During checkout, you can add special requests. If you are gifting the game, you can send a personalized letter, or you can have it addressed to yourself.
I had one person buy the game for his wife. We had coordinated it so that he sent me a photo of a book from their library in which he had inscribed a creepy personal message. I found that same book at a used bookstore and copied his handwriting as best as I could. I shot a video of myself writing in the book and included it in the game. Later on, I heard that the wife got freaked out when she was playing her fun little horror escape room game and got up to find that she had a personalized message in her own house.
What lessons did you learn from your first game?
How much time do you have? I learned so much, and I am still learning more every time I sit down to work on my upcoming game. The biggest lesson that I learned is that the escape room community is the most kind and generous community you will ever come across. If you are making your first game, reach out. We want to help!
You collaborated with Scarlet Envelope for one of the games in their series, ‘Dinner with Anonymous’. How was it working with Anna & Lisa?
Anna & Lisa are certifiable geniuses; end of story. They had shown me a puzzle they were tinkering with on one of the many occasions I went over to collaborate with them. The puzzle was so good that it made me mad. I literally got upset because I knew that if I were given a million years, I would not have come up with something as good as that one puzzle. So, I guess you could say I do enjoy collaborating with them.
Were you involved with it from conception, or enlisted at a later point to add something particular?
They had a vision of what they wanted. Neither of them was particularly engrossed with horror or pushing the boundaries of the creepiness of an escape room game. I supported from more of a narrative perspective while providing puzzle suggestions, some of which stuck while others got axed.
For example, we were talking about their next game, Game IX: Ashes of Persepolis. They were struggling with making the tarot cards work for the particular puzzle they wanted. I suggested making the tarot cards triangular, and it worked perfectly. They have good ideas, and I give some good nudges, but they really are the brains behind the operation.
Also, I am the voice of the drunk wizard in one of their games…
Are you eyeing any dream collaborators for future projects?
I would work with Scarlet Envelope again in a heartbeat. They moved about 5 hours away, so it is harder just to stop by and help out.
There are a few creators that I am in talks with, which I’m not ready to expand on more at the moment. I will say I am really hoping to collaborate on an extremely immersive project with a local creator who is criminally underrated. I am certain that won’t be the case for much longer.
Your latest game, Clementine, is coming very soon. How long have you been working on it?
This game has many parts of my soul in it. The short answer is one year, but it includes elements from The Knott Family Chronicles: Allie (the planned second game in the series). So, all in all, I have been working on it for the past 5 years. I know, I know… this game needs to be released already. It’s coming, I swear.
Would people benefit from playing The Knott Family Chronicles: Owen Knott before Clementine, or are they completely unrelated?
They take place in the same universe. So playing one will give you the vibe, but nothing more, but please play Clementine when it comes out!
Will the game be in the same USB format?
You can expect the same USB stick goodness and format of play; however, everything has been upgraded. The video quality is better, the script is tighter, the photos are higher quality, the acting is better, and the puzzles are so so so much more rewarding!
I know that you enjoy playing puzzle games in your spare time. What are some of your all-time favourites?
Have to shout out Scarlet Envelope again. Their games are amazing. I love anything by PostCurious as well as Crack-A-Nut Mysteries. Deadbolt Mystery Society makes games that are amazing but very expensive to import into Canada (not so subtle hint to that company). Finally, I will play any game made by DeckScape. As far as mass-market escape room games go, they are the best.
If you had to pick the perfect companion game for USB Escape, what would it be and why?
I would just be happy to know that someone went out and supported another small escape room designer. There are a ton out there, so the best game to play after any escape room game is another! Especially if it is a game from a smaller designer. If you want a real answer, check out Curios: Albrecht Manor.
And when you aren’t playing and designing puzzles, what else do you like to get up to?
I have a deep desire to take on many hobbies. I have learnt that I work best when I have fewer hobbies to distract me from priorities like escape room design. To keep things simple, I purposefully only have three things I do outside of work and sleep: the gym, escape room design, and playing board games. Any more than this and I start to lose my focus on what is important.
Any final words?
I am so thankful for anyone who participates in this dream of mine to design escape rooms. Whether you buy my games, like my social media posts, chat with me online or in person, or even read this interview, you mean the world to me. Support for what I’m doing gets me out of bed every morning, and it means more than you’ll ever know. Thank you for being here.
Thank you!
Thanks so much to Keith for agreeing to this interview. I had a blast playing The Knott Family Chronicles: Owen Knott, so on a personal note, I am beyond hyped about the release of Clementine. If you haven’t played this game yourself and you enjoy horror, a captivating mystery and puzzles, then you should definitely check it out. Supporting independent creators is more important than ever, given the current economic climate, and Keith’s games are very affordable. So if you can afford it, please dive in!
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