‘Sadly, my group was “hanged” at the end of the evening’: the politics of deservingness and representation at carceral-themed escape rooms

ABSTRACT Escape rooms are a popular new form of leisure and amusement globally, including in North American cities. Based on a thematic and discourse analysis of online content, we examine ten carceral-themed escape room operations in the United States and Canada. Drawing on theories of cultural power and neoliberalism, we analyze the messages conveyed by site operators about the deservingness of life, freedom and justice for imprisoned people. Contributing to literature on dark tourism and dark leisure, we also explore how the ideas of a ‘crime complex’ and ‘safe contact’ are reflected in representations of penality attached to escape room games. We argue that such depictions misrepresent the realities of carceral experience, producing understandings of carcerality and deservingness that foster punitive views among participants.