Level99 officially marked its arrival at Disney Springs West Side today with a ribbon cutting ceremony and media sneak peek, ahead of its public opening on Monday, June 29.
In a nod to the venue's signature Axe Run game, the traditional scissors were swapped out for a ceremonial axe — fabricated by the Level99 team in Massachusetts. Level99 Founder and CEO Matt DuPlessie, Chairman of the Board Ron Shaich, and Disney Springs Vice President Debbie Hart and Megan Crosby, Vice President, Operating Participants, Walt Disney Company cut the ribbon together. DuPlessie then stepped straight onto the Axe Run course, becoming the first player to run it at the new venue.
WDWMAGIC was on-site for the event and will have a full playtest overview and review coming soon.
Speaking at the ceremony, DuPlessie reflected on the origins of Level99 and what the Disney Springs opening means to him personally — and for Disney fans, his background makes the partnership particularly fitting.
Before founding Level99, DuPlessie helped pioneer the modern escape room industry and later ran a design and production company whose clients included the Smithsonian and Walt Disney Imagineering. He also began his career in Orlando, with his first major project being Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge.
"This is a full circle moment for our team," he said. "I started my career back in Orlando — my first major project in the industry 26 years ago."
DuPlessie described Level99 as a direct response to the dominance of digital entertainment. "We want to create places where people put down their phones, they get up off the couch, and they play together," he said. "People crave real experiences. We believe they want real space with real people, real fun."
He added that the team brainstormed thousands of ideas over multiple years to develop 75 unique challenges in the portfolio, with 63 of those now installed at Disney Springs — the most of any Level99 venue. Level99 designs and builds all its games in-house at a production facility in Massachusetts and continues to rotate new games into its venues on a regular basis.
On the Disney partnership specifically, DuPlessie said it carried real meaning. "It was an extraordinary moment of validation when the world's leader in home entertainment approached us and invited us to come here," he said. "Disney and Level99 share the same DNA — creating amazing experiences that bring people together and deliver moments of discovery, thrill, and joy."
Ron Shaich, Chairman of the Board and lead investor through Act III Holdings — who also founded Panera Bread and currently chairs Cava — spoke to what drew him to Level99.
"This is not another arcade or an escape room," Shaich said. "Level99 is creating an entirely new category of entertainment. People are not just watching something happen — they're in the game, they are of the game, and they are part of the game."
Shaich said he sees the Disney Springs venue as just the beginning. "I believe we are still in the early chapters of the Level99 story," he said, noting that the company plans to open a new location roughly every four months.
Level99 now has four locations open, with four more under construction in West Hartford, Conn., King of Prussia, Pa., Paramus, N.J., and Raleigh, N.C.
Disney Springs VP Debbie Hart and VP of Operating Participants Megan Crosby both spoke at the ceremony, recounting how the Disney team first discovered Level99 on a visit to the Boston-area location.
"When we walked into that space, we knew we found something special," Hart said.
Crosby described how the visit went well beyond their planned schedule. "We started our day with Level99," she said. "We canceled all our plans. We skipped our dinner. We called Matt and team back and said we're coming back." The pair said they stayed until the lights went out.
"We are super fans," Crosby added, "and I know you will be too."
Inside Level99
The Disney Springs venue spans more than 46,000 square feet in the former NBA Experience building on the West Side, next to the Cirque du Soleil Drawn to Life theater and across from House of Blues. It is the largest Level99 location to date.
Highlights include:
- 63 life-sized physical and mental mini-games across two floors
- Three ways to play: cooperative Challenge Rooms, head-to-head Player-vs-Player Duels, and an interactive art scavenger hunt
- A two-story bar at the center of the venue
- More than 40 original art installations — the largest collection across all Level99 locations
- A full scratch kitchen serving Detroit-style pizza, wagyu burgers, handcrafted cocktails, and local craft beer
At check-in, players receive an RFID-powered Veloband that unlocks all 63 games. Games are included in the ticket price and can be played in any order, as many times as you like, within your time window. Level99 saves player progress across visits and across all locations.
Tickets start at $29.99 for a 1.5-hour session, with a 2.5-hour option also available. A Premium Pass Upgrade ($19.99) adds expedited check-in, a limited edition Veloband, 10% off merchandise, and an exclusive pin. The first 500 players on opening day will also receive a commemorative pin.
Tickets are on sale now at Level99.com.
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