The case of the disappearance and death of Elisa Lam at the Cecil Hotel is particularly murky due to the endless theories surrounding the tragic episode. One of the most disturbing is the one that suggests that Elisa played the so-called “Elevator Game.”
Elisa Lam’s death was officially classified as an accidental drowning, but the strange details surrounding her case attracted amateur detectives to debate this decision.
Before her body was found, police released security footage of her behaving strangely in the hotel elevator.
One of the strangest theories that emerged was that Lam was performing a ritual to transport herself to another dimension.
What is the Elevator Game?
The Elevator Game or Lift Game is an urban legend that has become extremely popular among users of YouTube, Reddit, and TikTok.
This practice originated in Korea, and the overall goal of this ritual is to try to enter another dimension if you press the elevator buttons in a specific order.
How to Play the Elevator Game
To play, you must be in a building with at least 10 floors and an elevator. You also have to play alone, and the game will only work when there is no one around who can alter the specific order of the buttons.
According to the original Korean instructions, these are the steps to play the Elevator Game:
- Take the elevator from the first floor.
- If you arrive at the fourth floor, do not get off and press the second floor.
- When you arrive at the second floor, press the sixth floor.
- When you arrive at the sixth floor, press the second floor.
- When you arrive at the second floor, press the tenth floor.
- When you arrive at the tenth floor, press the fifth floor.
- When you arrive at the fifth floor, a woman will appear. She is not a person; you must ignore her.
- When you arrive at the fifth floor, press the first floor.
- If the elevator goes up to the tenth floor, the ritual worked. If you arrive in the other dimension, the floor you will exit on will look almost identical to your own world, except for two things: all the lights will be off, and the only thing you will see from the windows is a red cross in the distance.
Some say that electronic devices do not work in this other dimension.
To return to your own world, you must press the same buttons that took you to this other dimension. If another passenger enters and wishes to use the elevator, the mission is instantly invalidated.
The creepypasta stories created based on this game often have fun with all the possibilities of the woman on the fifth floor. She can take the form of someone you know or a demonic banshee.
Supporters of the Elevator Game theory suggest that it is normal to be disoriented and confused upon returning to one’s own dimension and that Elisa, in this state of confusion, may have climbed into a water tank herself.