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Post by deadman88 on Feb 25, 2018 4:33:24 GMT -5
Hi all,
As the title suggests, my company (which is also an escape room company - Lockdown Singapore), is venturing into the monthly/bi-monthly etc subscription box product and I am in charge of designing one and if its up to standard, we will start selling it.
Hence, I would need everyone's opinion on what you guys WOULD LIKE or FEEL the general public would like/don't mind trying as I believe in the US or Europe, you guys have much more exposure to such products in the market (We are from Singapore, and not a single company is doing such subscriptions) at the moment.
A couple of ideas I have currently:
1) A story based game which accumulates over a season (maybe 8-12 months). A good example of this will be like Dispatch BUT WITH MORE PUZZLES in each box.
2) An independent portable escape box each shipment. An example of this will be Escape the Crate, where you can join in any time and each box is not really related to the next in terms of puzzle solving.
3) A story heavy driven game that is low on puzzles and more investigative work. Examples of this will be like Hunt A Killer and CosyKiller.
I would LOVE TO HEAR EVERYONE'S OPINIONS PLEASE, either PM me or add on to this thread. New ideas are also welcomed along with any suggestions to the above ideas. We are going to ship internationally also, hence, you may end up helping on a product that you yourself may receive in the future!
Thanks everyone!!
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Post by craigrj on Feb 25, 2018 4:43:43 GMT -5
I wouldn't want to comment on what the general public would like, because seeing how they voted in recent years in my country and the US shows me I'm clearly out of touch with the general public!
What *I* would prepare to back would be 1 and 3 from your list. At this point after experiencing a wide range of boxes, I have little to no interest in a done-in-one box or escape room a la Escape The Crate and MEC and Murder Mystery Box, what really gets me going is a decent narrative that builds month-on-month with stuff to do. I'm not a big fan of having an internet component to the boxes because I like each to be self-contained, doable anywhere and repeatable in the future without having to rely on websites still running or being screen scraped by someone. Price is also a key factor...especially given international posting rates.
So, to summarise the real key drivers for me:
A - A good story told over x months B - Some puzzle components C - Competitive pricing
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Post by chrisu on Feb 25, 2018 4:49:03 GMT -5
Let me just chime in and add a +1 to what craigj said.
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Post by lucasscooter on Feb 27, 2018 17:13:02 GMT -5
That's a +2 from me! Well, a +1 that combines with chrisu's +1 to form a +2, but you get my point.
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Post by Geodus on Feb 28, 2018 1:47:25 GMT -5
My preferences are probably similar to what you'll find from others here -- sensibly, because what drew us here was a certain type of experience from MPC. I agree with the previous points from craigrj and would add these of my own: 1. I like long story driven puzzles. There are quite a few standalone weekly/monthly puzzle activities that I participate in, and those are fun, but my preference is for longer connected sequences. The standalone puzzles don't really generate the same type of community that a longer narrative does, even when they are intentionally social activities (e.g. Puzzled Pint). 2. I like logic puzzles that build upon previous puzzles, whether they are linear chains or meta puzzles. Some of my best puzzle experiences have been where solving a puzzle revealed a new puzzle that was previously in plain sight, but to which I was completely oblivious. Puzzles that incorporate a previously solved puzzle in a new way are also a delight (I'm thinking of the Patent puzzle from Volume 3 as a great example of this). 3. I like puzzles where the ARG aspect extends beyond the delivered box. Many companies do this with web sites, which is fairly easy to do, but it is far more enjoyable and immersive for me when it incorporates additional media. Social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) and telephone recordings are a fun addition, but they tend to be static unless the puzzle has a specific time frame. Much more fun are interactive media, such as email accounts that respond, or phone numbers that send the player text messages. They can be creepy, but also thrilling (the word "frisson" comes to mind). 4. I like personalization. If I interact with the puzzle in some way, my experience is greatly enhanced when it incorporates something unique about me. I've often thought how cool/creepy it would have been if MPC could be supplied with a social media account link for the intended recipient of one of their experiences. Instead of a lame introduction letter trying to explain why they were getting a set of packages ("a relative you don't remember left this with to forward to you"), imagine if the company could quickly scan someone's interests/activities and come up with a plausible short connection story: (I saw you at ComicCon last July and I knew we were destined to meet someday" or "A fellow member of our T.S. Elliot fan club mentioned you to me"). People also love to hear about themselves, which is why horoscopes and online personality tests seem to be so popular. Find a way to make the experience seem truly unique by involving something unique about the player. 5. I like scoreboards. I like competition. I liked the Vaults and the idea that while I may not have been first, at least I was there before all the people who came after me. The lack of a Vault is probably the biggest reason I haven't even touched the puzzles in C&C Vol 4.
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Post by deadman88 on Feb 28, 2018 2:22:41 GMT -5
Thanks for the replies so far! The way I am seeing it, which is what I like personally as well, is a good story driven game told over several months. I am just afraid that is not what the general public wants as my friends like something short and do not have to wait so long to get the final answer (impatient folks who watch several episodes of drama one whole day just because of this reason!)
However, I will be doing something similar to Dispatch, but will not be following their story and puzzles (duh!), and seems that it is one of the top recommended games in this forum. Hence, Could I ask, what would you guys like to see improve in Dispatch so maybe I can start working on that?
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Post by marimaker on May 15, 2018 15:55:34 GMT -5
Thanks for the replies so far! The way I am seeing it, which is what I like personally as well, is a good story driven game told over several months. I am just afraid that is not what the general public wants as my friends like something short and do not have to wait so long to get the final answer (impatient folks who watch several episodes of drama one whole day just because of this reason!) However, I will be doing something similar to Dispatch, but will not be following their story and puzzles (duh!), and seems that it is one of the top recommended games in this forum. Hence, Could I ask, what would you guys like to see improve in Dispatch so maybe I can start working on that? I am not a huge fan of the puzzles in Dispatch, partially because some of them were repetitive and tedious, for example (book cipher, movie title fill-ins) and partially because a lot of them felt kind of random and not very well integrated into the story. Also I personally found their story a bit hard to follow with so many characters, but I'm sure some people feel differently about that.
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Post by distantsmoke on Jun 10, 2018 19:33:09 GMT -5
I really miss the C&C. I loved that there were puzzles in it that were not obvious at a casual glance. The thrill of the hunt and all that. Plus the adventure of seeking out answers that were uncommon. Like the raskovik (sp?). I mean, I actually learned that that I have never before encountered and I am a voracious reader of mythology and the uncommon. I also liked that the ephemera was part of the the beginning). I hope you'll let us know when you have something set up.
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