More puzzle ideas
100 puzzles in this category.
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A button keypad with some of the number labels worn off will also...
A button keypad with some of the number labels worn off will also show players which buttons are used most frequently.
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A mirror in which players can see "ghosts" standing or moving aro...
A mirror in which players can see "ghosts" standing or moving around behind them in the room. The ghosts' activities can provide clues regarding where things are hidden or how to operate machinery.
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A mirror that players can reach through or step through into "opp...
A mirror that players can reach through or step through into "opposite world." Players must use teamwork between the two rooms to accomplish a task.
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A mirror that turns into a painting that reveals a clue if player...
A mirror that turns into a painting that reveals a clue if players read an incantation or repeat "Bloody Mary" in front of it.
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A painting in which the subjects advance closer to the frame when...
A painting in which the subjects advance closer to the frame when players get closer to the right answer and move farther away when players get 'colder.'
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A painting in which the subjects move when players aren't looking
A painting in which the subjects move when players aren't looking. Subjects may point or turn their heads to provide clues. [Note: In a historic room where you don't want to use a computer monitor or walkie talkies as a hint system, this could be your solution.]
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A painting or an old photograph showing the room players are in w...
A painting or an old photograph showing the room players are in with a different furniture configuration; activate a switch if players rearrange the furniture to match the picture.
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A player in one room must carry out a task by following direction...
A player in one room must carry out a task by following directions provided by a second player watching from another room on a monitor.
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Activate a switch when players straighten a crooked painting
Activate a switch when players straighten a crooked painting.
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Alert players to an impending explosion or attack
Alert players to an impending explosion or attack. Require them to protect themselves when the time comes by building a protective barrier to block fire or debris or finding a secure hiding place.
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Create "windows" that show players what's going on outside the ro...
Create "windows" that show players what's going on outside the room or building; require them to use this information to track progress or solve puzzles within the room. For example, if a zombie apocalypse is underway, allowing players to witness how the zombie's behavior is changing over time may provide clues to a puzzle. [Note: Even if the things players can see outside don't help them solve puzzles, it can add to the immersive quality of the room. For example, being aware of the increasing numbers of zombies outside the "window" can add a sense of urgency.]
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Create a door that pops open if a certain action is performed els...
Create a door that pops open if a certain action is performed elsewhere in the room but latches again if players don't access it immediately. One player must perform the task that opens the door, and another must rush through it or find a way to keep it open.
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Create a door without a visible lock that only opens if players u...
Create a door without a visible lock that only opens if players use the right knock pattern.
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Create a hidden bookcase door that requires pulling the right boo...
Create a hidden bookcase door that requires pulling the right book or a nearby wall sconce to open it.
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Create a hidden door that can be found if players feel a draft co...
Create a hidden door that can be found if players feel a draft coming through the cracks around its edges; this may require holding up a lit match or lighter to see where the flame wavers.
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Create a hidden door that is only visible by the light from the n...
Create a hidden door that is only visible by the light from the next room seeping through the cracks around its edges. Players cannot find it unless they turn off the lights.
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Create a room in which the floor is a sliding tile puzzle
Create a room in which the floor is a sliding tile puzzle. Players must first figure out how to move the tiles, then solve the puzzle.
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Create a room that can only be accessed by climbing into a large...
Create a room that can only be accessed by climbing into a large drawer and being pushed through the wall by the other players.
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Create a room that is a lifesize version of a board game board
Create a room that is a lifesize version of a board game board. Players must act appropriately as pieces on the game board to reach the "end space," i.e, the other side of the room.
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Create a room with various types of tiles on the floor and a lock...
Create a room with various types of tiles on the floor and a locked door on the other side. If players simply walk across the room, nothing happens. Players must get from one side of the room to the other without stepping on certain tiles or stepping only on the correct sequence of tiles to unlock the door.
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Create an "X marks the spot" puzzle in which players can only see...
Create an "X marks the spot" puzzle in which players can only see the answer they're looking for if they stand directly on an X.
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Design a desk drawer or trunk with a secret compartment and hide...
Design a desk drawer or trunk with a secret compartment and hide something in it.
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Give players a brief glimpse of a scattered set of objects or a p...
Give players a brief glimpse of a scattered set of objects or a picture with multiple items in it. Require players to remember as many of the items as they can later in the game, [Note: Make sure you provide a clue that lets players know their memories will be tested later or allow them a second chance to view the items.]
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Give players a locked door with a key in the keyhole – but on the...
Give players a locked door with a key in the keyhole – but on the other side. In order to get the key and unlock the door, players must slide something flat, like a piece of paper or a mat, under the door so it sits below the doorknob. Then they must poke something into their side of the keyhole to push the key out, so it lands on the flat object. They can then retrieve the key by carefully pulling the flat object back to their side of the door. [Note: With a puzzle like this, you must have a backup solution prepared in case the players push the key out without something there to catch it. Unlike a video game, where players can recognize that they missed a step and go back to try again, in real life, once the key is on the floor in the next room, the first solution will never be possible again.]
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Give players a two-way radio to communicate with a commander or e...
Give players a two-way radio to communicate with a commander or extraction team. They must figure out the right password in order to get a useful response.
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Give players an object they need to complete a task in another ro...
Give players an object they need to complete a task in another room, but make it impossible to carry it through the door (for example, the door could lock every time they approach it with the object in their hands). Players must find an alternate way to move the object to the other room, such as crawling through a narrow vent or a filthy crawlspace under the floor.
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Hide a clue inside a fortune cookie
Hide a clue inside a fortune cookie.
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Hide a key in a drain
Hide a key in a drain. Players must use a magnet attached to a piece of wire to retrieve it.
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Hide a message in a snote
Hide a message in a snote.
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Hide a message in the underside of an umbrella
Hide a message in the underside of an umbrella. [Note: Another way to add immersion would be to give players "bad luck" once they've opened the umbrella to get the clue.]
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Hide a message using a red reveal technique
Hide a message using a red reveal technique.
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Hide a message within the image in a painting
Hide a message within the image in a painting.
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Hide a secret door in the back of a fireplace
Hide a secret door in the back of a fireplace. Players must crawl through the fireplace to go through it.
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Hide an object inside a skeleton's "stomach," as if it had once b...
Hide an object inside a skeleton's "stomach," as if it had once been swallowed. Players must unbutton the skeleton's shirt and reach between its bones to retrieve the object.
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Hide plastic Easter eggs or other objects that easily break open...
Hide plastic Easter eggs or other objects that easily break open around the room. Place slips of paper with message fragments inside them. Players must find them all to complete the message.
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If appropriate for your theme, write coded messages in fictional...
If appropriate for your theme, write coded messages in fictional alphabets.
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If players blow powder on a button keypad, the powder will stick...
If players blow powder on a button keypad, the powder will stick to the buttons that have the most oil on them.
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If you have a prison cell or enclosure with bars players can reac...
If you have a prison cell or enclosure with bars players can reach through, require players to reach through and unlock the door backwards using a mirror.
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Include a pet door and allow players to hear a cat or dog "outside
Include a pet door and allow players to hear a cat or dog "outside." If players push a bowl of cat or dog food through the pet door and wait, they'll find that the food is gone and in its place is a collar with a note attached when they retrieve the bowl later.
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Include key pieces of information in conversations carried on by...
Include key pieces of information in conversations carried on by actors (or a recording of actors) on the other side of a door or wall.
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Inform players that they have a limited amount of air
Inform players that they have a limited amount of air. Require them to make it into another room within a certain amount of time (depending on the complexity of the puzzles in the first room, this could be anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes) or they forfeit the game.
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Leave a blank notepad on a desk
Leave a blank notepad on a desk. Players must scribble lightly with a pencil on the top page of a notepad to reveal the note that had been written on the page above it.
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Let players know there is another prisoner in the next room
Let players know there is another prisoner in the next room. Have the prisoner send them messages using tap code. [Note: Many players will be unfamiliar with this code. Make sure you provide a key to deciphering the messages and let them hear any critical messages enough times to solve the puzzle.]
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Lock each player in a separate room with its own set of puzzles
Lock each player in a separate room with its own set of puzzles. Once players escape from their private rooms, they must all work together to escape the central room. [Note: A game like this can allow for repeat visits, since each individual room has a unique set of puzzles.]
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Make a clue part of the design on the floor or carpet, so it can...
Make a clue part of the design on the floor or carpet, so it can only be read if players climb on a ladder or otherwise view it from a high vantage point.
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Make the back panel of a closet a door that opens when another ta...
Make the back panel of a closet a door that opens when another task is completed in the room; players must return to the closet to realize it has opened.
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Make the first puzzle the players must solve figuring out how to...
Make the first puzzle the players must solve figuring out how to ask for hints. Players must successfully interact with the game master to complete the task.
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Or, similar to Item 36, program a desk drawer to remain locked un...
Or, similar to Item 36, program a desk drawer to remain locked until players knock on the right spot on the desk surface.
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Place a computer or tablet in the room that takes players to a ro...
Place a computer or tablet in the room that takes players to a room-specific website you've created. Place clues in the website text and images.
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Place a dispenser (such as a cigarette, soda, or snack machine) i...
Place a dispenser (such as a cigarette, soda, or snack machine) in the room that contains something players need (for example, a bottle of water to use in another puzzle). Players must find a coin or slug to access the object. Alternately, players must find another way to access the object. [Note: Make sure the machine is bolted to the floor to prevent players from accidentally pulling it over on themselves while trying to get the object out.]
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Place a whiteboard or chalkboard in the room with notes or equati...
Place a whiteboard or chalkboard in the room with notes or equations all over it. Players must erase the chalk or dry erase ink from the board to reveal a message written in permanent ink.
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Place an ancient research diary (à la Professor Jones' diary) in...
Place an ancient research diary (à la Professor Jones' diary) in the room. Hide cryptic clues throughout the notes scribbled within.
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Place instructions somewhere in the room, but rip off the bottom...
Place instructions somewhere in the room, but rip off the bottom section, so the instructions are incomplete. Hide the bottom section as a charred piece of paper that falls from the chimney if players open the flue in the fireplace (as if someone tried to burn the paper, and it flew up into the chimney before it was completely destroyed).
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Players in an art gallery must replicate the poses of statues
Players in an art gallery must replicate the poses of statues.
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Provide an 8mm or 16mm film projector and a reel of film; players...
Provide an 8mm or 16mm film projector and a reel of film; players must use the projector to watch the film. [Note: Many players may not know how to thread film through a projector. Make sure you include instructions somewhere in the room.]
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Provide an extremely quiet audible clue that can only be heard in...
Provide an extremely quiet audible clue that can only be heard in complete silence; players must stop talking and listen carefully to hear it.
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Provide clues through snatches of sound coming through the static...
Provide clues through snatches of sound coming through the static from a radio or television.
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Provide solved number puzzles with incorrect answers; require pla...
Provide solved number puzzles with incorrect answers; require players to recognize which answers are wrong and use those numbers as a combination.
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Provide the combination in a Chinese takeout menu with certain me...
Provide the combination in a Chinese takeout menu with certain meal numbers circled.
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Put players in a room that gets colder or warmer over time
Put players in a room that gets colder or warmer over time. Players must figure out how to stabilize the temperature.
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Put players in a room that gets smaller over time (for example, t...
Put players in a room that gets smaller over time (for example, the walls gradually move in or the ceiling slowly lowers). Players must figure out how to either stop the room from contracting or escape before they're "crushed."
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Require players to figure out how to access and watch digital "ca...
Require players to figure out how to access and watch digital "captain's logs" or a "distress signal" from a spaceship or space station.
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Require players to reach into a tub or sink basin filled with dis...
Require players to reach into a tub or sink basin filled with disgusting water to retrieve a key or clue.
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Require players to reach through cobwebs, bugs, or something slim...
Require players to reach through cobwebs, bugs, or something slimy to get a key or a clue.
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Require players to slide a painting sideways to find something be...
Require players to slide a painting sideways to find something behind it.
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Require players to use a container to retrieve filthy water from...
Require players to use a container to retrieve filthy water from a tub or sink basin and use it to solve another puzzle (such as causing a key to float to the top of a tube that's too small to reach into).
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Send players a coded message, then require them to code a respons...
Send players a coded message, then require them to code a response and send it back. Later in the game, their success at this task may impact their success with another puzzle (e.g., the later puzzle is much harder – but not impossible – if they failed to correctly send their message early in the game).
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Send players into the future with a time travel device and requir...
Send players into the future with a time travel device and require them to figure out how to set it to return to the current time.
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Send players into the future with a time travel machine and requi...
Send players into the future with a time travel machine and require them to figure out how to repair it using tools that have not yet been invented.
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Set up a task that requires players to use a lot of electricity
Set up a task that requires players to use a lot of electricity. Use the sound of a thunderstorm "outside" to alert them to the presence of lightning and require them to enable a lightning rod to access the power.
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Shut the lights in the room off and then on again
Shut the lights in the room off and then on again. Change something in the room every time the lights are off. Players must recognize what has changed.
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Similar to Idea 4, use a postcard decoder to hide a message
Similar to Idea 4, use a postcard decoder to hide a message.
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Similar to Idea 42, players must adjust statue poses (move their...
Similar to Idea 42, players must adjust statue poses (move their arms, legs, and heads) to match images they're provided.
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Straight out of LOST: Give players a computer keyboard and requir...
Straight out of LOST: Give players a computer keyboard and require them to type a series of numbers in at regular intervals to avoid catastrophe.
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Supply players with a flashlight that has no batteries
Supply players with a flashlight that has no batteries. Elsewhere supply them with a clock or other object that uses the same type of batteries. Players must recognize that they need to remove the batteries from one object and use them in the other.
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Supply players with a lantern that's almost out of oil or a flash...
Supply players with a lantern that's almost out of oil or a flashlight with dying batteries. Require them to make it into another room before they run out of light. [Note: If they do run out of light, you have the option of forcing them to forfeit the game or allowing them to continue to play in the dark, perhaps with a sliver of light seeping in through a "window." Or you can tell them they've been eaten by a grue.]
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To make Idea 49 more challenging, give players a reel of film tha...
To make Idea 49 more challenging, give players a reel of film that's missing a critical section. Hide the section elsewhere and require players to splice the missing piece into the film to watch the whole thing.
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To make Idea 66 more challenging, make one of the pieces of furni...
To make Idea 66 more challenging, make one of the pieces of furniture broken or missing, requiring players to find a substitute to place in that spot.
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To make Idea 83 more challenging, fill the room with a loud noise...
To make Idea 83 more challenging, fill the room with a loud noise, such as water rushing over a dam or a constantly bleating alarm. Require players to figure out how to shut off the noise (open the dam, shut off the alarm, etc.).
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To make Idea 87 more challenging, require players to respond usin...
To make Idea 87 more challenging, require players to respond using tap code.
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To make Item 33 more challenging, require players to remove a pai...
To make Item 33 more challenging, require players to remove a painting's hanging wire to retrieve the key.
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Use a book series (the kind that has numbers on the spines) and d...
Use a book series (the kind that has numbers on the spines) and draw a diagonal line across the bottoms of the books. Players must stack the books so the line is straight, then use the numbers on the spines as a combination.
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Use a cryptic code to provide the correct on-off configuration fo...
Use a cryptic code to provide the correct on-off configuration for circuit breakers in a breaker box.
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Use a mask technique to reveal a hidden message
Use a mask technique to reveal a hidden message.
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Use a scytale cipher to hide a message
Use a scytale cipher to hide a message.
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Use the NATO phonetic alphabet to create a message
Use the NATO phonetic alphabet to create a message.
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Use the smell of cigarette smoke to alert players to an approachi...
Use the smell of cigarette smoke to alert players to an approaching guard or other non-player character.
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Use the sound of thunder outside the room to indicate the right t...
Use the sound of thunder outside the room to indicate the right time to perform a task. For example, players may need to perform a loud action that they don't want the guards outside the room to hear.
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Write a combination in invisible ink on the bottom of the box con...
Write a combination in invisible ink on the bottom of the box containing the lock.
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Write a combination on the inside of a lamp shade
Write a combination on the inside of a lamp shade.
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Write a message on something tiny and require players to use a mi...
Write a message on something tiny and require players to use a microscope to read it.
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Write a message on the back of a painting
Write a message on the back of a painting.
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More puzzle ideasbuild a musical instrument out of objects found in the room and u...
Players must build a musical instrument out of objects found in the room and use it to play a specific melody.
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figure out how to turn an old, beat up radio on (they may need to...
Players must figure out how to turn an old, beat up radio on (they may need to "repair" it first) and tune it to the right frequency to hear auditory clues.
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program a robot to perform a task they cannot do themselves
Players must program a robot to perform a task they cannot do themselves.
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reach behind the top drawer of a desk or file cabinet to retrieve...
Players must reach behind the top drawer of a desk or file cabinet to retrieve items in locked drawer below it.
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repair an electronic device by correctly configuring dip switches
Players must repair an electronic device by correctly configuring dip switches.
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swap out an object with something of equal weight
Players must swap out an object with something of equal weight.
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use a litmus test to analyze a solution
Players must use a litmus test to analyze a solution. [Note: Some players may not know what a litmus test is. Make sure you include an explanation and instructions somewhere in the room.]
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More puzzle ideaswind a grandfather clock
Players must wind a grandfather clock. [Note: Many people today may not know how to wind grandfather clock, so you might need to hide instructions elsewhere in the room.]
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