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Smartphone Hunt: Themes, Formats & Missions
A treasure hunt is only as good as its clues, format and theme, and how well matched and appropriate they are to the group taking part.
Different groups have differing needs, so pitching a treasure hunt correctly is a skill.
One of the advantages of Smartphone treasure hunts is that you can have a say in the clues (aka Missions), format and theme if you wish - or you can leave some or all of this to our understanding of your group's needs and our experience and if you prefer.
Smartphone treasure hunt format
Smartphone treasure hunts are points-based. Each mission has an assigned points value based on its likely degree of difficulty. The objective is to get the maximum number of points possible in the time available. You can set the length of time to suit.
Apart from the customary treasure hunt on foot, participants could use one or more of public transport, private car, double decker bus, black taxi, boat/rib, bicycle, rickshaw etc to get around, largely depending on location, occasion and budget.
Smartphone treasure hunt themes
If you'd like your smartphone treasure hunt to have a theme you are free to choose your own, or we can help. X Marks The Spot defines a theme as something that runs as a thread throughout the treasure hunt, and which could appear in the missions, answers, team names and even what participants wear during the hunt!
Popular themes often relate to:
The occasion - good for hen treasure hunts, birthday treasure hunts, wedding treasure hunts and anniversary treasure hunts where the clues can be themed around the life or interests of the individual or couple celebrating - making the treasure hunt a truly personalised experience.
The group taking part - good for schools where the theme might be a particular subject or place of interest and for corporate groups where the theme could be a sales conference message, company product or job related (such as a finance or legal theme).
The time of year - Easter, Christmas or St Valentine's Day for example.
A topical event - Wimbledon tennis, Football World Cup, British Open Golf, London Olympics 2012, University boat race. Good for groups or individuals with a particular sporting interest. These themes often influence the scoring format of the treasure hunt, the missions and team names.
Specific interests of an individual or group - Star Trek, Sherlock Holmes, Celebrities, Charles Dickens, TV, Sport, Royal family, Beer, Travel, Shakespeare, History, Fashion, Ghosts, Films, Animals, Current affairs, Music and so on.
Bespoke storylines - Spies, Corporate espionage, Murder Mystery etc.
Games, TV programmes & Quiz shows - Monopoly, Scrabble, Cluedo, The Apprentice, The Chase, Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Crystal Maze, Amazing Race etc. While these can be linked to the format they can be themes in their own right too.
Some themes are particularly good for developing particular skills such as negotiating, communication, creative thinking, resourcefulness, collaboration, planning and leadership.
As you might expect, themes stimulate X Marks The Spot's creative juices and we've handled some pretty sophisticated and unusual requests.
Smartphone treasure hunt missions
If good clues lead to good treasure hunts, what do great clues lead to?
A. The treasure
B. Great treasure hunts
C. Repeat business
D. Phoning a friend for help
Smartphone treasure hunts get everyone involved through missions that require a mix of skills, knowledge and creativity to solve. From the cryptic to the seemingly obvious and from the straightforward to the downright devious, X Marks The Spot's missions are written with the specific group taking part in mind.
Our experienced mission-designers know what works and what doesn't. Depending on the group you can expect a combination of puzzles, code-breakers, cross-references, anagrams, tasks, riddles, brainteasers, crosswords, photos, poems, word games, number challenges, themed clues, interaction with the public and more.
The variety of clue types cater for the natural variations in the way different individuals think, behave and solve problems - so that the smartphone treasure hunt offers something for everyone. Can you outsmart the smartphone treasure hunt?
Smartphone Hunts
Key Features
- High-tech team building for 2 or more teams
- Available anywhere - teams can even be in different locations
- Tailored to fit your requirements, schedule and any other plans
- Runs on Apple iPhone and Android smartphones
- Managed by our event professionals
- Ideal for corporate events
- Exclusive to X Marks The Spot
- Free, no obligation quote