Here are some guidelines and tips for creating effective and fun challenges for your participants. Variety is very important.
Variety - in terms of challenge types
Variety - in terms of challenge difficulty
Create A Variety of Challenge Types
The majority of your challenges will probably be Photo Challenges. These are fairly easy for participants to do. And people like taking photos of things they see and experience.
Use Video Challenges when you want the players to capture something in motion or when you want them to record a sound or a voice. If you ask a group to perform a physical task such as jumping over an object or climbing up a tree, then use Video. For sound challenges, you could ask them to record their favorite “dad” joke. Or sing a line from their favorite song, recording their performance on video. NOTE: The time limit on video recording is 30 seconds.
Add some Info Challenges when you want to provide information, directions, or perhaps even promote a sponsor of the event. There is no actual challenge to an Info Challenge. The player just taps the green button to continue. :-)
Quiz Challenges require players to think about their surroundings and, if they’re on a team, work together to answer the quiz question correctly. These types of challenges work best when there is something specific for the participants to view, such as a statue plaque, monument or permanent marker or sign, in order to gather the correct information.
QR Code Challenges work best when the QR code can be affixed to a surface without any worry that it will be taken or tampered with. Or you can use a QR code challenge at a specific location where a staff member is available. For example, at a park office or library, the challenge description instructs the player to ask a park ranger or other personnel for access to the QR code.
GPS Challenges are most effective when you require players to get to a specific location. Once they reach the location, they will tap a button to signify they have arrived. They receive points based on how close to the GPS point they are physically standing. The radius on these challenge types can be modified but we generally recommend 300 feet.
Text Challenges can be used for a variety of purposes. If you want to capture information about your participants, such as an email address, use a Text Challenge. If you have an open-ended question, but you don’t want to provide a range of answers, then use a Text Challenge. Using a Text Challenge can increase the level of difficulty of the challenge because the player must come up with the correct answer without any prompts.
APPROVALS - Keep in mind that Photo, Video and Text Input submissions will have to be approved by the Admin(s) of your event. We’ve built in this precaution so that players cannot post inappropriate materials to the social Feed in your event which is visible by all participants.
Vary The Level of Difficulty
To start off, it’s important to have several challenges that are fairly easy to do. Most likely these will be Photo Challenges or Quiz Challenges. We estimate that at least 60% of your total challenges should be easy to complete. This will give your participants a feeling of accomplishment.
Direct your players to a specific location where they might see a monument, statue or sign, and ask them to take a selfie (of their group) in front of that object or ask them questions that they can only answer if they read the information on the sign/statue/monument.
Make sure you sprinkle in some challenges that are more difficult. Here are some examples of how to make some of your challenges more difficult:
Some challenges might require a long walk (or bike ride).
Some challenges might require some puzzling skills to figure out. Or better yet, math skills or some other two step process to solve.
Make Text Challenges difficult by making sure there is only one correct answer. And that answer has to be approved by the administrator. In our demo event, we show an example of a rebus puzzle that has only one correct answer. You can display any type of image or photo at the beginning of a challenge to prompt the player.
QR codes could be cleverly hidden, making the challenge more difficult. QR Code Challenges can be easy if the code is clearly visible or the person who has the code is easy to access. On the other hand, you can make this type of challenge more difficult by asking the participant to complete a task or ask a question of the person holding the QR code before the code is made available to scan.
Challenge Groups provide the ultimate level of difficulty because you can require players to complete one challenge before they unlock the next. Make sure to reward the players when they complete the last challenge in the Challenge Group with lots of points.
Furthermore, we have included some examples used by other Eventzee hosts in our blog. Although these examples are particular to their events, it may help you brainstorm what will work for you:
https://www.eventzeeblog.com/category/hunt-tips/testimonials/
Formatting Challenge Text
Spending a little extra time to format your challenge descriptions with bold or underlined text can help highlight key notes or requirements. You can also include line breaks to create paragraphs or include URL links that they can tap on directly within the app. Review our help guide article here to learn more: https://eventzee.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/48001171524-eventzee-app-how-to-format-text