Welcome to PuzzleDrifter.com! This site was created to document the journey to complete an escape room in each of the 50 US states in 2018. Over time we’re adding more content related to escape rooms, travel, and other puzzles which can be found around the world.
Newest Posts
Atlanta, GA: Ultimate Escape Game
The difficulty of an escape room is a tough concept to nail. I had the pleasure this week to visit Ultimate Escape ...
Cantaloop: An Innovation in Paper
I recently blindly purchased a puzzle game called Cantaloop (Chapter 1: Breaking into Prison). I've played a dozen different styles ...
Buried Treasure: The Lost Ring
Not every treasure has a map. Sometimes it's the dollar you find in the pocket of your jacket. Other times, ...
ER Champ 2025 Results Are In!
ER Champ 2025 Finals are completed! The Finals, broadcast live from Sofia, Bulgaria, brought viewers a thrilling competition with only ...
TERPECA Literacy
It's almost time for another year's TERPECA results! Soon we'll have a brand new list of the world's top escape ...
Escape Room Visits
Chicago, IL: Museum of Science and Industry – James Bond Escape
An escape room at the Museum of Science and Industry- I never thought I'd return to that museum under those ...
Accidental 600th
I completed my 600th escape room. At the time, I didn't know it was my 600th escape room. C'est la ...
A Thank You to Paruzal
One of my favorite new developments in 2019-2020 was the advent of the online escape room. While businesses everywhere were ...
Bethlehem, PA: Escape.exe – Neon Tokyo (Resistance)
The last time I visited Escape.exe, in April 2021, Neon Tokyo was coming soon. After the experience I had in ...
Congrats on 200 Rooms!
What do you do for someone who reaches an escape room milestone? I periodically went out of my way to ...
Commentary
Pile of Money + Randomness = Recipe for Frustration
In many ways, it's more difficult to design a big prize treasure hunt than to design a good puzzle. Even ...
Strangers Can Be Awesome
As we're getting the Chicago escape room meetup going, it's probably a good time to talk about what makes meeting ...
Customers Always Right?
Every once in a while, I get a reminder about how the overall customer experience is more important than any ...
Advanced Puzzling: Math Imitates Puzzle
One thing I've seen that seems to be mostly loathed by lovers of escape rooms is the math puzzle, or ...
Anatomy of a Puzzle Experience: Measuring the “Aha!” Moment
I’ve been putting together a whitepaper on the mathematics behind what makes a puzzle fun to solve. What started as ...
Travel
Cruising 2024
Cruises are one of my favorite forms of travel for many reasons. The forced disconnect is perhaps the biggest one- ...
Out of This World Traveling
I usually recommend traveling without overcommitting to a specific schedule. Taking a trip on a set itinerary / path may ...
Midwest Circuit Complete!
Going into last Friday, I expected to be on a road trip from Charlotte to Chicago. Hurricane Helene blew up ...
The Best Laid Plans…
I was VERY excited about our next trip. Flying to Charlotte, North Carolina. Driving home over the course of five ...
A Weekend in Fort Lauderdale
Not gonna lie- my current trip to Fort Lauderdale started out rough. I've had a lot of fun, but there ...
Mind Games
Third Annual Masquerade Tribute Hunt – Starting March 20
The Third Annual Masquerade Tribute Hunt officially begins March 20th, but the fun has already started ...
A Thank You to Paruzal
One of my favorite new developments in 2019-2020 was the advent of the online escape room. While businesses everywhere were ...
ERChamp as a Watcher
Being part of the design team for ERChamp this year has been a unique experience- the annual online escape room ...
Great US Treasure Hunt – Milwaukee Recap
Saturday, September 3rd - There was no guarantee I was going to be able to participate in the Great US ...
Box One – What Is It?
Out of all the escape room / puzzle home games, I've seen the most hype around Box One. Produced by ...