Short Update – It’s Gone!
Last week I shared some thoughts based on discovering that a murder mystery game I left at a Little Free Library remained unused. I need to update the takeaways on that, because this week, it was gone!
Articles by Brian Gondek
Low Interest, or Wrong Place?
I’ve mentioned a few times about my experiment of dropping off puzzle games at various locations and seeing if I can get a few responses from people who pick them up. Early signs are in… and they’re weak!
Balatro: A Puzzling Timekiller
Have you heard of Balatro? If not, I can’t wait to share with you about the best timekiller of the last decade.
Flying Road Trip: A to B
Travel tip: Don’t rule out a journey that doesn’t come full circle.
Frontier Airlines – Is GoWild for You?
When booking a flight recently, I saw a tremendously intriguing option. Frontier Airlines offers a “GoWild” pass promising unlimited flights for the next 1.25 years for only $349/year!
ERChamp 2026 Theme Released!
As you’re probably aware by now, I’m a member of the design team for the Escape Room World Championship, and every year, thousands of solvers from dozens of countries compete to be the best at solving a series of themed puzzles. What you may not know is that the 2026 theme was just released!
Catch and Release Puzzles
I mentioned new projects this year, and here’s a little one – a utility for tracking puzzles and games I release into the wild. I’ve dropped games and puzzle books off to Little Free Libraries before, and now I’ve added a fun way to learn a little more about where these games wind up.
From the Ashes
I stumbled across a double-faceted delight recently. I’m always excited to see new escape rooms open, and to my surprise and delight, a new business called “City Limits Escape” in Volo, IL showed up on the map. After combing through social media a bit, it seems that there’s a twist to this surprise- City Limits is bringing back the games from City 13 Escape!
MIT Mystery Hunt 2026
MIT Mystery Hunt 2026 is live! The notorious puzzle hunt is a crown jewel of the world’s greatest puzzling events. Teams of the worlds best puzzlers get together and work around the clock to be the fastest to complete an extensive series of some of the world’s most complex puzzles.
New Year, New Projects
There’s a lot to look forward to in 2026. I’ve already kicked off some fun new adventures, some of which I can talk about, some of which I can’t. Regarding the things I can share: