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!
Now, there aren’t a lot of data points to cover, but the limited signs I have aren’t that exciting.
First and foremost, I left a murder mystery game at a mall’s Little Free Library. Almost a week later, I revisit the mall, and the game is still there! It looks like someone opened it up to look inside but didn’t take it.
Second, zero responses on the form I set up for people to share where they found the games. I was hoping for at least one at this point!
There are a few different explanations, and I’m curious in which factors play the strongest role.
I’m picking the wrong places.
A library puzzle nook and a Little Free Library aren’t typically places for puzzle games. People go to both of those places to solve a specific need – to find a jigsaw puzzle, or to swap a book (typically for a child). I thought at least one person on each of those journeys would be interested in a puzzle or mystery game, but that may have been an inaccurate assumption.
The games are too niche for the locations.
Jigsaw puzzles and books are universal. Murder mystery or puzzle games require an extra layer to even understand what it is let alone express interest in it enough to pick it up and take it.
Even if people pick up the games, logging the discovery is a high effort step.
It’s hard enough finding time to take surveys from trusted businesses, let alone unknown websites. The effort to scan the QR code, evaluate whether or not the page is trustworthy, and enter a note is quite high.
This experiment is far from over. I’m going to keep dropping off a variety of content at a variety of places, and soon we’ll see what does and doesn’t gain traction. Wish me luck!
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