A guest post by Izzy Jones
The Game
Four bodies. One day. One city.
CluedUpp– a mobile detective game– sets the scene for a murder mystery in various cities. When it came to Cincinnati, we were ready to solve the case!
CluedUpp asks that every group (of up to 6 people) start in the same city location; for us — Fountain Square. This bustling square in the heart of Cincinnati’s busiest district creates an atmosphere of urgency. This pressure is great for teams competing for titles such as the shortest time solving the crime, best team name, best dressed group (costume), and best pet.
The Tortured Poet Detectives
My team, The Tortured Poet Detectives (you get the Taylor Swift reference, right?), won the Best Team Name accolade and had fun competing. After walking nearly three miles, we solved the case in 2 hours, 45 minutes which put us in 5th place out of 39 teams. While this time seems lengthy for a walk around a city, we also had to unravel puzzles, read paragraphs upon paragraphs of information on fictional characters, and ultimately catch a killer.
Story Clues
The clues were good; not too easy and not too hard. We liked the challenge. One such clue involved two pieces of paper that together would help us unlock a safe, but we couldn’t find the second piece! We found the first within the first half hour of the game, but the second wasn’t found until nearly two hours in. It was one of the most frustrating, yet rewarding, moments of the day.
The tale of the murders seemed straight out of a mystery novel: full of affairs, money, and big business taking the forefront of the plot. I predicted the murderer about halfway through our adventure, but much like an Agatha Christie novel, I questioned my judgment many times before reaching the conclusion. It was an excellent story with plenty of plot twists that kept us on our toes.
We had so much fun solving these murders that we want to explore other CluedUpp events. Maybe the Tortured Poet Detectives will tackle an Alice in Wonderland mystery next? Time (and location) will tell.
Have you ever participated in a murder mystery / scavenger hunt / escape room game?
Browsing The Atlas 
I like the sound of this detective game! Sounds like a fun way to explore the city and work together as a team. PS Love the reference to TSwift’s new album.
I agree! It sounds like a fun way to explore a city. Fun, too, that there were a variety of things to compete for. I’m not surprised that these Swifties came up with a TSwift name immediately. 🙂
Sounds not only an interesting concept but expertly delivered. Generally though I avoid quizzes and the like – I’m always appalled how my actual knowledge falls way short of my fond expectations 😦
I find that hard to believe, Roy. Your blog posts include so many fascinating tidbits of information that you’d probably be excellent at games like this.
That’s kind Juliann, but there is so much I don’t know.