|
CrypticMission.com uses a number of specific terms to describe events and puzzles. Many of the
terms may be unfamiliar to people who have never encountered the type of adventure that
we offer. This glossary is provided to define any unfamiliar terms which apply to Cryptic Missions.
Throughout this site and all communications, we will try to use the "official" Cryptic Mission term
several synonyms exist. This is for clarity and consistency. Other terms are listed because
some participants may be familiar with the ideas presented here from other contexts, such as
Urban Challenge, the
MIT Mystery Hunt,
the Microsoft Puzzle Hunt, or the Microsoft Puzzle Safari.
* - An asterisk denotes the "official" Cryptic Mission term when several synonyms are available.
- Clue* - Any Puzzle you need to solve to move toward the finish of a Puzzle Adventure.
- Competitive Mission - A puzzle adventure in which individuals or teams compete against each other to reach the final answer the most quickly. Most puzzle adventures fall into this category.
- Cooperative Mission - A puzzle adventure in which all the participants are on the same team, working towards a common solution. Cooperative missions are good for parties where too much competition would set the wrong mood.
- Cryptic Mission* - Any puzzle adventure designed or run by CrypticMission.com.
- Cryptic Missionary* - A participant in a Cryptic Mission.
- Game Master - Another term for Mission Control
- Great All-Nighter - The Puzzle Quest featured in the 1980 movie Midnight Madness. One of the first clear examples of a puzzle adventure run as a game for enjoyment.
- Lifeline - Another term for an Operator that comes from the TV game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire.
- Meta-puzzle* - A puzzle formed from the answers to other puzzles. In Greek, meta means between, so a meta-puzzle is a puzzle between the puzzles. Usually this is a puzzle formed from the answers to all the clues in a Mission. A team has only completed the Mission when they have solved all the meta-puzzles generated by the initial set of clues. Meta-puzzles are often an important feature of Puzzle Mysteries.
- Midnight Madness - A 1980 movie featuring the the Great All-Nighter. Many puzzle adventures run in the style of the Great All-Nighter (that is, run as a Puzzle Quest), are called Midnight Madnesses.
- Mission - Short for Cryptic Mission
- Mission Control (MC)* - The person who monitors and administers a Cryptic Mission while it is being run. This person can be reached to provide hints (often at a time penalty). The MC may also contact participants to provide updates, changes, or corrections. Usually Mission Control is a Cryptic Mission Employee, but it could be a member of the party under certain circumstance.
- Mission Designer (MD)* - The Cryptic Mission employee who is responsible for communicating with the client and coordinating the specifics of their custom puzzle adventure. The MD is responsible for confirming the time, place, and fee for the adventure, as well as coordinating the research and development of all the puzzles for the Mission.
- Mission Organizer (MO)* - Client contact person responsible for communicating with the Mission Designer to set up a puzzle adventure.
- Mission Headquarters* - The location from which Mission Control runs a puzzle adventure.
- Missionary - Short for Cryptic Missionary
- Murder Mystery Party* - A puzzle adventure in which participants have to act out roles and collect clues to solve a crime. Unlike most puzzle adventures, a Murder Mystery party emphasizes role-playing to reach the solution to the game.
- Mystery Hunt - Another term for a Puzzle Mystery. Specifically, this refers to the MIT Mystery Hunt, one of the first examples of a puzzle adventure run just for fun.
- Operator* - A teammate on a puzzle-adventure who is stationed by a phone and reference materials or an Internet connection. During a Mission, teams will call their Operator for help in finding information to solve clues. The term is derived from The Matrix. In The Matrix, the Operator was reached by cell phone and could instantaneously program characters with knowledge or skills.
- Oracle - Another term for Mission Control. Derived alternately from The Matrix or classical Mythology.
- Puzzle - Any mental exercise whose mechanics and solution are designed to not be immediately obvious. Some types of puzzles include brain-teasers, riddles, cryptograms, rebuses, crossword puzzles, word finds, and acrostics. However, most puzzles in a puzzle adventure combine components of existing classes of puzzles with new and original rules.
- Puzzle Adventure* - Any type of game that involves solving a number of puzzles to reach the goal. Puzzle Quests, Puzzle Challenges, Puzzle Mysteries, Puzzle Challenges, and Murder Mystery Parties are all types of puzzle adventures.
- Puzzle Challenge* - A puzzle adventure that emphasizes physical fitness or athletic skill. For example, if the participants are required to run between the clues, and the fastest runner has a great advantage in winning, the adventure would be a Puzzle Challenge. The Urban Challenge is an example of a Puzzle Challenge. Challenges can involve any type of physical activity: rock climbing, running, swimming, horse shoes, darts, etc.
- Puzzle Hunt - A term often used for the general idea of a Puzzle Adventure. Especially the Microsoft Puzzle Hunt, which is run as a Puzzle Mystery.
- Puzzle Mystery* - A puzzle adventure in which all or most of the clues are given to the teams at the start of the event. Most often, a Puzzle mystery is only solved when the team completes a series of meta-puzzles that lead to a single, final answer. The clues in a Puzzle Mystery are typically much harder than those in other types of puzzle adventures, because participants can assemble a wide array of resources and be near them at all times. The Microsoft Puzzle Hunt and the MIT Mystery Hunt are both typical examples of puzzle mysteries.
- Puzzle Quest* - A puzzle adventure that involves moving from place to place to find clues in a specific order, as opposed to a more static Mystery-style Mission, or a Safari-style Mission in which clues can be found out of order.. Typically, this means that each clue leads to the location of the next clue. The DaVinci Code, National Treasure, and The Great All-Nighter are all Puzzle Quests.
- Puzzle Safari* - A puzzle adventure the takes teams to various locations, but without a set order for clues. Teams are given all the clues in advance, and can go to the locations as they solve the clues. Teams typically get a stamp, item, or clue at each location to prove they have been there. These items may also form a Meta-puzzle. Microsoft runs a Puzzle Safari each year on its Redmond campus.
- Urban Challenge - A Puzzle Challenge run by http://www.urbanchallenge.com/. Urban Challenge requires competitors to move between clues using only two methods of transportation: on foot or by public transportation. To win the Urban Challenge, teams must have endurance for long distance running.
- Web Hunt - A series of clues accessed through web pages, emails, passwords, phone numbers and faxes. A web hunt is like a Puzzle Quest, except that instead of physical places, the clues are virtual places. Other types of puzzle adventures, such as Puzzle Mysteries or Puzzle Quests may include components from a Web Hunt. My First Cryptic Mission is a Web Hunt.
|
