Logic Locks: The Secret Of Eliza's Heart (Online Game)

This post was written by Daniel M., who we had the pleasure of playing this game with. He has played escape rooms all around the world and one of our best teammates!

This was our first experience doing an escape room remotely and it definitely scratched my escape room itch while sheltering in place! The physical room is in Amsterdam in the Netherlands and was completed via video call with our game master/companion holding a camera as we instructed him on what we wanted to do in the room. The game master was in character throughout the escape which really added to the experience. We played as a team of four from two different locations which worked well. From their website:

"Greetings Investigators! My name is Richard Fimblewood and soon we will meet face-to-face - or at least screen-to-screen. I am quite relieved you signed up for the task of helping me to explore the study chamber of the infamous explorer Elizabeth van Leeuwenhart. I do have to admit that I am still a bit nervous. We have only one shot and a limited time to make this work… However I'm sure that with your assistance it should all work out."

Set Design, Technology & Puzzles

One of the biggest downsides of doing a physical escape room remotely is that you lose a bit of atmosphere by not actually being in the room. That said, our game master’s narration (and trepidation!) as he interacted with the room and puzzles, and his quips and humor did help keep us fully engaged. Technology and set design were similar to what you’d expect in higher end generation one rooms. The puzzles were clever but overall there weren’t very many of them. However this is probably required since you can’t divide and conquer different tasks or even search due to the remote aspect of the game.

Memorable Moments 

This room will always stand out for me as our first endeavor with remote escape rooms. It's amazing to be able to experience an escape room halfway across the globe from the comfort of your home. Additionally the finale of the room definitely built suspense and left me satisfied.

Room For Improvement

The only slight complaint was how the video was filmed. While the GM tried their best to keep the camera steady one of our team members became nauseous and wasn’t able to complete the game. However, the rest of us felt ok.

Overall Thoughts

Eliza’s heart was a great introduction to remote escape rooms and I love the fact that we can now play rooms that we probably would never get the chance to go to. One other pleasant surprise is that they mail you a few additional puzzles for completion at home. 

Envelope with a bunch of goodies!

 These were fun and on par with upper end puzzles from box escape games. These were a great way to revisit the theme and have some more fun!

• Set design: Fun and in line with Gen-1 rooms
• Difficulty: Medium
• Price: 23 Euros per person/private
• Number of players: 2-7 (recommend 2-4)
• Duration: 80 minutes
• Overall Rating:  ★★★★ (½★ bump for extra gameplay at home)

See their website here:  https://www.logiclocks.com/live-video-escape-rooms

Logic Locks graciously provided complimentary tickets

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ALS Ice Bucket Challenge (Tennis Buddies Nominated)

Star Wars: Tech Museum @ San Jose

For all you Star Wars fans, check out San Jose's Tech Museum Star Wars Exhibit. Pretty awesome stuff with life sized models used in the filming of the original Star Wars series and fun tidbits.

Click the link to see all 88 photos.

Star Wars Museum San Jose, a set on Flickr.

Black Friday Computer Deals (Dell eCoupons + eCoupon Promo + Discount = :)

So I've been hunting for a new PC/laptop and was wondering what a good deal would be. I'm the type to wait around a month to see if anything pops up and I must say that I am pretty happy with what I found.

My uses:

• Watching HD videos (without lag)
• Potential HD video editing
• Light gaming

I already have a laptop, so portability was not a main factor and for now, the old school desktops has a much better bang for your buck in terms of specs.

Naturally, with Black Friday around the corner, one would think to wait for that but after seeing all the flyers, only the low end stuff was going on sale. I was set on either the Dell XPS 8700 beast below from Costco or the Lenovo IdeaPad Y410p laptop.

Today I Learned How To Make A Gif

Fun at Sawyer Camp Trail :)

A Look Inside Facebook's Campus, Part 2

Are you a Pirate, Ninja or Jedi Master? Another cool piece of art at Facebook's HQ

Part 2 of 2. See Part 1 here.

This is the second of a two-part article about my visit to Facebook's headquarters in Menlo Park, California. I must say that it's pretty impressive. I can't think of many other companies, (maybe Google but I've never visited them), that offer the same level of benefits and perks. 

The Food

Sweets Store
Baked goods, ice cream and froyo...all free. I'd gain 100 pounds if I worked here. Seriously. I imagine that the people who work here have developed some sort of internal mechanism to avoid eating ice cream and brownies every day. 

Facebook has a lot of  free food on campus

A Look Inside Facebook's Campus, Part 1

Map of Facebook's Campus

Part 1 of 2. See Part 2 here.

I had the opportunity to visit Facebook's campus and I must say that it's pretty impressive. I can't think of many other companies, other than Google (from what I've heard), that offer the same level of benefits and perks. I took some unprofessional pictures (all on campus) to try and show off what I saw, but I didn't want to be too much of a burden for my host, Chiao. 

Facebook campus panorama

Transformers Costume: 2 Years and $2,000 Later...

Here is a really cool costume that Marc Derepentigny created himself. It seems that he was an ex-machinist and has a lifelong passion for making costumes and the results are certainly incredible. Well done!

ad:tech San Francisco 2013 Key Learnings

Pandora's Keynote

Technology is changing the way that people behave and at the same time, forcing a change in how brands try to distinguish themselves from the herd. Think about this: When was the last time you clicked on an online banner or even remember what banner was shown? I think I intentionally click on one banner a month and I probably views thousands of web pages. I sat through a few sessions and keynotes and I've highlighted the most interesting parts below.

The recurring themes that were communicated by various panelists were as follows:

·         Old school online advertising, like banners ads, have lost much of its effectiveness

·         Brands must be experts at storytelling

·         Marketers must learn to tap into advocates or influencers (not the same thing) when trying to build their communities

ad:tech Digital Marketing Conference April 9-10, 2013

[Update: Exclusive OddBubbles ad:tech coupon code at end of article]

The next tech conference on my list to attend is ad:tech San Francisco. If you're wondering what the show is about here is what they have on their site:

"ad:tech is the leading digital marketing event for marketing and technology professionals from all over the world – a marketplace for buying and selling, a community for networking, a forum for exchanging ideas and an opportunity for contributing to industry trends and initiatives."

There are a lot of sessions that can help shed some light on how to better understand upcoming tech trends and I've highlights a few below:

Google Shopping Express, Free Delivery in San Francisco

Google launched its shopping express service today for select test users in the San Francisco bay area. They are offering a free 6-month membership for unlimited same-day delivery. Participating retailers include: