Downtown Los Angeles — Marlowe's Hidden Case
Decipher Raymond Chandler's lost noir manuscript hidden across Downtown LA's 1940s landmarks. Solve the mystery before the truth vanishes forever.
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
In 1952, Raymond Chandler's private investigator Philip Marlowe uncovered a conspiracy so dangerous that Chandler locked the case file away—never published, never solved
Dive into 1930s Los Angeles, a city where shadows blend with light under the gaze of a legendary private detective.
Step into the shoes of Philip Marlowe, the iconic detective created by Raymond Chandler, and follow a trail of clues hidden in the historic heart of Los Angeles. Your mission begins at Grand Central Market, 317 S Broadway, along a 1.5 km route that will lead you through the architectural gems of Downtown LA. At each stop, open your phone: faded photographs, excerpts from police reports, and coded messages in augmented reality are revealed on the Victorian facades of the Bradbury Building, the century-old tracks of Angels Flight, and the imposing columns of City Hall. Over approximately 165 minutes, you'll hunt for a buried truth, exploring California's heritage at your own pace. More than an outdoor escape game: an interactive tour immersed in the history of Los Angeles, with anecdotes revealed at each stop and confidential sites that classic guides often miss.
Les lieux que vous découvrirez
Les vrais lieux que vous explorerez au fil de l'aventure. Énigmes en réalité augmentée à chaque étape.
A game, a guided tour and a heritage guide — all in one
You're not just buying an escape game. You're carrying a living guide — historical anecdotes, forgotten legends, key monuments, hidden architecture — unfolding as you go.
At each stop, places ordinary guides miss — secret façades, sculpted crests, alleys steeped in history.
Every riddle is rooted in a real historical fact or local legend. You leave with dozens of stories to tell.
Learn to read buildings — flamboyant Gothic, Baroque, Art Deco — like a real art historian, while having fun.
Walk through the city like a novel's character — every alley becomes a stage, every square a theatre.
A voice walks with you at every step, tells the story of each place, reads clues, adds a cinematic feel.
Keep access to the guide & game for 1 year. Come back any time, share it with friends.
« You will not leave this city the way you entered it. »
How does it work?
Explore the city on foot solving puzzles based on real historical facts. No locked room — the city is your playground.
No app to download. Play directly from your browser. Guided step by step, at your own pace.
One purchase per phone is enough. Play with family, friends or as a couple — everyone participates.
Point your phone at the façade: a historical character appears and speaks to you in your language. Golden letters magically write themselves on the wall to reveal the puzzle answer.
Stuck? Progressive personalised hints. The character repeats the puzzle on demand — at your own pace.
French, English, German, Spanish, Italian + 27 other languages auto-translated by AI.
Want to go deeper?
Places tied to your adventure — optional entries, totally up to you · per person
The story that haunts this land
Your investigation begins at Grand Central Market, a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument opened in 1917. This over 30,000 square foot indoor market, located at 317 S Broadway, was restored in 2014 to revitalize the neighborhood, but it has retained its soul. It's here, among the 40 food vendors, that you collect the first clue. As early as the 1920s, this location served as a filming site for Hollywood movies, testifying to its importance in the California urban landscape and as an ideal starting point for this Downtown LA Walking Tour.
A short walk away, the Bradbury Building awaits, completed in 1893 after the death of its developer, Lewis Bradbury. This National Historic Landmark, designated in 1977, is famous for its 15-meter-high central atrium of glass and wrought iron, which immortalized an iconic scene in the film Blade Runner (1982). Thousands of visitors come to admire its ornate Victorian architecture. It is in this labyrinth of light and shadows that the next piece of the puzzle is hidden, drawing you deeper into the mystery of Los Angeles.
Continue your Los Angeles visit by riding Angels Flight, the first funicular railway in the United States, opened on December 31, 1901. 91 meters long, connecting Hill Street to Grand Central Market with a 33-meter elevation change, it is nicknamed 'The Shortest Railway in the World'. Designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1962 and reopened in 2017 after reconstruction, Angels Flight offers a unique perspective on the Historic Core District. Your investigation then leads you to Los Angeles City Hall, built in 1928, the tallest building in LA until 1964, seat of municipal government and a backdrop for series like Dragnet (1951-1959).
Your journey takes you to the Los Angeles Central Library, opened in 1926. Designed by Bertram Goodhue and Lee F. Rosenheim, this 1970 National Historic Landmark features a 43-meter tower adorned with sphinx sculptures, in an Egyptian Revival style. Its collection of over 2 million books survived a major fire in 1986. Nearby, the Millennium Biltmore Hotel, opened on February 1, 1923, hosted the Oscars from 1939 to 1951 and was visited by Presidents Harding (1923) and Roosevelt (1933). Designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1969, its Renaissance Revival architecture holds many secrets.
Finally, your California thematic circuit concludes by exploring Pershing Square, LA's first public park, established in 1866 as La Plaza and renamed in 1918. This site of historic gatherings, where Teddy Roosevelt delivered a speech in 1903, is a contributing Historic-Cultural Monument. The proximity of Spring Street, dubbed 'Wall Street of the West' in the 1920s for its banks and skyscrapers like the Million Dollar Theater (1918), brings you back to the heart of the Historic Core District. This historic walk through Los Angeles will have allowed you to uncover Marlowe's hidden case, revealing the city's tumultuous past and the figures who shaped its destiny.
The Route
8 stages through the city
The gameplay: AR, camera, hidden clues
At each stop, open your phone camera: an augmented reality character appears on the façade and speaks your language. Hunt the clue — it materializes as golden letters on the real wall or floats in front of you. When you find it, the phone vibrates, an AR chest opens and reveals your answer fragment. 8 stops, 8 clues to find with the camera, 1 final code.
The stops on your route are a surprise. You'll discover them one by one, guided by your phone, starting from the meeting point.
How does it work with a group?
One phone = one team. Pick the number at checkout (1 to 10).
Solo, or a group sharing the screen. One team, one code.
Family, couple, or 2-3 teams competing. Each phone has its own code and its own score.
Friends, bachelor/bachelorette, small office outing — each their own code, each plays at their own pace. Tiered pricing then €6 flat per phone from the 6th.
- ✓All codes are independent — play at the same time OR separately, each team advances at its own pace.
- ✓Leaderboard between your teams + global game leaderboard — each score appears in the public ranking.
- ✓More than 10 phones or need a personalized quest? Discover custom tours.
Ready to live this adventure?
Get my code · 12€No calendar booking. Code sent immediately by email.
🔒 Secure payment · Code in 5 min · Free cancellation
Practical info
Why this route?
Hardboiled Investigation
Follow in the footsteps of a 1940s detective and unravel the threads of a complex plot.
Art Deco Architecture
Decipher clues hidden within the iconic facades of historic Downtown Los Angeles.
Literary Mystery
Recover a lost manuscript that holds the keys to a disturbing truth.
The shadow never lies.
The past is a riddle only the sharpest can solve.
9 features nobody else has
OddballTrip combines gamified play, augmented reality and AI. All our competitors deliver 1 or 2 of these angles. We deliver all 5.
AR treasure chest
A golden chest floats in front of the monument. Tap → opening animation → reveals a secret message.
AR narrator character
Point your phone at the façade: a knight, witch, monk, sailor, detective or ghost appears full-screen and speaks to you in your language with their dedicated ElevenLabs voice (each character has their own unique voice) — your living guide.
Magic golden letters
At the puzzle climax, golden letters magically write themselves on the real wall — that's the puzzle answer. An unforgettable visual effect.
Written + audio narration
Every puzzle available as text AND voice-over: read at your own pace or listen eyes-free while walking. Great in groups and for accessibility.
360° radar + vibration
A mini-radar shows the target even behind you, and the phone vibrates when you aim in the right direction.
Heritage storytelling
Every puzzle weaves in real historical facts (architecture, era, anecdotes). You learn by playing — like a gamified audioguide.
Progressive AI hints
3 levels of AI-generated help: vibe → where to look → answer format. You're never stuck.
AR selfie memento
At the end of the game, capture a selfie with OddballTrip banner + mascot, shareable on Instagram, WhatsApp, TikTok.
Zero app to install
PWA technology: open the link, it plays in your browser. Same quality as an app, no App Store hassle.
Frequently asked questions
Q01Do I need to download an app?
No, never. You get a link, you click, it plays in your browser. That's the point of a PWA: same as an app, without the hassle.
Q02Does it work offline?
GPS yes (handled by your phone). Maps yes (tiles cached). AI and hints need an intermittent 4G connection.
Q03How long does a game take?
1 h 30 to 2 h 30 depending on your pace. The timer runs but only for the leaderboard — you play at your own tempo.
Q04What happens if I'm stuck?
You get 3 levels of hints per puzzle (increasing penalty). If truly stuck, you can skip the step (45-min penalty but you keep going).
Q05What's the age range?
From 12 without an adult, from 6 with an adult reading puzzles. Works for families, couples, friend groups, companies.
Q06What if my city isn't in the catalogue?
Pre-register or contact us — we'll email you as soon as your city is live.
Q07What is augmented reality exactly?
Point your phone at the façade: a historical character appears full-screen and speaks to you in your language. At the puzzle climax, golden letters magically write themselves on the real wall — that's your answer. After each puzzle solved, a treasure chest floats in front of you. Seeing is believing.
Avis des aventuriers
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Your turn to play
Dive into 1930s Los Angeles, a city where shadows blend with light under the gaze of a legendary private detective.
1 purchase = 1 phone. Play several on the same device.
No calendar booking. Code sent immediately by email.
🔒Secure payment · Code in 5 min · Free cancellation
🪙+24 TripCoins granted with your booking
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