The Underground Conspiracy — Turpan's Hidden Water Empire
Decipher the ancient Karez network's lost blueprints and uncover why the Qing Dynasty engineers concealed the system's true purpose beneath the Taklamakan Desert.
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
For over two millennia, the Karez system has sustained life in Turpan's scorching oasis—but official histories hide a darker secret
The Underground Conspiracy — Turpan's Hidden Water Empire
You are an apprentice engineer, working on the Karez expansion in Turpan during the late Qing Dynasty.
For over two millennia, this system has sustained life in Turpan's scorching oasis
**Water beneath the desert: the quest of the forgotten engineer**
« Without water, even dragons wither, but with the karez, Turpan blooms like a lotus. »— Ancient Uyghur proverb
Turpan's hydrological miracle
Nestled in the heart of Xinjiang, Turpan is a verdant oasis defying one of the planet's most arid environments. Located in a depression over 150 meters below sea level, this historic city on the Silk Road owes its survival and prosperity to an ingenious underground irrigation system: the karez. Developed over two millennia ago, these channels collect water from underground aquifers and melting snow from Mount Bogda (Tianshan), transporting it for kilometers underground, minimizing evaporation.
The karez are not mere aqueducts; they are the beating heart of the oasis. Each vertical well, each horizontal gallery dug with incredible precision, testifies to the ancestral mastery of the local populations, mainly the Uyghurs. This system allowed Turpan to become a fruit basket and a vital trade hub, proving that even in the most extreme conditions, human ingenuity can transform the desert into a garden.
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.
The game downloads to your phone on start. Once the "✓ Downloaded" indicator appears, everything works without data — narration, AR, GPS and puzzles. Perfect abroad without a data plan.
Want to go deeper?
Places tied to your adventure — optional entries, totally up to you · per person
The Route
8 sites to explore by car within the day
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 · 14,90€No calendar booking. Code sent immediately by email.
🔒 Secure payment · Code in 5 min · Free cancellation
Practical info
Why this route?
The vital network
Explore the millennia-old Karez system, an underground engineering feat that transformed the desert into an oasis.
Silk Road stop
Walk in the footsteps of merchants and caravans that made Turpan a crucial crossroads between East and West.
Oasis in the heart of the desert
Discover how this unique city thrived in one of the world's most arid regions thanks to its ingenuity.
Water is life, and the secret lies in its depths.
Unravel the water master's blueprint.
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, 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
Q01Concretely, how does it unfold outdoors?
You arrive in Turpan, Xinjiang, China, open the link on your phone, the story starts. It's the modern outdoor escape game: audio narration, camera puzzles, final code unlocked as a team. No install. No need to book a time slot.
Q02Can we take a break mid-trail?
Of course. Stop at a café, have lunch, resume later: your progress is saved. Many players bake a meal break into the trail, especially with families.
Q03Do we need to be several people to enjoy it?
No, solo works very well. The outdoor escape game format in self-guided mode leaves room for introspection: read the story at your pace, hunt clues like a detective. 2-6 players is more social, solo is more contemplative.
Q04Is The Underground Conspiracy — Turpan's Hidden Water Empire stroller-accessible?
Depends on the exact route in Turpan, Xinjiang, China. The vast majority of stops are downtown, on sidewalks or squares. If a stair or narrow passage is involved, it's flagged on the product page. Generally: yes, doable with a standard urban stroller.
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Your turn to play
Embark on a historical adventure in the heart of Turpan. Decipher the clues left by an ancient engineer to uncover the secret of the karez and ensure the survival of this millennia-old oasis. Every well, every channel tells a part of the story.
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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