Ozersk — Uncover the Kyshtym Secret
Sixty years of Soviet silence hide the Kyshtym nuclear disaster. Solve the cover-up, decipher clues from Mayak's shadows, and expose the truth before it's buried forever.
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
In 1957, the heart of the Soviet nuclear empire exploded in secrecy
Ozersk — Uncover the Kyshtym Secret
You are an investigative journalist for an underground samizdat publication, granted a perilous, brief window into Ozersk in the early 1990s.
In 1957, the heart of
Ozersk 1957 — Unveiling the USSR's Hidden Disaster
« The Soviet Union knew. It never reported the accident to the international community. »— Vladimir Gubarev, Soviet science journalist, 1989
The Shadow of Mayak: Thirty Years of Radioactive Secrecy
In 1948, the USSR founded the Mayak Production Association, near the secret city of Ozersk (then Chelyabinsk-40), to produce plutonium for its first atomic bombs. This complex became a cornerstone of the Soviet nuclear program, operating in absolute secrecy. Radioactive discharges into the Techa River and nearby lakes began almost immediately, with no regard for the environment or local populations, who were exposed to considerable radiation doses.
On September 29, 1957, a high-level liquid nuclear waste tank exploded at Mayak, releasing a column of radioactive material nearly a kilometer high. The plume spread over 300 kilometers, contaminating an area of 23,000 km² and affecting over 270,000 people. The event, known as the 'Kyshtym disaster' (named after the nearest city appearing on maps), was the third most serious nuclear accident in history. The USSR maintained total silence about this tragedy for over thirty years, concealing the extent of the contamination and its health consequences.
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 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?
Nuclear Disaster
Dive into one of the worst nuclear tragedies in history, long kept secret by the USSR.
State Investigation
Follow in the footsteps of a dissident liquidator to uncover the truth about a massive cover-up.
Cold War
Navigate the paranoid atmosphere and absolute secrecy of the post-Stalin Soviet era.
Silence is Radioactive
Dare to break the wall of Soviet omertà.
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
Q01Ozersk — Uncover the Kyshtym Secret — is it a guided trail or a free-form hunt?
It's a semi-guided trail: GPS points you to the next stop, but you find the camera clue and solve the puzzle yourself. No app to install, everything runs in your browser.
Q02How far do you walk in Chelyabinsk City Center?
Usually 2 to 4 km of total walking, within 1.5 km as the crow flies from the start point. The route is designed to be walkable at a relaxed pace, no public transport needed.
Q03Can we do Ozersk — Uncover the Kyshtym Secret as a family with kids?
Yes, from age 6 with an adult reading puzzles aloud, and from age 12 on their own. Kids love the "find the camera clue" part — it's very visual, gets them genuinely involved.
Q04What's the best time to start?
Morning between 10 and 11, or early afternoon around 2 PM, is ideal. You still have daylight ahead, Chelyabinsk City Center is less crowded, and the light is better for camera clues.
Adventurer reviews
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Your turn to play
Unearth the liquidator's secret report and finally reveal the truth about the Ozersk disaster. Chelyabinsk awaits you for an immersive dive into the intricacies of the Cold War.
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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