Salem — The Hidden Writings
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Salem, MassachusettsSalem — The Hidden Writings
📍 Salem, Massachusetts·🕐 1h30 – 2h
Also available as:HistoricalFantasySupernatural

Salem — The Hidden Writings

Uncover Cotton Mather's hidden writings that reveal the truth behind the 1692 condemnations. Decode clues at witch trial sites to expose the conspiracy before it's buried forever.

📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes

Difficulty
·From age 10 years
Starting point :Old Burying Point Cemetery

In 1692, Salem erupted in hysteria as Cotton Mather, the influential Puritan minister, penned fiery tracts justifying the witch trials

8
stages
1h30 – 2h
at your pace
🚶
walking

Salem — The Hidden Writings

🎭Your Mission

You are a cold case detective, arriving in Salem, USA, in the present day, to re-examine the 1692 witch trials.

In that year, Salem erupted in hysteria as Cotton

After the Flames: The Quest for Justice

« « It is better that ten suspected witches escape than one innocent person be condemned. » »
Cotton Mather, 1692, in 'Cases of Conscience Concerning Evil Spirits'

Cotton Mather: Between Faith and Reason

Cotton Mather (1663-1728) was an influential Puritan minister, prolific writer, and one of New England's most respected intellectuals. His work, 'Memorable Providences, Relating to Witchcrafts and Possessions' (1689), documented cases of witchcraft and inadvertently contributed to the hysteria of the Salem trials in 1692. He firmly believed in the existence of witches and the direct intervention of the devil, ideas widely shared at the time.

However, Mather was not a blind fanatic. He advised the court not to rely solely on spectral evidence and insisted on the need for tangible proof, although this advice was not always followed. After the trials ended, he continued to write on witchcraft, but with a more cautious approach, reflecting a growing awareness of the errors made. His writings reveal the complexity of a man torn between his deep religious convictions and a nascent form of intellectualism.

1689
Publication of 'Memorable Providences' by Mather
1692
Mather publishes 'Cases of Conscience' calling for caution
1697
Day of Fasting and Repentance for trial errors
Far more than an escape game

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.

🏛️
Hidden historical gems

At each stop, places ordinary guides miss — secret façades, sculpted crests, alleys steeped in history.

📜
Anecdotes & legends

Every riddle is rooted in a real historical fact or local legend. You leave with dozens of stories to tell.

🏗️
Architecture & heritage

Learn to read buildings — flamboyant Gothic, Baroque, Art Deco — like a real art historian, while having fun.

🚶‍♀️
Immersive wandering

Walk through the city like a novel's character — every alley becomes a stage, every square a theatre.

🎙️
Immersive audio narration

A voice walks with you at every step, tells the story of each place, reads clues, adds a cinematic feel.

📲
Yours forever

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?

🏛️
Outdoor escape game

Explore the city on foot solving puzzles based on real historical facts. No locked room — the city is your playground.

📱
On your smartphone

No app to download. Play directly from your browser. Guided step by step, at your own pace.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦
Unlimited players

One purchase per phone is enough. Play with family, friends or as a couple — everyone participates.

🎯
Augmented reality

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.

🤖
AI that helps you

Stuck? Progressive personalised hints. The character repeats the puzzle on demand — at your own pace.

🗣️
32 languages

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

Salem Witch Museumoptional
For an immersive presentation of the 1692 events, placing Cotton Mather's actions and doubts in their historical context.
18$
/pers.
Peabody Essex Museumoptional
Housing collections of 17th-century art and artifacts, the museum helps visualize the intellectual and social environment in which Cotton Mather lived and wrote.
25$
/pers.
The Witch House (Jonathan Corwin House)optional
The dwelling of one of the judges of the time, it offers a concrete glimpse into the living environment of the trial participants that Mather observed and wrote about.
12$
/pers.
Budget if you do them all / pers.~55$

The Route

8 stages through the city

The gameplay: AR, camera, hidden clues

📱Search clues with your cameraRA

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.

8
original puzzles
24
min of narration
🪙 24
TripCoins granted
16
GPS waypoints

How does it work with a group?

One phone = one team. Pick the number at checkout (1 to 10).

🧍
1 phone

Solo, or a group sharing the screen. One team, one code.

👥
2-3 phones

Family, couple, or 2-3 teams competing. Each phone has its own code and its own score.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦
4 to 10 phones

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.
🕒No date to pick · Code valid 1 year · Play whenever you want

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

Starting point
Old Burying Point Cemetery
Directions on Google Maps
🕐
Duration
1h30 – 2h
At your own pace
👥
Players
Unlimited
From age 10
📍
Distance
~2 km
Heart of Salem
Accessibility
Full
Easy route, paved sidewalks
🌐
Languages
17 languages
Built-in translation

Why this route?

🦉

Controversial wisdom

Follow the complex thought of Cotton Mather, an emblematic and ambiguous figure of the trials.

✒️

Writings to decipher

Unearth secret notes and documents to understand the deeper motivations.

🗝️

Key to truth

Unlock crucial information about the hidden reasons behind the 1692 condemnations.

Cotton Mather's words resonate from the past. Will you be the first to unearth them?

Truth is often written between the lines. Find it.

★ Innovation 2026

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

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

Soyez le premier à partager votre expérience.

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Your turn to play

Unearth the hidden writings and unravel the last mysteries of the Salem Witch Trials.

12€
1 phone
23€
2 phones
33€
3 phones
42€
4 phones
50€
5 phones
56€
6 phones
62€
7 phones
68€
8 phones
74€
9 phones
80€
10 phones

1 purchase = 1 phone. Play several on the same device.

🕒No date to pick · Code valid 1 year · Play whenever you want
Get my code · 12€

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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