Mind Candy's Perplex City is one of the hottest alternate reality games in the world, a complex and immensely entertaining card game that encourages players to think "outside the box" in order to solve its various puzzles, but when I say outside the box, I mean way outside, as in nothing is ever what it seems. It's going to take lots of dedication as well as brain power to outwit the thousands of other players, but the reward is well worth it. Are you a master at solving puzzles, and more importantly, would you like to deposit $200,000 U.S. into your bank account? Your adventure begins here, as GameDaily is proud to host a never before seen Wave 3 card that's on page two of this article. But before we unveil it to you, take some time to acquaint yourself with the Perplex City game, its world, and how to play.
Perplex City is an ARG (Alternate Reality Game) that sort of mirrors a videogame, except you actually take part in an interactive treasure hunt that, if you're up to it, can span the globe. The goal is to solve 256 unique puzzle cards that, in theory, will lead you to a location that houses the precious Receda Cube, a priceless artifact that was recently stolen from Perplex City, which exists in a parallel dimension to our own. Almost Tolkienian in its design, the city is massive and richly detailed, featuring advanced technology, plenty of sights to take in, as well as humans (or what appear to be humans) that will communicate to you from time to time, offering clues and other valuable information.
The Receda Cube was stolen from the Perplex City Academy museum and hidden someplace on Earth, and its citizens have enlisted our help in finding it. To do this, we'll need to solve those 256 cards, but doing this is no easy feat. The people of Perplex City love creating puzzles, in particular, ones that are extremely off the wall. They're nothing like what we commonly see in videogames such as Capcom's Resident Evil, where the most info that our brains need to process is locate square crank, then insert square crank into square hole. In fact, it's recommended that you take the time to examine an entire card because it may contain multiple puzzles. But here is a breakdown of how to get started, and what you should be looking for.
How to begin
The cool thing about Perplex City is that you don't necessarily need to go to one specific location to begin. You can stop by your local card shop and pick up a pack of six cards, or visit the official Perplex City website, though I strongly recommend that you do the latter, just so you can explore the intricacies of the game as well as create an official Perplex City account. You don't necessarily need to register online in order to play the game, but doing so will further immerse you in the experience. You'll be able to insert codes (more on that in a bit) and answers to gain points, visit the Perplex City forums, check out the leader boards, as well as read the site's FAQ and the latest news. You can also email people from Perplex City, and they will respond in kind. Their world runs in real time, and some of them update websites on a weekly basis. For example, journalism student Scarlett Kiteway regularly updates her blog The Scarlet Kite..
It's all in the cards
Of the 256 total cards, only 132 have been released. They can be purchased online, or at comic book and/or card shops. There's six to a pack and they're all randomized, so, much like baseball cards, it may take you a while to locate the specific ones that you need, though you can view some of them online, and players commonly sell their cards on Ebay, though depending on the rarity, the prices can be quite steep.
The cards are about the size of a photograph and every single millimeter should be carefully examined. The large puzzle in the middle of each card should be your main focus, but keep an eye out for mysterious sentences, links to websites, and other useful bits of information. Also, pay close attention to the back of each card, because 192 of them contain a piece of the Perplex City map, which, when put together, will provide even more clues.
When looking at the front of a card, there are several key points of interest. In the top left corner is the card number, which allows you to keep your collection in numerical order. Then, in the top middle is a rectangular gray scratch off box that contains the card's specific UIN or Unique Identification Number. When you figure out the riddle, you can go to the website and input the answer as well as the UIN. However, keep in mind that if you answer incorrectly three times, then you will be unable solve any puzzles for 24 hours.
It's worth noting that all of the cards have different UINs. In other words, there's hundreds of card type #185 in the world, and each one contains its own UIN, so your #185 may reveal RGH4F8FHYTE5 and mine might reveal 3EHJTHFMEJK4.
At the top right of each card there are two point values. The one all the way on the right is the individual value, the number of points that you'll gain from solving this one card. However, the one to the left of it, which is always a higher value, represents the number of points that you'll win if you manage to assemble four cards of the same pattern and solve that puzzle.
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