It all started with a global pandemic.

When COVID-19 wiped $16,000 of work off my plate overnight, I was scared. But by that point, a few years of self-employment had conditioned me to create my own work when clients were scarce. So I turned around and put some Philly grit into building something new.

My original goals for this pandemic side project were simply to share my love of Philly street art, provide a way for people to safely reconnect outside, and to do something new and challenging—both for me, and for the people I hoped to attract. The result was Philly Street Art Hunt. I didn’t know it then, but I had just created my first adventure puzzle.

What’s an adventure puzzle?

A puzzle-based experience that can only be completed by exploring real world locations where clues and/or puzzles have been embedded, either naturally or through the designer’s augmentation of the environment.

When my first event sold out, I was excited. When my second one sold out, I raised my prices. And when my third sold out, I starting thinking I might have a future as a puzzle designer. But things really took off when Philadelphia International Airport commissioned a puzzle. That was when I became Eric The Puzzler—because I knew I had landed on something special.

Today, I’m known as “Philly’s puzzle master.” I build unique adventure puzzles, public and private, free and ticketed, indoors and outdoors. My overarching goal is to create unique and compelling experiences for people who love exploring Philly as much as I do. Check out my current and past puzzles, or get in touch to commission or sponsor a project.

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Some definitions

It’s tough to explain my work—our culture lacks widespread, commonly understood terminology for puzzle-based experience design. So here are some terms that I use and what I mean when I use them.

puzzle: a broad term comprising any number of mechanical, visual, logical, textual, auditory, numeric, or other challenges meant to be solved in order to reveal concealed information.

riddle: a type of puzzle consisting of a statement, question, or phrase, often rhyming, that obscures its true meaning through metaphor, allegory, wordplay, or other obfuscation.

lateral thinking puzzle: a puzzle that requires an indirect or creative approach to solve, often via mental leap.

cipher: a type of puzzle that can be solved algorithmically (i.e. by repeatedly following a series of steps).

code: a system for substituting one set of words or symbols for another set of words or symbols.

cryptex: a hollow, cylindrical compartment that unlocks when the rings around its outside are properly aligned, usually to spell out a password that has been discovered.

adventure: a general term for an exciting activity that takes you somewhere or invites you to accomplish something out of the ordinary

activation: a temporarily available experience that is incorporated into an existing event or space for the purpose of entertaining, delighting, and engaging visitors or attendees.

scavenger hunt: a list of items to be found or tasks to be completed within a given area and/or timeframe, usually in competition with other participants.

puzzle hunt: a set of related puzzles whose solutions lead to a rewarding conclusion, sometimes by revealing or completing a final metapuzzle.

treasure hunt: a linear sequence of puzzles, challenges, or clues that leads to a hidden reward.

escape game: a cooperative team experience, often with immersive elements, in which players discover clues and solve puzzles to reach a physical or narrative endpoint.

immersive experience: an event or activity that integrates the actions of participants into the fictional environment in which it takes place, usually by bending their perceptions of what is real and what is part of the experience.

alternate reality game: an immersive experience with few physical or temporal boundaries that integrates itself into the real lives of its participants, who often further the narrative by collaborating online.

My alter-ego

When I’m not making you reconsider what a puzzle even is, you may know me as lead contributor at Streets Dept. My hobbies include piano, ceramics, Magic: The Gathering, coin collecting, and talking about that one time I volunteered on a remote atoll for four months.

Passionate about puzzles?

Here are the best ways to get more involved and help me grow:

  1. Tell a friend about my unique adventure puzzles!

  2. Join my email list, The Puzzle Well, to hear about new puzzle launches.

  3. Join Algorithm Bypass Club (on Instagram) to ensure you see new puzzle videos.

  4. Commission a custom experience.

  5. Just send me a good old-fashioned tip, plain and simple!