Pandemic Entertainment: Pandertainment?

Digital Fun in a Corona World

We threw a little dress up party for our game master in arms, Patrick, for his going away. Patrick we will miss you! Stay safe back East.

It turns out that our talented colleague Jasmine is a master at the game Chips and Guac on the app Houseparty. She won both rounds! If you don't know the app I have linked it here. Its free and a ton of fun, plus a nice way to stay connected and play games with your people. This is a screen shot of our goofy Big Sky Breakout team on Houseparty.

Having been mostly stuck inside for the last month, staving off cabin fever has been a real challenge. Reading books held me over for the first couple weeks, but I've felt my brain needing something more interactive, something I could play with those I'm quarantined with, or with my friends over the ones and zeros of our digital landscape. Some apps like Houseparty have been released to help with this and the Big Sky Breakout crew has tried a few others out. Here are our recommendations for entertainment during the 'tine!

Firstly, we have partnered with The Escape Game Company to bring you a new digital gaming experience. This game, "Chasing Hahn" puts you in the seat of an International Police Agent on the hunt to track down the infamous art thief, Vincent Hahn. We were seriously impressed with the production value and complexity of the puzzles. This game is not timed, can be played with multiple people, and is a steal at only $10 for part 1 or $17 for part 1 & 2. If you're interested, head on over to our website, www.bigskybreakout.com. Click on the blue Digital Game "TEG" banner at the top of our home page. From there you can purchase the game. You can have as many people play in your household as you like. We promise it will be the highlight of your quarantine!

We'll also be renting our Break-in Box games for three days starting again on May 7th, 2020! These games are a great physical puzzle in a manageable package. I enjoy these boxes a lot, we usually bring them to events around Missoula but soon you'll be able to take them home for a few days for a great time!

We'll be offering our Deluxe version of these Break-in Boxes for 20% of our normal price. The 3 day rental includes a short training, and one of your team mates to be the Game Master, a very fun role indeed! All this for only $20. We'll also be thoroughly sanitizing each box inside and out between each rental to keep you safe. Call us to reserve yours!

Now for the things we don't offer but have been playing! If you haven't heard of Jack Box games you should really check them out at jackbox.tv. While they started making trivia games in the 90's they recently have had a resurgence in the gaming community in the last few years. They've released a number of party game packs that players interact with using a smart device, like a phone or tablet. They are wonderful games that reward creativity and wit. Some of our Game Masters has been streaming Jackbox.tv with Twitch TV and Steam, it's been a blast.

Next up is the app House Party. We have been using it for employee meetings and game nights. Its an app much like Zoom, where everyone uses a smart device to video call in, but it has the great addition of built in games! A Pictionary like game where your friends try to guess what you're drawing. A game called Chips & Guac that is a lot like Apples to Apples where each player matches a card from their hand to a prompt card with one player judging the winner from the lot. There is a trivia game that I haven't played yet but trivia is always a good time. The last game is like Heads Up, players try to guess whats written on their heads while the other players give them hints. Its available for free on all Android and Apple products!

Lastly, Montana has begun its process of opening businesses back up for Phase 1 of Covid-19 closures and we are getting ready to welcome players back into our escape rooms soon. Things will be a little different of course to keep us all safe, but we are so excited to have y'all playing our games again. Keep gaming and staying connected. Fun makes it all better. See you all soon!

-Jack (Big Sky Breakout Game Master)