Design an intro puzzle that hooks players, teaches your rules, and opens the door to your world.
Start LearningEvery great ARG has that one moment where reality tilts. A weird image. A broken audio file. A link that definitely shouldn't exist. Most people scroll past. But a few players lean in, poke at it, and suddenly they're inside a world of hidden messages and secret rules.
This recipe is about building that moment: your very first puzzle, the trailhead that tells players "you're not just watching a story anymore, you're inside it."
You're actually creating three things at once: an intro puzzle (a small, solvable challenge), a trailhead (the clear "start here" signal), and a landing zone (where the puzzle sends them with a promise of more). Get these right and you've built a strong Episode One.
"You're not just hiding a message. You're opening a door and saying: Come in. The rules are a little different here."
Pick exactly one technique for your intro: invisible ink, spectrogram audio, QR codes, metadata, or cipher text. You'll reuse it later, so choose something that fits your world.
GitHub Pages, Notion, Google Drive, Discord, Tumblr, or simple HTML
Know if it's glitchy horror, investigative, magical, or grounded realistic
Before you build anything, decide: "When players see this for the first time, what feeling do I want to hit them with?"
This feeling tells you what your "weird object" should be: an image, sound clip, screenshot, poster, or fake website.
The intro puzzle is your tutorial, hiding inside the story. Pick exactly one mechanic you want players to learn:
New creators often make their first puzzle too subtle. Players never realize it exists. Don't be sneaky. Be loudly strange.
WHYDIDTHEYSENDTHIS.pngYour job isn't to trick players into missing the puzzle. Your job is to invite them to touch it.
Most strong intro puzzles follow this pattern:
Solving the intro should bring players somewhere: a page, channel, file, or inbox. This landing zone needs to do four things:
Keep it simple and easy to update. Notion, a Google Doc, or a basic HTML page all work fine.
Remix these patterns for your own intro puzzle
A selfie from a "friend" with one corner obviously glitched. Players inspect it with Lucyra and reveal hidden text: START IN ROOM 204. Landing zone is a simple page titled "Room 204 Log" with one scared entry and a note: "I'm still collecting proof. Check back soon." Teaches: images can hide text.
A 10-second voice memo captioned "audio bug?" with words drawn in the spectrogram: CANT TALK HERE. Landing zone looks like a terminal: "Transmission intercepted. Further logs when channel is safe." Teaches: audio is worth analyzing visually.
An empty-looking PNG named evidence.png from a panicked character. Liminala reveals metadata: Artist: donttrusttheprincipal. Landing zone is a shared folder with one visible file and a promise of more. Teaches: metadata matters.
Start simple or go deeper
Hide a QR code in plain sight on a poster or image. It links directly to your landing zone with a welcome message. One tool, one solve, instant gratification.
The full Invite → Act → Reward pattern with one puzzle tool. Players identify something weird, apply the right technique, get a clear result that leads to your landing zone.
Two quick solves chained together: find hidden text that gives a password, use the password on a locked page. Still fast but teaches two mechanics and feels more "real."
You can make your game spooky, intense, and weird without crossing lines. The point is to feel like the world is bending, not to put anyone at risk.
Avoid: Telling players to trespass or break rules. Using real people without permission. Posting anyone's real personal info. Pushing players toward unsafe stunts.
Good moves: Keep missions digital or clearly safe. Use fictional names and organizations. Add a disclaimer: "This is a fictional game. Stay safe and follow real-world rules while playing."
Your intro puzzle is Module 1. While players are solving and theorizing, you quietly build Module 2. You only need to stay one or two steps ahead.