REPOD S7E5 - The Secrets of Wild Heart Ranch: Blake Hodges-Koch & Thomas Meston

Reality Escape Pod - Escape Rooms & Immersive Games

“The most Myst-like experience I have had in real life”

You arrive at the Airbnb, ready for a fun-filled weekend with your loved ones. The ranch is gorgeously furnished with mid-century modern touches. Outside, the desert stretches off into the distance. You wander in after a soak in the hot tub and find a little piece of paper that says "Start Here." Before long, you're uncovering secrets about Grandpa Ray and going on adventures out into the desert. And what is hidden behind those locked doors in the courtyard?

Blake Hodges-Koch and Thomas Meston have created magic in Joshua Tree – an escape room-esque immersive experience packaged in an Airbnb. By discovering secrets and solving hidden puzzles in a place you're calling home, the story starts to come alive and the characters become real. Delightful little touches like the custom soundtrack that plays throughout the property add to the experience.

Time spent in an experience truly aids immersion, and nothing quite beats living in it for the weekend. Blake and Thomas put a lot of love and effort into crafting a home that's comfortable, appealing, and with plenty of mysteries to discover. It was especially fun to hear how appreciative they are of the escape room community embracing of their project. As David puts it, even after playing a thousand escape rooms, Wild Heart Ranch still managed to surprise and delight him.

Timestamps & Full Show Notes

Episode Sponsors

Thank you to our sponsors Morty, Buzzshot, COGS by Clockwork Dog, & RECON, the Reality Escape Convention:

Morty

Morty is a free app for discovering, planning, tracking, and reviewing your escape rooms and other immersive social outings.

Morty News:

• Morty now features haunt attractions
• Morty for Android is here

Special Badge for REPOD listeners:

You can learn more at morty.app/REPOD to sign up and get a special badge for our listeners (works for existing users also).

Buzzshot

Buzzshot is Escape Room Software, Powering Business Growth, Player Marketing, and improving the Customer Experience. They offer an assortment of pre and post game features including robust waiver management, branded team photos, and streamlined review management for Yelp, TripAdvisor, Google Reviews, and Morty. Buzzshot now has integration with the other REPOD sponsors: Morty and COGS.

Special Offer for REPOD Listeners:

REPOD listeners get an extended 21-day free trial plus 20% off your first 3 months, with no set-up fees or hidden charges. Visit buzzshot.com/repod to learn more about this exclusive offer.

COGS

COGS by Clockwork Dog is an easy to use software/ hardware platform for running interactive events, including escape rooms, and other immersive experiences. They have plug & play hardware that seamlessly integrates with their software so you can create a show with lighting and sound cues without having to write a single line of code. Map all kinds of inputs to outputs by building up simple logic steps which determine what you want to happen and when.

Special Offer for REPOD Listeners:

REPOD listeners can get the COGS Starter Set for only $130 + free shipping to the USA. This bundle is usually valued at $257. You can learn more and purchase your Starter Set at cogs.show. Use code REPOD at checkout.

RECON - The Reality Escape Convention

Our convention, RECON, will be in Universal City, California on August 18th & 19th, 2024.

RECON offers a curated collection of talks and experiences exploring the business and art of escape room and immersive game creation. All are welcome at this event that is crafted around professionals and aspiring professionals.

Tickets are on sale now at RealityEscapeCon.com

Special Offer:

If you buy your ticket by May 1, you’ll get priority session selection for Imagi-Ne’er-Do-Wells and The 49 Boxes.

Production Credits

Hosted by David Spira & Peih-Gee Law

Produced by Theresa Piazza

Supported by Lisa Spira, Richard Burns, and Tommy Honton

Edited by Steve Ewing of Stand Inside Media

Music by Ryan Elder

Logo by Janine Pracht