21/05/25 – Reflection: Troubleshooting the Blockbuster Game & New 30-Minute Room Challenge

🧪 Blockbuster Puzzle Testing in the Immersive Pod

Yesterday, I tested the Blockbuster-style quiz game inside the immersive pod and ran into some strange technical issues.

• Bug #1: Disappearing Hexagons
  When I pressed one hotspot, the others disappeared entirely, leaving only one visible. At first, I thought the system was lagging or glitching. After some digging, I discovered that I'd accidentally switched the scene setting so that only one hotspot could be active at a time.
  → Reverting to multiple active hotspots fixed the issue, though I don't remember making that change—possibly a system reset or accidental click.

• Bug #2: Unexpected Click Sounds
  I also discovered that despite turning off the default click sound in the theme settings, it was still playing when the game ran in the pod.

  • During editing, the click wasn't audible—only in the deployed version.

  • I've lowered the global volume and plan to contact Immersive support to understand why the sound persists.

🎮 Game Functionality & Sound Integration

I've now modified the hotspots in the Blockbuster game to play sound effects only—they don't trigger anything else. This lets me use audio cues without visual changes or disruptions, which helps with pacing and atmosphere.

📆 New Deadline: 30-Minute Escape Room by June 30th

It turns out I'll need to roll out a working escape room by the end of June, which has thrown a bit of a wrench in the pacing of the larger ADHD-focused version.

I'm now committed to delivering:

• A 30-minute escape room

• That's fun-first, likely for general college use (not just training)

• By June 30th

Initially, I was worried this might dilute the impact of the larger, more meaningful ADHD escape room. But I've decided to reframe this as a strategic opportunity:

I'll use the shorter game as a testing ground—a way to experiment with puzzles, gather feedback, and refine mechanics for the main experience.

It may reveal technical, narrative, or engagement issues early—saving time down the line. Even if it shows some of my cards, one of my favourite games is technically "borrowed" anyway, having been adapted from a CPR escape room.

🤹 Creative Refocus: Prioritising Fun

The challenge now is to make this new 30-minute room truly fun. That means stepping outside of just educational or symbolic thinking and asking:

• What do people genuinely enjoy doing in a game?

• How can I design puzzles that are both clever and satisfying?

This shorter project might actually free me up to be more playful and experimental, without the pressure of getting everything perfect.

🧠 Workflow & Productivity Adjustments

I've also requested to work from home more often. Being at my desk on-site is full of distractions, and I work much better:

• When I can move around

• When I can dictate ideas using speech-to-text tools

• When I'm alone with my thoughts and can problem-solve creatively

This has already improved my ability to get things done—like I'm doing right now.

🎓 Upskilling: Escape Room Creation Webinar

Today I'll be attending an online seminar on using Immersive's Atoms features to build escape rooms. This will be a great chance to:

• Learn new mechanics

• See how others structure their puzzles

• Generate more ideas for both the short-form and ADHD-focused versions

✅ Action Points

• Contact Immersive support to resolve the click sound issue

• Finalise and polish the Blockbuster game logic

• Begin designing the 30-minute escape room (narrative optional, fun essential)

• Use the 30-min version as a prototype/test bed for larger puzzles

• Continue attending training to expand technical design skills

• Track discoveries and puzzle flow for future reuse

This surprise deadline might be a blessing in disguise. If nothing else, it's forcing a leaner, more experimental version of the bigger idea—and letting me flex some creativity in the process.