Singapore Puzzle Hunt 2018

Singapore Puzzle Hunt 2018 was the 4th iteration of the Singapore Puzzle Hunt, with kick-off occurring on July 14th, 2018.

Pre-hunt, the website and registration page contained the following blurb about the hunt theme - "You have received our invitation to a contest of a lifetime. Get ready, for it will require all your puzzle solving skills to be successful. To find the prize, you will first need to prove your worthiness by completing the challenges in store for you. Will you assemble your clan to join the quest for the fabled object?"

2-3 months before the hunt, registered teams received two short thematic videos to immerse them into the hunt theme and story - Hunt Invitation (https://youtu.be/gM-CJXNYWME) and Sixer Attack (https://youtu.be/8Qr2-h9z688).

This year's Singapore Puzzle Hunt attempted to follow the OASIS universe of the source material closely and give solvers a feel as if they were part of the OASIS. The puzzles in the three rounds are themed after classic 80s pop culture references in three different genres - books, video games and movies. Solvers are encouraged to choose their own OASIS personas (similar to the organizers), and a thematic chatroom The Basement was also set up as a platform for them to interact with each other online, similar to how gunters would in the novel/movie. The team rankings during the hunt was also in the style of the gunter rankings screen in the novel/movie. Two of the puzzles have hidden Easter Eggs too - besides their actual answer, another thematic answer can be solved from each of them in a different way.

Hunt Introduction
https://sgpuzzlehunt.com/2018/puzzles/huntintro.pdf

Plot
The theme for this year's Singapore Puzzle Hunt was "Ready Puzzler One" (referencing Ready Player One). Teams are clans of gunters invited to take part in an Easter Egg Hunt in the virtual reality world of OASIS. Teams have to solve the puzzles left behind by the deceased OASIS creator, to find three keys and open three gates scattered across OASIS. The first team to do so gains control of the OASIS, and teams are in a race against the evil Sixers to prevent them from doing so.

There are 3 rounds of puzzles (Copper, Jade and Crystal), with each round having an antemeta representing the key (which is a standalone puzzle that uses elements hidden within the round puzzles and unlocks the round meta when solved), and a meta puzzle representing the gate. Solving a meta puzzle reveals the challenge completed at the gate, which entails a task at one of the planets in OASIS (named after thematic 80s pop-culture references). Once the last meta is solved, the Crystal Gate is cleared and the team receives the Easter Egg and wrests control of the OASIS from the Sixers.

There were also two video "cutscenes" involving the Sixers which triggered different events during the hunt. The Sixer Attack formed the backdrop for the two Pre-Hunt Events that teams had to send representatives to take part in, which are essentially video game style raids to breach the force field that the Sixers have put up around the Hunt Almanac. The Sixer Espionage is triggered when the first team cleared the Jade Gate, and similar to the  novel/movie, allowed the mysterious Sixers to move up the rankings and catch up, providing greater urgency to all the teams to prevent them from finishing first.

Hunt Souvenirs
Teams received thematic customized metal video arcade game tokens. A customised video game manual with all the puzzles was also produced for the first team to finish.