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What do you get when you mix dinosaurs and the Wild West? Saddle up for Dino Country to find out! Dino Country is our newest addition to Adventure Escape Mysteries, and it’s definitely an adventure. Today we’re here with Emmorie Klotzer and Robin Scott, the two game designers behind it all. So, Dino Country is set in the Wild West… but with dinosaurs?? How did this idea come about?
What’s fun about working on a game set in the Wild West? Robin: The Western genre is rich with storytelling possibilities because it’s somewhat historical, but also highly dramatized. The genre also has a deep cinematic history with spaghetti Westerns, and their connection to the samurai genre. But at the heart of most Westerns is the desire for adventure and navigating the unknown when the odds aren’t favorable, so nailing those elements was at the top of our list. We hope the game is a healthy mix of fun and challenging! Emmorie: The Wild West is such a well-explored setting that it can sometimes feel overly familiar. But that challenge is what made it exciting—finding ways to break expectations and make the world feel fresh again. I also loved showcasing the Southwest’s breathtaking landscapes in a way that goes beyond the usual tumbleweed towns. What’s one of your favorite parts or moments of the game? Emmorie: Quicksand! We had a lot of fun designing a quicksand moment in the game. It’s one of those classic Wild West dangers, but with a unique twist that fits right in. Robin: There’s a part in chapter four with a crystal cave, waterfalls, dinosaur bones, and a massive surprise. That room turned out spectacular and it’s gorgeous to stare at! How long have you worked at Haiku Games, and how did you get into game design? Emmorie: I’ve always been passionate about games—video games, board games, and game art. I never imagined it would actually be creating them! Knowing I wanted to pursue something creative, I attended the Savannah College of Art and Design, where I earned a BFA in industrial design. After college, I was hired by Mattel Games, where I was mentored by award-winning board game designer Brian Yu. He taught me the fundamentals of game design—what makes games fun and engaging. I left Mattel during the COVID pandemic but credit him with giving me my foundation in game design. I was drawn to mobile games because they offer so many opportunities to create exciting, unexpected 'wow' moments that aren’t always possible in physical games. I’ve been with Haiku Games for the past two and a half years, and I see myself here for the long haul! Robin: Emmorie, Andrew Petersell (who did Death Dodgers), and I all started at Haiku simultaneously, and it’s been such a joy working together! I’ve been a gamer as long as I can remember and grew up with Mario, Animal Crossing, Harvest Moon, and Legend of Zelda. I also loved classic point-and-click PC games like Freddie Fish and Putt-Putt, which are similar in structure to what we do here. My journey into the industry started as a detour. During the height of the pandemic, I completed my MFA in Creative Writing. I spent my rare free time playing Adventure Escape games on my phone because I didn’t have time for console gaming. Those phone games reminded me of the point-and-click games I grew up with, and I fell in love with the style. I pivoted my MFA away from novels and made a video game for my thesis instead. Haiku Games took a chance on me right when I graduated, and I’ve been here ever since! As two designers working on one game, how did you collaborate and split the work? Robin: Emmorie and I tackled individual chapters on our own. Of course, splitting the game up meant we weren’t designing chapters in chronological order, so we needed to check in regularly to make sure our timeline was consistent. Even though Dino Country is wrapped up, we still message regularly about puzzle ideas and brainstorming sessions for our own games. It’s handy working with other creatives because the end project is always richer! Emmorie: We collaborated on the overall story outline, then divided up the chapters and created a list of iconic elements we wanted to include in the game. Having multiple perspectives really helped—we could bounce ideas off each other, which led to some unique and unexpected puzzles that might not have happened otherwise. It was a great balance of teamwork and individual creativity. Do you think a T-Rex would make a good pet? Emmorie: As someone who loves big dogs—I have a Newfoundland—I like to think I’m up for the challenge of a giant pet. But even I have to admit that a T-Rex might be a little too much. It would be ridiculously expensive to feed, and I’d be afraid of it stepping on me (or worse). Robin: Well, it’ll depend on how big your backyard is, or if your local dog park will make a species exception. Not sure how many landlords will approve, though. I’m sure that pet fee would be through the roof! What’s your favorite dinosaur? Robin: Oh, there’s so many! This one isn’t technically a dinosaur, but I love plesiosaurs. As a kid, I read a theory that the Loch Ness monster was actually a plesiosaur ghost, and that theory has stuck with me ever since! Ankylosauruses are also super amazing and have such fantastic body armor. Emmorie: I like the Iguanodon! One of the most fascinating things about it is that it had thumbs—I’ve yet to hear a definitive explanation for why, and I’ve always found that intriguing. My son, Leo, loves a book called Dinosaur Dance by Sandra Boynton, and there's an Iguanodon page where I do a funny dance that always makes him laugh. Of course, I had to include an Iguanodon in our game too. Dino Country is available in Adventure Escape Mysteries! Play on iOS or Google Play. Coming soon to Amazon Kindle, Facebook, or Windows. 
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Updated April 2025
We recommend playing Adventure Escape Mysteries if you haven’t played Adventure Escape games before. It has multiple mysteries you can play, the fewest bugs, and has user accounts so you can play on multiple devices. It's not necessary to play our earlier games to understand what is happening in Adventure Escape Mysteries, so check it out if you want the best adventure escape game experience. But many players have emailed us asking about the Adventure Escape games in order of release, so we thought we’d write that up here. If you’re a completionist that wants to play our games chronologically, this list is for you! All Adventure Escape Games
Obsolete Games We have two games that are older. They are not well updated, and though we look back fondly at them, we think our newer games are better.
Detective Kate Games in Order These are just the games featuring Detective Kate.
Death Dodgers is our latest addition to Adventure Escape Mysteries! This advanced game explores life-and-death stakes against a bustling city backdrop. When Marcus downloads a phone game at the recommendation of a mysterious stranger, he gets more than he bargained for. Over the next five days, he must compete against other players in a series of challenges set up by masked admins. Only one player will remain standing after five days. However, there’s something strange about these admins and the head game master. What’s really going on behind those masks? Today, we’re here with Andrew Petersell, the game designer behind Death Dodgers.
This is your first solo game at Haiku! You also worked on Vanishing Act before this one. How does it feel to take the lead on a project? Very rewarding. It was a ton of work, but it was cool to take on more responsibilities during the development process. For example, the Detective Kate universe was already established when we started working on Vanishing Act, so most of the legwork for story and character development was already done. As the primary designer on this project, it was on me to come up with an entirely new story from whole cloth. This was a challenge for sure, but as a result, I have a much greater sense of ownership over Death Dodgers, and I’m really proud of how it turned out! Death Dodgers starts because the main character downloads a phone game, which feels pretty self-referential. Does that mean there will be other video game elements in Death Dodgers? The video game aspects of Death Dodgers certainly play a big part in the story and gameplay. There’s a chapter set in an arcade where we have puzzles based on classic video games like Burger Time and Street Fighter. These were some of my favorite puzzles to design, so I hope you enjoy them! What was your favorite part to work on in Death Dodgers? I had fun coming up with the story concept. It’s pretty “out there,” but we were able to explore it thoroughly, especially with the extra context provided by the bonus VIP chapter. I don’t want to say too much, because I think the story works best when you are as unspoiled as possible. Let’s just say that there are some real unexpected turns. I think players are going to have fun uncovering the mystery! The art style is different than usual, and all the characters have very unique designs! What inspired you to take this direction? The setting of Death Dodgers is largely based off of New York City, so I wanted the art to feel like something out of that urban environment. Gong Studios took that idea and ran with it. They developed a unique, pseudo-graffiti art style that looks super cool, and totally nails that urban vibe. For me, New York has always been a place full of diverse people and experiences, and I think that really comes through in our character designs. Gong totally knocked it out of the park! This game is Advanced, which is our hardest level. Do you have any advice for our clever players? We didn’t set out with the specific goal of making this game harder than usual, but that is where the design ended up taking us. The stakes in this story are rather high, and I think that tension naturally bleeds over into the more challenging gameplay. Here is a bit of general advice for the puzzles in Death Dodgers: most locks require multiple clues to solve. If you think you know the solution after looking at only one clue, chances are you’re missing something. Be vigilant, and study your surroundings carefully! Any words of wisdom for future game designers? Make games! There’s no better way to learn how to design games than to just do it! If you’re not a strong programmer, make card games or board games. If you’re not a strong artist, draw stick figures. Every bit of experience is valuable! Play Death Dodgers in Adventure Escape Mysteries. Purchase the Death Dodgers VIP Bundle to get access to an exclusive bonus chapter, 30 stars, and enough keys to unlock the whole game!
Updated December 2024
We're often asked by our players what soundtracks are in our games. Here is a list of all the soundtracks of mysteries in Adventure Escape Mysteries. Allied Spies We Need A Hero by jeremyrwiebe Suspenseful Mystery by jeremyrwiebe Slow Tension by jeremyrwiebe Canine Cases Background Noire Piano by _Blacksmith_ Sunny Morning Jazz by Purpleplanet Jazz Piano by Korolkov Winter Piano Blues by SyncHits Gentle Noire Nights by SCOREWIZARDS Cool Mystery Jazz by SCOREWIZARDS Sniffing Around by Purpleplanet Lonesome Town by SCOREWIZARDS Clue: The Murder of Mr. Black Something Dark by SCOREWIZARDS Christmas Killer Christmas Jazz by pinkzebra Mysterious by pinkzebra Emotional Piano by cleanmindsounds Scientific Inquiry by PantheonMusic Night Club by VensAdams Christmas Snowfall Loop by Purpleplanet Mysterious Suspenseful Investigative Documentary by lucafrancini The Covenant Mellow Wood by SCOREWIZARDS Mystery in the Forest by PhilLarson Hitchcock Suspense by JBlanks Dark Lullaby by JBlanks Ambient Horror Music by AGsoundtrax Abandoned by JBlanks Killer on Campus by JBlanks Hitchcock Thriller by JBlanks Cursed Crown Elven Forest by WizardBoy Epic Fantasy Cinematic by LuLu_Production Dark Ruins The Mystical Sacred River by FlinTwin Adventure by NeonRecords In the Dark Jungle by SGAndersson Epic Adventure by OctoberOrchestra Day 0: Beneath the Mask Hip Hop Jazz by EightBallAudio Fly Forward by Diego Martinez Lofi Hip Hop by LumenMedia Gimme Beat by soundroll Death Dodgers Hip Hop Container by soundroll Gimme Beat by soundroll Vlog Hip-Hop by SERGMARU At Hip Hop by Oasis_Music Start Game by SnowMusicStudio Breakdancing Moves by PantheonMusic Urban Summer Hip Hop by alexshulgin Fashion Hip Hop Trap by Sound_Forces Dark Hip-Hop by Enrize Noir Desires by marcobellonimusic Sports Hip Hop Rock by cinematic_alex Dark Ambient by StudioKolomna Abstract Dark Stylish Hip Hop Electronica by Antracto Hip Hop Glitch by NikiNPhaser Hip Hop Dark by NikiNPhaser Don’t Stop by syncincio Sentimental Hip Hop by Enrize Indie Emotional Hip Hop by AlexanderRufire The Echo Bay Murders Cyber Trance by JBlanks Be Suspense by ArtHaiz Dark Suspense by PhilLarson The Strange Thing by PetrenjMusic Investigative News Documentary by pinkzebra Science and Medical Research by MusicDog Post Apocalyptic by TexasBrother Ambient Wild West Guitar by OlexandrIgnatov In These Woods by Crypt-of-Insomnia Synthwave Outrun by lucafrancini Story by MrRevant Framed Investigation by 99Instrumentals That Documentaries Is by SersalStudio Documentary Background Music by SersalStudio Atmospheric by MusicService Suspenseful Piano by SilverHoof Cinematic Night Hunt by lucafrancini Danger by MusicService Crime Drama Detective Series by VICTORMUSIC Learning by original_soundtrack Haunted Hunt Dark Night by WizardBoy Period Drama Chase by simonstevens Hidden Ruins Epic Adventure by OctoberOrchestra Lake of Mystery by SCOREWIZARDS Discovery by FlorewsMusic Africa by lucafrancini Gateway To The Fjords by Crypt-of-Insomnia Ancient Stone by Crypt-of-Insomnia Homecoming Positive Rock by plastic3 Uplifting Teen Rock by GalaxyAudio 8 Bit Game by BearStockMusic Rock Teen by 331 Uplifting Pop Rock by GalaxyAudio Legend of the Sacred Stones Enchanted by Orchestralis Ambient Piano by AllenGrey Epic Mysterious Theme by AudiophileTrax Epic Choir & the Temple of Doom by AllenGrey Mystery by Orchestralis Temple of Doom by AllenGrey Haunting Winter Snow by BlueSkyAudio On A Cold Winter Day by Adigold Female Choir by Orchestralis Stars by -MARiAN- Dark Choir and Orchestra by Orchestralis Gothic Choir by AllenGrey Legend of the Time Stones Epic Fantasy by kornevmusic Middle East Cinematic Atmosphere by AllenGrey Epic Battle by mr_B_Music_Studio Daydreaming by AllenGrey Fantasy by _Blacksmith_ Heavenly Inspiration by gilv Fantasy World by _Blacksmith_ This is War by Lowtone Dreamy Cinematic Choir by Orchestralis Epic & Dramatic Choir Theme by AGsoundtrax Emotional Dramatic by DmitriySimf Hollywood Trailer by PraskMusic Positive Inspiring Singing Girl by RedOctopus Lost Ruins Egyptian Adventures by MatthewPablo Arabian Nights by iCENTURY Enchanting Ritual Dance by MusicDog Hot Sand by StudioEtude Cinematic Adventure by MalirecStudio Under Water by SilverHoof Underwater Paradise by TheStoryShop History by fatbunny Hope of Salvation by tunestogo Pantheon by SCOREWIZARDS Epic Battle by Anuch Midnight Carnival For Halloween by TexasBrother Sad Emotion by dimadjdocent Mystery by Stereo_Color Mirror Man Calm Ominous Orchestral Horror Intro by lucafrancini Horror Suspense by lucafrancini Eerie by SilverHoof Dark Synths and Retro Horror by JBlanks On The Dark Side by Crypt-of-Insomnia Trailer Cabal by Synthezx Haunted Mansion by lucafrancini The House of Fear by Adigold As The Crow Flies by scottwills Mysterious Clues by SCOREWIZARDS Mysterious Things by SnowMusicStudio Mysterious Artifact by Crypt-of-Insomnia Something’s Wrong by Adigold Murder Inn Mistery by melodylabs Orchestral Tension by Emanuel-Abrudean On Thin Ice Atmospheric Ambient Piano with clock by AllenGrey Mysterious by 8thModeMusic Inspiring Romance by MusicDog Countdown to Blast by Alex_Greets Investigate by boomopera Mystery by KonstantinMark Mystery and Magic by Cinematique Danger by StudioKolomna Painted Worlds Whimsical by bdProductions Wish Song by AllenGrey Peaceful Village by MatthewPablo Super Cute Game Music by MatthewPablo Emotional Dream by Adigold French Cafe Bossa Nova by NikiNPhaser Kitchen Jazz by LoopsLab Creepy Music Box by 8thModeMusic Dark Lullaby by JBlanks Hopes and Dreams by AGsoundtrax Paradise Mystery Documentary Ambient by bdProductions Relaxing Beach Guitars by trackscube Relax by Alex_Greets A Beautiful Land by TortoiseTree Picture Perfect Cool Orchestral Hip Hop by pinkzebra Summer Dreams by pinkzebra Wedding by M-S-STUDIO Sadness Piano by Korolkov A Sentimental Background by alexbird Gentle & Flowing Piano with Light Orchestra by pinkzebra Club Corporate Music by HimProduction Cinematic Classic by alexbird Pirates Treasure Pirates Secret by JaToPra Calypso Cool by JBlanks Epic Pirate Battle Theme by MatthewPablo Ghost Ship Loop by AllenGrey Psychic Squad Calmness by cleanmindsounds Farewell by lucafrancini Danger by StudioKolomna Lonely Mourning by PhilLarson Atmospheric Cinematic Ambient by _Blacksmith_ A Haunting Tale by AudiophileTrax Fashion Love by lucafrancini Lonely Nights by Adigold Ambient Suspense Background Loop by AllenGrey Suspenseful Dark Cinematic Mystery by SunChannelMusic Inspiring Dreams by AudiophileTrax Puzzle Lovers Light And Happy Cinematic Orchestra by pinkzebra Romantic Moments by MarbleSpace Singles Awareness Day by CrazyTunes Love Adventure by StereoNuts First Date by GentleJammers Romantic Date by Deodo Lost In Nowhere by AGsoundtrax Epic Percussion by cleanmindsounds Reunion Light And Happy Cinematic Orchestra by pinkzebra Romantic Moments by MarbleSpace Singles Awareness Day by CrazyTunes Squire's Tale Medieval Background Loop by lucafrancini Epic Fantasy Orchestral Action Adventure by 8thModeMusic Adventure by AllenGrey Fantasy Adventure mr_B_Music_Studio Mysterious by GentleJammers Eastern Desert Adventure by KabbalisticVillage Middle Eastern by iCentury Winter and Snowman by VictoryAudio Mysteries of the Forest by Purpleplanet Nightfall Of The Magical Forest by CineMedia Castle Vampire by SCOREWIZARDS Mountain Adventure by SCOREWIZARDS Fanfare by pinkzebra Whistling Tune by SeaportSound Stardust Quirky Fantasy by Orchestralis Starstruck Mysterious Clues by SCOREWIZARDS Curiosity by soundroll Sneaking Around by TheStoryShop Sneaky Mischief by lucafrancini Pizzicato Latino Background Loop by Praded Sultan’s Inventor Arabian Legend by CineMedia Anxious Middle-East by tunestogo Savage Desert by simonleng Mid-Eastern Charms by tunestogo Flower Of The East by SnowMusicStudio Desert Caravan by SCOREWIZARDS Arabia by bdProductions Heart of the Sahara by simonleng Sweet Dreams Fairy Tale by Gold-Tiger Super Cute Game Music by MatthewPablo In the Land of Make Believe by Purpleplanet Positive Puzzler by SCOREWIZARDS Wonderful Tale by Purpleplanet The Magic Tree by Purpleplanet More Fun and Games by Purpleplanet Excuse Me Cat by Purpleplanet Magical Journey by Purpleplanet Mischief Maker by Purpleplanet The Quirky by Gold-Tiger The Spooky by MikeStown Mysteries of the Forest by Purpleplanet Riddle of the Old Library by Purpleplanet Baby’s Discovery by Purpleplanet Trapmaker Mysterious Trailer by J_A_Garcia Countdown to Blast by Alex_Greets Orchestral Tension and Suspense by Cinematique Trapmaker 2 Mysterious by 8thModeMusic The Mystery by LMNT_media A Mystery by boomopera Trapmaker 3 Suspense 2 by Cinematique Mystery and Magic by Cinematique Secret Station by cleanmindsounds Vanishing Act Jazzy by Korolkov Sneaky by AllenGrey Noir by MojoProductions Jazz Saxophone Solo by GreenRocketAudio Jazz Lounge by EliansProductions Sweet & Sentimental Acoustic by pinkzebra Hopeful Marimba & Piano Background by pinkzebra The Swing by guitarsstate Clocks by Adigold 8 Bit Game Music by EliansProductions Latin Summer by Korolkov Jazzy Suspense by Crypt-of-Insomnia Femme Fatale by PantheonMusic Bad Man by SCOREWIZARDS Horror Chase by Positive_Sound Deep and Emotional Noire Jazz by MatthewPablo Updated November 2024 What is the VIP Bundle? The VIP Bundle is available for Death Dodgers, Vanishing Act, Sweet Dreams, and Puzzle Lovers. Each purchase is specific to the game you select and includes three major benefits.
 * Please check the exact dates in the Adventure Escape Mysteries app. The iOS and Google Play games typically launch first and will be in Early Access for roughly 3 weeks before Open Access. How much does the VIP Bundle cost? The VIP Bundle costs $8.99 USD (this will adjust based on your local currency). The Keys and Stars you get with the bundle are worth $9.99, so you can get the bonus content and early access for less than the cost of the keys and stars purchased separately! All the hints and skips are free in the bonus chapter so you’ll never be stuck for long. Do I get access to all VIP content if I purchase one VIP Bundle? You do not. If you purchase the Sweet Dreams VIP Bundle, you'll get access to the Sweet Dreams VIP Content, 30 stars, and unlock all Sweet Dreams chapters. However, you won't get access to the Vanishing Act Bonus Chapter. Some players have asked for a different option that will give access to all VIP exclusive content, and we are considering that. Please let us know if that is something you are interested in so we can gauge interest! I don't see the VIP Bundle. What's wrong? First, make sure the VIP Bundle is available. We'll announce the launch date on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and send out an email. The iOS and Google Play versions will be available first. Amazon Kindle, Steam, Windows, and Facebook will come later. If it is past the launch date and you do not see the VIP Bundle, the most common situation is that you need to update your Adventure Escape Mysteries app. The app might not automatically update, so you can manually update it on iOS or Google Play. If you have more problems, please email us. I bought the VIP Bundle on the wrong account! What should I do? Some players were logged into the wrong Haiku account, or not logged in when purchasing the VIP Bundle. We can transfer the VIP Bundle purchase to the correct account if you email support. The process is currently manual, so please give our Customer Support team a little time to make this happen. Do I need to buy the VIP Bundle to finish the story in the main game? No, you do not. You can complete the main story by playing for free. Bonus Content is meant to supplement the main story. Will every future mystery have a VIP Bundle? We don’t know yet. In the last year, we've released games with and without VIP bundles. There is a VIP Bundle for Death Dodgers, Vanishing Act, Puzzle Lovers, and Sweet Dreams. Whether or not we continue depends on how you, our players, react to them. Let us know what you think about the bundles and if we should keep doing them. Will Bonus Content be the same for each game? We are experimenting with different types of VIP exclusive bonus content. Stardust: A Puzzle Collection is a series of different puzzles that the players complete to learn more about the world of Revi in Sweet Dreams. Homecoming is a bonus chapter that explores Detective Kate in high school. Let us know which ones you prefer! Will the Bonus Content be available for everyone eventually? At this time, Bonus Content is exclusively for players who purchase the VIP Bundle. Can I buy the VIP Bundle after the Early Access period? Yes, you can still purchase the VIP Bundle when the game is in Open Access. Why are you offering VIP content? Our goal is to keep making Adventure Escape for years to come. Imagine if we could release a high quality Adventure Escape update every month instead of every 3-4 months like we do now! This is something many players have asked for. To do that, we have to keep bringing on amazingly talented people and manage the rising costs of creating Adventure Escape. Our standards have constantly been going up–if you look at some of the art in Vanishing Act versus our first game, Pyramids of Giza, you can see the increase in quality.  Adventure Escape art has improved a lot over the years! At the same time, we want to offer something that is valuable for players. We hope the combination of unique content, early access, and the included keys and stars will be exciting for our players.
If you choose to purchase VIP Bundles, we’re thankful to you for supporting Haiku Games. You’re helping us update Adventure Escape with new, free mysteries for years to come. Hopefully this explains our decision to create the VIP bundle. As always, let us know your thoughts! Puzzle Lovers is the latest mystery featured in the Adventure Escape Mysteries app. Haiku's first romance-adventure brings you the world's greatest puzzles in the most beautiful locales. In the interview below, learn more about the game designer and behind the scenes of this brilliant game.  Let's meet Gene!
What advice would you give to an aspiring game designer when starting out?
What games do you play on your own time other than AEM? I try to be careful about playing games because I get pretty addicted. I’m co-designing three games right now so I need to stay on track. But I am playing The Queen’s Gambit Chess by Ripstone Games. I never learned chess as a kid – my slow learning curve was too humiliating. This app builds up very small chess puzzles and it’s infinitely patient. As part of my Puzzle Lovers research, I watched YouTube chess influencers and they’re a fun subculture. It seems like every game designer should understand chess! Were there any major changes in Puzzle Lovers from when it was first designed? Yes! Initially, we were sticking close to The Covenant’s coding, which only allows for one player character. That’s not good enough for a dating show. I asked if we could give the player more choices. And our brilliant engineer Christine Blaich found a way. Now the player can choose between eight characters. both male and female, and fifteen names. Everything feels more personal. Let us know if you love it! 🙂 What puzzle are you the most pleased with how it turned out? I’m most pleased with the puzzles other designers contributed to help me make my deadlines. Amy Fisher designed River Crossing in Puzzle Lovers chapter 5, and Motorcycle Race in the VIP chapter. Andrew Lee designed Market Manipulator in the VIP chapter. Of my own puzzles, I’d say the Untangle Parachute puzzle. It’s an exciting start to chapter 2. What kind of player would be most interested in a game like Puzzle Lovers? Anyone who wants to see the world, make friends, fall in love, or make money. Clever people like you are appreciated in this game. Also you learn how to untangle your parachute during free fall. Play Puzzle Lovers now in the Adventure Escape Mysteries app!  Sweet Dreams is the latest mystery in Adventure Escape Mysteries. This whimsical game follows a 5-year-old boy through his wildest dreams. In the interview below, find out what goes into making the art for each chapter.  Let's meet the designers! What is your favorite part about being a game designer?
How did you come up with the idea behind Sweet Dreams? Tammy: A dream game is something Michelle and I have talked about making for a while. Setting a game in a dream environment gives you freedom to design whatever sort of fun and wacky world you want. Once it was decided it would be a dream, it seemed natural to set it in a child’s dreamland. Where else are there so many talking adorable animals and giant lollipops? We worked through a few ideas that were more complex, but eventually settled on keeping it simple. Arlo is asleep, and you need to wake him up. Also, I am a mother to a sweet little boy and hearing about his dreams, fears, and hopes served as a great inspiration for our little Arlo. What is the process like to request new art? Emmorie: During the early design process, we create rough sketches to explain all of the interactions in the chapter. Then, we create a large document with specifications and references for every element. We send that to a team of talented artists and eagerly wait to see our vision come to life! Typically there’s some back and forth to make things just right, but it’s always an exciting day when we receive art. How did you decide on the art style for Sweet Dreams? Michelle: Early on, we sent the art team at Gong Studios a simple line sketch that Emmorie made of the Chapter 2 candy land scene below. We asked them to deliver multiple rough color versions of that scene, trying out a variety of styles that would look dreamy and whimsical, and less realistic than our existing Adventure Escape games.  The Gong team delivered six different versions shown below.
We loved the overall vibe and layout of 2C, but we also pulled in elements from other versions, like the gummy bear in 2B, and the swirly sky lines in 1C. The art team made other refinements, like making the linework less jagged, and adding more color and yummy treats. This scene set the style for the whole game.  What final art do you think turned out the best in the mystery? Michelle: I love it all, but my two favorites are the Control Room in Chapter 1, and the Bunny Playground in Chapter 4. The Control Room feels so big and magical, with beautiful details and rich glowing colors. It’s such a rewarding moment when the electrical wires fill up with color, and when the huge window transforms to show the dreamscape outside. The two Bunny Playground scenes are ridiculously cute and dreamy with the fluffy white clouds, rainbow waterfalls, and chubby pink bunnies everywhere. There are so many iconic elements of childhood in there, from slides to lunchboxes to bubbles. It just makes me happy. Emmorie: I think the art in Chapter 4 turned out really well - especially the bunny playground! The artists did a great job of capturing the whimsical, dreamy feel of the game. Connecting two rooms vertically was something unique that turned out really well. Tammy: I LOVE the spaces inside of Arlo’s head, both the dream work rooms from Chapter 1 and all the spaces in Stardust. They ended up just as whimsical and pretty as I imagined. There is a lovely twinkly little stardust animation that our developer Christine worked out in the Stardust game that makes me so happy every time I see it. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention all the adorable little animal characters. The otter, crab, bunnies, koala… they’re all just so cute! Sweet Dreams is available in Adventure Escape Mysteries! Play on iOS, Google Play, Amazon Kindle, Facebook, or Windows.  Vanishing Act, the latest installment in the Detective Kate franchise, explores a new side of Kate Gray unseen in previous games. What people are a part of Kate’s personal life? Has she always been this clever? In the interview below, the designers behind the game discuss its creative process. What has your journey through the gaming industry looked like?
Andrew and Robin, how has it been working on your first game at Haiku? Andrew: Wonderful! Everyone on the Haiku team has been very welcoming and has helped support our vision for Vanishing Act. It’s been an honor to work on the latest Kate Gray story, and I hope our players will enjoy playing it as much as I enjoyed working on it! Robin: The newest part to me is working tightly with a team. Most of the gaming teams I’ve worked on met sporadically, and our responsibilities were pretty separate. Here, I was co-designing chapters side-by-side with teammates, which has been quite enriching! Often, we’d start a meeting with an idea of where the story would go, only for the narrative to transform as our ideas collided. While I’ve worked on dozens of projects, this whole experience has made the creative process seem new again. It was an honor working with such exceptional designers! And Chris, how has it been overseeing a team at Haiku? Challenging! Game design has been my main focus for the last few years, so I've definitely had to flex a different part of my brain while overseeing Andrew and Robin in a more manager-focused role. I do enjoy the added challenge, and they've been great! I feel like I still have a lot to improve upon, but that's sort of reinvigorated my spirit a little bit. I always think it's good to step out of your comfort zone. It helps you grow. And growth is where the good stuff is! What was your favorite part to work on in Vanishing Act? Chris: I think the final chapter was both my favorite part and the hardest part to work on. It presented a lot of design challenges because of the location. We struggled for a while to make all of the rooms fit together. It required all three of us (Andrew, Robin, and I) to work closely. When we got all of the pieces to fit and played the chapter, there was a big, satisfying sigh of relief that we finally got it working. We all learned a lot, for sure! Big props to our developers, too. Andrew: I really enjoyed weaving the story into the gameplay. In Vanishing Act, we worked hard to develop puzzles and scenarios that are not only fun to engage with on their own, but also tell the player a bit more about Kate and her world. I hope that these puzzles will help players get immersed in the story. Robin: Definitely Chapters Three and Four. Not to spoil anything, but we dove into part of Kate’s past in ways the series hasn’t done before. There was a tricky puzzle at the end of each chapter, and both came together so well because of our developers. We couldn’t have done it without them! Shout out to Henryk Kaufman and Karol Sobański. The settings themselves were also so inspiring and felt different from the first part of the game. Imaginaires (our art team for this game) absolutely nailed the environments and character expressions. What are you most excited for players to experience in this game? Chris: I think longtime Kate Gray fans are going to love some of the big reveals surrounding Kate's personal life. This game might be the first time we take a deep dive into Kate's past. Another thing longtime players will immediately notice is the new celebration animation when solving a puzzle or completing a chapter. We've also got some new UI elements in the AEM library launching at the same time, along with our new VIP Content bundle that includes a pretty hefty bonus chapter. It's been a very busy year for everyone at Haiku, and I can't wait until people get to see all of the other titles we're currently working on. Andrew: I can’t wait for our players to experience the story! Kate Gray is a fascinating character, but the details of her life outside of her detective work have been shockingly sparse up until this point. With Vanishing Act, we really wanted to explore Kate more as a character by delving deep into her past. I’m excited for our players to learn more about Kate and how she became the detective we know today. Robin: As my teammates have mentioned, we’re all excited for the players to experience Kate’s past and learn more about her backstory. I’m also thrilled to say that Kate’s relationship with Murphy will progress, and in ways I don’t think the players will expect. For those who aren’t as concerned about the story, there are so many new puzzles and unique environments. There’s a lot to love about this game! Vanishing Act is available for everyone on December 20, 2023. If you’d like to play now, you can purchase the VIP Bundle. With it comes early access, an exclusive bonus Young Detective Kate chapter, 30 stars, and enough keys to unlock the game in its entirety!  Update: The VIP Bundle is now available on iOS and Google Play. Please update Adventure Escape Mysteries to version 26.00+ to play! Detective Kate returns in Vanishing Act! We are excited to announce the next major update coming to Adventure Escape Mysteries! In our newest mystery, Vanishing Act, Kate and Murphy attend a magic show on a long-awaited date. What could possibly go wrong?  What is the VIP Bundle? We are launching a new feature called the VIP Bundle along with Vanishing Act. The VIP Bundle includes three major benefits for players.
 How much does the VIP bundle cost? The VIP bundle will cost $8.99. The Keys and Stars you get with the bundle are worth $9.99, so you can get the bonus chapter and early access for less than the cost of the keys and stars purchased separately! All the hints and skips are free in the bonus chapter so you’ll never be stuck for long. Do I need to buy the VIP bundle to finish the story in Vanishing Act? No, you do not. You can complete the main story in Vanishing Act by playing for free. The Homecoming bonus chapter in the VIP bundle is a separate story involving Kate's adventures in high school. Will every future mystery have a VIP bundle? We don’t know yet. There will be a VIP Bundle for Vanishing Act as well as our next mystery which will come out in early 2024. Whether or not we continue depends on how you, our players, react to them. Let us know what you think about the bundles and if we should keep doing them. Why are you offering VIP content? Our goal is to keep making Adventure Escape for years to come. Imagine if we could release a high quality Adventure Escape update every month instead of every 3-4 months like we do now. This is something many players have asked for. To do that, we have to keep bringing on amazingly talented people and manage the rising costs of creating Adventure Escape. Our standards have constantly been going up–if you look at some of the art in Vanishing Act versus our first game, Pyramids of Giza, you can see the increase in quality. Adventure Escape art has improved a lot over the years! At the same time, we want to offer something that is valuable for players. We hope the combination of unique content, early access, and the included keys and stars will be exciting for our players.
If you choose to purchase the VIP Bundle, we’re thankful to you for supporting Haiku Games. You’re helping us update Adventure Escape with new, free mysteries for years to come. Hopefully this explains our decision to create the VIP bundle. As always, let us know your thoughts! Thanks! Andrew Ow Founder, Haiku Games * These release dates are for iOS and Google Play. Vanishing Act will release a few weeks later for the Kindle, Steam, and Windows version of Adventure Escape Mysteries. 9/22/2023 Update: Unity reversed their decision which makes us cautiously optimistic. Upgrading Unity will still be a significant cost for us, but at least this change is not retroactive. Thanks to other game developers for also voicing their concerns about Unity, and our players for supporting us! Unity, the game engine we use for Adventure Escape, announced a pricing change that seems designed to punish Haiku Games and other indie game developers. What’s changing? The bottom line is Unity is adding a new fee where they will charge game developers $0.15 to $0.02 per new install. This is on top of the $2,040 per year subscription fee per developer for Unity pro, or other Unity services like Unity’s content delivery fee.  Why does this target some developers? We ran the numbers for 4 small game companies and calculated the impact of the Unity Runtime Fee for each of them. We assumed each company has 4 Unity developers. Each company also has revenue of $5 million a year, but the way they reach it is very different.
Here is a table of how the Unity price change will affect these developers. (Our model is here, modified from this model)  Some developers will be completely crushed by this change. If you make a $20 game, then $0.15 per install is not that bad. But if you make a free-to-play game, this fee is a huge percentage of your revenue. On mobile, 95%+ of games are free. For Developer 4 who makes the kids app, Unity will take $1.8 MM from the developer, over two hundred times more than the developer is paying Unity now. (If you think the kids app example is extreme, look at this post from a kids app developer whose real numbers are even worse.)
It seems arbitrary that Unity decided some developers can survive but others cannot. This change from Unity will specifically target game developers who have high-download, low-revenue per user games. Based on our knowledge of the market, we believe many free to play game developers will go bankrupt due to this change. It seems impossible that this is an accident because many other pricing models (for example, raising the price of the Unity Pro subscription) would affect all developers equally. What do we think about the change? There’s a lot that is frustrating about this situation. We get that development tools cost money. At Haiku, we’ve paid Unity hundreds of thousands of dollars in subscriptions and fees over the years. Outside of Unity, many companies have raised prices over the years and we understand that costs go up. But raising prices up to 400 times current rates is unprecedented. Perhaps most frustrating about this situation is that it harms all parties: developers, players, and yes, even Unity. How will this work out for Unity in the long term? It is hard to imagine recommending Unity to new developers in the future. And every existing Unity developer is going to evaluate the cost of continuing to use Unity versus switching to another engine. What does this mean for Haiku? The good news is that Haiku will survive and keep making games. Don’t get us wrong, this is a major issue and we might have to adjust some plans, but we are one of the fortunate developers who will keep going. All the credit goes to the Haiku Games team and our players for supporting us throughout our journey. But make no mistake, a lot of our fellow game developers will go bankrupt if Unity proceeds with this change. |
AuthorHaiku Games is the developer behind the Adventure Escape series. Play on iOS, Google Play, or Kindle! Archives
April 2025
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