1. SCVNGR Style Guide
This document focuses on how to build great
challenges (and treks) on SCVNGR. We’ll start
off with a quick refresher on playing SCVNGR,
but the best way to really understand
SCVNGR is to play it yourself. If you’re not yet
playing SCVNGR, go to www.scvngr.com and
get started! It’s really fun.
A quick refresher on SCVNGR:
SCVNGR is part awesome location-based
mobile game and part really really powerful
mobile gaming platform.
Playing SCVNGR is really simple. It's all about going places, doing challenges and
earning points, right from your mobile phone. It's compelling, competitive and
social. You visit a place and are presented with a list of challenges. One asks you to
take a photo, another to solve a riddle and yet a third to order the most highly
caffeinated item on the menu and then drink two! You pick a challenge and do it.
Players earn points, start unlocking badges, share their activity with friends and
play on.
Building on SCVNGR is equally easy. Enterprises and individuals build on SCVNGR by
creating custom challenges at specific locations or by building treks that connect
places and challenges into themed, branded experiences.
What can I build on SCVNGR:
Challenges:
The core unit of SCVNGR is the challenge. The challenge is a quick, fun thing to do
at a place. A challenge might ask a player to take a photo, solve a location-based
riddle, scan a QR code, complete some activity, simply check-in or really anything
else you can come up with! Challenges are highly flexible and can include text,
images, audio and even video! A good challenge should be fun, quick (possible to
complete in <6 seconds) and clear. A challenge must be tied to a physical place.
(Generally that place has an address or is easily found)
Treks:
Treks connect places and challenges into themed and branded paths. For example,
the “Boston’s Best Baristas” trek is a set of all the best coffee houses in Boston with
a challenge featured at each one. Treks can be done casually over time or all at
once. Players can choose to visit the places and do the challenges in the order
listed, or in whatever order they choose. Each trek has its own leaderboard and
activity stream.

2. The Good, The Bad and the Ugly of Building
Challenges: (well, actually just the first two…)
As more and more people and institutions are building on SCVNGR we’re seeing
more and more creative challenges. The listing below is by no means complete, but
is definitely a good collection of the things that make challenges good or bad. There
is no need to include all (or even any) of these elements, but they are good ways
to think about what makes good challenges and what should be avoided.
Good Challenge Qualities Bad Challenge Qualities
Fun Illegal
Seems basic, but always be focused on Never ask a player to do anything illegal.
the “fun”. Period.
Quick Busy Work
Good challenges can be done in <6 Don’t make players do busy work.
seconds.
Clear and Specific Vague / Unclear / Inaccurate /
Impossible
Make sure your challenge is Unclear challenges lead to frustration.
unambiguous.
Activity Oriented Trivia
Get your players to do something at the Trivia (or q’s that can be solved
place. anywhere) is a minus.
Self Reflective / Group Oriented Involving Strangers
Getting players to do things with their Asking players to approach strangers is
groups is a plus. generally bad.
Humor Uncomfortable / Sketchy / Awkward
Making your challenges humorous will The line between humor and sketch is a
increase fun. tight one…
Creative Repetitive
Players will reward you for creativity in
Don’t use the same (or similar) challenge
challenges. over and over.
Free Overly Commercial / Asks For
Personal Info
Challenges should easily be accessible Don’t ask to spend money or give up
for free. personal info.
Fun Once, Fun Always Fun Only Once
Make doing your challenge again fun the If it can only be done once, will only be
second time! done once.
One Time Due To High Level of One Time Due To Boring Nature
Discovery

3. Sometimes challenges should only be fun If a challenge is boring, it will only be
the first time.Accessible
Reasonably done once. Time Restrictive
Excessively
Should be accessible within sensible Only available during random (unlisted)
hours. So for stores, most of the time time periods.
while they're open.
Simple Complicated
Great challenges are easy and clear. Don’t build single challenges that have
One step only. multiple stages.
Present Tense Past Tense
Challenges should ask people to do Don’t ask players to recollect something
things now. previous.
Include Examples Bland Writing
A good example can really help get It’s meant to be fun! Use your creativity
people thinking. in writing.
Involve Other People As Necessary Disobey the Laws of Physics
Suggest that a friend snap the pic, if Snapping a pic of yourself can be tough
necessary. in some cases.
Good Challenges
Any Burrito Shop: Make your best origami out of your burrito wrapper! Can you
make a crane, a dog, a turtle? Snap a picture of your creation for two points.
Boston Common Coffee Shop: Check out the “coffee bean inspired” art on the wall.
Which is your favorite?
Any Restaurant: Time to play with your food! Mash up your main meal into the
shape of your state! Snap a pic!
Terrible Challenges
Any Burrito Shop: Purchase a burrito for 2 points. Mmmhmmm… Overt
commercialism tastes so good!
Boston Common Coffee Shop: Look at all the art on the walls! (What am I going to
do? No idea!)
Any Restaurant: How many items are on the menu? Still counting? I thought so…
The Triumphs and Tribulations of Treks:
Treks are collections of challenges.
Each challenge must be tied to a location. There must only be one challenge per
location!
Building good treks mainly consists of building good challenges, but here are a
couple unique things to bear in mind.
Number of Places: Average treks have between 5 and 15 places in them. You
can, of course, go outside of these bounds, but a trek with 100+ places is not

4. a good idea.
Treks are Done Over Time and Out Of Order: Bear in mind that most treks
are done over time. So make sure that your challenges don’t depend on one
another.
Select Places That Go Together: Treks should link places and challenges into
themed sets. Top 10 coffee shops, best sites, top bars, historical places etc…
Make sure your places share a common theme.
Vary Your Challenges: Don’t do the same challenge at each place. Mix ‘em up!
Geographical Proximity: Treks should contain places in the same geographic
context. “Top Sites in Boston”, “Best Coffee in the South End”, “Midtown Bar
Crawl”. If all your places are in Boston, don’t include one in New York!
Time Sensitivity: If your trek is time sensitive (a fair, festival, conference etc…)
be sure to deactivate it once the event is over! No one likes trying to play a
trek for places that no longer exist.
Paths: If your trek follows a famous path or should be done in a specific order,
order the challenges appropriately and then highlight that fact in the trek
description. For example, the “Freedom Trail” trek in Boston.
One Challenge Per Place In A Trek: Each place in your trek should have only
one challenge associated with it. This gives players one thing (the best thing)
to do at that place as part of the trek, and then they can move on!
Good Treks:
Boston Barista Trek: 15 of the best places in Boston to get your caffeine fix! Be
sure to try our featured challenge at each one! Do them over time or you’ll over-
energize for sure!
Freedom Trail Trek: This will trek you lead you in order (from Back Bay to the
North End) along the Freedom Trail with historical facts at each place. Best done
over a leisurely afternoon.
Top 10 Sites in NYC: The best places to go (and the best things to do) in NYC. You’ll
be a local in no time at all!
Movie Mania in LA: Visit the 8 top movie locations in LA. We’ve got the clips of the
area in the movie at each spot! Have fun!
Terrible Treks:
Random Locations Across the U.S: This trek contains 20 random places that I think
are modestly interesting in the United States. Be sure to bring your private plane to
make it to them all!
Every Coffee Shop in Seattle: This trek contains all 189 coffee shops in Seattle.
Visit them all and OD on caffeine! Woot!
Sketchiest Locations in Newark, NJ: This trek will bring you to all the sketchiest
spots in Newark, NJ. Be sure to bring police protection and don’t do it at night.
How to Speak About SCVNGR Accurately
This sections discusses how you should speak about SCVNGR.

5. In general, most people either play SCVNGR, by going places, doing challenges and
earning points. Or build on SCVNGR by building challenges at their favorite places
or by building treks on SCVNGR that connect challenges and places into themed and
branded paths.
Quick Descriptions of SCVNGR:
SCVNGR is a game about doing challenges at the places you visit, right from your
mobile phone.
SCVNGR is part game, part game platform. People play casually by going places,
doing challenges and earning points. Others build on SCVNGR by adding challenges
to their favorite places.
Acceptable Phrases when referring to SCVNGR
Play SCVNGR.
Play us on SCVNGR.
Play PARTNER on SCVNGR.
Play SCVNGR @PARTNER.
Play our challenges on SCVNGR.
Play our trek on SCVNGR.
Build on SCVNGR.
Build challenges on SCVNGR
Build treks on SCVNGR
Go places. Do challenges. Earn points!
Go places. Do challenges. Earn points. Play SCVNGR!
Unacceptable Phrases when referring to SCVNGR
SCVNGR Hunt (just wrong)
SCVNGR games (There's really only one game, and it's called SCVNGR, but
everyone can build it out at their favorite places)
Play our game on SCVNGR (see above)
Play the SCVNGR game. (see above)
SCVNGR challenges. (Should be challenges on SCVNGR)
SCVNGR treks (Should be treks on SCVNGR)
Where to learn more!
We're always updating this document to make it better and more comprehensive.
If you have comments or suggestions, let us know at our forums
(www.getsatisfaction.com/scvngr) or by emailing us at support@scvngr.com.
Have fun playing (and building!) SCVNGR!