Slots for are filling up fast for the reemergence of the Black Letter Game, that is scheduled to begin 9:26:53 a.m. PST, March 14, on the Black Letter Labs website.

Having started the ordering process in early December, already 70% of the openings are spoken for, and the previous Black Letter Game completely sold out. Each subscription contains four artifacts that are mailed out over the course of four months, and fetches $99 per subscription.

Pulling no punches, organizers have said upfront that the puzzles are hard, although they will range in difficulty. “That being said, you will be challenged. Guaranteed,” state the designers.

Hints will be available throughout the event, and can be played “just for fun” or competitively as a first to solution finale. All players that solve the hunt, no matter their time, will receive a game-themed prize, while the speediest puzzlers will may be invited to submit their own artifact creations for future Black Letter Games.

“Black Letter Game includes elements of puzzle hunts, scavenger hunts, and locked room mysteries, all within a larger narrative context,” organizers described to Puzzle Pile via email. “Every few years, Black Letter Labs runs its Intern Assessment Program, inviting outsiders — high-end puzzle-solvers — to work with the Lab on deciphering these artifacts.”

“Analysts [work] to identify, decode, and expose the communications of a shadowy organization called The Seventeen. The Seventeen communicate with one another by hiding messages in what appear to be ordinary real-world objects. As an intern at the Lab you will receive copies of these objects — called artifacts — to test your puzzle-solving prowess.”

“Unlike other puzzle games or puzzle hunts or locked-room mysteries, the Black Letter Game sends the puzzles to the player, so no travel is necessary. And unlike games which may last an evening, a day, or perhaps even a weekend, the Black Letter Game runs over a period of many months.”

The Black Letter Game comes from the creative minds that were behind The Game in Seattle, though the designers choose to remain anonymous to maintain the ambience and narrative of the game’s universe.

Source: Black Letter