Participants: 16 teams at the launch event
Steps along the way: 10
Approximate distance: 5 km
Approximate duration: ~ 2 hours
Language of the game: Bulgarian
Organized by: Inner Voice, Tepe Jambore
Our partnership with the Tepe Jambore team began with a recommendation and evolved into a meeting of two communities united by a common goal. Tepe Jambore is an annual event that brings together people eager to explore and experience Plovdiv in a different way.
In this collaboration, we created the urban game “Secrets on the Hills” – an experience that combines movement, history and riddles and which became a natural extension of the spirit of the event itself.
Context and Concept
The game’s launch event took place on May 1, 2026, when 16 teams of enthusiasts set out on the route to explore the hills from a new perspective.
The game included:
- 10 riddles scattered along the Jambore route
- archival photos and stories related to the hills
- a route approximately 5 km long
Following its launch on the 1st, “Secrets on the Hills” will remain active until June 12, 2026, giving more participants the chance to join at a time that suits them. Everyone who completes the game will receive a small prize in preparation for Tepe Jambore’s event.
The game is free to enter and is part of the preparations for the event on June 13, 2026, when Plovdiv will once again “run for the party” (which is also the event’s motto).
Main Objectives of the Project
The project had several clearly defined objectives:
- to bring together the audiences of Inner Voice and Tepe Jambore
- to give runners a new perspective on the routes they’re running
- to offer our players a more challenging, dynamic experience
- to show that the city can be explored not only on foot, but also through thought
The main idea is that exploring the city can be an active, engaging and memorable experience.
The Challenges
The biggest challenge in creating the game was achieving the right balance.
We had to create an experience that:
- is physically challenging enough for runners (hilly terrain, dynamic route)
- offers interesting and new riddles for our audience
- maintains its educational value without losing the fun factor
In other words, the game had to be challenging, fun and meaningful all at once.
Results and Impact
Just a week after the launch event, another 20 teams had signed up on their own for the game.
It was particularly important to us that:
- Our joint project reached beyond the usual audiences of Inner Voice and Tepe Jambore and invited entirely new players to join.
- Many of the new participants were part of the Tepe Jambore community.
- We managed to reach a new audience.
- The players were pleasantly surprised by the format and the riddles.
The feedback was entirely positive, the teams had fun and learned new things about the city. They discovered or reaffirmed urban quest games as a new way to experience familiar places.
The Tepe Jambore team also joined in the game scoring 1,428 points. George Aleksiev, one of the event organizers, shared with us after the game:
"Secrets of the Hills turned out to be exactly the partnership we needed. The event, held along the Jambore route as a warm-up for the big race on June 13, generated enormous interest and garnered a wide public response among Plovdiv residents and visitors. When we met Yana and Emo, we immediately felt that we were on the same page. We’re both people who love Plovdiv and know how to tell its story in a unique way. Yana and Emo captured the spirit of the hills in an entertaining game featuring archival photos, stories, and riddles, which encouraged participants to see familiar locations in a new perspective. The participants shared that they had never before had the opportunity to explore Plovdiv in this way, and that is the best feedback we could have received." - George Aleksiev
Partnership as a Driving Force
Working with the Tepe Jambore team was a prime example of how different formats can complement each other rather than compete.
This project demonstrated that:
- Urban quest games can be a powerful tool for engagement ahead of major events.
- They can add value to existing initiatives.
- They can offer a fresh perspective on familiar routes and activities.
What’s Next
“Secrets on the Hills” will remain active until June 12, 2026 only in Bulgarian.
This game has strengthened one of our beliefs – that when you combine movement, history and gameplay, you create an experience that stays with players.
We believe that such partnerships have enormous potential to expand audiences, enrich events and transform the urban environment into a stage for discovery.
If we had to sum it up in one sentence – sometimes the best way to get to know a city is simply to set out on a mission.
