The ScavengersThings to do with kids: a treasure hunt in your own town
A free family adventure on foot, with riddles at real landmarks, a narrator with a story for every place, and no preparation at all.
A treasure hunt on your own doorstep
Looking for something to do with the kids that gets everyone outside, costs nothing and isn't the same park again? The Scavengers turns the streets around you into a treasure hunt. Open the game on a phone, and it builds a hunt from wherever you're standing: riddles at real statues, photo clues at old buildings, blue plaques to read, puzzles to crack and a narrator, the General, who tells you a story about every place you find.
There's nothing to print or prepare, and no two hunts are the same.
Setting up a family hunt
The quickest way is Run solo, which starts a 30-minute hunt at once. For more say over it, choose Host a hunt and pick:
- Relaxed level: fewer clues, close together (within about 800 m), good with children or for a slow stroll.
- A length: 30 or 45 minutes for younger children, an hour or more for older ones.
- One team for the whole family on one phone, or two teams (parents against children) on two phones.
- Hazards on or off: the tanks and the bomber are the game's chase; turn them off for a calmer walk.
Ages and safety
Players need to be 10 or over and children play with an adult; younger brothers and sisters join in on a grown-up's phone. Every clue is at a public place you can reach from the street or a path: no private property, railway lines or water, and paid areas are always optional. The tanks only exist on the map. The adult watches the roads.
Guests play with a first name only. We don't ask for an email, a photo or an age.
Ideas that work well
- A school-holiday afternoon: a Relaxed 45-minute hunt from the park, ending at a café.
- A birthday: tap "It's my birthday!" and a cake appears on the map for the first team to reach it.
- Visiting family in another town: the game knows over 130 towns and cities, and builds a hunt anywhere else.
- A wet day: the Enigma Rooms' 21 puzzles work indoors, and there's a new Daily Expedition every day.
- Holidays: Rhodes has hand-researched hunts with offline packs, so you don't need data abroad.
- Grandparents: the City Tour is a gentle guided walk through the town's history with no clock at all.
Good for them, without saying so
Children walk without noticing: a one-hour hunt is often two or three kilometres. At the end, the results show how far each explorer walked, their steps and minutes on foot. And they come home knowing who the statue in the square is, why the old market house has a date over the door, and what used to stand where the car park is now.
Parents ask
What age is it for?
Players need to be 10 or older, and children play with an adult. Younger children can join in on a grown-up's phone as part of the family team: spotting the clue, reading the plaque, taking the photo.
Is it a good thing to do with kids at the weekend or in the school holidays?
Yes. It turns an ordinary walk into an adventure, it's free, it works in your own town without any travel, and a hunt fits an afternoon. Pick the Relaxed level, 30 or 45 minutes, and a start near a park or a café. On a wet day the Enigma Rooms' puzzles work indoors.
Is it safe for children?
Every clue is at a public place you can see from the street or a public path; the game never sends you into private property, onto railway lines or into the water, and clues in paid areas are always optional. The hazards exist only on the map. Children should play with an adult, who keeps an eye on roads and traffic, and the team chat can be reported. Guests play with a first name only: no email, no photo and no age is asked for.
Can the game go easier on younger children?
Yes. The team leader can mark a player as a young explorer with the lobby's KID button (in a solo hunt, the KID switch in Settings). The game never asks for an age; the Benefactor simply helps a young explorer's team a little more often.
Can we do a birthday treasure hunt?
Yes. Tap "It's my birthday!" in the lobby and a birthday cake appears on the map during the hunt for the first team to reach it, with a birthday message for the party. No dates or ages are collected. For a bigger party with several teams, one adult hosts and shares a code or QR for everyone to join.
How far will we walk?
It depends on the level and length you choose: Relaxed keeps clues within about 800 m of the start, Classic about 1.5 km, Expedition about 2.5 km. At the end the results show each explorer's distance, steps, minutes walking and a rough calorie figure.
Is it educational?
Yes, by stealth. Every landmark comes with a "Did you know?" fact from the General, the clues are built from local history (listed buildings, plaques, statues, old books about the town), and the "From the old books" questions are marked Educational. Teachers and youth groups use Custom Games to set their own clues.
Free to play, no adverts. Works in the browser of any phone, with location on. No account needed.