Shannon Moeller’s Site

The Boudinot Agency

The Boudinot Agency website was the primary force behind Vision Forum’s alternate-reality Jamestown 400 Treasure Hunt. By interacting through the site with the main character of the story, Jack Bradford, players of the game progressed through a series of time-released clues and events. The first one hundred players to solve the final clue were inducted into the Order of Jamestown, sent special rewards, and invited to travel to Jamestown for the last phase of the hunt and a chance to find four hundred gold coins.

Since, in its fictional world, the agency is “a small security and preservation firm that also specializes in document analysis, historical research, and investigation” my first thought was to give the site a high-tech spy theme.

While the structure was approved, Vision Forum preferred that the agency have a Colonial look.

The entire site was designed and implemented within two weeks to meet a very strict deadline. Since this was a contest, the question and answer system needed to be rock solid. Along with the clues themselves, files and messages were also delivered on a clue-by-clue basis.

The answers to the clues came in various forms including names, dates, locations, and phrases. Valid answers could be written in various formats, so custom regular expressions were needed for each and every clue. If the answer was “July 4, 1776” for example, each of the following answers would be equally valid:

• Jul. 4, 1776
• 7-4-1776
• 07/04/1776
• 4 July 1776
• The 4th day of the 7th month in the year of our Lord 1776
• 1776-07-04, ad nauseam

While the following would be invalid:

• Jan. 4, 1776
• 4-7-1776
• agerygaetgargaerbgaeaglalaebe
• 999999999999
• Our Nation’s Birthday!!!, etc.

But I do love a challenge. Each clue, complete with regular expression, formatted text, and associated files took an average of one hour to complete. It was quite the ride.