“The most Myst-like experience I have had in real life”

You arrive at the Airbnb, ready for a fun-filled weekend with your loved ones. The ranch is gorgeously furnished with mid-century modern touches. Outside, the desert stretches off into the distance. You wander in after a soak in the hot tub and find a little piece of paper that says “Start Here.” Before long, you’re uncovering secrets about Grandpa Ray and going on adventures out into the desert. And what is hidden behind those locked doors in the courtyard?

Blake Hodges-Koch and Thomas Meston have created magic in Joshua Tree – an escape room-esque immersive experience packaged in an Airbnb. By discovering secrets and solving hidden puzzles in a place you’re calling home, the story starts to come alive and the characters become real. Delightful little touches like the custom soundtrack that plays throughout the property add to the experience.

Time spent in an experience truly aids immersion, and nothing quite beats living in it for the weekend. Blake and Thomas put a lot of love and effort into crafting a home that’s comfortable, appealing, and with plenty of mysteries to discover. It was especially fun to hear how appreciative they are of the escape room community embracing of their project. As David puts it, even after playing a thousand escape rooms, Wild Heart Ranch still managed to surprise and delight him.

Thank You to Our Sponsors

We are immensely grateful to our sponsors this season: Morty App, Buzzshot, COGS, and RECON Los Angeles. We truly appreciate your support of our mission to promote and improve the immersive gaming community.

Topics Discussed in this Episode

• 00:00 Welcome to the Reality Escape Pod!
• 00:13 Sponsor Break: COGS by Clockwork Dog, Interactive Show Controls
• 02:06 Introducing Wild Heart Ranch: Escape Room Meets Airbnb
• 07:35 Origin Stories and The First Project: Dreamlink
• 12:24 The Journey to Joshua Tree: Finding Home and Inspiration
• 15:28 Who is Wild Heart Ranch For? Evolving Audience and Experience
• 18:50 Sponsor Break: Morty App, Discover and Track Escape Rooms
• 20:20 Being Embraced by the Escape Room Community
• 26:20 Sponsor Break: Buzzshot, Escape Room Marketing Software
• 28:05 Design Inspiration: The Influence of Disneyland
• 32:50 Crafting the World of Wild Heart Ranch
• 37:45 The Custom Soundtrack at Wild Heart Ranch
• 41:57 Navigating Hints and Puzzles
• 43:20 Marketing Challenges With Airbnb
• 48:15 Tips and Advice for Future Visitors
• 52:19 The Ripped Bodice
• 54:47 Future Projects
• 1:01:30 Bonus Story: Wooing with Escape Rooms

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Resources Mentioned in this Episode

• Wild Heart Ranch website
• REA Review of Wild Heart Ranch
• Blake Hodges website
• The Ripped Bodice website

About Blake Hodges-Koch

Instagram:

• @wildheartranch_joshuatree
• @invasionjoshuatree_cardgame
• @Blake_hodges_koch

Blake Hodges-Koch is an experience creator, game designer, filmmaker, and entrepreneur.

Blake was born and raised in Southern California; his first job was working on the Autopia attraction at Disneyland (where he also spent an absurd amount of time as a child).

After a 15-year career in film and commercial production, in 2019 Blake and his wife Bea fell in love with the desert and decided to roll the dice on a new life, buying a sprawling piece of land near Joshua Tree, CA. When the pandemic hit, it gave Blake the perfect opportunity to pivot from his career in film to his new and true passion: immersive experience and escape room design.

Blake and his longtime creative partner Thomas Meston dived headfirst into the creation of Wild Heart Ranch. Opening in a simplified version on Labor Day 2020, Blake and Thomas spent the next couple of years refining and upgrading The Ranch. Blake also created the tabletop card game Invasion: Joshua Tree.

Blake and Thomas are now in development on a new Escape Room project in Twentynine Palms. When he’s not digging holes in the desert, Blake enjoys snowboarding, escape rooms, exploring the desert, concerts, and ping-pong.

About Thomas Meston

Instagram: @thomasandthemestones

Thomas started his creative journey in the theater at the age of 13, but has continually been drawn to the power of technology and its influence on storytelling. Often finding himself switching between the “mad inventor” and the “performer” role, he finds comfort somewhere in between.

After graduating with a B.A. in Theatre from UC Irvine in 2008, Thomas moved to L.A, and delved head first into experimental theater and film production. In addition to putting on strange plays in many living rooms of LA, Thomas dipped his toes in performative tech after building bizarre installations for warehouse art parties.

In 2012, Thomas met long time creative partner, Blake Hodges, and bonded over rock climbing and their love of David Lynch films. Working collaboratively with some incredibly talented and driven people, Blake and Thomas explored filmmaking, screenwriting, and ultimately immersive experience design. Over the last 6 years, Thomas and Blake have designed multiple immersive and gamified experiences throughout LA.

When the pandemic arrived in 2019, Blake and Thomas decided to pivot from all their other endeavors to go “all in” on building out a mystical, mysterious, and puzzle-filled overnight desert destination of their dreams.

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