Shannon McDowell (she/her) is a board game inventor and puzzle designer who was hired to research and mitigate cultural bias in the puzzles for the 2019 Red Bull Escape Room World Championships. Shannon walks us through how she became a professional puzzle designer, how cultural biases manifest in escape rooms & puzzle design, and how to design puzzles that are challenging while remaining inclusive.

00:02:07 - How We Connect Through Games
00:04:28 - Meet Shannon
00:10:21 - “We Haven’t Seen Everything That’s Possible”
00:17:36 - Cultural Bias in Escape Rooms
00:20:26 - Five Categories of Cultural Bias in Puzzles
00:24:55 - How to Make a Bad Escape Room
00:38:18 - How Hints Can Make or Break A Puzzle
00:50:55 - On Physical Accessibility in Escape Rooms
01:01:00 - The Value of Inclusivity in Gaming

Resources
Shannon’s publications - https://www.shannonmcdowell.ca/publications-media
Shannon’s free puzzles - https://www.shannonmcdowell.ca/puzzles
SCRAP Entertainment Inc - https://realescapegame.com/about/
2019 Red Bull Escape Room World Championship - https://www.redbull.com/gb-en/events/red-bull-escape-room-world-championships-final
Cryptex Hunt - https://cryptexhunt.com/2022/

Support my show! www.bubblegumbitchcraft.etsy.com

Credits
Guest - Shannon McDowell, https://www.shannonmcdowell.ca/
Production by Victor Media Group, Inc. - https://victormediagroup.co/
Original Music by Byson - https://spoti.fi/3eoC47l
Creator / Host - Clara Mount (@bubblegum_titan on Twitter)
Executive Producers-- J.B. Adams and Gerard Mitchell
Sound Editing - Anna Hughes