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Custom Conference Games: Ground-Up Builds Around Your Story

Custom games designed from a blank page around your purpose, your industry, or your destination. Two flagship examples below.

Quick answer

Custom Conference Games means ground-up builds. The game gets designed around your purpose, your story, your industry, or your destination from a blank page. Past Social Scavenger ground-up builds include Paric's 26-challenge construction-metaphor game (where the phases of a real construction project became the structure of the game), Plex's James Bond-themed Swiss Alps adventure that opened with a staged dinner heist the night before and wrapped at the top of a mountain, and Coca-Cola's custom London chase for the missing secret formula. Ground-up custom averages around $20K and scales with production complexity, though smaller groups with smaller budgets can still get something custom for less. Lead time runs from 6 weeks minimum to 3+ months for elaborate productions. If you're working on a shorter timeline, ask about customizing an existing game (Great Scott!, Who Kidnapped YOUR Boss?, Ultimate Hunt). That route gets you a custom feel on a faster runway.

Average investment

Around $20K. Smaller groups with smaller budgets can still get something custom for less.

Lead time

6 weeks minimum, up to 3+ months for elaborate productions.

Group size

Any. Past customs have run from intimate groups to 250+ players.

Best for

Events where the activity has to feel built FOR you, not just dropped into your venue.

What this is

Custom Conference Games is Social Scavenger's ground-up custom service. The game gets designed from a blank page around your event's purpose, your company's story, your industry concept, or your destination. The challenges, narrative, visual assets, and format are all chosen to fit YOUR event specifically.

Most Social Scavenger games are at the tier level: Classic, Premier, or Gold, with light or moderate customization layered on top. Custom Conference Games sits above that. It's the level companies choose when the activity has to feel like part of their event identity, with a custom storyline and custom mechanics designed to land a specific moment. That's a different price point, a different lead time, and a different build process. Worth it when the event warrants it.

Past Social Scavenger ground-up builds include industry concepts woven into game mechanics, themed multi-location adventures across international destinations, and games that became more than the event itself (one ground-up custom build went on to be repurposed by the client as part of their internal onboarding program). Two flagship examples are featured below.

How a ground-up custom build works

Six phases from sign-on to wrap-up.

  1. 1

    Discovery. Social Scavenger team gets on a call to understand your event purpose, group, venue, timeline, and theme priorities. The questions matter as much as the answers, since the build proposal comes out of this conversation.

  2. 2

    Concept. Social Scavenger comes back with a custom concept proposal: the game's core idea, narrative arc, challenge types, asset list, production scope. This is where the "this is the game" decision happens.

  3. 3

    Build. Once the concept is locked, the team builds the assets: challenges, posters, custom video intros, custom app screens, scoring structures, branded materials, physical props if the build calls for them. Build time scales with scope.

  4. 4

    Review. Client reviews materials. Tweaks happen here. Custom builds usually go through 2 to 3 rounds of review before final lock.

  5. 5

    Run. Event day. Social Scavenger runs the game onsite for elaborate productions, with whatever logistics build-up the moment calls for (pre-game staging, onsite hosts, integrated wrap-up moments). For lighter customs, the client's event team can run the game using Social Scavenger's specs.

  6. 6

    Wrap-up. Custom video recap, highlight reel, photos, leaderboard archive, plus any client-specific deliverables baked into the build (case study materials, internal recap content, training reuse).

The whole process typically runs 6 weeks minimum to 3+ months depending on production complexity.

Recent ground-up custom builds

Two examples that show the range of what ground-up custom looks like.

Paric / Paricon - Construction Project as Team Game

Client: Paricon. Industry: Construction. Group: ~250 participants. Length: 100 minutes. Format: poster puzzles, mobile challenges, and a collaborative build. Setting: indoor, the client's annual conference.

The challenge: construction projects rely on many specialties working together across phases, but most employees only see the part of the project that touches their role. Paric wanted an experience that would help employees understand how the phases connect, with cross-department collaboration as the goal.

The build: rather than literally simulate construction work (which would have been painfully boring), the game translated the five phases of a real construction project into a narrative arc, with each phase mapped to a team challenge that captured the thinking behind it. Teams progressed through Business Development, Design & Preconstruction, Project Start Up, The Build, and Project Close Out. They pitched absurd projects (spaghetti bridges, penguin skyscrapers) to practice storytelling without the pressure of a real pitch. They estimated gumballs in a jar to practice the reasoning behind cost estimation. They designed and filmed the safest possible trust fall to capture how safety thinking actually works. The final phase used LEGO components, with each team building part of a larger system that only worked when teams connected their builds. Twenty-six challenges total.

The game became a highlight of the event. Paric is now exploring repurposing it as a training tool for cross-department collaboration with new hires, an example of a ground-up build going beyond the one event it was made for.

Read the full case study →

Plex / Moniker - James Bond Across the Swiss Alps

Client: Plex, via Moniker Partners (event agency). Setting: Swiss Alps, three ancient towns plus alpine wrap-up. Group: 200-person tech team. Theme: James Bond / 007 espionage. Length: 5 hours of gameplay, plus the staged dinner reveal the night before.

The challenge: build a competitive multi-location adventure across three historic Swiss towns, each with its own story but minimal digital footprint, integrating local heritage with the espionage theme. The agency also wanted the game woven into the wider event arc, not bolted on as a standalone activity.

The build: the game opened the night before with a staged scenario at the group's dinner, where actors playing characters from the storyline crashed the evening (including a memorable bit involving figures appearing at windows) and set up the case the teams would carry into the game the next day. Each team received a custom briefcase with case materials, mission cards, and a thread to pull on.

The next day, teams navigated 12 to 15 iconic locations per town. In one town they decoded Roman numerals on murals to unlock their next mission, which took them to a curling rink. In another town they performed the classic Bond move under a historic archway followed by crossbow shooting. A dramatic enactment near a significant monument generated video the client still talks about. At a renowned bar, teams ordered Bond's signature drink in a foreign tongue. The wrap-up moved to the top of a mountain, where the awards ceremony ran with the alps as the backdrop. The whole arc (dinner reveal, game day, mountain wrap-up) was timed and staged in coordination with the event agency.

The build worked with local tourism authorities, event specialists, and Social Scavenger's production studio to integrate the local heritage with the espionage theme.

Read the full case study →

What "custom" actually means in a ground-up build

Five layers, all designed from a blank page rather than added on top of a template.

  • Theme and narrative. The game's storyline is the spine of the build. A construction project becomes a five-phase arc. A Swiss tech retreat becomes a James Bond mission. A London brand activation becomes a chase for a missing formula. The story carries the meaning; the challenges flow out of it.
  • Challenges and content. Designed to be fun first. The story drives them, not your work directly. Most challenges don't reference your job at all. A few are tied to your context where the link is natural and rewarding, never forced. Players come away feeling like they played a great game, not like they sat through training in disguise. The integration is subtle enough that the meaning lands later.
  • Visual assets. Custom poster designs, custom video intros (including AI-generated intros), custom signage, branded scoring screens, custom highlight reels. White-label app design is available when the visual identity has to feel fully owned. Physical props (briefcases, mission cards, branded materials) where the build calls for them.
  • Format and structure. Ground-up custom isn't bound to one format. The build picks whatever format fits the purpose: poster-based, multi-station, city-wide, multi-city, indoor-with-outdoor-extensions, or fully hybrid. Game length, group structure, and pacing all flex around what the event needs.
  • Integration with the wider event. Custom builds get woven into the rest of the agenda. Tying into your awards moment, your dinner reveal, your product announcement, your training arcs. The game becomes part of the event's identity rather than running alongside it.

Where ground-up custom works

Custom isn't limited by venue or format. It's defined by depth of build.

  • Conferences and retreats. Annual conferences, leadership conferences, annual retreats, executive offsites. The activity becomes a memorable centerpiece.
  • Sales kickoffs and national sales meetings. Custom games tied to the year's sales narrative or product launch. Competitive structure with the company's storytelling layered in.
  • Industry concepts as game mechanics. Past customs have taken construction (Paric), tech (Plex), and other concepts and translated the underlying thinking into game form. The translation is the craft.
  • International and destination events. Multi-town, multi-city, multi-country builds that integrate local character with the company's theme.
  • Multi-day arcs. Custom games can span multiple days of an event: a staged opener (like the Plex dinner heist), challenges across the agenda, and a curated reveal moment.
  • Major milestones and anniversaries. Company anniversaries, product launches, merger and acquisition celebrations, IPO events. When the moment matters, the game gets built to match.
  • Builds that outlive the event. Some ground-up customs get repurposed afterward, like the Paric game becoming a training tool for new hires.

Levels of customization

Most Social Scavenger games carry some customization. Three rough levels make the spectrum easier to picture.

Light customization. A handful of custom challenges added to a tier game (Classic, Premier, or Gold). The core game stays intact. Example: a Microsoft Great Scott! game where the gameplay around the 80s decade stays the same, but a few challenges pitch real Microsoft products from that era for today's market. The setup, the format, and the bulk of the experience are still Great Scott!. Available on any tier.

Moderate customization. Themed challenges and content built around your event's purpose, layered onto a tier game's format. The underlying game is recognizable but the experience feels meaningfully yours. Example: Who Kidnapped YOUR Boss? customized so the team becomes characters in the story (real names, real personalities, motives drawn from the company), with the branding refreshed around faces and roles. The core mystery arc, the puzzles, and the format stay intact, but the players are inside their own story.

Ground-up custom. The game itself gets designed from a blank page. Challenges, story, format, and assets all built for your event specifically. The Paric construction-metaphor game and the Plex Swiss Alps James Bond hunt are both ground-up. This is the level Custom Conference Games covers in depth. Pricing averages around $20K, with flex down for smaller groups and smaller budgets.

A separate note on branding. Branding (logo on app screens, accent colors in materials, custom poster designs, branded video intros, custom app design or white-label production) is a feature available on every tier and at every level of customization. It is not part of the customization spectrum. A tier game can carry full branding without being a ground-up custom build. A ground-up custom build can be fully branded or kept visually neutral. The two combine in any mix.

Logistics

Average investment
Around $20K average for ground-up. Smaller groups with smaller budgets can still get something custom for less. Past customs have ranged from low-five-figures for lighter builds to mid-six-figures for elaborate multi-country productions.
Lead time
6 weeks minimum, up to 3+ months for elaborate productions tied to a year's worth of strategic theme, international logistics, or multi-day arcs. If your timeline is tighter, ask about customizing an existing game.
Group size
Any. Past customs have run from intimate groups (under 50) to 250+ players. The format scales without losing the custom feel.
Venue
Any. Indoor, outdoor, multi-city, international, hybrid. Custom isn't limited by venue.
Build team
Social Scavenger production studio handles design, asset creation, and event-day production. Client provides input, brand assets, review feedback, and any deep-context content that helps.
Onsite production
Standard for elaborate customs. Social Scavenger team handles event-day execution. For lighter customs, the client's event team can run the game using Social Scavenger's specs.
Outputs
Custom video recap, highlight reel, photo set, leaderboard archive, plus client-specific deliverables baked into the scope.
Process
Discovery → Concept → Build → Review → Run → Wrap-up. Six phases.

Trusted by teams building custom

4.9
from 439 Google reviews

Social Scavenger has produced ground-up custom builds for Paric (construction-metaphor annual-conference game), Plex via Moniker Partners (Swiss Alps James Bond adventure across three ancient towns), Coca-Cola (custom London hunt for the secret formula), Dubai Cares (first-of-its-kind scavenger hunt in Dubai), plus partner-agency programs running custom productions for their own clients.

"Social Scavenger have done a brilliant job with customizing their platform to our very specific needs, all within a strict time frame. Their team was professional and hard working. Thanks to their support, we were able to launch a first of its kind scavenger hunt in Dubai. We look forward to continue working with them in the future."
"We worked with Social Scavenger on a custom-made iPad hunt around the Swiss Alps. Everything was made from scratch, with the Social Scavenger team going the extra mile. The group had fantastic feedback, learning a lot of history and trivia about the area while also enjoying a fun team-building experience at the same time."
See more client examples →

Briefs we've answered

A snapshot of the range. Real briefs Social Scavenger has built around.

"We're a construction company and most employees only see the part of the project that touches their role. We want our annual conference to help them feel the whole project."

Build

A 26-challenge metaphor game where the five phases of a real construction project became the structure of the event. Built for Paric.

"Tech retreat in the Swiss Alps. We want a James Bond storyline that weaves into the dinner the night before and ends at the top of a mountain."

Build

A 3-town iPad hunt with a staged dinner heist opener, custom briefcases with case materials, and an alpine awards wrap-up. Built for Plex via Moniker.

"We're Coca-Cola in London. We want a game about the missing secret formula."

Build

A custom London chase that wove the city's neighborhoods into the formula-recovery narrative. Built for Coca-Cola.

"We're launching a first-of-its-kind scavenger hunt in Dubai. Strict timeline, very specific needs."

Build

A custom platform build delivered inside the timeframe. Built for Dubai Cares.

"We want a game where the team becomes the characters in the story, with real motives and real personalities."

Build

A WKYB build (moderate customization on a tier game) where the team is the cast, branding refreshed around their faces, and the core mystery arc stays. Built for multiple clients on tighter runways than ground-up custom needs.

Frequently asked questions

What's the difference between ground-up custom and the customization that comes with a tier game?

Tier games (Classic, Premier, Gold) can have light or moderate customization added: a few company-specific challenges, themed content references, branding throughout, content tied to your event purpose. The underlying game stays the same. Great Scott! stays Great Scott!. Who Kidnapped YOUR Boss? stays Who Kidnapped YOUR Boss?.

Ground-up custom is different. The game itself is designed from a blank page for your event. The Paric construction-metaphor build, the Plex Swiss Alps James Bond hunt, the Coca-Cola London secret-formula chase. None of those are tier games with extras added. They're games that exist because of the client's specific event.

If you want some custom feel without the ground-up price tag and timeline, customize an existing game.

What about branding, is that the same as customization?
No. Branding is the visual identity layer (logo, colors, custom poster designs, branded video intros, custom app design or white-label production). It is a feature available on every tier and every level of customization, including light builds. A tier game can carry full branding without being a ground-up custom. A ground-up custom can be heavily branded or kept visually neutral. The two combine in any mix.
How customizable is the experience overall?
Highly customizable across three levels. Light customization adds a few custom challenges or branded touches to a tier game. Moderate customization layers themed content around your event purpose. Ground-up custom builds the game from scratch around your story, industry, or destination. The right level depends on your timeline, budget, and how important it is that the game feels built FOR your event.
How long does a ground-up custom build take?
Six weeks minimum. Most builds run in the six-to-twelve-week range. Elaborate productions (multi-day arcs, multi-city logistics, heavy video production, white-label app design) can push to three or more months. If your event is sooner than six weeks, the better path is customizing an existing game rather than running a ground-up build under pressure.
How much does ground-up custom cost?
Around $20,000 on average for a ground-up build. The biggest cost drivers are production complexity (number of custom assets, video work, multi-location logistics) and group size. Past Social Scavenger customs have ranged from low-five-figures for lighter builds to mid-six-figures for elaborate multi-country productions tied to year-long strategic themes. Smaller groups with smaller budgets can still get something custom for less, since group size moves the math significantly. The discovery call is where the real number takes shape.
Can we tie the game to our office, our boss, our industry, our city, or our product?
Yes. Past customs have done all of these: a custom city hunt around the client's own office locations and properties, an executive game built around the client's history and real characters, a hunt themed around a client's product launch, a game that wove a client's industry concepts into the mechanics. The discovery call is where the build figures out which threads to pull on for your specific event.
Will the game actually feel custom, or will it just feel like a stock game with our branding on top?
Ground-up custom builds are designed from a blank page. The Paric construction-metaphor game wouldn't make sense for any other client. The Plex Swiss Alps James Bond build wouldn't make sense for another company. That's the bar a ground-up build meets. If you want branding on a great existing game, that's a tier game with branding added (and that route is real, it's just not this page).
We want a custom game but only have four weeks until our event. What can you do?

Four weeks is too short for a ground-up build but plenty of room for a customized tier game. Who Kidnapped YOUR Boss? where the team becomes the characters, with branding refreshed around real faces and motives. Great Scott! with a custom challenge set referencing your products, your group, or your event theme. Ultimate Hunt with themed challenge swaps tied to your industry or destination. All three carry full branding, including custom poster designs, branded video intros, and custom app screens. The experience reads as custom to the players. It's just not a from-scratch build.

"Social Scavenger have done a brilliant job with customizing their platform to our very specific needs, all within a strict time frame."
We want a custom game but only have two weeks (or less). What can you do?
A tier game with branding and a small custom-challenge package. The fastest path is a Classic, Premier, or Gold game in your event city or venue, with full branding (logo, colors, custom posters, branded scoring screens) and a handful of challenges tied to your group or theme. No video custom assets, no white-label app design, no multi-day arc, but the game is real and lands. Better than skipping the activity. Better than forcing a ground-up build that can't ship on the timeline.
What's the fastest we can get a fully ground-up custom build?
Six weeks is the working floor for ground-up. Below that, the discovery, concept, build, review, and asset-creation phases don't have room to do their job, and the result starts looking like an inflated tier game with a custom story stapled on. The recommendation is honest: under six weeks, customize an existing game. Above six weeks, ground-up is on the table.
Can custom games run in any venue or format?
Yes. Past customs have run as poster-based indoor games (Paric), multi-town outdoor adventures across international destinations (Plex / Swiss Alps), single-city games (Coca-Cola in London), multi-station Amazing Race events, and hybrid indoor-outdoor productions. The format gets chosen during the discovery phase based on what fits the purpose.
Do you need our writers or designers to build this?
No. Social Scavenger's production studio handles all writing, design, and asset creation. What helps from the client side: clear input on the event's purpose, brand assets (logo, colors, fonts), any context that informs the theme (company history, product details, industry concepts), and timely review feedback. The deeper the client input on context, the richer the final build.
Can custom games run multi-city, international, or as ongoing programs?
Yes to all three. The Plex Swiss Alps build ran across three ancient Swiss towns. Past customs have included international destinations and multi-city productions. And some ground-up builds (like Paric's) get repurposed by the client afterward, in Paric's case as a potential training tool for cross-department onboarding. If the game has shelf life beyond the event, that's worth raising during the discovery call.

See all planning FAQs →

Keep planning

Annual Retreat

Multi-day retreats where ground-up custom is often the right fit.

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Sales Kickoff

Competitive sales kickoff games, often custom-themed around the year's sales narrative.

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Leadership Conference

Custom games for curated leadership cohorts.

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Indoor Team Building

The format depth for indoor venues, where many customs run.

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Ready to plan a custom conference experience?

Tell us your city, venue, group size, and date. We'll recommend the right format, whether that's a city hunt, onsite poster game, indoor experience, or custom build.

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