Hello, this is the UniqueGood Experience Trend Newsletter.
Right now, the Realworld community is buzzing with excitement as people tackle 'Turtle Soup' puzzles.
Would you like to give it a try?
Turtle Soup Puzzle
A man ordered turtle soup at a seaside restaurant. After taking just one spoonful of the turtle soup, he called the chef over.
"Excuse me, is this really turtle soup?"
"Yes, it's definitely turtle soup."
The man paid his bill, went home, and killed himself.
Why did he do it?
When a puzzle is presented, participants ask questions to the puzzle setter.
At this point, they can only ask yes/no questions, just like Twenty Questions.
Does it matter that it's a seaside restaurant?
Does the man have debts?
Did the man kill himself because he ate the soup?
Is the chef a man?
The puzzle setter responds appropriately.
Does it matter that it's a seaside restaurant? → It's somewhat related.
Does the man have debts? → No.
Did the man kill himself because he ate the soup? → Yes! Very important!
Is the chef a man? → It doesn't matter.
This back-and-forth of questions and answers continues until someone makes a deduction close to the correct answer, at which point the puzzle setter reveals the solution.
"The man was on a ship that was wrecked at sea. He and several others managed to escape death by getting on a lifeboat, but they became stranded on a small island. When food ran out, the weakest members of the group began dying one by one. Eventually, the survivors started eating the flesh of the dead to survive, but one person strongly refused to participate in this act. Naturally, that man began dying slowly. Unable to watch this happen, one of the others lied and said 'This is turtle soup,' then fed the man soup so he could survive until rescue came. Later, when faced with real turtle soup at the restaurant that clearly tasted completely different, the man realized the truth that he had eaten human flesh and took his own life out of guilt."
This is the most famous of all turtle soup puzzles. Since the game originated from this puzzle, similar types of problems are called turtle soup puzzles (or 'turtle soup' for short) in both Korea and Japan.
Why are these mystery games becoming so popular?
The dopamine generation... preferring short, stimulating content
Just as short-form content is trending on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, mystery enthusiasts have also started seeking out short and light content. A game you can start immediately by turning on your phone on the subway, on the bus, or when hanging out with friends at a cafe. You can't watch mystery movies or read books right away, and you can't enjoy them with many friends, so people have come to look for simple and fun games that can be started anytime, anywhere with just a smartphone.
Turtle soup games - still a blue ocean in Korea?
In Korea, only 'Realworld' is attempting a turtle soup community. Realworld is a platform application where anyone can create and upload playable content. In March 2023, Realworld launched a 'community' space in their app that goes beyond content play, allowing users to communicate and enjoy experiences together. This created a space where content creators can share or get various production tips, and players can talk directly with creators or find party members to play games with.
Realworld made many attempts to differentiate itself from other community apps. But getting users to open up and share their stories wasn't easy. With mystery games, story games, tourism games and various other types of content listed on Realworld, they began wondering what the app's unique identity should be. And they decided to introduce turtle soup to the community.
Time flies with just 2 people, enjoyable even at company dinners with over 10 people!
Turtle soup games quickly became the main content of the Realworld community. Unlike other games that take 2-3 hours, these games finish quickly in 5 minutes or take at most 30 minutes per puzzle. Plus, the barrier to participation was low since participants only need to ask one question. Most importantly, 'no limit on participants' was the biggest advantage. The game works with just 2 people and can be enjoyed even at large gatherings of over 10 people, making it suitable for community adoption. Now in the Realworld community, there are not only many people solving turtle soup puzzles but also many people creating them.
Since turtle soup puzzles are games where various balances are important - the catharsis after finding the answer, the satisfaction during the questioning process, the creativity and logic of the puzzles - participants transform into puzzle creators when they think:
"I think I could make a more interesting puzzle than this one."
If you think you could create turtle soup puzzles too, please try creating them right away in the Realworld app.
Recognized as a breakthrough method for community activation
Do you remember the crossword puzzles you used to enjoy by flipping to the last page when newspapers were delivered every day in childhood? Many of you probably also enjoyed sudoku, hidden picture games, and 4-panel comics. The reason these games stimulate people is because they allow quick immersion in a short time. Communities have this characteristic along with the trait of focusing attention on 'myself' to satisfy the need for recognition. Isn't the addictive nature of communities the fact that we look at our posts one more time when they receive many 'likes' or comments?
From this perspective, turtle soup games are being recognized as a breakthrough method for community activation. You can quickly browse content and immediately participate in the content you want, and when many questions are posted on puzzles you've created, there's also the fun of communicating with players. If you're wondering how to activate your community, how about introducing turtle soup content?
Various trending communities these days
Munto, Somoim, Trevari, Frip... Many community apps are growing. What do these apps have in common? Today's trending communities have several different characteristics from the past.
First, people meet through tastes and interests. These days, with the demand for self-development becoming more prominent, there's a tendency to express one's hobbies and actively interact with people who share the same interests. Also, since hobbies have become very diverse and segmented, there are often taste-specific communities made up of a small number of members.
Second, they're anonymous yet safe. It's common for people to create and use multiple personas without revealing themselves. However, there are often ways to gauge user trustworthiness through manner scores or point systems.
Third, anyone can become a host who organizes gatherings. Unlike the past when most group members were passive participants, nowadays if someone thinks they're an expert in a particular field, they can freely organize gatherings by bringing together people with similar needs. In an app called 'Munto,' 'hosts' reportedly earn money at levels exceeding average corporate salaries through organizing gatherings.
Online communities - what's the next step?
In the past it was hobby clubs, nowadays it's online communities. What's the next step? Won't there be more and more communities in the format of creating and solving quizzes like turtle soup? We hope you who are thinking about community activation will also consider good solutions by referring to this newsletter. Thank you.
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