Updates

2/3/2024:

Thanks to everyone who participated in the Hunt! We will be sending a follow-up email to all players once the official winners list has been finalized. We apologize for the delay: we're currently having trouble reaching some of the presumptive winners. If you're a member of one of the top 11 teams on our Leaderboard and you haven't received an email from us regarding eligibility verification, please contact us as soon as possible at info@ickeytreasurehunt.com. Thanks!

1/27/2024:

The Contest Period of the Hunt has now officially ended! As of 7:30 PM ET/4:30 PM PT, we are suspending live hint support, but we will continue to monitor the hint queue. Email capability has been restored. So, if you have hint requests, please submit them, just be aware it may take longer than a few minutes to receive a response. The hunt will remain available to play, submit answers, and make the Leaderboard until January 28th at 11:59 PM PT. Thank you all so much for playing the Who Killed Ickey? Treasure Hunt. Feel free to keep solving!

1/27/2024:

At approximately 12:15 PM PT/3:15 PM ET, our email system began experiencing technical difficulties. Currently, we are able to receive emails but are unable to send them! This includes hint emails.

We are responding to all hint requests -- which are now available by clicking the "Request a Hint" link above the "Submit Answer" button on each puzzle page -- within a couple of minutes; to check on a hint you've requested for a puzzle, refresh the hint page for that puzzle (accessed through the "Request a Hint" link). If we have sent an answer, it will appear below the text entry box.

Also we'd like to announce that, at this time, we have identified presumptive winners for all cash prizes. Congratulations to all those teams! Note that the list of winners is subject to change based on eligibility verification; in the event of a disqualification, teams that are currently non-winners may move up into a winning position.

1/27/2024:

If one of your team members never received an email invitation to your team, they can complete their individual registration at ickeyminipuzzles.com/complete . They'll need to know the Team Name (NOT Username) and the Team Captain's first and last name (these would have been autopopulated from the email link). Once they fill out that form and see the onscreen confirmation, they'll be all set!

1/26/2024:

Some important clarifications for book lookups in the Hunt:

  • Book lookups generally follow this progression: Part, Chapter, Section, Paragraph, Sentence, Word. Sometimes one or more of these are omitted if they are not needed.
  • "Sections" in book lookups are separated by a blank line followed by a curlicue or asterisk (depending on which version you are reading) and then another blank line. "Section 1" of a chapter begins after the chapter title and goes to the first curlicue/asterisk. "Section 2" is between the first curlicue/asterisk and the second curlicue/asterisk, etc.
  • Poems are considered to be separate paragraphs.
  • Hyphenated words are considered to be single words.

1/26/2024:

If you're new to online puzzle hunts or want a better sense of how this Hunt will work, check out this quick tutorial video.

1/23/2024:

As of 1/23/2024, our Official Rules have been updated with the following two changes:

  • In Section 6: Winner Selection, the following paragraph has been added: "Each member of a verified winning Team will be paid, directly by the Sponsor, a portion of the Team’s prize, which will be divided equally among each registered Team member. Such payment will be treated as taxable income to each individual Team member. Any information provided by the Sponsor to the IRS will reflect this treatment."
  • In Section 7: Winner Notification, under the section "Individual potential winners will become confirmed winners (each a “Winner”) (and their Teams will each become a Winning Team) after meeting the requirements that follow," the following requirement has been added: "From the start until the close of the Treasure Hunt, the entrant has not collaborated on the Treasure Hunt with others outside their Team (whether or not those others are members of other Teams). The Release in the first bullet paragraph above will include a warranty to this effect, a breach of which will allow the Sponsor to claim back the entire prize paid to the entrant and all other members of the entrant’s Team."

By participating in the Hunt, you are agreeing to abide by the updated version of the Official Rules that includes these changes.

1/18/2024:

We have just been made aware that some emails to our server (@ickeytreasurehunt.com) have been failing to send. We believe the issue is now corrected. We apologize for the inconvenience. If you sent us an email and did not receive a response, please re-send. Thank you!

11/10/2023:

No, your memory's not playing tricks on you: the name of this Treasure Hunt has indeed changed! We were concerned that the original title could have been misconstrued as being related to tragic current events. However, neither the book (which is set in 1977 San Francisco) nor the Hunt are related to recent global events in any way.

Don't worry, though: everything about the Hunt is still the same, with the exception of the title. If you registered for the Hunt under its original title, no worries! You're still registered, and all your information (including team login name and password) should still be active. No changes have been made to the Official Rules with the exception of updating the Hunt title and link URLs. All Team Captains should have received an email explaining the change. If you didn't, please check your spam filters and add ickeytreasurehunt.com to your list of safe senders. If you're having any difficulty with logging in or have any further questions about this change, please shoot us an email at info@ickeytreasurehunt.com. Thanks for understanding!