Hunt The Mouse cash hunt back in S'pore in 2024, 1 gold coin worth S$500,000 to be found

The Hunt The Mouse cash hunt game is back in Singapore for a 30-day period from Oct. 10 to Nov. 9, 2024.

And it is dubbed "the world’s simplest million-dollar cash hunt" with the biggest cash prize pool to date, according to Sqkii, the gamification company behind the game.

The game starts at 10am on Oct. 10 and ends at 10am on Nov. 9.

S$500,000 gold coin

In its fifth iteration, S$1 million in total will be up for grabs this year, with a single, life-changing S$500,000 grand prize to be given away for finding the single gold coin hidden somewhere in Singapore.

The total prize money is 10 times more than the S$100,000 offered in 2023.

The game is free to play and open to Singapore residents and tourists.

More coins to be found

The mechanics of this year's game has been tweaked to give more people a chance to win a prize.

The number of silver coins will be increased from 100 to 300.

A S$500,000 gold coin, 175 silver coins worth S$2,500 each, and 125 silver coins worth S$500 each, will be hidden in various spots across Singapore progressively.

• 1 x S$500,000 gold coin

• 175 x S$2,500 silver coins

• 125 x S$500 silver coins

Players are recommended to follow the hints released three times a day on Sqkii’s Instagram, Facebook, and Telegram, and the real-time map on the game website to locate these hidden coins.

Coins can be exchanged for cash.

Additionally, the public is reminded that the coins are not hidden in restricted zones, in places that will endanger safety, in places that require opening, dismantling or vandalising, not hidden underwater, and not buried underground.

Background

The hunt for coins started at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) with an S$800 prize for a single winner.

According to Sqkii previously, the cash hunt attracted more than half a million players over the 2017 to 2019 iterations.

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, the event took a hiatus in 2020, and pivoted to a hybrid model comprising both online and offline mechanics in 2021.

The 2022 edition saw repeated winners who got a hang of playing the game.

In 2023, the game attracted an estimated 749,000 players.

Kenny Choy, chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder of Sqkii, said: "To date, 193 players have collectively received over S$400,000 in cash prizes through this one-of-its-kind game."

During the 2023 game, active hunters spent an average of three hours each time they went out hunting for the coins.

The top 20 percent spent five or more hours each time.

The total distance covered by players was more than one million kilometres.

One player even recorded a total distance of more than 1,900km over the game period.

How game works

Players can get visual hints on a real-time map on the game website to locate the coins.

Hints for the gold coin will be posted daily on Sqkii’s Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram channels from day one.

Circles on the in-game map, which indicate possible silver coin locations, will shrink at 15 to 60-minute intervals.

The real-time map will also eliminate improbable gold coin locations three times a day at 10am, 2pm, and 6pm daily.

Players can also perform brand actions by partners and participating merchants listed on the game website to earn Crystals and make use of the new power-up features to get ahead in the game.

For those hunting for the gold coin, these Crystals can be used to obtain more gold coin hints and eliminate gold coin locations.

As for the silver coins, the Crystals can also be used to shrink silver coin circles and activate the Coin Sonar or the Metal Detector to narrow down selected silver coin location to give them a competitive advantage over others.

New features for 2024 hunt

This year, the game will have four new power-up features on top of the existing Crystals to help hunters get ahead in the game.

1. Coin Sonar – This power-up feature allows hunters to scan the area around them to zoom in to a more precise location for a silver coin.

There are three scan ranges: 25m, 50m, or 100m, each requiring different numbers of Crystals.

Each scan gives the player instant feedback on whether the silver coin is within their selected range.

2. Metal Detector - A highly requested feature by fans that is now available in beta.

Hunters can activate this power-up feature when inside any silver coin circle to turn their phone into a metal detector in search of the coin.

This feature scans the surrounding vicinity for one minute and provides visual feedback on the proximity to the coin as the hunter moves around.

3. Beacon – A community feature that spreads the love among hunters. Any player can unlock this feature by completing specific brand actions.

The Beacon can then be placed anywhere on the map, allowing all players within a 1km-radius to enjoy discounted power-up usage for 10 minutes.

4. Pedometer – The pedometer tracks step count while on the hunt.

Players will also be rewarded with Crystals for hitting specific step counts through daily missions.

All media via Sqkii