Some of the most important decisions of your life as a researcher await you… do you dare to make them?
PUBLISH OR PERISH
Start
Introduction
As a researcher, you face a common scenario: you need to publish a scientific article without damaging your reputation.
You've received an anonymous note with the message: "I know you can do it." When you arrive at your office at the university, a brown paper folder with no return address awaits you.
Examine
There are dozens of lockers at the entrance to your University Library… but only one matches the number you found. Drag the key and try to open the locker with that number.
Activate the flashlight and move the light halo across the image… maybe you'll discover a hidden mark.
Predatory Journals
Take the cassette tape to the player
Interpret the message from the recording
Time is running out! Sort the stages of the editorial process to get your study published.
Your article is a mess! Organize the sections following standard scientific logic.
It’s time to give credit. Order the authors according to their role and responsibility.
Keep going, don't stop now! knock on the door!
You’ve dodged the first 'Publish or perish' traps. Your academic reputation remains intact. Ready for the next round?
Continue...
Connect the correct Open Access key to its definition to open the gates of science.
Unlock the Knowledge
Subscription journals with OA options
Gold Route
Self-archiving in a repository
Green Deposit
Free for both authors and readers
Diamond Path
Paying to publish
Hybrid Souls
Connect the peer review model with its correct transparency level.
The reviewer’s lens
Neither the authors nor the reviewers know each other's
Single-Blind Review
Double-Blind Review
Both identities are known
Open Peer Review
The paper is evaluated after it has already been made public
Post-Publication Review
Reviewers know who the authors are
Match the metrics to their definitions to unlock the true impact of your research.
Research metrics match
A metric that measures both the productivity and citation impact of an individual researcher
Impact Factor (IF)
H-Index
Data from social media, news, and policy documents showing the online reach of a paper
The ranking of a journal within its specific field based on its prestige and citations
Altmetrics
The average number of citations received by articles published in a specific journal
Quartiles (Q1-Q4)
You’re on the right track, researcher. The end is near! Knock on the door and solve the enigma...
You’re doing great, just one more thing... talk to me and make a crucial decision for me...
What do you think you'll do?
Then our paths must diverge here. Transparency is a noble pursuit, but it comes with a heavy price. By revealing me, you are making it impossible for me to continue helping other researchers from my hiding place. They need me, just like you did. You have chosen the truth over the guide; I only hope the answers you found were worth the sacrifice. Farewell.
END
Save all evidence in your private file so that no one can figure out about our meeting.
Well done! Now, no one will know what happened...END
Congratulations, researcher! You have successfully reached the end of the publication's challenge. Your decisions were the right ones, and they will take you very far. Try to keep your eyes wide open; you now know the secrets. I have hidden myself in the University Library to continue helping researchers uncover the truth. Now that you know where I am, there is only one thing left for me to find out: will you keep my identity anonymous?
Make adecision
Inside the folder there are only two things:A rusty key. And a paper with a number. There is no explanation. But at the entrance of your University Library, there are coded lockers that store information...
Advance
216
Predatory Journals...Have you heard of them? They're hidden behind a wall of fake prestige, always shrouded in promises of fast fame, always absent from the reputable indexes. If that’s where you’ve sent your work, you need answers before your reputation vanishes. Play the cassette tape now.
Advance
PUBLISH OR PERISH
Universitat Jaume I
Created on May 12, 2026
Start designing with a free template
Discover more than 1500 professional designs like these:
View
Reboot Protocol
View
Science Breakout
View
Mystery Breakout
View
Musical Room Escape
View
Submarine Escape Game
View
Earth Day Escape Room
View
Corporate Escape Room: Operation Christmas
Explore all templates
Transcript
Some of the most important decisions of your life as a researcher await you… do you dare to make them?
PUBLISH OR PERISH
Start
Introduction
As a researcher, you face a common scenario: you need to publish a scientific article without damaging your reputation. You've received an anonymous note with the message: "I know you can do it." When you arrive at your office at the university, a brown paper folder with no return address awaits you.
Examine
There are dozens of lockers at the entrance to your University Library… but only one matches the number you found. Drag the key and try to open the locker with that number.
Activate the flashlight and move the light halo across the image… maybe you'll discover a hidden mark.
Predatory Journals
Take the cassette tape to the player
Interpret the message from the recording
Time is running out! Sort the stages of the editorial process to get your study published.
Your article is a mess! Organize the sections following standard scientific logic.
It’s time to give credit. Order the authors according to their role and responsibility.
Keep going, don't stop now! knock on the door!
You’ve dodged the first 'Publish or perish' traps. Your academic reputation remains intact. Ready for the next round?
Continue...
Connect the correct Open Access key to its definition to open the gates of science.
Unlock the Knowledge
Subscription journals with OA options
Gold Route
Self-archiving in a repository
Green Deposit
Free for both authors and readers
Diamond Path
Paying to publish
Hybrid Souls
Connect the peer review model with its correct transparency level.
The reviewer’s lens
Neither the authors nor the reviewers know each other's
Single-Blind Review
Double-Blind Review
Both identities are known
Open Peer Review
The paper is evaluated after it has already been made public
Post-Publication Review
Reviewers know who the authors are
Match the metrics to their definitions to unlock the true impact of your research.
Research metrics match
A metric that measures both the productivity and citation impact of an individual researcher
Impact Factor (IF)
H-Index
Data from social media, news, and policy documents showing the online reach of a paper
The ranking of a journal within its specific field based on its prestige and citations
Altmetrics
The average number of citations received by articles published in a specific journal
Quartiles (Q1-Q4)
You’re on the right track, researcher. The end is near! Knock on the door and solve the enigma...
You’re doing great, just one more thing... talk to me and make a crucial decision for me...
What do you think you'll do?
Then our paths must diverge here. Transparency is a noble pursuit, but it comes with a heavy price. By revealing me, you are making it impossible for me to continue helping other researchers from my hiding place. They need me, just like you did. You have chosen the truth over the guide; I only hope the answers you found were worth the sacrifice. Farewell.
END
Save all evidence in your private file so that no one can figure out about our meeting.
Well done! Now, no one will know what happened...END
Congratulations, researcher! You have successfully reached the end of the publication's challenge. Your decisions were the right ones, and they will take you very far. Try to keep your eyes wide open; you now know the secrets. I have hidden myself in the University Library to continue helping researchers uncover the truth. Now that you know where I am, there is only one thing left for me to find out: will you keep my identity anonymous?
Make adecision
Inside the folder there are only two things:A rusty key. And a paper with a number. There is no explanation. But at the entrance of your University Library, there are coded lockers that store information...
Advance
216
Predatory Journals...Have you heard of them? They're hidden behind a wall of fake prestige, always shrouded in promises of fast fame, always absent from the reputable indexes. If that’s where you’ve sent your work, you need answers before your reputation vanishes. Play the cassette tape now.
Advance