MouseAdventure: Reindeer Games Recap

MouseAdventure: Reindeer Games Rain Gear Games Recap

When we announced last fall that the Fall 2009 MouseAdventure would be at Walt Disney World, we expected a little bit of grumbling about the lack of a fall event at the Disneyland Resort. We didn't expect the level of commotion and distress from many long-time teams who, for various reasons, could not to travel to Florida in November. Although we had no intention of changing our plans for the fall MouseAdventure: World Explorers event at Epcot—which went on to be a great success, with the attending 33 teams comprising 100 players all having a great time—we decided to put together a special holiday edition of MouseAdventure back home in Southern California. This was announced in rhyme (with apologies to Clement Clarke Moore) just before the D23 Expo, and we took early registration from Expo attendees before opening up general registration on September 14. Registration proceeded at its usual quick pace, but didn't actually sell out completely until the very evening of MouseAdventure: World Explorers.

Once we'd announced the event and begun registration, we had to actually create the thing! We quickly discovered that writing a holiday-themed game in September and October is not exactly easy, especially since we planned to base all the quests on holiday-specific decorations and attractions around Disneyland. Still, over the course of several visits to the park, we put together the outlines of what was envisioned to be a smaller, less-intense event. Progress on Reindeer Games, as the holiday event was quickly dubbed, was put on hold as most MouseAdventure staffers journeyed to Florida for the Epcot event and many stayed for MouseAdventure on the High Seas, but once everyone was back home we quickly resumed work, and the final details of the event took shape.

Over on our MousePad discussion board, the traditional good-natured team vs. team sniping was in full force, and it looked like we'd have a good mix of returning and new teams—the latter of which for the purposes of MouseAdventure classification, is one with a majority of new players (two out of three or three out of four). Family teams, that is teams with players under the age of 13, would also be well-represented.

We didn't count on the epic rainstorm that drenched California, including Disneyland, before and during the event, but as it turned out many of the teams were quite well-prepared for any weather eventuality. After the usual morning formalities—introductions, reading of the rules, team T-shirt contest, and so on—teams were released into Disneyland to pick up their quest packets and begin the event. But not before a special guest stopped by the ballroom...

Santa stops by the Paradise Pier Hotel ballroom during the MouseAdventure: Reindeer Games morning briefing. Video by Steven Ng.

We've detailed the quests and challenges below, along with the correct answers and commentary.

Recap | Results | Team Photos & Scores | Staff & Crew Acknowledgements | Next Event

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Event Recap

To prevent overcrowding in a single location, teams were scattered to different areas of Disneyland based on a card in their welcome packet labeled with the name of one of Santa's reindeer. Teams with a Dasher card were instructed to find MouseAdventure staff at the Moonliner in Tomorrowland, Prancer teams went to Troubador Treats in Fantasyland, Cupid teams to Zocalo Park in Frontierland, and so on. Staff members were waiting at those locations within the park to hand teams their quests. Some teams elected to take the Monorail instead of walking through Downtown Disney, but according to Tomorrowland scatter station staffer Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix, these teams lagged behind the walking teams by 10 to 20 minutes. 

Joy to the Small World

Teams were given a crossword puzzle with clues related to items on the "it's a small world holiday" attraction. For example, players were asked to determine the cards making up the base of Alice's tree, what the prairie dogs are wearing, and whose statue is next to Lilo and Stitch. Colored squares in the puzzle indicated letters that were used to unscramble the color-coded words in the final phrase.

• Solution: The final phrase unscrambled to say, "who presents this attraction?"
• Answer: The recently added sponsorship of Sylvania is highlighted at the beginning and the end of the attraction.

The answer can also be found on the Disneyland park map entry for "it's a small world holiday".

A team intently studies the quest on their way into "it's a small world holiday." Photo by Kenji Luster.

A Very Scary Christmas

Jack has decked the halls, and this quest required players to search both outside and inside the attraction for answers to a series of questions. Players were challenged to read questions and note the answers while riding the dimly lit attraction.

• Solution: The numbered spaces under selected were placed in order to spell out the question, "how many people are in the stretching room in August."
• Answer: Players had to find the copies of the regular Haunted Mansion stretching room portraits that are hanging in the Port Royal shop or the Disney Gallery to count the number of people pictured there (six).

The rain isn't straining The Newlyweds' relationship. Photo by Kenji Luster.

Christmas Fantasy

Finally we get a parade quest… and it rains. Unfortunately, that meant that the parade was canceled, making the quest more challenging than originally intended. Had the parade stepped off as planned, teams would have positioned themselves on both sides of the route, having been given two copies of this quest and also given permission to split up for this quest only. As the Christmas Fantasy parade passed by, players would have answered multiple choice questions, with certain answers only visible from one side of the route.

Players were also given the names of regions represented by the wreaths that line the parade route in the small world mall area. Wreaths were eliminated based on the answers to the questions from the parade.

• Answer: Canada. (Due to a mix-up between the beta tested version and the final packet, some teams were told that Mexico was the right answer; credit was given for either answer.) 

This team's positive attitude led them to a second place finish in the New Team category. Photo by Kenji Luster.

 

Mrs. Claus's Garden

Mrs. Claus is making her special reindeer treats and needs to remember what herbs to use in the recipe. She has a list of 11 herbs, but only 10 are in the recipe. Players were given a series of close-up photos of plants found in Tomorrowland and asked to identify the herb that wasn't present. As an added twist, the Finnish names for the various herbs were given (after all, reindeer are native to Scandinavia).

• Answer: Inkivaari 

Jos on, että kasvi? Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

The 12 Lists of Main Street

Playing off the classic Christmas carol "The Twelve Days of Christmas," teams were asked to find items on Main Street, like the one name of the Main Street cinema ticket taker, the two names of horses stabled in the Main Street fire house, the three elegant trains announced by Santa Fe and Disneyland Railroad, and so on. Teams then eliminated these words and phrases on a huge two-page word search puzzle, using the remaining words to answer the question.

• Solution: A letter from Harry Houdini to his brother is on display on Main St. When was it written?
• Answer: Christmas 1913

One key to solving this puzzle was discovering that the two pages of the search had to be placed side by side, as some phrases extend across both pages. 

Team Stitch 'n Witch make their way down Main Street during a particularly heavy downpour. Photo by Kenji Luster.

Mele Kalikimaka

The usual code deciphering puzzle got a twist with this quest, where teams were given a series of pictures of the masks in the area around the Enchanted Tiki Room. Teams had to first create a totem alphabet by identifying the masks in order starting with the mask closest to the women's restroom, working toward the hub and back down the other side. Once teams had their alphabet, they decoded the following phrase.

• Solution: Number of menehune hanging from the Tiki Room building plus number of menu items at the Tiki Juice Bar
• Answer: 8 (3 menehune plus 5 menu items)

Teams that left this puzzle to the later part of the day found it very challenging to see the masks in the dim light around the Adventureland walkway. In addition, the sometimes pounding rain made it more uncomfortable to look up to find masks mounted higher up the fence. Teams were given a description of the menehune, who are small creatures living in the forests and hidden valleys of the Hawaiian Islands. Some teams counted figures they saw on banners and poles around the area instead of locating only the three figures that hang from the end of the building above the attraction's exit. 

Hey, did you see that mask over on the far left? Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Very Merry Trivia

The original wording of this quest directed teams "over the river" (of America) and "through the woods" (of Pirate's Lair on Tom Sawyer's Island) to grandma's house (Fort Wilderness). However, the rain scuttled those plans, and the secondary location of the Hungry Bear restaurant was used instead. Upon arrival, teams surrendered their quest answer sheet and were given a set of questions to answer. Once completed, the team returned the questions and were able to continue on to the second trivia location, which was moved to MouseAdventure Central due to the rain.

Many teams enjoyed the respite from the rain, and used the time to multitask, working on other quests and grabbing a bite to eat. 

Poring over the trivia questions while sheltered from the pouring rain. Photo by Kenji Luster.

Do You See What I See?

The usual eye-spy had a special holiday twist for Reindeer Games, including a section for holiday eye-spies in addition to the regular eye spies. In addition, a section for "impossible eye-spy" was added, with points values adjusted accordingly. One of the favorite impossible eye-spies was a figure of Godzilla holding a figure of Tinker Bell in his mouth. Do you know where it is?

Do you know where this can be found in Disneyland? Photo by Joe Stevano.

The Fine Art of Regifting

Teams were given three randomly selected buttons in their game packets. Teams were instructed to trade with one another to obtain buttons of the same color (red, yellow, green or blue). Once a team had three of the same color, they could trade them in at MouseAdventure Central to receive the "bonus quest" of the corresponding color.

If a team happened to find staff members David and Amanda wandering in the park, they could avoid some of the trading and were given a purple button that would allow them to trade for any color quest. 

Buttons wait to be given to teams redeeming matched sets. Photo by Kenji Luster.

Christmas Wrapping (Yellow Bonus)

Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pooh and Tigger participated in a "Secret Santa" gift exchange. This logic puzzle required teams to determine which character had given what gift to what other character. The key to this quest was finding the five items that were exchanged in the Disneyland stores in order to determine their prices, which was a key piece of information to solve the logic puzzle.

• Answer: Goofy received Tigger's stocking and Tigger received Mickey's stocking. 

Wrapping of a different sort; this team brought a poncho for the table! Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Not A Critter Was Stirring (Green Bonus)

Garlands hang everywhere in the Disneyland Resort during the holidays, and this quest challenged teams to take a close look at the garland hanging on the gift shop at the far end of Critter Country. Individual light bulbs had been removed from the photos, and teams had to first assemble the photos in order, then identify the color of the blacked out bulbs. Teams then picked letters in order from the corresponding color's column to form a phrase.

• Solution: For whom does Brer Rabbit have a gift?
• Answer: Brer Bear and Brer Fox

The answer was located on a large gift tag attached to a Christmas tree hanging above the entrance to Splash Mountain. 

Is that red or green? Photo by Kenji Luster.

Deck The Halls (Blue Bonus)

This quest required teams to turn a sharp eye skyward, which was hard to do in the rainy weather. Photos of the decorations in New Orleans Square were provided, requiring teams to identify the name of the location where they were hanging (such as Cristal d'Orleans). Numbers above the photos indicated what letter from that location name should be used to form the question.

• Solution: How many frogs are on Tiana's wait sign?
• Answer: Three (four was also accepted, as the sign also contained the word "frog.") 

The decorations in New Orleans Square are very detailed, much to the frustration of our teams. Photo by Kenji Luster.

Prep & Landing (Red Bonus)

Elves get bored in the off-season, and in their spare time Santa's helpers created this game to occupy their time. Teams were given a map with an aerial-view outline of ToonTown, with each building marked as one space containing a pair of letters. Players had to move back and forth on the map, following the clues provided to form a phrase. Some of the clues were tricky and required teams to examine items around ToonTown from all angles.

• Solution: Total money in the bank garland
• Answer: $5.27 or 4 zillions samoleans 127 cents

Some teams had difficulty correctly labeling the buildings, while others missed the one dalmatian-spotted ornament that was partially obscured by a bow on the ToonTown Fire Department's wreath. The bank's garland had bills as well as coins, and some teams missed the coin that was tucked up on the end facing toward the building.

How many dalmatian-spotted ornaments do you see on this wreath? Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

The Most Famous Reindeer

Teams were instructed to report to MouseAdventure Central at 4:00 p.m. to receive this extra quest. Rudolph likes red lights, and took a series of photos around Disneyland. This set of eye spy photos were best found after dark, although many teams were ready to call it a day at that point due to the torrential downpour.

One of The Abominables displays an expression common to many MouseAdventure players during game play. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

The Hidden Quest

As has become traditional in MouseAdventure, there was an extra, hidden quest to be found in the game materials. This time, in keeping with our Reindeer Games theme, the quest involved the names of Santa's eight reindeer. Each of the eight main quests, plus the Rudolph eye-spies, had the name of one of the reindeer printed in the upper left-hand corner. If you placed the quests in order according to the song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, Rudolph) the first word in each quest formed a question.

• Solution: What time is the last Christmas Fantasy Parade today?
• Answer: 6:30

Thankfully we didn't have to score them right away, because it took some time for the answer sheets to dry out. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

 

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Results

Results for MouseAdventure: Reindeer Games were announced late (very late) on Saturday night, December 19 in the recap thread on MousePad. We did not have our traditional post-event gathering, so there was no fabulous prize table for winning teams to peruse. Winning teams received a prize package of Disney holiday-themed collectibles, books, and DVDs mailed directly to the registering member of each winning team.

There were 605 possible points for this event, including trivia, the hidden quest and four bonus quests. No team had a perfect score, and there were no ties that affected winning positions. We had only one division (one set of quests) but three categories of teams: Returning, New, and Family. New teams are more than half new players, and Family teams include players under the age of 13. We awarded the top three positions in Returning and New and the top two in Family.

Returning Teams
First Place Team 6: Club 31 495 points
Second Place Team 23: Disney Dears 462 points
Third Place Team 45: Oswald Returns 454 points
New Teams
First Place Team 108: TMB Total Mouse Bums 466 points
Second Place Team 94 (no team name) 390 points
Third Place Team 176: Snuckles 315 points
Family Teams
First Place Team 188: Team U 334 points
Second Place Team 88: Cute and Fluffy 324 points
Team T-Shirt Contest
Winner Team 120: Junior Chipmunks

 

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Team Photos & Scores

Click any team photo thumbnail to see a larger version.

Team 001 The Abominables 402 points		Team 002 Smoke Tree Ranchers 281 points		Team 003 Team Ratataouyee 300 points
Team 004 DIS Divas DNS		Team 005 Chimney Sweeps 353 points		Team 006 Club 31 495 points
Team 007 Trojan Princesses 164 points		Team 008 Kungalooshed! 326 points	photo missing	Team 009 The Very Sleepy Princesses 312 points
Team 010 Lite Magic 424 points		Team 011 The Pillage People 377 points		Team 012 Unbuilt Attractions 179 points
Team 013 Beauties and their Beast DNS		Team 014 Dashing Divas 231 points		Team 015 Team Muttley DNS
Team 016 Disney Ninjas 157 points		Team 017 Beauty and the Beasts 181 points		Team 018 Miracle Bubbles 152 points
Team 019 Happy and Bashful DNS		Team 020 The Metzger Family 316 points		Team 021 Fellowship of the Mouse 210 points
Team 022 Haunted Mansioneers 186 points		Team 023 Disney Dears 462 points		Team 024 Gold, Silver, Satin & Lace 282 points
Team 025 Just Keep Swimming 270 points		Team 026 Runaway Brains 339 points		Team 027 Disnoid Duo DNS
Team 028 Brenda & Cindy's Team 66 points		Team 029 Flying Dumbos 269 points		Team 030 Mouse411 DNF
Team 031 Fantasmic Four 190 points		Team 032 Monstropolis' Most Wanted 230 points		Team 033 The Wildest Team in the Wilderness 111 points
Team 034 Midway Maniacs 284 points		Team 035 Matterhorn Bobsled Team 351 points		Team 036 Dorks, Inc 327 points
Team 037 There's A Snake In My Boot 179 points		Team 038 Bibbidy Bobbidy Bleep! 308 points		Team 039 Team Skillz 372 points
Team 040 Pixie Chicks 223 points		Team 041 The Yo Ho's 240 points		Team 042 Blew By You 222 points
Team 043 Lost Falls Expedition 348 points		Team 044 Plutonium 347 points		Team 045 Oswald Returns 454 points
Team 046 Mickey's Merry Maids 104 points		Team 047 New Orleans Squares DNS		Team 048 Santa Troopers 109 points
Team 049 Quack Attack 84 points		Team 050 Team Catface Meowmers 369 points		Team 051 Clue Crew 378 points
Team 052 Team Roma 202 points		Team 053 Mickey's Rescue Reindeer 241 points		Team 054 The Sleeping Zebras 284 points
Team 055 The Small Ones 54 points		Team 056 Team Legend... wait for it... dary! 312 points		Team 057 The Naughty Listers DNF
Team 058 Lady's Tramps 328 points		Team 059 Got A Clue? 179 points		Team 060 Team Venture 267 points
Team 061 (no name) 136 points		Team 062 (no name) 145 points		Team 063 Wiser Micers 76 points
Team 064 Avalon Cove 255 points		Team 065 Jingle Belle, Aurora and Santa Stitch 280 points		Team 066 hip hip hooray DNS
Team 067 Heffalump and Woozle 264 points		Team 068 The Wise Mice 60 points		Team 069 The Skellington Crew 78 points
Team 070 Paxmans DNF		Team 071 Mome Raths 257 points		Team 072 Max's Merry Minions 182 points
Team 073 Headless Chickens 149 points		Team 074 Curiouser & Curiouser 219 points		Team 075 Team 2319 275 points
Team 076 The Lucky Fins 246 points		Team 077 Mickey's Marauders 224 points		Team 078 (no name) 131 points
Team 079 4 Minnies and no Mouse 186 points		Team 080 JBC 228 points		Team 081 The Winning Team 273 points
Team 082 jen+ken+judes DNS		Team 083 Lost Elves DNF		Team 084 Diamond Edition DNS
Team 085 Something McGees 265 points		Team 086 The Kid Switches DNS		Team 087 Tweedle Dums 255 points
Team 088 Cute and Fluffy 324 points		Team 089 Club 33 1/3 182 points		Team 090 Sleeping Zebras 213 points
Team 091 Mickey's Meeples DNS		Team 092 ImaginEars DNF		Team 093 The Toon Patrol 80 points
Team 094 (no name) 390 points		Team 095 San Diego Mouse Catchers 355 points		Team 096 (no name) 189 points
Team 097 Lost Girls DNS		Team 098 The 'Flakes 261 points		Team 099 Life's A Stitch 279 points
Team 100 The Happiest Team on Earth 138 points		Team 101 GoofyGals 279 points		Team 102 Fishin Fer Clues 264 points
Team 103 Team Madison 152 points		Team 104 We Love Murphy! DNS		Team 105 YM's Majesty 370 points
Team 106 (no name) 314 points		Team 107 Stitch 'n' Witch 296 points	photo missing	Team 108 The TMB: Total Mouse Bums 466 points
Team 109 Avalon Cove Crawlers 177 points		Team 110 The Emperor's New Crew 172 points		Team 111 the googlie bears 190 points	photo missing
Team 112 Freeze Tag 248 points		Team 113 Happy Haunts DNS		Team 114 Justice League 235 points	photo missing
Team 115 Team Heart 261 points		Team 116 Packerbackers 209 points		Team 117 Bubba CheeZe 157 points
Team 118 (no name) DNS		Team 119 (no name) 118 points		Team 120 The Junior Chipmunks 220 points
Team 121 Cap'n Sal & Crew 92 points		Team 122 Team Love Bugs 211 points		Team 123 Disney Divas DNF
Team 124 Ear"resistable" DNF		Team 125 Disney Pups 127 points		Team 126 The Front-Wheel Drive Sleighs 150 points
Team 127 It's All About Me... and Frank 289 points		Team 128 Peter's Pans 262 points		Team 129 Jungle Cruisers 144 points
Team 130 VP Howlers DNF		Team 131 Dancer, Prancer and Vixen 270 points		Team 132 Sassy Sister sQuadron 309 points
Team 133 Eeyore Scholars 56 points		Team 134 King Louie's Monkey Mafia 193 points		Team 135 4 Foolish Mortals 278 points
Team 136 W.A.R.T. 266 points		Team 137 Electric Barbarellas 301 points		Team 138 Sorcerer's Seekers 40 points
Team 139 hooks 'n' crooks 100 points		Team 140 (no name) 60 points		Team 141 One More Try DNS
Team 142 The 4 Mouseketeers 106 points		Team 143 Dr. Scopa's Magical Assistants 160 points	photo missing	Team 144 Mortimer's Marauders 171 points
Team 145 Team Happy Place 244 points		Team 146 G'Day Mater 158 points		Team 147 Mickey and Me 166 points
Team 148 Pete's Dragons 146 points		Team 149 Duck Squad DNF		Team 150 Your Nightmare Before Christmas 192 points
Team 151 (no name) DNS		Team 152 Hundred Acre Hood 140 points		Team 153 Team Ohana 70 points
Team 154 The Oogie Boogies 284 points		Team 155 Wall-E World 191 points		Team 156 The Ragdolls 104 points
Team 157 The Yellow Submarine 218 points		Team 158 Oogie Boogie's Bad Girls 68 points		Team 159 Diz Incredibles DNS
Team 160 The Flores 4 189 points		Team 161 Night Owls 303 points		Team 162 Ladies and the Tramp 213 points	photo missing
Team 163 (no name) 219 points	photo missing	Team 164 YenSid's Apprentices 339 points		Team 165 The Underminers 286 points
Team 166 Them What Don't Obey DNS		Team 167 Mr. Lincoln's Secret Service 196 points		Team 168 (no name) 271 points
Team 169 The Incredibles 45 points		Team 170 Puppetmasters 288 points		Team 171 The Eyes of Mara 160 points
Team 172 Crouching Tigger 169 points		Team 173 Reindeer Defense League 280 points		Team 174 East Coast/West Coast Disney Kids 265 points
Team 175 The Dos Caballeros 309 points		Team 176 Snuckles 315 points		Team 177 Disney Adventurers 141 points
Team 178 Potato Heads DNF		Team 179 Sugarplum Fairys and Two Dudes 284 points		Team 180 Bloomin' Cockroaches 153 points
Team 181 (no name) 263 points		Team 182 Christmas Town Residents 205 points		Team 183 Pluto's Pals 165 points
Team 184 The Anayalators DNF		Team 185 Made Mice 100 points		Team 186 Teamhill 3 and the Homecoming Queen 252 points
Team 187 Princess Power DNF		Team 188 Team U 334 points		Team 189 Dazed & Confused, Again! 166 points
Team 190 Duck Tails 229 points		Team 191 Dwarfs 195 points		Team 192 PC & J 140 points
Team 193 CamFam 63 points		Team 194 The Jingles 92 points		Team 195 Bink and Bonk 180 points
Team 196 The Rebel Alliance 45 points		Team 197 Rudolph's Rangers 194 points		Team 198 The Grim Grinnin' Go Getters 251 points
Team 199 You Made Us Ink! 294 points		Team 200 The Newlyweds 132 points		Team ??? Can you identify this team? Send email

(DNF = Did Not Finish, DNS = Did Not Start)

A full gallery of candid photos taken during the event is also available for teams to enjoy.

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Staff & Crew Acknowledgements

In alphabetical order and hopefully not leaving anyone out:

• Quests: Adrienne V-P, Andrew, Jennifer, Joe (MouseAdventure's resident creative genius)
• Quest proofreading: Amanda, Shoshana, Stephanie
• Trivia: Shoshana
• Graphic design: Joe
• Keynote presentation: David
• Buttons: Lani
• Team communication: Andrew
• Registration systems: Jeff
• Testers: Adrienne V-P, Ashley, Jeff, Karl, Helga, Steph, Steve, Steven, Tony, Tracy
• Event day: Adam, Adrienne V-P, Amanda, Andrew, David, Helga, Jeff, Joe, John, Katie Sue, Kenji, Karl, Laura, Marla, Shoshana, Sheila, Stephanie, Steve, Steven, Tony
• Staff dinner: Amanda, David
• Scoring and prize distribution: Adrienne V-P, Tony
• Recap article: Andrew, Marla, Stephanie
• Invaluable operational and logistical advice: Adrienne V-P
• Special thanks to the event staff and Guest Services at Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel, the staff at the Howard Johnson Anaheim Plaza Hotel and the Cast Members at Rancho del Zocalo

"There are how many teams waiting for us?" Photo by Karl Buiter.

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Next Event

2010 – Disneyland Resort

MousePlanet celebrates our 20th* MouseAdventure event with our biggest event ever at the Disneyland Resort. Event format, park and pricing have yet to be determined. We will post the event date and registration dates as soon as we confirm them, but that announcement may be as little as 90 days before the event. Keep reading MousePlanet.com for more information—MouseAdventure updates are posted in the weekly Disneyland Resort Park Update. You can also sign up for our MouseAdventure Mailing List to receive updates about future events as they are available. Please note, this is an opt-in only mailing list, which means that we have not already added the names of former MouseAdventure players to this list. If you would like to receive these updates, you will need to sign up for the list.

Sign up for the MouseAdventure Mailing List!

 *depending on who's counting and where they start.