My mouse hovered over the button that would send me hurtling towards my newest test of mental strength, found in the form of THE CHALLENGE produced by CVRDIVC Productions. After a moment of hesitation, I collected myself and pressed the button appropriately labeled, “Click here when ready.” Doing so led me to the virtual waiting room, where being early did not prove to be in my favor this time. Being early meant sitting with nothing but my anxiety to keep me company. When I was finally allowed into the Zoom room, I was as amped as a kid fresh out of a candy shop. And while the nerves had built up and left me rambling, I quickly realized that I was overreacting.

The beginning of THE CHALLENGE flowed with ease due to the setup. I was given a task and in order to advance to the next task, I had to complete it. Each task was not insanely difficult, but some proved to have an element of discomfort intertwined with it.

I was warned that the experience would be graphic and contain moments of discomfort. Prior to this experience, I had no clue how it would go, so knowing that I might be put in a weird place didn’t ease my nerves. There were moments of graphic matters that may be disturbing to some, but left me relatively unphased. Plus, knowing that I had to beat those tasks in order to advance helped me to endure it.  Despite the warnings, THE CHALLENGE was genuinely a fun time and I relished pushing through those feelings.

I really enjoyed how interactive the experience was as a whole. The more you put into it, the more was dished back out towards you. I quickly found myself falling into improv mode, where I easily bantered back and forth with my generous host. As THE CHALLENGE progressed, the narrative relied heavier on my actions and words. If I were someone who was quieter and more shy, it would have been harder to assist with the general flow of the storyline. Luckily, my rambling nature seemed to help me in this situation.

THE CHALLENGE was conducted via Zoom. I enjoyed having a direct, voice interaction throughout my whole journey. As with any experience occurring over the internet, there is potential for technical difficulties. Any slow internet connection hold ups were responded to well in character, which was greatly appreciated. Visual aspects were simple, but effective. One visual stunt in particular was a surprising, but pleasant addition. While it wasn’t executed with much fanfare, it was better than no effect at all!

Overall, THE CHALLENGE proved to be an entertaining experience. While it didn’t necessarily challenge me, it did encourage me to be my authentic, unapologetic self. Which is something that I sometimes need to be reminded of.

For more information on THE CHALLENGE, visit: https://www.cardiacproductions.com/

About the Author

Linnea Swanson enjoys writing about things that scare her. When not writing, she enjoys reading and screaming into the void.