Late in 2008, Mazescape were contacted by Rufford Abbey Country Park, Nottinghamshire, to help them resolve a dilemma. A maze design had been commissioned from a well known maze design company but they had failed to complete the project within the necessary time schedule. The park had been left with a partially finished structure of wooden poles in a circular design but no maze and no idea of how to proceed. Mazescape were asked to develop a 'Game Play' for the maze on the theme of 'The Wheel of Fortune', a theme that would have been familiar to the monks of Rufford. Working closely with our engineers, we developed the high quality 'Spinner and Stamper' hardware to make the game work and created an identity for the maze in the form of a logo, signage and printed materials, thus adding a new feature to a range of high quality attractions within the park.

We developed the play of the maze by creating a game around timeless themes of Health, Wealth, Love and Happiness. A decorative 'Fortune Card' was designed to contain a foil that could be embossed using the bespoke embossing machines or 'Stampers' placed at key points throughout the maze. A set of 18 bespoke 'Spinners' were commissioned by Mazescape to add an element of chance to the game. Visitors navigate through the maze by use of the spinners, these indicate changes of direction at junctions. Visitors collect their 'Fortune' along the way by embossing their fortune card. Once their card is fully embossed, they find their way to the Mysterious Monk at the centre of the maze who holds the 'Fortune Teller', a large book that will reveal their fortune. The finished Abbot's Fortune Maze was opened in the summer of 2009 and early client feedback has been very positive.