[arg_discuss] Competitions with prizes and ARGs

[Christy Dena]

Hey All,

 

There are lots of things I've been wanting to ping the list about, but here
is a quick one: 

 

There have been some ARGs and ARG-like projects that are competitions with
prizes. For example: Perplex City, Vanishing Point, Legend of the Sacred
Urns, We Tell Stories. Obviously the ARG can function without the prize, but
the fact that it is there, is undeniable and constrains gameplay to some
extent (due to legal restrictions). And sometimes the prize is something a
client is after rather than the developer. But I'm wondering:

 

*	Is offering a prize purely a way to lure newcomers and/or casual
gamers? 
*	And do they find it successfully achieves that, or something else?

 

Thanks in advance,

Christy