[arg_discuss] ARGs/Interactive Fiction

[John Evans]

Nice analogy, Ian. And another pillar to support my argument that
finite automata should be taught in high school. ;)

[snip]

>IMHO any solution would have to put people in their own rooms, with

>their own challenges and individual agency, while keeping the overall

>collaborative feeling of the ARG. As Michael wrote, that is a radical

>restructure of the mechanism of the ARG.


So you'd need some "rooms" that everyone had to go through on their
own. However, one of the great strengths of ARGs is the multiplayer/
collaboration aspect, so you'd also need "rooms" within which everyone
could congregate. Except that they're not really rooms, they're
"events" or "states".


>Maybe it isn't a coincidence that interactive fiction is also a genre

>that has almost no direct monetization. But then again, that probably

>pushes the analogy too far.


Well, IF used to be monetized. I remember owning Wishbringer for the
C128. Eventually it became "adventure games"...The point seems to be
that you can sell interactive fiction as long as it has game-style
graphics. I guess?

http://www.steampowered.com/v/index.php?area=package&SubId=539&cc=US

There's an interesting idea. What if an ARG had graphics the equal of
a "standard" computer game, but was organized like an ARG?...I guess
it would be Uru Live, I answered my own question.

--John