[arg_discuss] ARGs/Interactive Fiction

[Michael Monello]

Again, I think it's an issue of how you structure the interaction. If  
we were talking about Audi, for example, then Team B would be able to  
see all of Team A's interactions with the characters and vice-versa,  
so everyone is experiencing the ARG at the same time and pace, it's  
just that the audience is broken up into smaller communities.

Yes, there will be crossover -- you might even structure it so that  
the divisions can be changed so that audiences can be more in control  
as to how they organize.

The point is to allow people who stumble onto an ARG in month two to  
be able to play within a community that allows them to learn and  
experience it on their own terms -- to be able to focus and  
concentrate on the ARG rather than the large community of people who  
all know more than they do and are often quick to make newbies aware  
of that.

Maybe it's not a division that lasts throughout the game -- maybe  
after a few weeks, you get placed into the larger, open group, except  
now you can join at a level of knowledge that  allows you to  
comfortably participate with people who have been playing from day 1.

I'm just brainstorming here. I believe there is a way to make it work,  
this might not be it, but I do believe that this is the problem to  
crack in order to make ARG's more sustainable and inviting to larger  
audiences, and I also think it might lead to solutions for monetization.

Best,

Mike


On Jan 8, 2008, at 11:40 PM, Ian Millington wrote:


> Hmmm... I don't buy it. Slidey blocks, cyphers and library-hunting

> aren't the only puzzles.

>

> Working out what to say to a character to get them to take action.

> Finding out back-story  that opens up new areas of play. Discovering

> that an in game character will meet the players. Finding the name of a

> new character. Anything that holds up progression until the players do

> something works the same way.

>

> And in fact, for our purposes they can be worse - these kind of

> 'puzzles' are highly knowledge based. If team B have the benefit of

> knowing what team A discovered, they can use that to push forward the

> story faster (and with less challenge) than otherwise. For example,

> team A spend a week writing back and forth to a particularly nervous

> character who finally reveals that they are being coerced by their

> boss, Mr B. Someone in team B starts the week saying 'What's Mr B up

> to?'

>

> Story-developements are as easy to spring as combination locks. A rose

> by any other name would feel as thorny.

>

> Ian.

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