[arg_discuss] we are obsolete (RE:Copycatwarningoveralternative reality games)

[Brian Clark]

"I plan to continue to embrace it and love it and call it george."

I hope no one took my Swiftian arguments too seriously yesterday: I was just
being overly-provocative to see what oozes out if we pick the scab off. Plus
Monello gave me $5 (but I also had to eat a bug.)

If I had to give my serious opinion, though, it is a variant of Adam's: ARG
was always a label, not a genre not a media not an art form. It was a label
applied by the fan community to describe SOME of what we do, but not ALL of
what we do. Internally, as a lab and studio, we see far less distinction
between our projects, but then we essentially study digital human
interaction (so that's fine). As a creator, the label is useful if it
provides some expectation of the experience the audience might have, so I
find myself using "ARGish" far more than I use "ARG".

If I had to pick a hill to plant my flag on, the closest match would be
Experience Design of the post-Shedroff variety. I think Adam hit another key
point though, which is the general sense of déjà vu on definitions to the
1990s and MUD/MOO/MUSH, a stable triad of different definitions and goals
for something very similar. I've always had a nagging suspicion that these
same definitions apply here as well ... that part of the difference between
my work that gets called ARG and what doesn't is related to the MUD/MOO
distinction (MUD=ARG, MOO="Extended Experience" roughly.)

But that really just brings us back to Monello's "lots of experimental
variety" comment that opened all of this, and only really brings to it the
idea that ARG might just be a subset of that variety rather than the
umbrella.

Which begs what the umbrella concept is all over again, right?  


-----Original Message-----
From: arg_discuss-bounces at igda.org [mailto:arg_discuss-bounces at igda.org] On
Behalf Of Wendy Despain
Sent: Thursday, October 09, 2008 6:32 PM
To: Discussion list of the IGDA ARG SIG
Subject: Re: [arg_discuss] we are obsolete (RE:Copycatwarningoveralternative
reality games)

I for one have no problem with the ARG label or the hanging out with
video game folks. Videogames are more and more interested in narrative
these days, and I think the "gamey" parts of ARGs improve the player
experience.

And when I tell videogame devs that I also do ARGs they no longer
stare blankly at me and think I just choked on something.

I plan to continue to embrace it and love it and call it george.

Wendy Despain
quantumcontent.com


On Thu, October 9, 2008 3:03 pm, Adam Martin wrote:

> 2008/10/9 Brian Clark <bclark at gmdstudios.com>:

>> So no need for an IGDA SIG anymore?

>

> The IGDA seems happy with supporting us so far :), and with what we do

> (and it's relationship to games). IGDA's "games" remit seems to be set

> very broad, generally speaking.

>

> They're even offering us money, just waiting for us to tell them what

> we need it for...

> _______________________________________________

> ARG_Discuss mailing list

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>



Wendy Despain
quantumcontent.com

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