[arg_discuss] New Topic of the Week Aug. 7: ARG SIG Conference

[Andrea Phillips]

Snipping, because this is a response to lots and lots of people by
now. My vision for the ARG SIG conference was starting a conversation
between creators and commissioners.

Let's say in the morning you have Penguin and Running Press talking
about what they're looking for in a transmedia book. Or NBC, C4 and
Warner Brothers talking about the business philosophy behind their
online immersive experiences -- what they want to get out of them, and
what they think has (and hasn't) worked for them. These speakers would
be people who probably aren't on this email list, and would almost
certainly never show up to ARGfest (at least not unless it undergoes a
pretty explosive transformation) but who have things to say that as a
group, we'd really like to hear.

And then in the afternoon you have the other half of the conversation.
That's where we get members of our community talking about the
different kind of metrics of an ARG and what they really mean (HI
BRIAN AND MIKE). Maybe how to build a working framework so that
characters can communicate with players responsively and quickly when
you work with an organization with a slow but unskippable approval
process and a particularly cautious set of lawyers. Or the importance
of monitoring pace and tension, and making sure that every time you
ask a player to do something, they get something meaningful in return.
Stuff that I at least think those morning media people would be really
interested in learning about -- things they might not even be on their
radar, but should be.

Not to mention the value of putting a bunch of people who might be in
a position to need and hire ARG developers in a room with a bunch of
ARG developers who like working a lot more than not-working. Ahem.

This sort of conference fulfills what I see as the two sometimes
conflicting reasons the SIG exists: One, to provide a place for ARG
developers to get together, talk shop, and help each other out; and
two, to create information and resources for those who want to learn
more about this crazy stuff we do.

-- 
Andrea Phillips
http://www.aaphillips.com
AIM: Andrh1a * Skype: Andrhia
Words * Culture * Interaction