[arg_discuss] Alternate Reality Game Jam (Idea)

[John Evans]

So, the independent game development community has these things called "game jams".  These events usually take place over 48 hours; Game developers (programmers, artists, musicians, writers, etc.) form teams to create a game within the specified time period.  Sometimes the teams meet at real-world locations, as in the Global Game Jam ( http://globalgamejam.org/ ); other game jams are entirely on the net, as in Ludum Dare ( http://ludumdare.com ).

The whole idea of a game jam is to get people creating games.  Don't worry about how good it is, don't worry about how good you are, just get out there and do it.  Learn what it takes to make a game, marshal your resources, learn your tools, work with other people and build confidence in yourself.  Also, game jams often yield experimental games that get people thinking in new directions about what a game can be.  The game jams often have a constraint or catalyst (the word "islands", for example, or the phrase "as long as we have each other we'll never run out of problems") that get the developers thinking in new ways.  And one of the largest benefits is that once the jam is over, there are lots of people eager to play all the games that have been produced and provide feedback.  This also helps build a community around the jam.

I'm sure you see where I'm going with this.  The above paragraphs describe creating computer games, but they can apply to alternate reality games too.  Even if you prefer things more on the "narrative" side and less on the "game", the concept still fits pretty well.  I think it'd be cool to have an Alternate Reality Game Jam to get more people into creating and critiquing small ARGs.  (If we can free a mime in 10 minutes, we can create something interesting in 48 hours, right?)

I could provide some basic resources, perhaps a forum with a private subforum for each team.  Of course, it really is pretty easy to get resources together nowadays; anyone can create a Youtube account or 70.  But we can work that out later; Right now I just want to know...Does this sound like a good idea?

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John Evans
Chaoseed Software - http://chaoseed.com