tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-423050459919800481.post1782516977028598257..comments2024-03-04T05:26:22.273-08:00Comments on Propnomicon: The Retro ARGPropnomiconhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02073463298965255652noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-423050459919800481.post-75424629801932842372012-12-03T13:43:10.775-08:002012-12-03T13:43:10.775-08:00It's funny that you would revisit this today, ...It's funny that you would revisit this today, as this weekend I was hitting some of your old entries and found one from 2009 that referenced a book called "Personal Effects: Dark Art."<br /><br />http://propnomicon.blogspot.com/2009/08/personal-effects-dark-art.html<br /><br />This book has been begging me to buy it at bookcloseouts.com, where it's going for four bucks.<br /><br />But the link in your entry seals the fate, and highlights the biggest flaw of these new experiments: those "live" web sites and telephone numbers? Someone has to pay to maintain them or they just vanish.<br /><br />Try visiting http://brinkvalepsychiatric.com , from the book, and you'll get an error. The Wayback Machine has a skeleton of the site, but the graphics and interactive content don't appear.<br /><br />The book, the mystery and the story, are broken.<br /><br />But a copy of Wheatley's work? Still as usable today as when it came of the press. Take that, technology!<br /><br />Rowan's comment about XCOM shows the same flaw: "Unfortunately, it seems that the original sites are no longer up..." The archived information he has is just like looking at someone else's vacation photos. Tantalizing, wonderful vacation photos to a place that you will never be able to visit...JRnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-423050459919800481.post-19458488457194099612012-12-03T12:53:24.408-08:002012-12-03T12:53:24.408-08:00I think you have hit upon one of the key design is...I think you have hit upon one of the key design issues that stall a lot of ARG development, especially for ones that are primarily online.<br /><br />When you have an online only ARG, you are going up against nearly unlimited mental resources. The challenges you are seeing are writer's attempt to slow down the progress of the story by hindering the players. But as a result it has the affect of alienating many potential players by the sheer difficulty of the steps, few can take for them selves.<br /><br />I have wanted to run an ARG for quite some time, but instead of a massive online game, something small, exclusive, and physical. Physical props that must be solved/delivered/safeguarded. Clues that must be gathered and solved, possibly from real world locations. The online portion is primarily voyeuristic, watching the story progress, having the ability to provide your insight to those who can't partake in the physical activity.Halcyonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07057037214638292405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-423050459919800481.post-50734708901235072202012-12-03T06:35:05.440-08:002012-12-03T06:35:05.440-08:00Although it never really morphed into what I would...Although it never really morphed into what I would consider a full-fledged ARG (I think there were some severe issues behind the scenes), I think you would have liked the campaign for XCOM (that went by the names Operation Hermes, Project Enemy Unknown, Internal Defense Directorate, Citizen Skywatch). The first iteration of the campaign was filled with a ton of physical evidence from newspaper clippings to vials of sludge. Unfortunately, it seems that the original sites are no longer up, but I did archive a lot of the information on <a href="http://wonderweasels.org/hermes/guide1.html" rel="nofollow">a guide that I was writing</a> at the time.<br /><br />My biggest problem with ARGs these days are not that they are cryptography heavy (I find those tend to come through beginner grassroots games) but the fact that most large scale campaigns these days tend to go for a more shallow design that appeals to a larger audience and rarely have a deep end that hardcore players can get involved in.Rowanhttp://wonderweasels.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-423050459919800481.post-83695835545808052592012-12-03T06:10:38.358-08:002012-12-03T06:10:38.358-08:00Well said. I think it was Isaac Asimov who once s...Well said. I think it was Isaac Asimov who once said, “You can’t have good Science Fiction, without first having good fiction.” If not him, then it should have been. In any case the point is without a good story/narrative, all the whiz-bangs and CGI out there can’t prop up a slipshod piece of work. If on top of that you have got to have believable 3d characters that not only grow and work through their problems, but you have to care about them (love or hate them). The main problem out there is that people are producing “product” not literature. A committee nominates a demographic, which is then deciphered to find the hot buttons. A selection of “must have” elements are listed and tossed together with no more interest than a factory made frozen pizza. The only people buying "product" are consumers. What’s lacking in books is … literature. The same goes for games – craftsmanship, backstory, consistency, character, need I go on.CoastConFanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07250561260148656254noreply@blogger.com