From Wikipedia

"An alternate reality game (ARG) is an interactive narrative that uses the real world as a platform, often involving multiple media and game elements, to tell a story that may be affected by participants' ideas or actions.

The form is typified by intense player involvement with a story that takes place in real-time and evolves according to participants' responses, and characters that are actively controlled by the game's designers, as opposed to being controlled by artificial intelligence as in a computer or console video game. Players interact directly with characters in the game, solve plot-based challenges and puzzles, and often work together with a community to analyze the story and coordinate real-life and online activities. ARGs generally use multimedia, such as telephones, email and mail but rely on the Internet as the central binding medium.

ARGs are growing in popularity, with new games appearing regularly and an increasing amount of experimentation with new models and subgenres. They tend to be free to play, with costs absorbed either through supporting products (e.g. collectible puzzle cards fund Perplex City) or through promotional relationships with existing products (e.g. I love bees was a promotion for Halo 2, Iris promoted the release of Halo 3 and the Lost Experience promoted the television show Lost). However, pay-to-play models are not unheard of.

ARGs are now being recognized by the mainstream entertainment world: The Fallen Alternate Reality game was recently awarded a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Achievement for an Interactive Television Program.

Contents [hide]
1 Defining alternate reality gaming
1.1 Unique terminology
1.2 Similarities and differences to other forms of entertainment
1.3 Influences and precursors
1.3.1 Possible inspirations from fiction and other art forms
2 Basic design principles of ARGs
3 Development and history
3.1 Early examples
3.2 The Beast
3.2.1 Fat Cow Motel
3.3 Community and genre growth
3.3.1 Grassroots development
3.3.2 Community development
3.4 Massive-scale commercial games and mainstream attention
3.5 The rise of the self-supporting ARG
3.6 The Serious ARG
3.7 New developments
3.7.1 Television tie-ins and "Extended Experiences"
4 See also
5 Notes
6 External links



[edit] Defining alternate reality gaming
There is a great deal of debate about how to define the term "alternate reality game" and what should be included or excluded by the definition. Unfiction founder Sean Stacey has suggested that the best way to define the genre was not to define it, and instead locate each game on three axes (ruleset, authorship and coherence) in a sphere of "chaotic fiction" that would include works such as the Uncyclopedia and street games like SF0 as well.[1]

If one accepts noted game designer Chris Crawford's definition of a game (it requires that there is an opponent), then ARGs are perhaps better understood as puzzles. However, if the puppetmasters are actively changing the game while it is going on (as happened with The Beast), then the ARG does more closely fit the definition of a game.

While addressing all of the various attempts at definitions and arguments for and against them is beyond the scope of this article, defining a few terms unique to ARG parlance, identifying precursors and influences on the development of the genre, and comparing and contrasting ARGs to other similar forms of entertainment may be helpful in aiding understanding of the form.


[edit] Unique terminology
Among the terms essential to understand discussions about ARGs are:

Puppetmaster - A puppetmaster or "PM" is an individual involved in designing and/or running an ARG. Puppetmasters are simultaneously allies and adversaries to the player base, creating obstacles and providing resources for overcoming them in the course of telling the game's story. Puppetmasters generally remain behind the curtain while a game is running.The real identity of puppet masters may or may not be known ahead of time.
The Curtain - The curtain is generally a metaphor for the separation between the puppetmasters and the players. This can take the traditional form of absolute secrecy regarding the puppetmasters' identities and involvement with the production, or refer merely to the convention that puppetmasters do not communicate directly with players through the game, interacting instead through the characters and the game's design.
Rabbithole - Also known as a Trailhead. A Rabbithole marks the first website, contact, or puzzle that starts off the ARG.
Trailhead - A deliberate clue which enables a player to discover a way into the game. Most ARGs employ a number of trailheads in several media, to maximise the probability of people discovering the game. Some trailheads may be covert, others may be thinly-disguised adverts.
This Is Not A Game (TINAG) - Setting the ARG form apart from other games is the This Is Not A Game aesthetic, which dictates that the game not behave like a game: phone numbers mentioned in the ARG, for example, should actually work, and the game should not provide an overtly-designated playspace or ruleset to the players.

[edit] Similarities and differences to other forms of entertainment
Computer/console/video games. While ARGs generally use the internet as a central binding medium, they are not played exclusively on a computer and usually do not require the use of special software or interfaces. Non-player characters in ARGs are controlled in real-time by the puppetmasters, not computer AI.
Role-playing games (RPGs) and (LARPs). The role of the puppetmaster in creating ARG narratives and the puppetmaster's relationship with an ARG's players bears a great deal of similarity to the role of a dungeon master, gamemaster or referee in a role-playing game. However, the role of the players is quite different. Most ARGs do not have any fixed rules -- players discover the rules and the boundaries of the game through trial and error -- and do not require players to assume fictional identities or roleplay beyond feigning belief in the reality of the characters they interact with (even if games where players play 'themselves' are a long standing variant on the genre).[2]
Massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). As outlined above with computer games and traditional role-playing games, non-player characters in ARGs are controlled by real people in real time, not by computer AI; ARGs do not generally require special software or interfaces to play; the games do not require players to roleplay or create characters or avatars; and ARGs generally use multiple media and real life in addition to the internet to distribute their narratives.
Viral marketing/internet hoaxes. While ARGs are often used as a type of viral marketing, they diverge sharply from the philosophy behind "sponsored consumers" or other viral marketing practices that attempt to trick consumers into believing that planted shills for a product are other independent consumers. Similarly, they also diverge from sites or narratives that genuinely try to convince visitors that they are what they claim to be. Puppetmasters generally leave both subtle and overt clues to the game's fictional nature and boundaries where players can find them (e.g. through clearly fictional names on site registrations) and many ARGs openly flaunt obviously fictional plots. The puppetmasters of the genre's seminal example, the Beast,[3] made it a point of pride never to pretend to be players in order to solicit publicity or nudge players along, and the Terms of Service of Unfiction, the central community site for the ARG genre, strictly prohibit individuals involved in creating games from posting about them without disclosing their involvement.[4]

[edit] Influences and precursors
Due to factors like the curtain, attempts to begin games with "stealth launches" to fulfill the TINAG aesthetic, and the restrictive non-disclosure agreements governing how much information may be revealed by the puppetmasters of promotional games, the design process for many ARGs is often shrouded in secrecy, making it difficult to discern the extent to which they have been influenced by other works. In addition, the cross-media nature of the form allows ARGs to incorporate elements of so many other art forms and works that attempting to identify them all would be a nearly-impossible task.


[edit] Possible inspirations from fiction and other art forms
G. K. Chesterton's 1905 short story "The Tremendous Adventures of Major Brown" (part of a collection entitled The Club of Queer Trades) seems to predict the ARG concept, as does John Fowles' 1965 novel The Magus. The performance artists in Delany's science fiction novel Triton (published in 1976) appear to be playing a type of ARG. Ludic texts such as the popular Choose Your Own Adventure children's novels may also have provided some inspiration. William Gibson's novel Pattern Recognition includes a recognizable example of a modern ARG, although it was published after the development of the genre began in earnest. Reader-influenced online fiction such as AOL's QuantumLink Serial provides a model that incorporates audience influence into the storytelling in a manner similar to that of ARGs, as do promotional online games like Wizards of the Coast's Webrunner games. Other possible antecedents include performance art and other theatrical forms that attempt to break Bertolt Brecht's "fourth wall" and directly engage the audience.

Due to the influence the Beast exerted over the form of later ARGs and the willingness of its creators to talk about its development, its sources of inspiration are both particularly relevant to the evolution of the modern ARG and somewhat more verifiable than other possible antecedents. Elan Lee, one of its creative principals, cites the 1997 movie The Game as an inspiration, as well as the Beatles' "Paul Is Dead" phenomenon. Sean Stewart, another of the three principal designers, notes that designing and running an ARG bears some similarities to running an RPG, and the influence of that particular game form is further suggested by the fact that Jordan Weisman, the game's third main designer, was also the founder of leading RPG company FASA. Stewart also noted that the sort of "creative, collaborative, enthusiastic scavengering behavior"[5] upon which the Beast depended has its antecedents outside the arts: the Beast just "accidentally re-invented Science as pop culture entertainment."[6]

The conspiracy in Thomas Pynchon's The Crying of Lot 49 may be an ARG set up by Pierce Inverarity to bedevil Oedipa Maas."


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternate_reality_game

Spring Break Blog # 4

During most of the Spring Break I am practicing softball and getting use to the team. We had off during holy week but now we are getting back into having our practices and games. The team is pretty good this season.

Spring Break Blog # 3 Obama

Barack Obama is running to be President. I kinda hope he does not win because I do not like him. I think that only became Catholic just to run for President and because of that i am a little suspicious.

Spring Break Blog #2

On April 19th, I traveled to Yonkers, New York to see Pope Benedict XVI at the Youth Rally. I went with some people from school. We left at 5:30 in the morning and got to St. Joseph's Seminary at around 9:30. Many bands, singers, and dancers performed before the Pope arrived at St. Josephs. Those included Toby Mac, Kelly Clarkson, and Rapping Reverends. When the Pope arrived at the Chapel he blessed 50 children with disabilities. After he blessed and prayed for the children, His Holiness came over to the seminary where people were yelling "PAPA", "BENEDICTO", and "B16." The Pope gave an address about hope for the future and how we should help those in need especially the unborn children and the mentally ill and the disabled. The Pope also recognized that American Society is not an easy one to be teen in today. His Holiness included that all should be aware of the call of God and if anyone is considering a vocation to religious life to be really listening to God's calling so that you may do what he asks.
After His address, Kelly Clarkson performed a breath taking version of the "Ave Maria."

Invisible Children

On Thursday, April 17th, 2008, four speakers came to St. Mary's High School to spread the news of what is going on with the civil war in northern Uganda and to inspire our generation to help. They brought along with them a film of a young boy named Sunday. Sunday is living in one of the huts in a confined camp. He is a smart young boy who is dedicated to having a better life for himself and those around him. At age fifteen, Sunday is alone. He has no family. He goes to school and wants to be a doctor so that he can help cure the diseases that have killed his loved ones and those around him. In the film, Invisible Children, you see the daily struggles people have to go through just to get through a day. It really makes you stop and thank God for all that you have and to think how someone could be so strong. The four speakers that came to talk about it inspired teens to do something about it. One speaker quoted: "If the greatest generation sacrificed for war, what will our generation be known for if we sacrifice FOR PEACE?" They also inspired us to get involved and to write letters to our congress so that by putting pressure on them they may put pressure on other countries to help those suffering in Northern Uganda. Visit InvisibleChildren.com and invest in peace.

Blog Entry #1 of Spring Break

On the first day of the Spring Break, I slept in late and cleaned my house. On Good Friday, my mom's family came to Maryland from Conneticut and New York. My Uncle Danny and My cousins, Mark, Lee, Beau, Casey, Sean, and Carly came and spent the weekend. It was fun. They stayed until Easter Sunday.

I Remember !

I remember when I was seven years old and it was christmas morning and someone dressed up as MickeyMouse was at my front door and said that I won a trip to disney land in florida. My dad, my mom, my sister, and my brother were all going to go to disney the next day. After we opened presents on christmas, we started packing for disney. When we were on the plane we met some of the players from the baseball team the Yankees. When we got to disney we went to visit my grandparents who were living down the street from disney. We had so much fun at disney. It was definitly a great christmas present!

I remember another vacation that I went on with my family. My dad had won a trip at work for all of us. We went to St Thomas. We were really excited about it. We stayed at a really nice hotel near a beach. It was around Easter vacation when we went. The water was really clear and you could see all the fishies that were swimming around you. They were really pretty.

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I remember a time when my mom watched American Idol for the first time. It was the start of the 4th season when all the crazyy people were auditioning . She thought it was so funny. She kept talking about it for days. She still talks about it to this day even though it happened almost two years ago!





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I remember when I had Thanksgiving at a resort in Pennsylvania with my moms side of the fmaily. One of my cousins is a bit crazy and before we sat down for our dinner feast. He punched his younger brothers back and on his back was an imprint that looked like a big fat juicy tomato coming out of his back.



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I remember when I went to my first concert ever. I was in fifth grade. I went to a Britney Spears concert at Nassau Colliseum. It was a lot of fun and really loud. Her music was good.



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The year I graudated from elementary school I had a teacher that was really weird. She was the palest person ever, allergic to perfumes, and a real neat FREAK!

The Matrix ~ The Movie

the movie starts @ O'The City HotelCops break into a room with some girl's back to themchasing girl inleather suit on top of roofs she races to telephone booth - w/ truck ... picksup phone --> gets hitKeanu Reeves/Neo Anderson -->"follow the white rabbit" ...knock @ the door some guy with 2 grand for him. Neo gives him a disk...white rabbit tattoo on girls shoulder goes to club with them - talks to girl who knows him.Gets a mysterious phone call on his cell phone @ his office... guides him to get away from the people/detectives/cops coming after him - they look in his cubicle he goes into an office where the man on the phone tells him to go out the window then hangs up... neo decides then drops his phone Now in a room with no windows with two detectives who have a green folder with papers in it ... talk to him that he seems to have been living 2 livesthey want him to cooperate with him - they know about the phone call from beforehe wants a phone call but then his mouth starts to close after they say what good is a phonecall if he cant speak and then they hold him to a table and put some buggish thing in his stomach... then he wakes up and gets a phonecall guiding him again...goes to some bridge int he rain and gets in car... they remove the bug from his stomach with some machine then throw it out the window.. drive to some place to meet a guy with sungalsses and a leather coat (he is advised before he goes in that he should be honest)... he tells him what the matrix is...tells him this is his last chance ... tells him to take some pills ... neo follows him into another room with computers ...they hook him up to some computers and tell him that the pills he just took were for tracking him ..."have you ever had a dream that you were so sure that it was real?" ... neo goes weird and touches a mirror and its liquidy and takes over his body... wakes up in a liquid naked and bald connected to weird things with lightening around...some weird machine comes and takes the wires out then he falls down some hole into more liquid...is taken by a machine to that guy(morphious?) again ...on his ship tells him its a lot later years than he thinks but he honestly doesnt know - shows him the ship & crew... lay him down and put needle in back of head and wakes in white room with morphious telling him its a place to upload - he has no blood..the matrix- the world --> shows the world "now" and its dark .... 21st century ....

*What is the matrix?computer generated dream world - Morphious

operator idk his name....goes to neo and works on him with computers...does karate with morphious for a while... crew on ship watches on computer with the operator ( he still laying down).... morphious asks him how he beat neo ...hes not breathing air?!...fights again...goes to some building and morphious jumps to other building...neo-

NEO IS THERE TO SAVE THE WORLD

they'er taking Neo to see the oricle- she tells him that he isnt the one .... because he seems to be waiting for something.

Neo has de ja vu when hes with the group and they tell him that that is from a glitch in the matrix... so they run to get out but theres no way to get ou t

they lose the little guy and morphious is beat up by agent smith and his police. what does it mean to be free? out on your own,independent, not under someone elses control.

PICTURE$$$$

Woodloch Dance Battle

This video takes place at Woodloch Pines in Hawley, Pennsylvania where my family has a house. We go to Woodloch ALOT and its always so much fun. The staff are so nice and enthusiastic. The video shows this. There is always so much to do at woodloch for everyone. Woodloch holds many memories for many people. Woodloch is definitly the ultimate vacation!

PHAT, SUPER TUESDAY | MARDIGRAS!

I have no idea who I would vote for if I had to.

Watching Johnny Mnemonic 1.28.08 - 1.31.08

In Computer Science, we are watching Johnny Mnemonic, a cyberpunk created by William Gibson. The movie Johnny Mnemonic takes place during the year 2021 in Central Beijing, China and Newark, New Jersey. In the film, starring Keanu Reeves as Johnny, his job requires him tostore and deliver data that is too sensitive for computers to hold in an implant in his brain which he has given up his long-term memory, which is his childhood. Also, an effect of the loss of his long term memory, Johnny has flashbacks to his childhood. The implant's storage capacity is about eight gigabytes or one hundred twenty gigabytes on a doubler. However, on this particular delivery that he chooses to accept, the data uploaded exceeds the safety limit of the implant by implanting three hundred twenty gigabytes. After receiving the data, the effects of the overload take a toll on Johnny when he gets a nosebleed. If the data is not removed within about three days, his brain will explode from the excessive data in the implant. Jane, his body guard, takes Johnny to Spider who is a good doctor. Where Spider informs him that the information he holds is far more valuable than he had thought or even imagined. Spider tells Johnny that the black shakes are caused by technological overload. The information held in the implant in Johnny's brain is a cure to a disease known as Neural Attenuation Syndrome. Also, Jane is another victim of this disease but she is on drugs that control her violent shaking. So far in the movie, he has had to resist men who have been hired by the company who owns the data to kill him.The manm who thinks he is Jesus is a cyborg, which is a person whose physiological functioning depends on technology devices. Dr. Allcome is a name used in hospitals for uncontrollably big problems like Johnny's.I noticed that in some ways the movie differs from the short story. For example, in the short story his girl friend is named Molly but in the movie her name is Jane. Also, Neural Attenuation Syndrome which is a disease is only in the movie which has effects such as violent shaking. Johnny meets Jones, a dolphin who was used by the United States Navy for aid during the war. Jones' infrared sound allowed him to keep a watchout on enemy submarines. An (animatronic) dolphin that was created by the U.S. Navy to be a submarine detector. The dolphin has the ability, from the U.S. Navy, to search the internet as well as people's minds. As of now, Jane and Jones are working together to kill the cyborg who is about to kill Johnny... they're successful. Right now, J-bone, Jane, Johnny, and Jones are downloading the data out of Johnny's brain which pretty much sucks the life out of him. During this, Johnny has a longer flashback to his childhood. In the end, they all save the world in curing those of the black shakes.