Month: September 2005 (Page 1 of 2)

Last Call Poker

September 24, 2005 / Jonathan Waite

We found Last Call Poker through an email sent into the ARGN tip-line this morning. We’re not sure exactly what to think yet, but the site is definitely… interesting. It has all of the standard signs pointing towards ARG — registration, automated email replies, suspicious video, voice mail, and an attractive brunette character that needs our help. However, if you actually sit down and play on the poker tables, you’ll find that they are all functional and that many people (or, if you want to go in a different direction, poker bots) are already sitting down, calling and raising, as if the site had existed for months already. (For what it’s worth, the site has been registered since May, although we can’t find any hits on Google about it).

Is this an Alternate Reality Game? Or is it simply a gambling site? Perhaps a haven for dancing robots? Only time will tell, friends, but after only a handful of minutes on the site, we’re pretty stoked about what may be ‘in the cards’ for Last Call Poker.

Just In Time for “Falling In Time”

September 22, 2005 / Larry Eisner

ARGN recently recently broke a story regarding the emergence of the trailhead for Falling In Time. Apparently, this was not only a new game, but the second coming of one of the first group of widely played g-roots games, entitled Project Gateway. While allusions to the past game and its characters have already been made through various sites hidden within the trailhead, it remains to be seen whether or not the game will pick up where the first game left off, or whether the game will only use the first game as a remnant spark to an entirely new fire. While the trail is just heating up, there is an expected real-life encounter to take place at Providence College, in Rhode Island, this Saturday (September 24). Regardless of what turns up, this game looks promising, and you can count on ARGN to keep you up to date as the game unfolds.

Vaporlofts

September 19, 2005 / Carie Ward

When it rains, it pours. Another new ARG has come to light recently, despite the fact it has had a web presence since May. VaporLofts started as a LiveJournal blog by one Anne Schreber (aka point_system), who started befriending other LiveJournal bloggers who shared similar interests. Not a lot of attention was paid to the blog until Anne started talking about an airplane exploding over the Pacific Ocean, with one person miraculously surviving. A lot of people’s interests were piqued after that. Since then, we have been introduced to Anne’s mysterious employer, VaporLofts, who seem to be interested in a lot more than just selling and renovating real estate.

While it is still too early to tell where the VaporLofts story is heading, the game itself seems to show some real promise. The pace of the game shows that the creators have a great deal of patience. The recent trend to rush game developments due to overzealousness has doomed many an ARG in the past. It is refreshing to see that this game has not yet fallen into that trap.

VaporLofts should be a good ARG for those who have been waiting to get in on the ground floor. ARGN will keep you apprised of any major developments as they occur.

Trailhead
Discussion at Unfiction
IRC Chat in #vaporlofts

New Games On The Horizon?

September 18, 2005 / Jonathan Waite

Two recently discovered blips on the ARG radar have sent ripples of interest throughout the community. The newest discovery, Falling In Time (AKA the Icarus ARG) came to us via a sponsored Google ad, and has already entertained the masses with some hidden web pages on the trailhead site. The site is aesthetically pleasing, and it looks like there was some serious thought put into the design.

The second attention-getter of the week has been The 13 Books | Triskabiblios. While the discussion at the UnFiction forums has been fast and furious (348 posts since being introduced to the community on September 12), it’s unclear as to the purpose of the “game”. Some say that it is a recruitment campaign, as the original post by vibration13 on UF once made mention of such a PM recruitment angle, while others say that it is simply something that has gotten out of hand. For what it’s worth, there are links vibration13.com on the trailhead site, which is currently looking like more of a web directory than an ARG. Is it a puzzle? Is it an ARG? Is it a new marketing campaign for Amazon? Hopefully the situation becomes clearer sooner.

Falling In Time:
Discussion at UnForums
Trailhead
IRC Chat in #icarus

The 13 Books | Triskabiblios:
Discussion at UnForums
Trailhead
IRC Chat in #13books

ReGenesis: Relaunch and Award Nomination!

September 12, 2005 / Jonathan Waite

Two bits of exciting information coming out of the ReGenesis camp this week, one concerning the relaunch of the series on public television, and the other regarding the nomination of the ReGenesis website for a major Canadian award.

We last reported on ReGenesis back in October of 2004 when the series was first aired on Movie Central and The Movie Network, both subscription-based cable networks in Canada. The series included an ARG element, or “extended reality” to it. Now, almost a year later, ReGenesis is enjoying a resurgence in popularity with the broadcast of Season One on Canadian public television channel Global. (Unfortunately, there is no current syndication deal for any networks outside of Canada.) With the re-airing of the series on Global comes the relaunch of the web-based ARG. This is the first instance of an “replayed” ARG — that is, the reset and replay of an ARG that had previously run its course.

Blitz League Expands, Adds Depth

September 7, 2005 / Larry Eisner

Blitzleague.com has recently updated, with the first new content since July 26th. While still not showing signs of being an actual “game”, sites have been added to give more of a backdrop to the setting of Midway’s upcoming console game entitled “Blitz: The League”. Sites like “Tear it Rare“, “Most Valuable Playa“, and “PedisNV” have given a little more depth to the previously under-developed web presence, and expanded the world of the video game. Of course, should anything develop in terms of a true Alternate Reality Game, ARGN will keep you informed!