ARGs in Historical Perspective

Adrian Hon, one of the developers behind Perplex City, has somehow found time in his busy schedule to blog about Alternate Reality Gaming and how it fits into the historical scheme of things. His new entry, The Reality Artificers, places ARGs in the context of the long history of storytellers using framing devices to create more believable stories. It’s an incredibly well-researched and interesting read.

“…ARGs are not a new idea – they are simply the newest instance of an idea almost as old as storytelling itself – of storytellers constructing fictional realities, by deliberately mimicking the trusted information sources of media in order to create more realistic and affecting stories…

“…It is clear that storytellers throughout history have repeatedly and independently discovered that increasing the audience’s belief in a story can provide a more affecting and engaging experience. All of these artificers of fictional realities have used the same strategies: ancient Egyptian stories used fake letters; Welles used a fake news broadcast; the BBC used a fake live documentary; and ARGs use a network of fake news and personal websites…”

You can read The Reality Artificers in its entirety at mssv.net.