Seen Steve “Implodes”

Seen Steve, the parody ARG, wrapped up over the ARGFest weekend in the only possible manner that it could: it “imploded”.

Players gathered in the #seensteve chat room, waiting for the final game timer to reach zero, when the PM (or PhooMaster) joined the room and announced the game was over as he had “homework and stuff” to do. But before he left, he gave players one last puzzle hidden in the final flash – a puzzle which would lead players to the Project Phoo FAQ and would reveal the identity of the PM.

That PM was none other than unFiction’s own Ehsan, who had previously made the Soogees Trail. His original concept was to create a small blog leading to a recruitment request to create a larger game in the future. Instead, the game took on a life of its own and turned into a parody. However, his original purpose still exists, and he is currently looking for anyone who believes they can contribute to a collaborative ARG.

When all was said and done, Seen Steve had close to 20 specific games it parodied and it spawned a massive 25 page thread over the course of its two week run. The game managed to capture the essence of the ARGs we all know and love. And, despite its “lame” launch and later “meltdown”, Seen Steve still had a high standard of quality usually reserved games created by larger, experienced PM teams. The only real complaint about the game is that it might allow other wannabe PMs to go “Well, if he can create such a great game on the fly, then so can we.”

So, if you’ve always wanted to help in an ARG, but felt you didn’t have the necessary qualifications to help run an entire game, now is your chance. Visit the Project Phoo website to read more about the project, and if you have what it takes, sign up, and help create the next great ARG (or at least the next best learning experience).