Month: April 2007 (Page 1 of 2)

Game Launch: World Without Oil

April 30, 2007 / Jonathan Waite

After almost two months of anticipation, World Without Oil officially launched today. Announced at ARGFest 07, the game is a “live interactive month-long alternate reality event” that will explore the idea of a worldwide oil shortage. Jane McGonigal (IFTF) and Ken Eklund (writerguy) have led a team of “some of alternate reality gaming’s most experienced puppetmasters” in creating this game, part of the Independent Lens Electric Shadows Web-original programming. With the official launch, the WWO trailhead site has a new look and new features previously not open for the public.

The self-proclaimed grassroots experience bills itself as “an insight into what happens when a great economy built entirely on cheap oil begins to run short,” as it looks at the “impact on people’s lives — work, social, family and personal — and explores what happens when our thirst for oil begins to exceed supply.” It’s not immediately clear as to how the game will take shape, but it seems that player-generated content will be at the heart of the experience, as the game will revolve around “citizen stories in blogs, videos, photos, audio and phone messages posted all over the Internet.”

You can get involved by reading the player wiki, official game blog, and the MySpace blog. You can also register at the trailhead site, and check in with developments at the Unfiction forums.

Source: PR Newswire

ARG Netcast, Episode 21: The Mainstream

April 24, 2007 / Jessica Price

In the 21st episode of the netcast series, we discuss the ARG news of the past week, including the massive mainstream press attention ARGs have been getting this month and last. Regular panelists Jon Waite, Sean Stacey and Jessica Price are joined by first-timers Michelle Senderhauf and Geoff May. Subscribe to the ARG Netcast feed through this link or via iTunes. Contact us at our special netcast email address, [email protected] with your tips, suggestions, concerns and submissions. Call us on the ARGNet voicemail at 630-274-5425.

Odina Nova: Back (again) with More Norse Mythology than a Wagnerian Opera

April 23, 2007 / Michael Andersen

When Dan Cook coined the phrase “it ain’t over until the fat lady sings”, he may have been discussing the 1978 NBA playoffs, but the expression has become rooted in the operatic tradition and Norse mythology. And like that final aria from a singing valkyrie, Odina Nova has returned to the ARG world.

Continuing as scheduled on March 21, the vernal equinox, Odina Nova has returned from the depths of Niflheim to continue following Hermod’s quest to prevent disaster in our world at the hands of the Eyes of Woden. A war in an alternate world known as “Vanaheim” threatens to spill over into our own realm of “Midgard,” and humanity’s only hope lies with the Tanais Apparatus and possibly Hermod’s new job at Heimdall Industries.

This game offers an intensive look at Norse mythology, with many puzzles and solutions relating to ancient runes and Norse figures from days of old as well as a plot heavy on Asgardian references. Although the pacing of the game is fitful at best with a recent two-week lull in the game mere days after its relaunch, the puppetmaster appears committed to seeing the game to its conclusion.

Click Here for the Unfiction thread.
Click Here for our previous coverage of Odina Nova.

Two More Awards for ReGenesis Extended Reality

April 20, 2007 / Brooke Thompson

It’s been a crazy month for the guys at Xenophile media. It started off back in March at the 10th Annual SXSW Interactive Awards when Occular Effect (The Fallen Alternate Reality Game) won the award in the Experimental category. But it was not about to stop there. The nominations were just beginning to roll in. Fallen was nominated for a Banff World Television Award and Regenesis was nominated for both an Interactive Emmy (pdf) and a CNMA Award. The CNMA and Banff World Television awards will be announced in the next few months, but last night the Interactive Emmy went to(pdf)… Xenophile Media for Regenesis Extended Reality Game!

Clearly, they’re going to need to build themselves a bigger trophy case. But the real question is, how are they ever going to get any work done with all this celebrating? We want more!

42 Entertainment to be Featured on Spike TV Program

April 19, 2007 / Jonathan Waite

Alternate reality gaming has enjoyed a great deal of mainstream press lately, particularly for games like Year Zero and World Without Oil. Tomorrow night, 42 Entertainment will be featured on Spike TV’s Game Head, a “half-hour weekly program dedicated to everything that is happening in the world of video games,” according to the Spike TV web site. While the show description is interesting enough, a more intriguing tidbit of information game in a game tip sent in to ARGNet which states to watch the show closely, as there may be “something you are missing!”

If you are able to watch Spike, the show airs at 1 AM EST on “Friday” (technically, Saturday) / 10 PM PST on Friday. If you happen to miss it, there is a video archive on the show’s web site, but there’s no indication how long this episode will take to show up there after airing. So, just watch it!

The Unseen: A Thank You to A Few of the Individuals Who Help Make the ARG Community A Great Place

April 19, 2007 / Jessica Price

It takes a lot of people to keep the ARG community running. ARGNet is a news organization, and as such we tend to focus our reporting on the people who grab headlines, to indulge in a clichÃ©: puppetmasters, players who win prizes, and so on.

However, many of the people who make the community what it is — and ARGs what they are — work nearly invisibly, quietly creating essential resources, keeping websites updated, and using their skills and talents in other ways to benefit the community and games that they love.

ARGNet would like to take this opportunity to recognize some of these individuals and their contributions. We would like to make this a regular series, and hope our readers will keep us informed about other people from whose work we all benefit but who may not get the credit they deserve.