breatheLast December, ARGNet announced plans for an upcoming game courtesy of Expanding Universe that promised to draw players into the underground club scene. The idea of a London-based murder mystery spanning several nightclubs piqued the interest of the ARG community, while the way Expanding Universe planned to incorporate and immerse players into that mystery drew national and international attention.

The game is set to run for two weeks with multiple live events in London and three 15 minute videos. Breathe offers players the chance to not only interact with characters in real time, but also to help shape the narrative itself. Those brave enough to attend the live dance events will get the chance to socialize with the in-game characters and in all likelihood become characters themselves: possibly even accomplices to the unsolved crime. 

This past August, players who signed up for the game at the Breathe homepage learned that the months of waiting were almost at an end when they received e-mail invitations to a masked ball, “A Night of Xcess,” a live event set to kick off the first episode of Breathe. Intrepid players next discovered Pleasure Principled, which included the dress code for the event, a list of performers attending, and instructions on how to buy tickets to the ball.

Players hoping to join in on the first of three episodes will have two chances to take part in A Night of Xcess. A free private screening will take place as part of the Power to the Pixel festivities on October 14th in the Debating Chamber at London’s County Hall at 7PM. For those who can’t make the free screening, there will be a second chance on October 16th, but it will set you back £10.

For those of you who can’t make the exciting events in London, you can still take part in the murder mystery remotely: help solve the crime by watching the videos as they are posted and taking part in the online component to Breathe. While the live events will be a large part of the game, they will not comprise the entire story, and there will be plenty of opportunity for players abroad to help shape the mystery as well.

The online portion of the game has already begun, with in-game characters contacting and communicating with players in addition to the discovery of a mysterious encoded MP3 that originated from the online radio site UK Dance, the same radio station that will be broadcasting live from “A Night of Xcess.” New players looking to join in still have time to sign up and make plans to attend the ball. For those of you who have been waiting, now is the time to Breathe.