Author: Jonathan Waite (Page 24 of 37)

Jonathan Waite was an innocent lurker when The Beast hit the Internet in 2001. From his temporary residence in Jeon Ju, South Korea, he was immediately captivated by the lush environment that had been laid out before his feet. Moving back to his hometown (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada) in July of the same year, Jonathan continued to be involved in the burdgeoning genre of Alternate Reality Gaming, getting into Plexata and finding a voice on the forums dedicated to the game. Once Lockjaw hit in 2002, there was no looking back. Jonathan adopted the alias 'jamesi', started a fansite called GuysGuise, and the rest is history.
Jonathan can currently be found as an administrator on Unfiction's forums, as well as co-hosting the ARG Netcast audio show. In the past, he has been involved with Smirkbox, a humor site that focuses on the realm of ARGs, as well as actively creating and maintaining JMX, a puzzle trail website that is currently working (yes, still) on a second run.

As a freelance developer and consultant, Jonathan has worked on such games as Ocular Effect (for Fallen on ABC family), Reach the Future (aka Holomove, for Microsoft), Enitech Labs (for Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles on FOX) and Monster Hunter Club (for The Host by Magnolia Films). He is happily married and has two wonderful daughters.

Yo Ho Ho, ‘Tis the Dead Man’s Tale

June 27, 2006 / Jonathan Waite

Sometimes, ARG doesn’t mean alternate reality gaming. Sometimes, ARG means ARRRRRG, the bellow from the pit of the pirate’s stomach that sends scurvy dogs runnin’ and strikes fear in the hearts of the fisherman who sail the… alright, so our piratespeak isn’t very good. In any event, Dead Man’s Tale has led us to raise the Jolly Roger and lose ourselves in the world of Billy Bones, through the magic of Microsoft’s Windows Live Messenger software. A promotion for the upcoming movie Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, the IM-based game allows you to add Billy as a friend, and starting a conversation with the skeletal character moves you further into the story with text scripts and fun games and puzzles that load within the messenger window. One of the interesting elements of this game is the ability to pair up with a friend and tackle the various challenges together, while an accompanying MSN Spaces site holds important information which ties in with the messenger experience.

Normally, we wouldn’t obsess over a pirate-themed messenger interactive experience, but this one has a special connection to the ARG universe. We received a rumor that this might be another venture by the creative forces at 42 Entertainment, a theory which we think we’ve proven to be true by looking at Billy’s MSN profile. Of course, we might just be wrong on this, but coincidences are rare these days, and bee keeping seems an odd interest for those in the pillaging and plundering profession. Even with the connection to 42, there is no indication that this is the beginning of any alternate reality game campaign, but based on initial game play, it’s a fun way to add marketing hype to the Disney blockbuster set to hit theaters on July 7. So, grab your swords and log into the world of Bones and his swashbuckling hi-jinks.

Editor’s Note: We found this link a few minutes ago, so our suspicions were right. Yarr.

Catching The Wish: Large and In Charge

June 26, 2006 / Jonathan Waite

One month ago, we were happy to send out a Game Alert about Catching The Wish, the sequel to the 2003 alternate reality game Chasing The Wish. In the weeks since that announcement, the game has exploded onto computer screens everywhere with multiple websites, a rich and engrossing storyline, and interactivity that has added layer upon layer of immersive game play for the players following the story of Dale Sprague and his life-changing wish. The ARG is also tied in with Chasing The Wish: Book One, the first in a series of four comic books based on the storyline originally created by Dave Szulborski, who designed the first CTW and has since worked on projects like Art of the Heist and Who Is Benjamin Stove.

I was lucky enough to get a copy of the comic book last month, and even though I am not necessarily a fan of comics, the writing and artistic design were enough to keep me turning pages. With a script written by Jason Stackhouse, art by P. Emerson Williams and Jessica Kaos, and an overall creative vision by James Curcio, the comic is visually entertaining while delivering a concise and thrilling story. Book One is available through online venues, such as Indyplanet and New Fiction Publishing.

Digital Communities 2006 Conference

June 26, 2006 / Jonathan Waite

In three days, the Digital Communities conference will be taking place in Bristol, UK. Clare Reddington, the project manager for the conference, was kind enough to give us a heads-up about the event, as well as a special promotional rate for those of you interested in attending! Here’s what Clare had to say about the gaming segment of the conference:

Broadband, mobile devices and wireless connectivity have transformed the world of gaming from a solitary sofa-based pursuit to a multi-player, multi-media community forum. From Google’s Da Vinci Code Quest to the labyrinth of forums, fake websites and additional content that exist to solve the mysteries of ABC drama Lost, increasingly sophisticated consumer marketing campaigns are contributing to the blurring of lines between gaming, media and real life. This session explores how the latest incarnation of the gaming phenomena attracts a broader demographic and is creating virtual communities who share knowledge, pool resources and establish new markets.

Speakers for the gaming discussion (called All In The Game) include Hugh Hancock, the Chief Executive of Strange Company (Machinima Production Company), Maurice Wheeler of Digital Outlook (represents Xbox 360), and Dan Hon, the Chief Operating Officer of a little company we’ve heard of once or twice before — Mind Candy. If you are new to alternate reality gaming, Mind Candy is the company producing the Perplex City ARG, which we continue to watch closely as the search for the Receda Cube carries on.

As far as that promotional rate goes, here’s the scoop: ARGN has secured a special 10% discount for the Digital Communities Communities Conference. To book tickets at the discounted price of Â£89, phone Watershed Box Office on 0117 927 5100 quoting ARGN. We really appreciate the offer Digital Communities has given us and our readership, and encourage you to book your tickets soon.

We’re Four! Let’s Eat Cake!

June 15, 2006 / Jonathan Waite

ARGN While things are simmering on medium heat in the world of Alternate Reality Gaming (we are in the midst of an in-depth look into Catching The Wish, so look for that in the next few days), we’d like to toot our own horn for a brief moment. In June 2002, “The Godfather” Steve Peters launched this site as a place where people could hang out and talk. Today, the Alternate Reality Gaming Network is not only alive and kicking, but taking great strides towards the future. There are a few projects that are being explored for development, including the ARG Archive and podcast interviews, so we hope our fifth year of existence proves to be another great year. Thanks go out to all of you who keep coming back and supporting our site!

Calling All ARG Academia

May 31, 2006 / Jonathan Waite

With the Alternate Reality Gaming Special Interest Group whitepaper still in development, we have a request from our friend Christy Dena who writes extensively about ARG at her blog Cross-Media Entertainment:

Needed: Academics who have investigated Alternate Reality Games

I’m writing a section on ARGs and Academia for the upcoming International Game Developers Association Alternate Reality Game Special Interest Group Whitepaper (IGDA ARG SIG). I’m after approaches from all fields using all sorts of methodologies, and by researchers at different levels of candidacy and postdoctoral status. Since there are many investigations in development around the world I’m including unpublished insights and findings along with published ones.

Perplex City Video Competition Heats Up

May 31, 2006 / Jonathan Waite

Players of Perplex City have been hard at work this month on submissions for a video contest, and recently, submissions have made their way onto YouTube, a popular online video streaming service. As we told you earlier this month, the video contest is part of a campaign to promote the city which is central to the ongoing alternate reality game, entering its fourteenth month of continuous game play. While ARGN is definitely not in the business of film criticism, I personally viewed all 35 that were up for viewing and found a few that were funny, some that were extremely well-made, and one or two entries that were rather…. interesting. Here are my (completely unofficial) must-see picks:

Private Eye – The ARGN Editor’s Pick, if only for the included line “If she knew, she wasn’t telling me. She wasn’t telling anyone anymore.” Love it.
Hitchhikers Guide to Perplex City – A close second place. Very good use of GUI.
The Quest for The Cube mini-series – parts 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Proof positive that good things come in multiple episodes, and our third place pick, cumulatively. The ball in part four made me chuckle incessantly, but the freeze frame in part 5 did me in for good.