Author: Michelle Senderhauf (Page 3 of 6)

Staff Writer
Michelle's first ARG love affair was with Majestic back in 2001. Just as she was about to discover the world of ARGs she was persuaded to play herself in another alternate reality that included a husband and a baby girl. Once she came to her senses, Michelle returned to play ABC's Push, Nevada. That's when she realized that she wasn't really all that good at solving puzzles, so she stuck around to learn a thing or two from the people playing Chasing the Wish and JMX.

Michelle has played or lurked through countless games since and even took a stab at being a Puppetmaster with Omnifam and Orbital Colony. She intends on keeping up with that trend by only becoming involved with ARGs that begin with the letter O. In her free time she likes to pretend that she's still a young, artsy college student by splattering paint and pencil shavings around the house.

Save Muggle Quidditch 2.0

October 10, 2008 / Michelle Senderhauf

Save Ludo logo A few weeks ago, Harry Potter fans started receiving riddle-ridden emails from a man named Ludo Bagman. Ludo, a former professional Quidditch player and current leader of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, has been forced into hiding and his new game, Muggle Quidditch 2.0 is in danger. It seems that goblins, possibly those behind Gringotts Wizarding Bank, are after Ludo for a “small financial miscommunication” and the Ministry has shut down Muggle Quidditch 2.0. Ludo thinks the two are connected and that wizards are influencing the goblins. To make things more complicated, controversy has recently surrounded Gringotts Wizarding Bank and the Ministry, as it seems the effects of the current U.S. economic crisis have reached the wizard world.

So what is Ludo’s Muggle Quidditch 2.0 and why is it so important? In the Harry Potter world, Quidditch is a sport played by witches and wizards at Hogwarts and other schools. Players ride broomsticks while trying to get several different types of balls into goals. Muggle Quidditch is a variation of the game played by Muggles (or humans) sans the magical balls and broomsticks. According to Ludo Bagman, Muggle Quidditch 2.0 is set to launch on October 15th. This new type of Quidditch is going to be an online version where wizards, witches, and Muggles can all play together. Someone (possibly goblins, wizards, or a mixture of the two) doesn’t want that to happen. So Ludo Bagman has gone into hiding and called upon supporters of the game to investigate what is happening. S.P.E.L.L. (or the Society for the Promotion of the Expeditious Liberation of Ludo) has formed and created a website to organize efforts on Ludo’s behalf.

Join in the discussion at Unfiction

UPDATE: Prototype161 vs. Mare Vitreum, Live in NYC

October 9, 2008 / Michelle Senderhauf

Attention New Yorkers! You’re going to have to tell the kiddies trick-or-treating is canceled this year. Something much more interesting is happening this Halloween in New York City. Prototype161 is planning a live scavenger hunt game on October 31st called Mare Vitreum.

Mare Vitreum is a dangerous doomsday cult that has been recruiting its members by sending out etched pieces of glass in the mail. In response, prototype161 wants agents to infiltrate the cult and foil its Hallow’s Eve plans in New York City.

If past events are any indication, this is something that is not to be missed. Last summer’s event had participants scouring the city looking for clues, solving puzzles and interacting with in-game characters. Some of the live interaction included being kidnapped by a van full of masked men and saving a tied-up damsel from inside a locked theatre.

The event starts at 7pm at a yet undisclosed location. Many of the previous events have run late into the night or even the next morning, so bring along some caffeinated gum and money for snacks. The registration fee is $40, although a 50% off coupon is available for the first two people to call the ARGNet voicemail (leave us your email address). So get yourself registered, bribe the kids to skip trick-or-treating (who needs all that cavity-causing candy anyway?) and get ready for a very ARGish Halloween!

Palmer and Gaiman and Folds, Oh My!

September 26, 2008 / Michelle Senderhauf

Editor’s note: Links within this article lead to web pages that contain images some may find unsuitable for all audiences — namely, some female nudity. Click the links at your discretion.

A possible alternate reality game to coincide with the release of Amanda Palmer’s new solo album, Who Killed Amanda Palmer? has recently popped up on ARG players’ collective radar. Palmer, of The Dresden Dolls, has recently “disappeared” and pictures have surfaced displaying her in several difficult (and somewhat gory) positions. The pictures were found by an artist blogger in what the she describes as a “rabbit hole”. While the blogger initially dismisses the photos as an art project, she quickly learns otherwise after being contacting by the organizer of an upcoming Amanda Palmer podcast tribute.

A few celebrities were involved in the making of the album, which should make for quite an interesting suspect list should this develop into a full-blown ARG. Palmer’s blog on the album’s website lays out the events which led up to the album’s completion and her subsequent disappearance. Much of this blog focuses on Palmer’s collaboration with Ben Folds, who was the co-producer of the album. Another familiar name on the possible suspect list is Neil Gaiman, who has written the text for the upcoming book, The Big Book of Who Killed Amanda Palmer. If you’re a fan of Amanda Palmer, Ben Folds or Neil Gaiman, you might want to keep an eye on this one.

The album and the book are available for purchase on the Who Killed Amanda Palmer website.

Eagle Eye Freefall: What Majestic Should Have Been

September 6, 2008 / Michelle Senderhauf

Eagle Eye Freefall

A new alternate reality game, Eagle Eye Freefall, has launched to promote the upcoming Steven Spielberg movie Eagle Eye. While the game lasts only ten minutes, it’s jam-packed with action and fun that will keep even the most jaded ARG player on the edge of their seat. Seriously. One can only hope that this is the first chapter of a much longer ARG.

The upcoming movie stars Shia LeBouf and Michelle Monaghan and is directed by D.J. Caruso with Steven Spielberg as executive producer. The movie follows two strangers, played by LeBouf and Monaghan, whose live are turned upside down by a mysterious woman phone caller. The woman controls their every move by threatening their lives if they disobey. In the Freefall ARG, you too will be controlled by this mystery woman, so beware!

Eagle Eye Freefall thread at unfiction
Eagle Eye Freefall website
Eagle Eye official movie website

Looking for Love in Dead Space

August 29, 2008 / Michelle Senderhauf

Deadspace logo

Bored? Looking for a new timewaster? Need a little more survival horror in your life? Look no further. The necromorphs are here for you and ready to entertain (and possibly award prizes!)

Deep Focus recently released No Known Survivors, an interactive narrative series set in the world of Electronic Arts’ upcoming survival horror game, Dead Space. The narrative series is one part of a extensive cross media marketing package which includes comic books, animated shorts, developer diaries, and a movie.

In the world of Dead Space, necromorphs have overrun the USG Ishimura, a deep space planetcracking ship, after a mysterious stone is discovered on the planet below. No one outside the ship knows there are necromorphs (parasitic zombie-like creatures) running around killing the Ishimura crew, so a shuttle is sent to investigate why the ship’s communication systems are down (of course!).

No Known Survivors, however, has subject matter which is a bit lighter. Griggs, a technician in the Organ Replacement Lab, spends his days replacing the organs of the crew and residents of the Ishimura. He isn’t worried about necromorphs (yet), but is more concerned with how to impress a seven-fingered girl named Jane.

No Known Survivors, still in its first chapter, plays out much like an old school PC adventure game with point and click navigation and puzzles to discover and solve. As players advance through the game and solve puzzles, they will be awarded points and a spot on the leaderboard. The top 100 players on the board at the end of the narrative will receive a copy of the Dead Space video game. The first puzzle, a severed finger code, is still unsolved, so it’s not too late to join in!

For those who like to peek behind the curtain, a few familiar names are attached to the project. Dave Szulborski helped out early in the production of the game, while Nick Braccia and Dee “Addlepated” Cook are both on the current development team.

Unfiction Thread

Update: Folding the Wish

May 15, 2008 / Michelle Senderhauf

cranes Last month, I asked for your help in making one thousand wish-filled cranes to send to Dave Szulborski for the Folding the Wish project. I’m delighted to say that the ARG community faced the challenge head on. In a little over two weeks time, more than one thousand cranes were made and shipped to me from at least seven different countries.

The cranes varied from the most delicate and tiny (no larger than a quarter) to the most extravagant made with handmade paper. Some even included a puzzle or two!

The cranes were carefully strung together and sent on their way last week, arriving on Dave’s doorstep one day before he was discharged from the hospital.

Thanks to everyone who helped on this very special project. For pictures and a message from Dave, visit his website – www.daveszulborski.com/folding.html.