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Natalie Ross needs your puzzle solving skills!

December 21, 2008 / John Fogg

G’day Mate! Australia is hosting an international ambassadorial meeting and Natalie Ross has asked folks over at Unfiction if they could help out with the event.Â Actually she is just trying to figure out the table arrangements, but it’s still a once in a lifetime opportunity to hone your diplomatic skills!

Meanwhile, coded messages from crack cryptographer Martin Bryce has alerted Ms. Ross that security for the event is in doubt, and an anonymous letter warns that the safety of the conference has been compromised. Together, Natalie and Martin are hard at work down under trying to protect the diplomats while they’re in Sydney, but things are getting out of hand and they need the problem solving skills of all you ARG’ers out there to get to the bottom of this!

Help avoid a devastating international incident by jumping onto the trailhead at ambassadorconferenceinfo.blogspot.com. An Unfiction forums thread has been created to help sort data as well.

Help! We need somebody(s)!

December 14, 2008 / Jonathan Waite

Holy smokes, it’s almost 2009! It’s been another great year for us here at ARGNet and I owe it all to the wonderful volunteers that research, write, edit and publish articles for this site. Without them, ARGNet would be a tumbleweed blowing in the breeze, so my hat is off to all of those that contribute here.

Of course, we’re always looking for writers and contributors to this site, and we haven’t made an open call for writers in quite a while, so here is a repost from February of 2007:

If you are someone who is dependable, honest, and willing to write an article for ARGNet once a month, we’re looking for you. The submission guidelines are as follows:

1. Write a 100-150 word blurb-style article on any currently running game. For recent examples, see ARGNet Owner/Editor to appear on Irish talk radio morning show and Update: Ghosts of a Chance Live Event.

2. Write a 400-500 word feature article about any of these topics: 1) a game, current or historical; 2) an interesting story or aspect of the ARG community; 3) a topic of interest to the ARGNet readership; 4) being a puppetmaster or behind-the-scenes game creator.

Submissions need to be sent in to [email protected] by 11:59 pm (CST, GMT -6) by this Friday, December 19th, 2008. Naturally, spelling and grammar count, and a submission does not guarantee an invite to join the ARGNet staff.

We’re also interested in identifying key members of the community who would be willing and able to act as researchers and stringers for currently running ARGs. If you’re an avid player and have time to provide ARGNet staff members with highlight reels of games, but not enough time to dedicate to writing entire articles, we still want you! Send an email to [email protected] and we’ll add you to our growing list of community researchers.

One final bit of volunteer goodness: We will be moving ARGNet from Movable Type to a WordPress installation by Q1 2009 and require beta testers for the new site. These testers would be invited to tag articles and assign proper categories for articles that already exist, as well as adjusting HTML code for images. Some technical knowledge is a bonus, but the process is fairly easy once we get you started. If you’d be interested in this endeavor, you can send your name to the [email protected] email address as well.

Alma’s Back? Armacham Corporate Website Goes Viral

December 1, 2008 / Brandie Minchew

Something wicked is stirring at Armacham Technology Corporation, a well-known organization from Monolith Productions’ survival horror title, F.E.A.R. With just a few months until the release of F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin in February, it appears that a viral campaign is being launched to promote the new title. For the past two weeks, Armacham Corporate has been experiencing website malfunctions that allow visitors to take a peek into the inner workings and upcoming activities of the company.

The Armacham site appears to be a perfectly normal website showcasing its new line of sub machine guns, and also a new item regarding “Level II Recruitment”. Clicking on any part of the page causes the screen to dissolve in a flood of critical errors. (During the distortions, sharp eyes may notice the distortion of the error link from http://www.armacham.com to http://www.almasback.com, a currently unregistered domain. Watch the link on the 404 page very closely, just before the distortion begins.) Next, what appears to be an auto-login sends site visitors into the account of Dr. Richard Findes, a biomechanical specialist at Armacham who has expressed concerns over ethics breaches occurring within the company.

A camera feed embedded in the site interface shows disturbing footage from inside Armacham. Dr. Findes apparently has good cause to worry over something going badly wrong within the corporation.

Although it seems that the hapless Dr. Findes has been locked out of many of his account permissions (many of the links result in “Access Denied” errors), his email is still accessible, revealing communications from W. Reid, K. VonScriptor, J. Karsberg, and W. Wallace, some with attachments that may contain vital clues. Findes has apparently missed a lunch meeting with Reid. Is he missing or on the run?

The corporate calendar indicates that Armacham has initiated a recruiting program centered around “virtual evaluation and testing of potential candidates via gaming community”. Armacham recruiters were spotted testing attendees at Wizard World Dallas on November 7-9 and at Atlanta Supercon on November 21 and 22 in Atlanta, Georgia. The next marked calendar date is December 3, for meetings and tours located in Orlando and Tampa, Florida to sites including Walt Disney World, Sea World, Andrews Air Force Base, and CentCom.

Someone is keeping an eye on Armacham’s recruiting movements and warning others not to participate in their tests and so-called FEAR Labs. A letter accompanying a briefcase sent to Geeks of Doom instructed the receiver NOT to participate in FEAR Labs under any circumstances and to watch projectorigincommunity.com for the combination to open the briefcase. The handwritten letter was signed “R” – for “Richard”, perhaps? Kotaku also received a letter that contained a key and directions to a storage unit where another briefcase was found. Kotaku’s letter included a DVD, the contents of which are posted in the above-linked entry. Phillip DeFranco of PhillyD TV was also mystified at receiving the spooky briefcase and videoed its retrieval from the storage unit. Everyone who received a briefcase is on a “list” at Armacham, according to the mysterious Mr. R, who wants to make sure word gets out about these suspicious Armacham tests. Mr. R will log in to the Project Origin community site as “Case Man” on December 5th.

Join in the Unfiction discussion here. If you’re approached by anyone wearing the Armacham logo, proceed with caution.

Scholastic set to Shock its readers

November 19, 2008 / Geoff May

Hot on the heels of the launch of the novel series The 39 Clues and its significant online experience aimed at young readers, Scholastic is working together with author M.G. Harris to create an extended experience for the second book in her series “The Joshua Files”, named ICE SHOCK.

“The Joshua Files” is a book series aimed at young readers 10+ years of age, much like 39 Clues. Harris’ first book, Invisible City, was released Feb 4, 2008 in the UK as the first book of this series. Harris drops hints about the upcoming novel and ARG in her website’s blog for her fans – she even asks if they’d rather hear more about Ice Shock‘s upcoming plot, or rumours about the alternate reality game. Harris and Scholastic plan to launch the ARG in March of 2009, and until then, she’ll be keeping her fans occupied and interested with teasers and contests.

At the time of this writing, Harris is running a contest for a bound proof of Ice Shock – using a code key, readers are challenged to find a hidden word in the content of Invisible City. Submit the word and register, and you may win. The contest, however, is only open to residents of the UK and Ireland.

Information about the ARG at this point is fairly hush-hush, but we know it’s coming. Stay tuned to her website for details if/when they’re released.

Invisible City: An ancient civilization is awakening. An ancient Maya prophecy is unfolding. One boy – Joshua – holds the key. When his archaeologist father goes missing in Mexico, Josh suspects alien abduction. But when he realises his dad was murdered, Josh is caught in a race to find the legendary ‘Ix Codex’ – a lost Mayan prophecy which predicts the end of the world.

Ice Shock: Josh is even more certain now that his father’s death was no accident – and he’s starting to wonder if he can really trust his closest allies. When he learns of a secret buried within the Ix Codex, he must journey back to the secret Mexican city of Ek Naab. Shocking news awaits him about the mysterious Bracelet of Itzamna. Did Josh’s dad really take it? And where is it now? Josh has no idea what’s waiting for him…

The ARG (source: mgharris.net): Readers, I have been SO busy with stuff (…) most of all working on the Alternate Reality Game we’re developing to co-launch with ICE SHOCK. That’s right, I said Alternate Reality Game – ARG! Conceptually, our game is a cross between Lonelygirl15 and The Beast. But! It’s a secret. So don’t tell, okay?

The secret’s out!

For more information about Harris and The Joshua Files, bookmark MGHarris.net, TheJoshuaFiles.com, or the fan community hub TheMGHarris.com. Keep a watch on this site as we get closer to the launch of Ice Shock and its ARG in March of 2009.

Putting a Halt to a Vast International Conspiracy

November 17, 2008 / Marie Lamb

It’s not every day I get sent blood money, but today’s FedEx delivery contained that and a whole lot more. Included in the packet marked “evidence” was a USB drive with files of bank transfers and a recorded message, along with a map to “evidence drops” and some photos (pictures after the break). The evidence comes from an informant in Berlin, where it was recovered.

It all points to stoptheinternational.com, which is a promo site for the new movie The International starring Clive Owen. Owen is Chief Inspector Louis Salinger, tasked with tracking down evidence against The International Bank of Business and Credit, a large bank which appears to be a front for money laundering and other illegal shenanigans.

Entering the serial number for the $2 bill in the packet shows a trail that leads to guns in Africa, then shows the bill’s current location. Urp. It’s a nice touch even if it’s easy to explain. Exploring further reveals another site, www.theibbc.com, for the bank being investigated. Beyond some boring photos and a hard to read typeface, there doesn’t seem to be much there.

However, stoptheinternational.com promises some continuing interaction via weekly updates and live events. The informant who hid the recovered packet of info has secreted other stashes in New York, Los Angeles, London and Berlin. Inspector Salinger is recruiting agents to help him find these stashes and analyze their contents. The first event is November 19th in Los Angeles. Check out the “Find the Evidence” link for the map, complete with countdown clock!

We’ll hope for field reports from the LA agents after the event. In the meantime, enjoy the copious documentation provided on the IBBC and its activities.

PICNIC ’08, part six: From Crowdsourcing to Collaborative Creation

November 16, 2008 / DaniÃ«l van Gool

Editor’s Note: DaniÃ«l van Gool, an administrator at the Unfiction forums, was on the scene at PICNIC ’08 on behalf of ARGNet. We were impressed with DaniÃ«l’s work covering PICNIC ’07 and, as media partners of the annual cross-media festival, were invited to a number of special events in addition to the speaker sessions. This is the sixth and final part of DaniÃ«l’s comprehensive look at this year’s event in which he outlines the highlights of day three of PICNIC ’08. All pictures are courtesy of DaniÃ«l as well.

I arrived at PICNIC early on Friday the 26th. When I arrived, the main conference hall was mostly empty, but it was filled with the ambient noises one would expect at a picnic — crickets, a flowing creek, and the occasional buzzing fly. This is why I love PICNIC so much! The smell of fresh coffee slowly filled the building, even though PICNIC’s Espresso Factory was closed for the morning, and life was good.

The focus of day 3 of PICNIC ’08 was on the collaboration within the creative industry, which mean that there would be a ton of showcases by different entrepreneurs that are developing several innovative concepts that provide means for creativity and/or collaboration. Before this ‘parade’ of mostly very ingenious commercial concepts, Matt Costello gave a speech presenting his thoughts and ideas on creativity in games in a highly entertaining form. Costello is mostly known as a games-designer, having worked on The 7th Guest and Doom 3, and on several novels and games for TV (PBS, BCC, the SciFi channel). He introduced himself as somewhat of a cross media schizophrenic.

He started out by talking for a bit about the concept of Story, by telling a tale about a personal encounter with a shark that he had while diving. He then read a passage from a novel he co-wrote that used that personal experience to base the storyline upon and engaged the audience in a conversation about the differences.

He stated that the audience often knows something that the protagonist in a story doesn’t know, a point he illustrated by bringing two members of the audience on stage. His point was that a good story creates the illusion that something is going to happen, but then causes something else to happen, making the audience the surprised party instead of the protagonist. The unexpected and the unknown are two important factors in storytelling, interactivity and games.

Costello went on to demonstrate a lot of his other points by having members of the audience perform several tasks. Again, it is very hard to convey his points by merely describing what happened. During his address, I was chatting with people on IRC following along through PICNIC’s live feed, and I said the following:

<Gisk> yeah, Matt Costello is a fun guy
<Gisk> very good points he made about storytelling and gameplay
<Gisk> unfortunately, almost impossible to write up… you need to see his interaction with the audience and the creation of illusion to convey what he was talking about
<Gisk> which is exactly his point
<Gisk> so, figures 🙂

I guess this is the best summary I can give, so I’m afraid it’ll have to do.