Tag: perplex city (Page 6 of 9)

ARGFest NYC 2005 Resurrected!

December 23, 2005 / Jonathan Waite

Just in time for the holiday season comes the online release of the ARGFest NYC 2005 DVD “How Do You Like Your Reality?”. Consisting of two torrent files (hosted by GreyLodge), the release was made possible by Dave Szulborski and Abacus Video Productions.

The files (available for download with your favorite .torrent program) include all of the presentations that took place at the Pennsylvania Hotel during the three day event, including:

* Perplex City by Mind Candy Ltd (with Michael Smith and Adrian Hon)
* The Art of the Heist by the PM team (with Mike Monello, Brian Cain, Brian Clark, Matt Fischvogt, Jim Gunshanan, Gabriel Georgeian, and Dave Szulborski)
* MetaCortechs by the PM team (with Steve Peters, Krystyn Wells, Brooke Thompson, and Sean Stacey)
* There is No Such Thing as an ARG (by special guest speaker Jane McGonigal)

There is a section which includes various pictures from ARG Fest NYC 2005, most of which were submitted by the attendees, as well as a “few special surprises!” So, if you missed the event, or simply want to reminisce, now is your chance to get your hands on these recordings.

By the way, in this writer’s humble opinion, what better way to introduce your friends and family to the wonderful world of ARG than by stuffing their stocking with a DVD copy of these presentations?

Mind Candy for the Game Summit

December 13, 2005 / Yulia Mostovoy

Travel back with me to the early days of November, when the air was crisp, the leaves were turning, and Adrian Hon (of Mind Candy and Perplex City fame) was giving a talk about ARGs at the Montreal International Game Summit. Bursting with optimistic joy, I set out early that morning, got hopelessly lost, wandered around in befuddlement for an hour, concluded that the address I was looking for didn’t actually exist, and eventually was directed to the right location, at which point the ARG gods decided that they’d mocked me enough for one day, because I arrived just in time to catch the beginning of Adrian’s presentation.

“Through the Rabbit Hole: The History and Potential of Alternate Reality Gaming”

Mind Candy Secures $3m Investment

December 7, 2005 / Guy Parsons

Mind Candy, the team behind ever-popular ARG Perplex City, has just received a $3m investment from Index Ventures, a VC firm that invests in web companies such as Skype and Ofoto. It’s the first instance of an ARG-centered company receiving such a large investment – while several firms receive commissions from companies to create ARG-style games for marketing or training purposes, Perplex City operates through its own standalone revenue stream generated from sales of its signature puzzle cards.

“We were immensely impressed by both the creativity of the Mind Candy team and the enthusiasm of the players, who are in turn creating a global gaming phenomenon,â€ explained Danny Rimer, a partner at Index.

Meanwhile the Managing Director of Mind Candy, Michael Smith, gave credit to the broad, mass-market appeal of the game. “We cater to both the casual player, who wants to solve a few puzzles with friends, and the avid fan who is absorbed with the wider Perplex City mystery. We are extremely excited about this partnership and see enormous potential to build a global brand around puzzles and puzzle-solving.”

Another waypoint on Alternate Reality Gaming’s march to the mainstream, perhaps, but for now expect even bigger things from the Puppetmaster team – those who’ve witnessed them give presentations on the matter might have an inkling of their ambitious plans for the future.

Perplex City Releases Second Wave Of Puzzle Cards

November 26, 2005 / Guy Parsons

Perplex City has released a second wave of 66 puzzle cards this week, doubling the number of available cards to 132. Contrary to earlier reports, the new cards will be mixed in with the existing ones, rather than packaged separately, but we’re told the new cards will be more plentiful. The original online retailer of the cards, Firebox, is celebrating by offering five packs for the price of four… but you’d better hurry, as the deal closes at midnight GMT (6PM CST) tomorrow tonight! (Sunday 27th November, that is.)

The collectible cards each feature a puzzle that can be tackled independently, and players can enter their solution on the Perplex City website, earning Perplex Points for a place on the leader board. Some cards have also been found to contain messages hidden using special inks – only time and sharp observation will reveal if the new batch of cards contain similarly obscured clues.

It has also been confirmed that there will be two further waves of cards, each comprising 62 cards, due for release in 2006. Snappy!

PXC Live Event: A Mole Amongst Thee

October 30, 2005 / Jonathan Waite

PXC Live 01 Last Saturday, Perplex City took to the streets in a real-world event that involved both a ground team and an online team. Starting with a trail on an in-game site, players had to coordinate efforts to track the Third Power and obtain a highly valuable keyword. However, after collecting all of the puzzles and meeting back at a central location, players discovered that there was a mole within their group. To top it all off, the mole made a daring escape via helicopter (yes, HELICOPTER) and players were left with what must have been one of the most exciting ARG experiences in their lives. Matthew Turnbull, an active participant on the ground team, gave us permission to reprint his account of the day’s events:

PXC Forums Come To Life, and a Scarlett Letter

August 15, 2005 / Jonathan Waite

A long-awaited addition to the Perplex City universe happened late last week when the site rolled out its in-game message forum area. Players have been busily discussing topics related to the puzzle cards that have been released so far, and new information has been added to the FAQ section.

As well, this past week included an email from in-game character Scarlett Kiteway to all players on her father’s (Sente Kiteway) mailing list. The email was chock full of information about the death of Pietro Salk, who had been a reporter at the Perplex City Sentinel. Players were able to get Scarlett’s take on the situation and were offered a spot on her mailing list.

As the PXC machine continues to chug along, you can catch updates at the Perplex City Updates blog as well as right here at ARGN.