One of the by-products of Alternate Reality Games is the communities that they create and foster, and the sometimes longlasting friendships that can result. Consequently, ARG fans have been busy recently setting up various player meets in the upcoming months. Witness another ARG-Fest-O-Con and now a Hivemeet that are being planned as a way for online players to get together to party and re-live some of the games’ fun in real life.
Following on the heels of successful ARG-Fests in Las Vegas, Orlando and Vancouver BC, players are currently organizing ARGFest NYC, which will take place on July 22-24, 2005 in New York City, and have created a wiki to help coordinate events, accomodations, etc. Discussion of plans and ideas for ARGFest NYC can be found in this thread on unfiction.
For those of you who gave your lives to chasing down Axons a few months back, some midwest Beekeepers are currently planning the first ever Ilovebees Hivemeet in Chicago on May 13-15, 2005. The website they’ve created will help organize events, accommodations and travel plans. In addition, folks are discussing Hivemeet Chicago plans in this unfiction thread.
These meets are player sponsored and organized, so keep in mind that there are no “official” events planned, although if history is any indication, you can expect some realworld ARG-ish fun to drop in on you in one form or another. Watch the respective websites for updated news and information on these events.