unforum

[krystyn]

Hee hee. Man, a bunch of us should all get together and play Euchre, just like old times.

[imbri]

And the motive behind this thread become a little more clear

(and yes! we should get together and play euchre.)

Ok, there were a bunch of questions in #uf and so I'm going to try and address them here...

<rose> is this META?

Hmmm... it is me afterall Basically, I'm writing a piece of fiction that is about people that played an ARG. In order to do that in the way that I want to do it, I need to have a guide/trail/wiki set up for that ARG and thought that it would be really cool if that ARG could poke fun at and remember some of our favorite & not-so-favorite ARG moments.


<RobMagus> Is it safe to assume that some of the audience will have had experience with web-based puzzles before?

That's not safe to assume. In fact, I would assume the opposite. The audience, at this point, are professors and fellow students. It might and, hopefully will, go further than that. However, because of the way that the puzzles you all create will be used, that shouldn't be a problem. As I'm recreating the ARG experience, including a trail/guide, the solutions will be readily available. However, I'm going to set it up in such a way that spoilers won't be instantly available. That way you guys can admire each other's work by playing through the the puzzles & figuring out which games they came from.



<Rowan> imbri: do you want to be able to customize the answers - or the information the puzzle provides?

Yes, it would be nice if I could do that. If it's not possible, I won't cry. If you have an idea of something and it could go in several possible directions... ask me and we might be able to figure out which would be best. I'm still somewhat flexible in what I can do though that might change as the week goes on.


<RobMagus> Are there some specific solutions or pages you want in there?

I haven't gotten that far yet though that may change as the week moves on. If you want to work with some specific solution, ask me and I can get you one. Also, I'll try to keep updates happening on that page and might include some specific solution needs that you can use.

<RobMagus> So do you want homage puzzles, or puzzles using the same.. uh.. "puzzle style" as ones that have gone before? or something else?

Both, really. I'm hoping that you all will be able to 'play' the fictional ARG by following along on the guide/trail. You can read the story and work through some of the puzzles.

<darkphan> The puzzle must not contain any references to current or future games and/or characters… <-- kinda tricky, given that there have been a few args that have had, or are having sequels...

That it is. However, if you want to make a puzzle based on a puzzle in a current game, just make sure that it's distinct enough to stand on its own. The point of that rule was to avoid any sort of confusion between the 'fake arg' and a game that is in play. I'd hate for people to become confused, start chasing what they think would be a lead to the solution, only to find themselves in the midst of an ARG. This is designed to be a short story not a live ARG and certainly not an ARG that would inadvertainly invade another ARG or someone's life. If you want to use a puzzle from a current game or that has/will have a sequel, just make sure that the puzzle you make follows the format of the original puzzle and not the content.

<not asked yet, but waiting for it>Are we just doing your school work for you?
Not really, but you are helping out a great deal. The real school work is the short story about the people playing the ARG. You guys are just making some puzzles in that ARG. Condisder yourselves fake-arg PMs Afterall, I could have just had revolved the story around people that played the Beast or Metacortechs or Chasing the Wish or any other game. How could I choose just one of those games? And what fun would you all have had with it?

Feel free to ask more questions. I'll do my best to answer.

Thanks for all your help and, again, I cannot wait to see what all you come up with.

- b[/b]