unforum

[terminalskeptik]

Bringing people to your ARG.

[Nightmare Tony]

A proper game begins with an AIM conversation with hkdl.

[Phaedra]

[Saevitia]

I knwo it was pretty unoriginal, but I just posted a link to the trailhead on the forum.

It's hard to think of anything that really fits with the game! I think that's one of the major obstacles of starting oen.

Wouldn't it be neat to have enough time and pacients to create an arg site and just let it sit there until someone actually just randomly found it?

[terminalskeptik]

[Saevitia]

[QBKooky]

I think the hardest part is making it appeal to people who AREN't regular ARG players. I mean, if one of us (on unfiction) saw something strange or recieved a strange email, of course we're gonna post it. I think the deal-breaker is making it

(1) real enough to be believable
(2) strange or "off" enough to be noticeable

Also I think word of mouth is important for getting people into your game, but I also would like to see games whose rabbit holes aren't a one-time thing, and if you miss it, you're out. For example, if your launching rabbit hole is posters all along a certain street, the posters should keep appearing (and maybe even changing) to continue to draw people in, because if you try to barrel full-speed ahead with only the players you get from your first dip into the pool of potential players, it'll be much more difficult.

Another way to bring people to your ARG is, once you have some people interested, give them something tough enough to make them ask for help, but not so tough that they give up. (hence the "OMGWTFBBQ I'M A XENOBOTANIST!" that Sean mentioned in post-ILB chat)

[terminalskeptik]

Personally, I think that bringing in non-gamers is the holy grail of bringing in players. What I mean by that is, not just getting the interest of ARGers or other gamers. The Beast really tried by throwing the rabbit hole out to everyone in TV spots. And you can see how many people responded to that.
It would be easy to put up some posters on a street corner in NY or London and wait for the curious to show up, but how do you appeal to 'average citizens'.
The great thing about ARGs is that almost everyone enjoys solving puzzles and great stories. How many people get Readers Digest and love to do a crossword puzzle? Now, how do you convince those people to play an ARG, which at its core is the combination of both of the latter? I want to see a 65 year old grandmother and a 14 year old kid playing the same game. How to accomplish that is the goal.

[konamouse]

[weephun]

Are you looking for free ways? Or is there some $ involved?

Makes a world of difference.

EX: Reader's digest

Free: write tons of letters praying and hoping that one might someday get published and somebody will actually notice it.

$: Take out an ad in Reader's digest.

... sometimes you get what you pay for.

[terminalskeptik]

I was speaking metaphorically. What I was trying to say is that there are millions of people who enjoy solving puzzles, be it a crossword or a deeper crypto. And there are millions of people who enjoy reading good fiction. So, how do we combine the two? How do you go about bringing in people from both sides to take part in your ARG? Is there a method or combination of methods to spread the word and engage people of all different backgrounds to this new medium? I.E. the ads placed for PXC. But, for those of us who do not have sponsors and lots of cash, what kinds of grassroots methods do you think will work?

[weephun]

So the answer to my question is "free" then.

Then again ... sometimes you get what you pay for.

[oliverkeers13]

Personally, I like the idea of sending tangeable objects to respected members of the ARG community, ARGN etc. They will probably post something about it, giving people a chance to find the trailhead. No forum posts. No HKDL.
Everyone's a winner.

[zeldafan8626]

shhh... keep quite about that << >>

[oliverkeers13]