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 Forum index » Meta » Puppetmaster Help
What makes an "ARG" "Entertaining"?
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BubbleBoy
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Joined: 16 Jul 2007
Posts: 271
Location: United States

What makes an "ARG" "Entertaining"?
Your input is needed

...or is this a question that has so many variables that it can not possibly be answered?

Maybe the question that I should be asking, and the one that I will now forward onto all of you to answer, is "What makes an "ARG" entertaining for you?"

PostPosted: Tue Oct 16, 2007 10:03 pm
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Rekidk
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Joined: 19 Dec 2006
Posts: 992
Location: Indiana, USA

It's a personal preference.

Me? I like a good story, lovable characters, puzzles that involve collaboration, innovation, steady updates (eg. no unannounced massive events that make everyone who spent a day offline play catch-up for hours), and most importantly: non-implosion.

You could ask 100 different ARGers this question, though, and you'd get 100 different answers. Design what you think would be entertaining, and your game will find an audience.
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 5:55 pm
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konamouse
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Joined: 02 Dec 2002
Posts: 8010
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Re: What makes an "ARG" "Entertaining"?
Your input is needed

BubbleBoy wrote:
...or is this a question that has so many variables that it can not possibly be answered?

Maybe the question that I should be asking, and the one that I will now forward onto all of you to answer, is "What makes an "ARG" entertaining for you?"


STORY
Characters (believeable, living-breathing souls, consistent in their responses and personalities)
Mystery or Suspense or Action (i.e. story again)
Some things to solve to get to the next section or contact someone or save something. Make us work a little bit (i.e. don't just hand us the information on a silver platter).
Community - we're working together, not in competition.
Sense of accomplishment - a goal we're working towards.
We have affect on the story/characters. We touch their lives. We're real as much as they are real.
Surprises - keeps us on our feet so we don't get bored.
Continuity - when it's not there, my disbelief is ruined and then everything else seems 'stupid'.
Humor - even in dire situations, there is always something funny that can happen - run with it.
Shiny things - make it look good, make it look appropriate (i.e. a 6 yo girl isn't going to have her own website, a big corporation isn't going to use blogspot, and a computer hacker isn't going to have crappy code on his site, etc).

That's just off the top of my head.
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 6:00 pm
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vpisteve
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Joined: 30 Sep 2002
Posts: 2441
Location: 1987

Dancing Robots.

And S@m.
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 8:06 pm
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Shutaro
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Joined: 11 Feb 2007
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Location: Northren California

vpisteve wrote:
Dancing Robots.


I prefer breakdancing Robots.
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 8:38 pm
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catherwood
I Have 100 Cats and Smell of Wee

Joined: 25 Sep 2002
Posts: 4109
Location: Silicon Valley, CA

Re: What makes an "ARG" "Entertaining"?
Your input is needed

BubbleBoy wrote:
...or is this a question that has so many variables that it can not possibly be answered?

It's a bit like asking, "What makes a movie entertaining?" With the ever-evolving definition of "ARG", it's easier to think of it as a category of entertainment. What makes a book entertaining? There are so many different kinds of movies and books, and there are many different kinds of ARGs. Some people like short stories, others enjoy epic novels; some people like art house indy flicks, others hold out for the summer blockbuster Hollywood extravaganza. So one variable in your question is the structure, the format, nevermind the content which is yet another variable.

PostPosted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 9:47 pm
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Mikeyj
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Joined: 18 Oct 2004
Posts: 1847
Location: London

I like clicks. Where suddenly you realise "so that's how it works!" or "wow, who'd have thought it?" or "oh my God I thought it was just an e-mail conversation, but bits of it are pasted on the postbox at the end of my road". I also like humour. Po-faced kidnappings should be broken up with a comedy double-act (think Nicely-nicely and Benny, or the Chuckle Brothers). Has there been a satirical ARG yet?
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 18, 2007 4:26 am
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konamouse
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Joined: 02 Dec 2002
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Mikeyj wrote:
Has there been a satirical ARG yet?


"MeiGeist" poked fun at ARGs from the past. And "Seen Steve" was all about humor.
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PostPosted: Thu Oct 18, 2007 10:49 am
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Schrijvertje
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Joined: 14 May 2007
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When once in a while you can't help but wonder, "Hey, maybe this IS real after all ..."

PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 5:08 am
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Shutaro
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Joined: 11 Feb 2007
Posts: 171
Location: Northren California

Schrijvertje wrote:
When once in a while you can't help but wonder, "Hey, maybe this IS real after all ..."


I'll second this. I definitely tend toward games that are more... Immersive. It's not that it has to be uber-realistic, or anything like that... But nothing's better than a scary ARG that has you looking over your shoulder as you walk out to your car late in the evening.

I likes my ARGs like I likes my movies... Those Japanese horror films with the very involved and/or spooky storylines that have all sorts of twists and turns that pull you in and finally whack you over the head with a WTF ending (ghost/monster is about to pounce on protagonist -> inexplicable time-travel -> monster/hero have love scene -> star-wipe -> "stomp"-style musical number -> fade to black; all must happen in the last 5 minutes of the movie). Chakushin ari is a good example of this.
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PostPosted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 10:57 am
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promethean
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Joined: 17 Feb 2006
Posts: 8
Location: glasgow, uk

Yeah, it's a lot like asking someone 'what makes good TV', so think of it like any fiction, basically anything that's good for the goose is good for the gander.

Some unique points though:

It has to be pretty if you want me to watch a monitor for hours at an end.

Plotwise, it doesn't need to be labyrinthine and metaphorical like Lost or Heroes, in fact personally I don't like those at all. You miss one email or puzzle and *thwumph* you're confused. I like an ARG where you can miss an episode or two and still be on board.

Interactivity has been done by the older and wiser people above me, but it's worth saying again: It's what makes an ARG different, so it has to be there. Chats, emails, blogs, RL events, everything is good and recommended in my eyes. I like an ARG to resemble a hole where the deeper you go, the wider it gets. Of course it has a bottom, but gazing down from the brim I want to think "what if it doesn't?".

PostPosted: Wed Oct 31, 2007 10:19 am
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surfzoned
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Joined: 30 Jun 2007
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Fun

I'm seconding Konamouse on his list. I think he hit all the main points.. Add a dash of chaos and some personal flavor and you have a hit ARG.

PostPosted: Wed Oct 31, 2007 11:08 pm
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konamouse
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Joined: 02 Dec 2002
Posts: 8010
Location: My own alternate reality

Re: Fun

surfzoned wrote:
I'm seconding Konamouse on his list. I think he hit all the main points.. Add a dash of chaos and some personal flavor and you have a hit ARG.


Guess you haven't been here very long. Or haven't listened to the ARGNetcasts.....

<---- is a "she". Wink
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 31, 2007 11:33 pm
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Jas0n
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Joined: 19 Aug 2006
Posts: 244

Re: Fun

konamouse wrote:

Guess you haven't been here very long. Or haven't listened to the ARGNetcasts.....

<---- is a "she". Wink


REALLY!??! Oh em Gee ... Wink

btw - thanks for the thread to the OP - some things here worthy for PMs to strongly consider while developing a game
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PostPosted: Sun Nov 11, 2007 12:19 pm
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