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 Forum index » Archive » Archive: Urban Hunt » Urban Hunt: Interaction
[EMAIL] Blurred World 9/29
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Pixiestix
Resident Angry Midget


Joined: 26 Aug 2004
Posts: 2465
Location: Tomorrow's Talk Studios

 		[EMAIL] Blurred World 9/29
We weren't sure if blurred world was ingame or not, but he linked to ingame sites as if they were real, SOOOOO... for now, i'm certainly treating it ingame. I sent the following email last night, and got the following reply today. It's be cool if i get quoted, let's hope he doesn't make fun of me too much {i;m sensitive, heh}

Quote:

Consider life a painting.
Sometimes, you need it to be a little blurry to see the real picture.

T.R.



Quote:

T.R.

Thank you so much. Your little analogy just made my day - I may even quote you on my site.

- Dakota

--
"Be careful what you wish for - you might get it"

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PostPosted: Wed Sep 29, 2004 2:12 pm
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Flidget Jerome
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Joined: 26 Aug 2004
Posts: 308

 		This is what I got. I wonder if his talk about MMORGs should lead to us asking him about ARGs. By the way, the webmaster's full name seems to be 'Dakota Callahan', acording to my mailbox.

Is it possible this could be a fansite? The Second Life site he mentions seems pretty well established and not ingame, but he talks about it a lot.

Blurred World wrote:
Flidget Jerome,

Thanks for your comments - I always appreciate people finding my site. I hope it raised as many questions for you as it provided answers. If the "40Hz guy" you're refering to is at fortyhertz.com, I've heard from him too. It's not his data that I fault, it's his conclusions about spirituality and mind control that are suspect.

Like you, I have a lot of friends around the world, many of whom I've never met face-to-face. Does that make them any less my friends? I don't think so. Actually, it's weird when I have met some of them - my mental picture rarely coincides with reality. And it was that aspect of my online relationships that started me thinking about the blurring between to online world and the "real" world.

The other issue came as a result of my involvement in MMORPG - I started playing EQ a few years ago, got tired of it, switched to TSO, got tired of it, now I play SL. Second Life is different, because there are no goals - no levels to achieve. It's completely open ended, which it really different from the other games I've played online. And because you have no
goals, you start to interact more and more with the other players. And the SL technology has reached the point that they look like real people, move like real people, and interact like real people. So the blurring continues, at least in my mind.

Anyway, I'm glad you liked the site. I really do consider it a personal journey that I wanted to share with the world.

- Dakota

"Be careful what you wish for - you might get it"


Flidge wrote:
Hi,

I got the link to your site today (ironically one of the 40hz guys came
whining to the message board I hang out at about how he wasn't the crackpot, you were). I was really impressed. Creeped out, but impressed.

Your line of thinking and your arguments are really strong. I'm curious
to know, though, why you consider 'cyber life' not to be part of real life.
I myself have moved around the world a lot in my life, and my friends have similar lives. In the past two years I've been regulary IMing people in
Japan, the US and Australia. These are people who I know in the flesh. Why does communicating over the internet make our friendship any less real than writing each other letters?

On the other hand, I do understand the sensation of blurring, especially
when I'm chatting with people I never met (like that one guy I'm pretty
sure was a pedophile trying to groom my best friend. .but that's another
story).

Anyway, it's a great website. And it has an important message. I hope
more people get to read it.

Flidget Jerome


PostPosted: Wed Sep 29, 2004 3:27 pm
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Varin
I Have No Life


Joined: 02 Dec 2002
Posts: 2456
Location: South of where I used to be

 		I had sent an email talking a bit about MMORPG and pointed out that there was an incorrect link on the page. I got this this morning...


Quote:
Varin,

Thanks for catching that broken link. Just proves that I shouldn't update the site when I'm half asleep, and end up pasting before I cut. I've updated that page now with the correct link for TSO.

I tried SW:Galaxies once, but it wasn't my kind of game. You're right, though - it is the community and the interaction between players that creates and maintains the blurring. Another visitor to the site wrote to me about something called Alternate Reality Games, or ARG's. These appear to be games played out on the internet through websites and emails. Looks interesting, and maybe I'll check it out sometime. I don't know if they'll have the same level of immersion, though.

- Dakota Callahan

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"I still miss him to this day and probably always will." - Todd Keeler, Chasing the Wish

"meta meta meta, I made you out of play..." ~ j5

PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2004 4:27 pm
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The Watcher
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Joined: 29 Jul 2004
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Quote:
Another visitor to the site wrote to me about something called Alternate Reality Games, or ARG's. These appear to be games played out on the internet through websites and emails. Looks interesting, and maybe I'll check it out sometime. I don't know if they'll have the same level of immersion, though.


Boy is he in for a surprise when he finds out about the immersion.

PostPosted: Thu Sep 30, 2004 5:35 pm
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Varin
I Have No Life


Joined: 02 Dec 2002
Posts: 2456
Location: South of where I used to be

 		So I replied to him with this...

Quote:
Strange that you should mention ARGs, since I've actually played a few
myself! You should try one sometime! I really think you'd be
interested in how they blur the lines between reality and fiction. A
movie that's often pointed to as an example (although an extreme one)
is The Game with Michael Douglas.

The immersion is pretty deep because the game actually becomes a part
of your life. You might receive emails or phone calls or even meet
one of the characters in person! You don't start up the game on your
computer and then click on exit when your done. The game is
constantly running in real time. There's usually a group of people
playing together who work as a collective throughout the game.

There are some interesting questions posed by this sort of game. Who
knows how someone who is a little "off" could handle this sort of
thing? Would they or could they start to believe that the game is
real? And what should be the limit as to what an ARG can do? Should
characters come to your house? Should the enemy in the game wake you
up in the middle of the night by banging on the window? Will people
one day choose to turn their life over to an ARG completely in order
to live a more adventureous life?

Smile

Varin


and got this response today...

Quote:
Varin,

I took the time to do a little research into ARG's, and I was impressed.
I found several websites, including yours, I believe, devoted to the
subject. While I honestly can't say that I've read all the material, the
genre is intriguing, and may become the subject of Blurred World site
update when I get the chance. I did remember that there was some sort of
game tied to the release of the movie "A.I.", but I had no idea that
"The Beast" was quite so massive and convoluted. And I do remember the
movie "The Game" scared the hell out of me!

It would appear at first glance that the kind of immersion the an ARG
provides is very similar to the blurring that I experience switching
between my online persona and my real world persona. The question of
"in-game" or not mirrors closely my concept of blurring, and I'm
interested in just how immersive that can get. Hopefully I'll have the
time to get involved in one in the future.

You do raise an interesting question about how someone might get too
involved, to the point of thinking that the "game" is real. Again, this
mirrors my own experience with players who become addicted to online
games (they call it "EverCrack" for a reason). There are some
fascinating parallels to my own research and experience, and it's
definitely something I wish to pursue.

Thanks for giving me more fodder for my ever widening personal quest.

- Dakota



I need an emoticon that shows my brain exploding after this interaction. We're sure this is in-game, right?
_________________
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"meta meta meta, I made you out of play..." ~ j5

PostPosted: Fri Oct 01, 2004 11:50 pm
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Flidget Jerome
Unfettered


Joined: 26 Aug 2004
Posts: 308
Varin wrote:
I need an emoticon that shows my brain exploding after this interaction. We're sure this is in-game, right?


Meta, but maybe it's sorta semi-game. I'd predict we'll never get a puzzle out of this site, its job is to mess with us and help set the psychological tone a little better. It makes it all a little more creepy if you keep second guessing yourself on the 'what ifs'.

. . . . Or possibly Urban Hunt's going to turn out to be this big promo for Second Life. Either or.

PostPosted: Sat Oct 02, 2004 12:32 am
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The Watcher
Unfettered


Joined: 29 Jul 2004
Posts: 493

 		Yeah, it's in game.

Remember on Rons site where there this whole big section about how he's facinated with ARG's? Even more so than blurred guy.

Is blurred guy Ron?

PostPosted: Sat Oct 02, 2004 2:43 pm
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Ratteler50
Boot


Joined: 26 Aug 2004
Posts: 13
The Watcher wrote:
Yeah, it's in game.

Remember on Rons site where there this whole big section about how he's facinated with ARG's? Even more so than blurred guy.

Is blurred guy Ron?

I would think Ron would have told us about this site if it was his

PostPosted: Sat Oct 02, 2004 5:24 pm
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