Return to Unfiction unforum
 a.r.g.b.b 
FAQ FAQ   Search Search 
 
Welcome!
New users, PLEASE read these forum guidelines. New posters, SEARCH before posting and read these rules before posting your killer new campaign. New players may also wish to peruse the ARG Player Tutorial.

All users must abide by the Terms of Service.
Website Restoration Project
This archiving project is a collaboration between Unfiction and Sean Stacey (SpaceBass), Brian Enigma (BrianEnigma), and Laura E. Hall (lehall) with
the Center for Immersive Arts.
Announcements
This is a static snapshot of the
Unfiction forums, as of
July 23, 2017.
This site is intended as an archive to chronicle the history of Alternate Reality Games.
  

The time now is Tue Nov 12, 2024 7:16 am
All times are UTC - 4 (DST in action)		 View posts in this forum since last visit
View unanswered posts in this forum
Calendar
 Forum index » Updates » News & Rumors
Northpole Noir
Moderators: Administrators, Moderators, ndemeter, Varin
View previous topicView next topic
Page 1 of 1 [4 Posts]  
Author Message
EMUGOD
Boot

Joined: 27 Oct 2004
Posts: 22

 		Northpole Noir
Valve Winter Sale 2015 ARG
The main resource for this event ARG is the webcomic which is updating daily throughout the event,
http://store.steampowered.com/wintercomic/
and the associated community marketplace Trading Cards and Backgrounds.

Suspicion of this as a possible ARG started immediately due to a number of peculiarities, but it wasn't until todays updates (which is to say, yesterday, the 29th) that we had actual puzzles to solve.

Brief timeline and explanation of the progression so far: all the cards and backgrounds have existed as obtainable items for several weeks, but have been blurred and lacking descriptions (this is SOP for Steam Sale Event cards/backgrounds). They are unlocking as the comic pages are posted, ostensibly to avoid spoiling the comics plot.

Today (update for the 29th) saw huge new changes. An already unlocked card and background set was further updated into a new form (from a crime-scene chalk outline of a body to a memorial display for the victim), and the new cards and backgrounds which released contain overt puzzle hidden text. Full details are available in the main subreddit created for the ARG, https://www.reddit.com/r/steamsaledetectives/, but I will also make two more brief posts for the two main new codes we've got.

A handy 'mind-map' of everything so far can be found at:
https://www.mindmeister.com/628152815/northpole-noir

PostPosted: Wed Dec 30, 2015 2:51 am
 View user's profile
 Back to top 
EMUGOD
Boot

Joined: 27 Oct 2004
Posts: 22

 		794E2CEA991
code from "Sending a Message" background
"794E2CEA991" visible in the lower-left corner, on our unfortunate antiheroes sleeve.

Speculated that it may be related to (somehow used with) the 'hitman barcode' which originally featured on the comics cover before being ripped off, or to the comic page IDs (which are notably the same regardless of language version).


~~~~~ Image was far too large and forum breaking. Image removed and re-added as an attachment. ~ Pixie
757579deb29d86c72b0076e0d5d90acbf3682df2.jpg
 Description   
 Filesize   273.27KB
 Viewed   77 Time(s)

757579deb29d86c72b0076e0d5d90acbf3682df2.jpg

PostPosted: Wed Dec 30, 2015 2:57 am
 View user's profile
 Back to top 
EMUGOD
Boot

Joined: 27 Oct 2004
Posts: 22

 		'Dungeon Master' runes
from "Taffy" card art
Identified and translated by this chart:
2.bp.blogspot.com/_I182g1bK2Yw/TNinf-fgtmI/AAAAAAAABu0/bRJXvpLzsow/s400/glyphs.GIF
and this website:
http://dmweb.free.fr/?q=node/197

to "lo ya gor ku", possibly a spell related to viewing monsters (there is a listed spell for doing so which is off by one rune).

~~~~~ Image removed and re-added as an attachment. ~ Pixie
Uaks9iB.jpg
 Description   
 Filesize   127.95KB
 Viewed   72 Time(s)

Uaks9iB.jpg

PostPosted: Wed Dec 30, 2015 3:03 am
 View user's profile
 Back to top 
gimlet
Unfettered

Joined: 20 Jan 2016
Posts: 358

 		So I was really frustrated by Reddit's total chaos when this came up over the holidays.

There was clearly *something* ARGish there but people went running off in a billion different directions and let themselves be trolled so hard everyone there kinda lost interest, or convinced themselves nothing was there.

Well, it seems like Valve regrouped and is potentially back for more with an out of the blue Chinese New Year sale, with an even more obvious choose your own adventure game.

https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedetectives/comments/44c0op/the_detectives_are_back_in_the_lunar_steam_sale/

Good on Valve for being such good, generous game designers they go back to the drawing board and try again rather than give up.

PostPosted: Fri Feb 05, 2016 8:55 pm
 View user's profile
 Back to top 
Display posts from previous:   Sort by:   
Page 1 of 1 [4 Posts]  
View previous topicView next topic
 Forum index » Updates » News & Rumors
Jump to:  


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum
You cannot post calendar events in this forum



Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group