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 Sun Nov 17, 2024 4:03 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 » Archive » Archive: The Haunted Apiary (Let Op!) » The Haunted Apiary (Let Op!): General/Updates
[CROSS POST] NY Times Article is Up
View previous topicView next topic
Page 2 of 4 [47 Posts]   Goto page: Previous 1, 2, 3, 4 Next
Author Message
Phaedra
Lurker v2.0


Joined: 21 Sep 2004
Posts: 4033
Location: Here, obviously

 		Re: Check It Out
cabalagent23 wrote:
http://www.4orty2wo.com


Is anyone else glad we're not the "Case Study?" I would have felt rather...used.
_________________
Voted Most Likely to Thread-Jack and Most Patient Explainer in the ILoveBees Awards.

World Champion: Cruel 2B Kind

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 12:06 am
 View user's profile Visit poster's website AIM Address
 Back to top 
Anton P. Nym
Unfettered


Joined: 25 Jul 2004
Posts: 550
Location: London, Canada

 		Hey, Jordan Wiseman's there! He's got a truckload of my money from my Battletech days. Small world.

-- Steve thinks it's cool that folks can actually make a living at this.
_________________
Dr.Prof. Anton P. Nym
Chief Bungiologist
Institute for Advanced ILB Research
Fireflies Wiki contributor. Sorta.
Livejournal

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 12:12 am
 View user's profile Visit poster's website
 Back to top 
celina63
Entrenched


Joined: 28 Sep 2002
Posts: 909
Location: San Diego, CA
Anton P. Nym wrote:
-- Steve thinks it's cool that folks can actually make a living at this.


/me prepares her resume...
_________________
Politicians are like diapers - they should be changed often, and for the same reason.

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 12:16 am
 View user's profile AIM Address Yahoo Messenger MSN Messenger
 Back to top 
Vilnius
Veteran


Joined: 31 Aug 2004
Posts: 129
Location: Omaha, Nebraska

 		Wow. Great article. For something like this to have reached something like the New York Times is incredible.

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 2:11 am
 View user's profile Visit poster's website
 Back to top 
Checksum
Veteran


Joined: 15 Aug 2004
Posts: 89
Location: Chicago, IL
Anton P. Nym wrote:
Hey, Jordan Wiseman's there! He's got a truckload of my money from my Battletech days.


Yup, that and my money from my Shadowrun days and my time from the Beast and my time from ILB.

Hmm, money, time...I guess he might as well have my love, too.

(not in THAT way)

Thanks, 42!

-checksum

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 3:48 am
 View user's profile
 Back to top 
Shad0
I Have No Life


Joined: 20 Jun 2004
Posts: 2180
Location: Southern California, USA

 		Re: Check It Out
Phaedra wrote:
cabalagent23 wrote:
http://www.4orty2wo.com


Is anyone else glad we're not the "Case Study?" I would have felt rather...used.

Ah, but some of us are the "Case Study." And if by "used" you mean "flattered" and "nostalgic," then yes. Mr. Green
_________________
These were the puzzles that would take a day, these were puzzles that would take a week, and these puzzles they'd probably never figure out until we broke down and gave them the answers. ... The Cloudmakers solved all of these puzzles on the first day.

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 4:02 am
 View user's profile
 Back to top 
Nightmare Tony
Entrenched

Joined: 07 Jun 2004
Posts: 824
Location: Meadowbrook

 		Ah, a sweet article and unmasking...

It confirms an ancient spec I had which was:
http://forums.unfiction.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5750&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=marketing&start=45

and the 42 ebntertainment site is exactly that Smile


And as a trivia, Susan Bonds of 42 was one of the main developers of the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland.
_________________
For this is the place where dreams and nightmares are birthed and bred
Nightmare Park

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 4:31 am
 View user's profile Visit poster's website AIM Address
 Back to top 
Avatrix
Unfettered


Joined: 20 Aug 2004
Posts: 413
Location: Boston, MA

 		Human pyramids
Quote:
"People like to get caught up in something that feels like it's charged with meaning," said Sean Stewart, the game's lead writer and designer. "When we ask people to do a human pyramid, it's not just a stunt. It's because a character's life is depending on it."

Hehe, the SP had my team make a human pyramid on the day with the text markers. Did anyone else have to do this, or are they referring to Team Chowda?

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 10:10 am
 View user's profile AIM Address Yahoo Messenger
 Back to top 
CoffeeJedi
Unfictologist


Joined: 27 Jul 2004
Posts: 1327
Location: Charlotte NC, USA

 		Re: Check It Out
Phaedra wrote:
cabalagent23 wrote:
http://www.4orty2wo.com


Is anyone else glad we're not the "Case Study?" I would have felt rather...used.


we're not yet, check the site again next week Smile
_________________
seeker > !seek canoe
!splotch

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 10:29 am
 View user's profile Visit poster's website
 Back to top 
GabrielBlade
Decorated

Joined: 17 Sep 2004
Posts: 202

 		I feel honoured to be a part of something created by a group of people with so much talent and so much history.


If you call this Beast II, I think you demean ILB slightly, it's it's own ARG.. but if you call it a wink and a nod, definitely, to the people who made the Beast what it was, then sure. Just don't forget that some of us didn't, couldn't know about the Beast.. and are honoured to have the chance to play now. Smile
_________________
Gabriel Blade::Lord of the Asylum::Emperor of Insanity
---»For Whom the Bell Tolls.. Time Marches On«---

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 10:55 am
 View user's profile
 Back to top 
thebruce
Dances With Wikis


Joined: 16 Aug 2004
Posts: 6899
Location: Kitchener, Ontario

 		hate to do it, but someone's got to... there is a downside to having the same people behind this arg as the beast...

It still means there's only one group of people talented enough to pull off an arg like this... which means, unless something changes in the near future, there may not be another one like this, unless they decide to do another one themselves...

if it was another talented group of people, at least we'd know there might be some 'competition' for the best arg Smile
_________________
@4DFiction/@Wikibruce/Contact
ARGFest 2013 - Seattle! ARGFest.com

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 11:22 am
 View user's profile Visit poster's website AIM Address
 Back to top 
Phaedra
Lurker v2.0


Joined: 21 Sep 2004
Posts: 4033
Location: Here, obviously

 		Well, since the curtain has been drawn back, perhaps we can hope for a Q&A session.

Are you listening, PMs? Very Happy

Q&A Session? Please?
_________________
Voted Most Likely to Thread-Jack and Most Patient Explainer in the ILoveBees Awards.

World Champion: Cruel 2B Kind

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 12:12 pm
 View user's profile Visit poster's website AIM Address
 Back to top 
krystyn
I Never Tire of My Own Voice


Joined: 26 Sep 2002
Posts: 3651
Location: Is not Chicago
thebruce wrote:
hate to do it, but someone's got to... there is a downside to having the same people behind this arg as the beast...

It still means there's only one group of people talented enough to pull off an arg like this... which means, unless something changes in the near future, there may not be another one like this, unless they decide to do another one themselves...

if it was another talented group of people, at least we'd know there might be some 'competition' for the best arg Smile


*cough*

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 12:51 pm
 View user's profile Visit poster's website
 Back to top 
krystyn
I Never Tire of My Own Voice


Joined: 26 Sep 2002
Posts: 3651
Location: Is not Chicago

 		These games also tend to vary in scope and emphasis. There've been so many games that have passed through here, played intensively and loved madly by so many people ... they might not even know about bees.

There've been a lot of 'successes' in this community. It just depends on what you're looking for, and if you're the right sort of audience for it.

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 12:55 pm
 View user's profile Visit poster's website
 Back to top 
Phaedra
Lurker v2.0


Joined: 21 Sep 2004
Posts: 4033
Location: Here, obviously

 		I am impressed
Hm.

The more I think about it, the more impressed I am with 42's analysis of what would appeal to Halo fans. This ARG really managed to push certain buttons.

First of all, I think we Halo fans?ARGers as a community, have a very ambivalent concept of military organizations. On one hand, we're drawn to them, especially on the side of the people who came to ILB because of Halo -- I mean, from a video game aspect, yippee! Weapons! Ranks! Missions! Commanding officers! Covert ops!

So they give us Melissa, who barks out commands, recruits us, operates with military efficiency and ruthlessness, organizes us into squads, sets up training exercises, and sends us on missions.

It's all the cool stuff, with none of the ickiness. No wonder we were so enthusiastic.

On the other hand, I think there's a definite suspicion of the military here (in real life, I'm a moderate pacifist -- despite the fact that I enjoy sticking grenades to heads in video games).

So we get cover-ups and conspiracies. We get the tragic figure of Yasmine and all the painful cruelty behind the making of Spartans and AIs. We get the more ambiguous but still tragic figure of Melissa, trapped and prevented from healing by her own military mindset.

We get to have it both ways. Here we are, for the most part probably simultaneously fascinated by and suspicious of (and maybe, for some, even repulsed by) all things military. I'd imagine that there's a higher than average overlap between ILB/Halo/ARG players and fans of the X-Files -- I doubt any of us are foil-helmet and diaper-wearing paranoid conspiracy freaks, but we might in general be a bit more suspicious than the populace at large. So they played into one of the same things that I feel made the X-Files so popular: that ambivalence. Mulder and Scully were simultaneously of the system (flash those badges!) and working against it.

We get to do the same thing.

We're young, for the most part. We still want to save the world. And we're still playful. So we get the Sleeping Princess, red balloons and scuba gear.

For the most part, even though gamers have a reputation for being antisocial recluses, we're very sociable. Halo, I think, is rather unusual in that regard. I'm not sure if any other video game inspires the same amount of lan parties and actual social activities related to it. So we get Melissa, lonely and confused, looking for a crew. And the Sleeping Princess, looking for friends. They want to connect. So do we.

I was surprised by the responses in my theology thread from devout Christians here on the forum...in my experience, gamers tend to have a higher-than-average percentage of atheists, agnostics, and the religiously undecided than the general population. However, I think it still holds true that this community probably has a larger number of people with deep suspicion of organized religion, but also (and there seems to be a substantial overlap) a greater than usual number of what I would characterize as "spiritual seekers." And even those who don't fall into that category are probably more-than-usually fascinated by the spiritual, the numinous, and the supernatural.

So we get the Pious Flea. We get his religious-sounding mantra. We have the backstory of the Covenant's religious war against humanity. And, subtly, in the background, we have the theme of possible life after death as an AI, with all the moral, religious and practical questions it raises. Yes, I know the religious questions of both the Flea and the Covenant didn't really go anywhere, but they were still there, a tantalizing hint, to keep our ears figuratively pricked.

Similarly, in my experience science fiction/fantasy/speculative fiction fans are, in general, more familiar with and more responsive to the language and symbolism of myth. So, the Sleeping Princess casts everything in the language of myth. Dana gives us folktales and we have to figure out how they apply.

Finally, in my mind their most insightful move was to make all the characters with whom we interacted (well, except the Flea) female. As I mentioned before in a different thread, it was a virtuoso piece of emotional manipulation as far as our compassion for the characters, but it also, I think, encouraged more female players to become interested in and stick with the game.

We get ignored, generally, by those who design and market video games. Live events generally feature hired female eye candy, but frankly, I'll pass on that. The games generally feature scantily clad females -- personally, rather a buxom chick in a dominatrix outfit, for once I'd like to be able to play a female character with a killer sense of fashion. I'd like to see a character whose clothing *is* sexy -- as in attractive -- but says "power" or rather than "blatant sexual availability."

This game provided two main female characters with whom we could interact, neither of whom was in any way sexual. Yay!!!!

I am not, for the record, saying that upfront female sexuality is a bad thing in video games. I'm just saying that for me, as a woman, I get sick of it being ALL THE TIME. It's nice to have female characters to whom I can relate just as people, rather than as sex objects.

Anyway, I'm impressed. Either the PMs really researched their audience, or they were lucky (but I'm pretty sure it's the former Smile ).
_________________
Voted Most Likely to Thread-Jack and Most Patient Explainer in the ILoveBees Awards.

World Champion: Cruel 2B Kind

PostPosted: Thu Nov 04, 2004 1:15 pm
 View user's profile Visit poster's website AIM Address
 Back to top 
Display posts from previous:   Sort by:   
Page 2 of 4 [47 Posts]   Goto page: Previous 1, 2, 3, 4 Next
View previous topicView next topic
 Forum index » Archive » Archive: The Haunted Apiary (Let Op!) » The Haunted Apiary (Let Op!): General/Updates
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