1) If an ARG extends an existing fictional world, then make the connection explicit from the very beginning;

2) Include ”unrealistic statements of truth”;

3) Include the ARG community in the pre-game launch…

On the last point. From the ARGs I’ve looked at there is a pre-game launch that includes trigger points in non-ARG AND ARG communities. I consider the Vanishing Point game launch as being the Loki video and all that came before the pre-game. It seems, therefore, that it is OK (indeed perhaps good) to have speculation at the beginning, but that speculation is stopped fairly early on once the game is officially launched. The official launch seems to target a wide amount of audiences while the pre-launch targets niche groups. This is exactly the same tactic that Blair Witch used. It is what Alex Wipperfurth of Plan B has called the “ripple effect” (which I alluded to before).

And as for targeting lots of different audiences specifically. I am completely in agreement with both of you. My initial post was not arguing to use only one strategy, it was just highlighting one. I find ARGs to be the most effective format to target multiple audiences (which I call ”tiering”). I actually wrote an essay on it 18 months ago that will be launched any day now — with a detailed website to go with it. You’ll see then that you don’t need to convince me of that strategy either. But these ideas are always in flux and my initial essay was written in a different ARG climate…so any thoughts you both have are VERY welcome.

I find 42 and Xenophile to be the most conscious implementors of this strategy and your points about LCP is another great example I’ll probably add to the website. Thanks for clearing that info up. As for Vanishing Point. I’ve got the video of Loki in a hotel room, saying ambiguous things with lots of shots held on clues around the room. I found that to be an obvious peice of fiction…but this is where the issue of ”judging fictionality” comes in — some people just don’t read these assets in the same way (which is why the hoax issue happens). Is there another video you’re referring to? If so, could you please send it to me!

Anyway, I wanted to summarise the points here because I’ll do another post for the benefit of those that don’t read the comments. We”ve come up with some good design clues here. So let me know if there is something I’ve missed or you’d like to add. None of this is fixed in stone off course! This site is meant to be about sharing design approaches as we figure them out and amend them.

I think at the end of the day, we’re pretty much saying the same thing. Your summation paragraph at the end says it all pretty well, and launching your ARG into the community itself makes the hoax issue pretty much go away, but you”re potentially limiting your audience by doing so.

Generally, it’s a matter of determining your target audience, figuring out what, if any, existing communities you want to leverage, and designing your pre-awareness and launch strategy with this audience’s level of sophistication/specialty/interests in mind.

Now, on to other comments and responses to your questions. I really like the way you quantified the “unrealistic statements of truth” as being a major cue that things are fictional. Say, if the Save My Husband team had but something in the initial video like (bad example) they live in New Seattle, Canadiastahn, they could have avoided much of the initial clamor against them.

As far as your questions about Last Call Poker, the email to the ARGN tipline wasn’t from 42. The ads were pretty successful in getting people to the site to play poker, and in fact, quite a poker community stayed and stuck around even after the ARG had ended (you could pretty much play poker and not be bothered by the ARG, if you wanted to). In addition, although I forgot to mention it, there were press releases about the new site and how it was built at the request of the estate of a recently passed-away gentleman, etc., that was in fact filled with many questionable “statements of truth.” Bottom line was that Last Call Poker’s launch was pretty dynamic as things were put out there, responses measured, and new steps taken until it all took hold. But the ARG had definitely begun before the ARG community got there.

One note too, is that once it took hold at Unfiction, the Last Call Poker “admins” on the on-site forum posted a link back to Unfiction, as they seemed to be doing a good job of figuring out why all the weird things were happening at LCP.

One clarification, as far as Vanishing Point goes: At the very beginning, it was in no way obvious it was a game. Players found cypher blocks on sites, received Japanese puzzle boxes, and got an initial video that didn’t reveal anything at all about what was to come. the site as it is now wasn”t revealed until the night at CES when Loki hijacked the Bellagio fountains and basically set everything up. Up until then, it was all speculation.

As far as further comments about any projects that may or may not be in progress, well, no comment at this time.