So, since I continue to be an open-source kinda guy where Alternate Reality Games are concerned, here are (apparently) the simple steps to building an ARG, to save everyone the trouble of re-inventing the wheel every time:
- Distribute mysterious, cool SWAG out to bloggers, previous players, or crowds at huge events that contains…
- A PUZZLE (or even better, a QR Code, OMG) that leads to a flashy website with a…
- COUNTDOWN that, when it hits zero, launches a…
- WEBSITE for a nefarious corporation, with links to…
- SOCIAL MEDIA accounts for various characters, one of which is…
- A HOT BRUNETTE ASKING FOR PLAYERS’ HELP, so she directs them to…
- A SIGNUP PAGE (or even better, Facebook Connect) so players can have the hope of getting…
- FREE SWAG in exchange for spamming their friends and giving up their contact information, which is then used to…
- EMAIL everyone with a link to a…
- CASUAL FLASH GAME that 5000 people (give or take) have to beat to reveal…
- GPS COORDINATES/CITIES and TIMES on a big list that will cause players to spend valuable time and petrol to attend…
- LIVE EVENTS (preferably a scavenger hunt…with helicopters), where you can get lots of photos/videos, generate lots of buzz, give out even more free swag (first come, first served), and reveal clues to another website where players can submit…
- USER GENERATED CONTENT, which you reward by sending them…
- MORE FREE SWAG, which contains a puzzle that leads to a…
- PHONE NUMBER, that reveals someone getting killed somewhere, but after they hang up, they get a…
- TEXT MESSAGE that reveals pieces of a photograph that players must…
- SHARE INFORMATION TO SOLVE, and when they do, they find an…
- EXCLUSIVE DIGITAL TRAILER that has a…
- HIDDEN LINK to a page where they can sign up (first come, first served) for a…
- PREVIEW SCREENING OF A FILM where they will receive even MORE SWAG and a SURPRISE PHONE CALL.
Take all of the above, bundle it up in a Light Narrative Wrapper™, and voila! You’re now an ARG Designer! Congratulations!
Note: This list can also be used as an ARG Drinking Game.
Enjoy! And, you’re welcome! :)