Common Pitfalls Common Pitfalls of of

ARGARGDesign & PlayDesign & Play

ResearchResearch tells us that there are Five PitfallsFive Pitfalls you must AVOID in order to have a successful ARG.

The Five PitfallsThe Five Pitfalls

• BBoring Rabbit holes

• BBad Storytelling

• BBarely Any Interactivity

• BBland BBland BBland

• BBasically No Ending

FiveFive “E” “E” CureCure

1.1. EEnticing Rabbit holes

2.2. EEntertaining Storyworlds

3.3. EEngaging Interactivity

4.4. EExperimenting EExperimenting EExperimenting

5.5. EEnding the Story

1. EEntice…

Rabbit Hole (Make it Original!)

Points of Entry (Make Many!)

Hey C’mer (Make it Personal!)

36nine.com (GO HERE NOW)

36nine.com (GO HERE NOW)

36nine.com

Remember to Cross Your Media

send out send out millionsmillions

of pretty of pretty postcardspostcards - -

And then have And then have millionsmillions of of phonesphones ring… ring…

And the millions of postcardsmillions of postcards and the millions of telephone callsmillions of telephone calls all lead to one naked cowboyone naked cowboy singing a songsong live in Times Square about 36nine.com,36nine.com, which can be viewed via Earthcam! (and a video of the event ends up on YouTube, Dailymotion, Bebo.com, MySpace… which is then shared on Zannel & Twitter and soon connects to more & more players via their mobiles.)

CROSS YOUR MEDIA!CROSS YOUR MEDIA!

2. EEntertain…

3. EEngage…

Encourage Community -

Encourage Player Created Content -

Encourage Real World Interaction -

Encourage Play -

(Immersive Experience)

4. E Experiment…

NeurocamNeurocam (get out of your mind)

"Some of the most rewarding experiences

we have come about throughrandom circumstances of which we have no real understanding. It is sometimes important to commit to something we know very little about if the act of commitment in itself becomes part of an experience."

Robin HelyRobin Hely

QU13EQU13E

Eldritch ErrorsEldritch Errors

ARG Players + H.P. Lovecraft = One Terrifyingly Fun Night in West Virginia!

5. EEnd… (pick one & make it work)

TADA!!!TADA!!!

EEntice, EEntertain, EEngage, EExperiment & EEnd