November 20th Qs — Alex
“I got really into it, probably too into it.” One participant of I Love Bees admitted. Another player supposedly braved a hurricane to recover a clue. Why are people becoming so invested in these games at the expense of their own safety? I wonder if this is not dissimilar to when you get really into a film or a book and accidentally ignore your partner when they try to talk to you—just in a more extreme way.
How do ARG marketing campaigns affect the sale of completely unrelated products? Are players of an ARG going to be interested in playing the videogame/movie/product being advertised if the game/movie/thing has nothing to do with the ARG experience?
“You can describe anything as a game. A court of law is a game. An election cycle is a game. Life itself is a game.” I like this quote from the Jejune reading, but I was wondering if deliberate, intentional participation is necessary for something to be considered a game, or for someone to be considered a player?
The ARGs we have talked about so far have all seemed to be extremely popular and successful. Have ARGs not caught on as a widespread marketing tool due to logistical/ economic reasons, or are there a multitude of unsuccessful ARGs that we haven’t discussed?