KIB102 Monique's Blog

3. Resource Statement

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:38:45 +0000

Timeline

Week 8

Create email and face book accounts and write content with information and clues for the players.

Week 9

Make the hyperlinks and website functions to the websites, e.g., pop-ups quick links, hidden links, animation of advertisements

Week 10

Updating the websites and starting to send out the information, when, how and who will be able to make this accessible, inform, they must need internet to play.

Week 11

Finish all forms of media that will be published to the players, make sure everything works, e.g., the links the pictures, the clues, make sure the interfaces are being kept a secret until the ARG is in play.

Week 12

Test the ARG with members of the class or group to make sure it is easily understandable and accessible, and warn the real players that the starting point is beginning and to go hunt for the clues.

Roles and Responsibilities

For my ARG at least 3 members are needed to make this successful as a game, there must be specific roles such as:

PERSON 1: forms and creates the riddles/clues to link from one clue to the next, and also designing the layout for the interfaces.

PERSON 2: is required to be the updater of the information, the technical side, making sure the game is running smoothly and able to be played, making sure the links are working and updating the advertisements that have hidden clues in them.

PERSON 3: Is to be in control of the media files and also to help out on the designing and updating of the pages as the game plays on, also he/she is to reply to posts on the blog and or use the chat room to respond, this person is to also remain a secret identity and publicise their self as well as the other team members as one single person to create the feel of the game.

Materials

Team Members

Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator, Blog website platform such as BlogSpot to create webpage, Face book account and quiz, Email account to start the game, a chat room log to respond and communicate with the players, a feedback bored made on a blogger account

Players

The players will need the internet as this is an internet based ARG and will need an account on blogger, face book and MySpace to access the clues without any troubles, also for other sorts of media they will have to have the Java installation in their computer to access some of the advertisements.

2.E- Design Documentation

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:34:01 +0000

Mockup Design 1- Pop Up

Mockup Design 2- Blog- URL:http://unknown-yourcluesawaityou.blogspot.com/

Mockup Design 3- Cover up Blog – no URL

sketches/mockup designs

notes on the assignment and mockup designs

2.D- Use Case Senario

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:23:41 +0000

Clue	Interface	Resources
1.The first clue will be an email sent to all those who have become members to the Cirque Du Soleil official site, on this email there will be a subtle yet intriguing clue that will lead them to the explanation of the game	email	Picture created in Photoshop, email site
2. The next interface used will be a pop up, which will activate once you have signed into the interface of MySpace. This will then explain the outcome of the game and what you need/information to be a part of the game.	MySpace	Story line of the game, picture, hacking MySpace
3. After accepting the terms and conditions of playing the game, you will then be directed to the face book of the fired member of Cirque Du Soleil, you will obtain information of the member to continue to gather clues, the next link will be hidden on the site as a link under background history.	MySpace linked to face book	Re-directing function, Cirque Du Soliel fake website- face book member
4. after going through his face book and reaching the next interface which is the blog(mockup number 3) sign up on the page and start talking to your fellow game players, your opponents, this is where your first clue will be accessed in the announcements part on the blog next to the live chat	Fake website/blog	Blogger layout/chat room layout- fake, and also fake online chat
5. The player will come back to this place to discuss and figure out the story line for the next Cirque Du Soleil, where the announcements are pitched every 2^nd day the next clue will take you to another fake MySpace account, a music account which will have a fake song with the next clue in there.	Fake website/blog, fake MySpace account/ fake song	Recording materials for a fake Cirque Du Soleil Song
6. This will then lead you back to the announcement page where you will discuss the clues and find your next clue	Fake blog site	Blogger layout/chat room/posts made available to all players
7. But be careful there is a trader among the live chat people; they are a posing undercover cop who has found about the black market ways of this ex member. The blog will change and there will be a language created in a hidden link on the page, you must find this work out the code, which will also give you clues when you talk in the code	New website, not blogger- fake interface	Design scheme for new website, photo shop to design- see mockup3
8. the next clue will be linked through an advertisement on the top of the page where the announcements were once before(see mockup 2) which will take you to a form where series of questions will be asked about the ex member of the circus, you will have 10 minutes to complete the tasks and cannot navigate away from the page(the form is linked to the first face book page you were given and told to taken good notice of the information of the ex member of the circus)	Advertisement space on new blogger/website	Navigation button has to be made on html program
9. once you have completed the form you will then be directed to your results, if you passed you continue to find the last and finally clue if you fail, you are automatically out of the game	Online quiz-face book situation	Face book application
10. if you passed you will then be lead to find an eBay site where you are bidding for an old trapeze bar, a pop up will arise and you are to bid the amount that the pop up suggests, eBay will take your details and you will be sent the story line and the ticket.

2.C- Media List

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:20:39 +0000

throughout the ARG many interfaces will be used to allow the players to allow the game as their leader, publishes their clues through numerous MySpace and face book pages. Groups will be accumulated where the game players will be able to blog and have a chat room style board where they will discuss the clues given every second day. User feedback will also be noted through the blog site, as daily questions and blogs will be posted about the clues that have been given out and will enable the fired trapezes to communicate minimally with the players through the blogs and the announcement page.

2.B- Plot Description

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:19:37 +0000

One of the trapezists from Cirque Du Soleil has been fired over a ”circus crime” he has not committed; hardly any information will be given out to the public of this character, not even a name. He will be referred to Unknown and he will be the game host for this ARG. After being fired from his dream job, he wants revenge, and is willing to spill the secrets of the new performance that Cirque Du Soleil will be touring late this year. Without any knowledge about the Unknown host, they are asked to play this ARG game through: following clues, answering questions and enabling sites through information which has been given in prior information. All their clue hunting and code hacking doesn’t go to waste in the end though, after the completion of the ARG game, players will know all the information there is to know about the new performance being put on at the end of the year, and also the first 20 players who complete all the clues and are able to make their way through the channels they will have to search through, will receive two free tickets to the show, worth over $80 each. That is how the ARG will draw players in, with the enticing prize for the first 20 only.

Throughout the whole game the public domain of MySpace will be triggered and appear to be hacked when you log onto the sites URL’s given out by “Unknown”. As you make your way around the hacked sites more information will begin to appear. The information could be in a phony advertisement, a pop-up, a comment, a picture or another hidden message. Clues will include memories that will link to either the story line which has to be uncovered and or facts straight from unknown’s knowledge. As this is an illegal stunt unknown is pulling, twists, such as police watching the blogs, which have been made for communication to and for the players, will be changed and monitored, changes will include a new language that will give more clues then it will protect unknown’s identity and plot of the performance. Players will be informed on how to speak in the coded language through email.

The players will have to decode and follow all instructions given by Unknown through the mysterious soundtracks and luring pictures the players will work on their skills as detectives to win their prize. The game will go on for 2 weeks with a clue given out every second day at the hidden time on the day before clue.

2.a. Tag Lines

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:17:50 +0000

I had trouble with the tag lines as my story line i think is too complex for a tag line, although as it is appart of our assessment, i thought of a few to put on here:

1. The future will become your past - the reason behind this is that the prize in the end of this game is to figure out the story line for the new Cirque Du Soleil, and its story line is a time machine/warping time situation

2. Search your way to your future

3. know where your going, before anyone else

4.Pick up the pieces of your future

Inspiration 3

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:10:43 +0000

Batman Gothlem City ARG

After researching some ARG’s I found a really informative and well planned out ARG, which was the world wide extravaganza of the story line of the recent Batman movie. There were clues given out to the millions of people who were chasing down this story line for the up and coming movie Batman Returns. The clues were from the character the Joker and he had used the Gothlem City Times to report and hand out addresses for the people to follow and chase. It went around the world within months and photos from the participants of the ARG had been sending in what they had to, to be one of the many to discover the story line.

Many clues and devices were handed out during the game such as: mobile phones, head sets, addresses and many more physical clues to help with the discovering of the final task. The final task was one which made everyone gather to a certain address to project the batman symbol on a building and all along the joker had been sending out the clues so in the end all the video’s pictures, links to the next clues on the internet and papers, were all destroyed by the jokers mark. The following video of these happenings is below. This however gave me most of my ideas on how to create my ARG, the way they have played this game is intelligent yet mysterious, and will be what I base my ARG around.

URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iti8Ivy–s

Inspiration 2

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:05:54 +0000

Cirque du Soleil Music

After searching the net, the only way of actually getting a hold of the backing music they use in their performances is via MySpace. As this source has trouble loading the music the video’s on the page give an audio visual theme to the page. Although the page hasn’t been publicly displayed very well the information for tickets, upcoming shows and stories are very informing. I had also downloaded some music tracks which are located below.(unable to upload on wordpress)

The relevance of the music to my ARG will come into the pop ups, through the clues, as the system I am using will be of a hacking sort when the pop-ups occur so will music to create the mysterious vibe of the slowly concluding game. Throughout the game websites, such as MySpace will be using MP3’s to make the viewer connect the music to the previous shows and events that Cirque Du Soleil have put on. The following tracks will be used on the sites and will be automatically functioned to start and finish when the movement or the scrolling text as completed. The main track used throughout the events will be Kitaro (Cirque Du Soleil) – Underworld.(unable to upload on wordpress)

Inspiration 1

n7181817 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:00:37 +0000

Cirque du Soleil Pictures

The following photos have inspired my ARG as they have included the mysterious black market theme in their feel of the performances. I chose these Cirque Du Soleil pictures to recreate the mental image in my head so I can follow and make this game more realistic and authentic, although it won’t be created in a real life situation. Throughout these clips you can see mostly dark and gloomy parts that emphasis the theme black market and or crime. Through the characters in these pictures the reminder of evil has been inflicted on those who look at them, as they show disturbing masks and clothing of raged clothed men. I like the contrasting colours in these pictures and they will be the theme throughout the ARG that I will create to uncover the new story line for the Cirque Du Soliel extravaganza. Throughout the ARG the clue’s will be presented on pages such as MySpace pages and have an effect on the viewers, like these pictures below, this will be the ongoing theme for the clues, the characters and settings of the Cirque will be the inspiration throughout all of the mockups.