This is discussion archived from a time before the current discussion method was installed.
Morgan Wick: I'm having a hard time figuring out what's meant here. Is it "a pile of information (usually websites) written as if they were legitimate pages within a fictional world", or is it an actual game, as the associated tropes suggest? The reason I ask is because I'm trying to figure out whether to add 52thecomic.com
(read more), which is more purely promotional than anything else, but it seems to be pertinent to anyone else thinking about adding something to this list.
Gus: It could use some clarification, I'd agree. an ARG is distinctly a game. The game consists — for the most part — in tracking down clues scattered across the real and virtual world and assembling them to solve a mystery. For the virtual bit, some care is taken to make the sites appear to be separate from one another (urls, domain names, and layout style differing). The network of faux-sites all share a setting, however. Thus, the "artificial reality".
It looks like 52thecomic.com is a straight-up tie-in — it purports to be a web-newsmag from the 52 world. Not much gaming going on there.
I think it more like the faux-diaries/blogs that appear for some TV shows. ''Veronica Mars" runs one, as do a few others. I think it distinct enough to be its own trope.
Ununnilium: Yeah, the 52 site doesn't count for this.
{{Xander77}: No mention of Majestic? http://imdb.com/title/tt0299016/
I believe this is actually the first ARG, and it a lot more famous than the AI one.
I'm not entirely sure, but I think this may be an ARG, or have ARG elements. Note the initials. At any rate, I'm reluctant to post it in the entry itself until we know.
http://araginggremlin.wordpress.com/
