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[Interview] The Black Watchmen: An Experience For Everyone, Even You
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
Human Equation is looking to change the alternate reality game scene with their persistent ARG based on The Black Watchmen from The Secret World. I had the pleasure of chatting with Andrea Doyon from Human Equation to find out more about what they have planned, what they plan to do if their fundraiser is a huge success, and also what happens if it doesn’t make it.
Read more of Shannon Doyle's The Black Watchmen: An Experience for Everyone, Even You.
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Comments
Who doesn't like pirates? Or the Golden Girls?
Now I want a game that features Bea Arthur dressed as a pirate... Thanks Kano
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While there certainly may be a difference in taste, and you simply don't like various aspects of ARGs - which, quite frankly, are rather unique compared to other game genres - I do think you would be doing yourself a disservice by not trying TBW - or any other ARG, for that matter - if you haven't already.
If you have tried one, and simply didn't like it - fair enough. But I'll say the same thing I say to people who gave up on EVE-Online after a couple of hours; you either didn't give it enough time, or you didn't get involved in the community. If that also does not apply to you - then I'm sorry you don't like ARGs - which is perfectly fine if you don't, don't get me wrong.
As the article alludes to, ARGs are very much for everyone, in the sense that you can participate regardless of whether or not your only experience with puzzle-solving is match-3 games, or the color sequencing game "Simon". Not in the sense that "Everyone will like it!" - I wouldn't trust even Human Equations to make such grandiose generalizations, and neither would they themselves.
Even if you come from a background of mostly FPS games - like I did - there is nothing that would naturally exclude you from participating in an ARG; most other games simply do not gauge the skill-sets you'll be gauged in when it comes to "standard" ARGs.
And that is, perhaps, where the crucial difference between previous ARGs and TBW comes into play: While TBW contains everything people love about ARGs - much like any self-respecting FPS game must naturally involve a first person view, and a pew-pew-machine - TBW also attempts to add aspects that serves to better ease unfamiliar players into the game, if only to an extent.
That isn't to say it'll hold your hand and solve the puzzles for you, but then again, that's part of the point with ARGs, and part of the reason why ARG communities are as welcoming and helpful as they are - the best way for any ARG player to shoot themselves in the foot, is by being an arse to newcommers, because those lovely new folk, might have been the ones that could, at some point in time, have pointed the entire community in the right direction, in time to not fail a mission.
Either way; great article, and thank you for being a friend.
I adored the Secret World setting, sadly the game didn't 'grab me by the balls'. One thing is for certain, with the MMORPG marketplace saturated with High Fantasy; precious little sci-fi and an overbearing 'under 12's comic' look and feel. ANY title that wants to do something different is very welcome indeed. Fingers crossed this one ends up being an awesome game that has a large audience.