This blog is dead, for obvious reasons: it was for one game that imploded and for another game that arguably wasn't a game to begin with.
I have moved on to bigger pastures with the creation of my company, Darklight Interactive, and my new blogging project: Brain Clouds.
I invite everyone to go to my new blog, and see what's left of my mind there...
http://www.brainclouds.net/Darklight/
Received today, 9/28...
Thank you for visiting our website. If you would like additional information about the World Quest Resort, (www.worldquestresort.com), please send me your name, address, and phone number and I would be happy to send you a complete package for you review.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Karen Cunningham
Weichert Realtors
World Quest Resort
Orlando, Florida 32821
941-779-0798
Your time is running out!
You solved the riddles and discovered the code word Divinus but
it's power to help you will not last much longer.
Return to www.ethanhaaswasright.com and decide whether you
are ready to see what lies ahead for all of us.
If you take the next step and prepare for what is coming, Divinus can
give you an edge.
Ethan Haas was right; we will all have a role to play and the time to
act is now.
- Van Mantra
"Time is running out" indeed... if only there was an actual product we can buy and read...
I'm probably not buying this product. After all, I don't have anyone to play with anyway, and I barely have the time to do something that extensive online, least of all a whole new game mechanic and system. And I admit I am still a bit disillusioned as to their approach and the way they are handling things.
Nonetheless, I wish them the best of luck.
You know, I must have some sort of supernatural gift... every time I make a post about nothing going on, something happens. I should do that more often!
Yesterday the news broke that Jamie has a bladder infection, through the newly discovered website JamieAndTeddy.com. If you click on the image and enter the password "jllovesth", you get a video.
Still very "experiency", and not an actual "game" per se. People are dissecting the video looking for clues, and I doubt there will be something monumental. Unlike TLE, there's nothing secretive or covert about all this; why would they hide secret messages and codes in a video?
And people are already equating her statement about a bladder infection as something to do with the movie. I don't think so... I think that's simply thrown in there to make them more human, more vulnerable.
Nonetheless, this has at least renewed interest in the public, and I'm sure we can expect more videos in the future.
Nothing of importance new from Mind Storm Labs; they're even still having issues with their "player finder." The massive Internet hype they created has turned to no more than one forum post a day, and their attempt to restart the ARG was effectively ignored by everyone. Amazing how quickly an advertising campaign can go from bang to bust, eh?
And as far as Cloverfield... nothing, but I kinda expected that. I continue to feel that it's more of an "alternate reality experience" than a "...game". People are expecting a game... of what? How can the premise of this movie become a game I don't know, but if it does I don't think it will happen until shortly before the movie comes out. Or perhaps the next trailer. Hell, who knows.
I'm not updating this forum as often as I use to because, frankly, there's nothing to report. Everything's dried up, and people are giving up on these things, whatever they may be.
If something dramatic happens, I may post again. Until then this blog will remain as vacant as the sites it was reporting about.
Mind Storm Labs, to start off September, has added the "Find a Player" option on their website. It's an interface, using Yahoo maps, that links map pointers to registered forum members. For some reason, I don't appear on the map, so I question how well it's working.
My question: why? I can find someone in my area and... do what? Game's not even out yet! They expect us to blindly start contacting people so that, eventually, we might be able to arrange to play a game that doesn't really exist yet?
Also, they're making it sound like that, although this is a TABLE TOP game, the Internet is the only way to reach people. They have apparently made no effort to do any sales and marketing initiatives outside of the Internet realm. I've checked with numerous people in the industry, including one local RPG store, and they still haven't heard of Alpha Omega. THOSE are the people that should be targeted, because they're the ones actually interested in playing face to face. What difference does it make me that the nearest person to me, according to the site, is 70 miles away; does that mean I can never play AO?
I wish they'd focus on what's important - marketing, getting the product out, getting the site tools up - and not this comparatively useless stuff.
Mind Storm Labs, in my opinion, is silently imploding. Van's 30 days have come and gone, and now forum people are wondering if "Divinus" means anything anymore. They still don't have a tangible product, but are taking pre-orders.
Forum posts state that they have gotten more sales than they expected from the pre-order, but the way their marketing's going those expectations shouldn't be too high. I have not seen or heard of AO being marketed *anywhere* else. Some can argue that it's not being marketed because it's not available yet... if that's the case, what was the point of doing the ARG for an entire month with the sole purpose of driving traffic?
They still don't have the website tools. And, after all that traffic they generated during the month of July, their forum has trickled down to only a couple of new posts a day. In other words, dead.
And they tried to restart the ARG... and were promptly ignored. There are two people that I know of (and I'm not one of them) that have even bothered to look at the email and determine meaning. Too little too late I guess.
Some say that everything that went wrong is not MSL's fault. I beg to differ... *everything* that happens is *their* fault; they are the decision makers, and they are the ones that are supposed to be in control. It's their product, and the success or failure of their marketing and network support is what's going to make them rich or bust them.
As far as Cloverfield... oooo, we got a roar now. People are still looking for a game that, in my opinion, simply isn't there.
Just sit back, get to know the "Slusho Seven", and keep praying for their violent, painfully bloody demise at the hands of the Voltron Whalezilla.
Mind Storm Labs, a few days ago, attempted to restart the ARG. And... nothing happened.
There were posts on the forums for about an hour after the mail went out (with screw ups I have alerady mentioned). Since then, four days later, it's as if it never happened. No new posts on Unfiction, EH.org or the AO forums regarding it. ARG interest simply up and died.
I still don't buy the claim that there are pages that we've missed, or things out there waiting to be found. There's no real point to it right now; the Ethan Haas ARG wasn't storytelling at its finest; in fact, the ARG was rather cryptic and sparse as far as story development.
But, no matter, guess it's dead. Life goes on as if nothing happened.
At 1:30 AM I received the following email...
Triton Enterprises apologizes to our customers and the families of our employees for the recent events at our Washington State facility.The funny thing is that I received that email from VAN MANTRA (van@ethanhaaswasright.com).
Acts of sabotage to our new facility and our website have taken a heavy toll on our resources and staff. We lost several employees in the brutal act of terrorism including our Press Secretary Kellie Graham.
Data gathered by our internal security teams and Federal law enforcement all point to a small paramilitary group bent on disrupting our work towards a better humanity.
New press secretary Jill Davidge states, "We have moved our research facility off shore to ensure we can continue our work without distraction"
If you had any pending orders with Triton they will be processed as soon as possible. If you were waiting for a job interview we will be in contact with you shortly.
Triton Enterprises apologizes to our customers and the families of our employees for the recent events at our Washington State facility and for the recent hack of our email system by the group led by Van Mantra....this time from Triton (info@tritonenterprises.com). Note that it's only "info@..." and not "information@...", and "info@..." is a non-existant address. That's error #2.
Name look familiar? Error #3.
Seems to me like they're now trying to rush things out, and hoping that people will somehow, for whatever reason, latch back on to this ARG.
*EDIT: Even B!X isn't following it anymore...
Time will only tell if this works for them.
The Alpha Omega website is back, now with the store open.
The forums are back... devoid of posts, and with some user accounts deleted. Down for two days and come back blank; I don't know if that's a "whoops, sorry I deleted everything" situation or if that was the plan. Either way, I still think someone in their IT department is leading them off a cliff, 'cause this just isn't the way its done in the real world.
I still don't quite like the concept of having one all-inclusive book. I guess I'm use to traditional D&D where there was a separate book for each and every thing. If I wasn't a GM, I didn't need the DMG (is it still called that?), and I could live life with a thin $20 book.
Best of luck, guys. Hope it works out for y'all.
