Hi there! I’m currently doing some research on ARGs for my PhD Thesis at Royal Holloway, University of London, and ARGReporter have kindly let me share this research with subscribers.
The main focus of my thesis is promotional ARGs for movies and the relationship between players and puppetmasters of those particular games. My MA dissertation looked at viral marketing campaigns for films such as The Blair Witch Project, Cloverfield and A.I. After this I became interested in ARGs more specifically, and in the unique, dynamic relationship which develops between players and PMs. My thesis questions how a better understanding of that relationship might change the way we understand interactions between media producers, consumers and fan communities more generally.
As part of my research I have interviewed a number of ARG producers involved in running promotional ARGs, and I want to place this point of view alongside player perspectives. I’m using case studies such as The Beast, Why So Serious as Super8, so I’m particularly keen to hear from any players who have been involved with these games. However, I’d love to hear from anyone who has been involved with promotional ARGs of any kind.
If you are interested and would like to be involved in my research, I would be hugely grateful if you could complete my online player survey:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ARGPlayers
It should take no more than 15-20 minutes to complete and all responses are anonymous. If you enjoy the survey and know other players who might be keen, please feel free to pass on the link!
You can find out a bit more about my research here:
https://royalholloway.academia.edu/StephanieJanes
I would love to receive any feedback you have on the survey, my research in general, or if you just want to chat about ARGs! You can find me on twitter: @stephjanes87 or email me at Stephanie.Janes.2010@live.rhul.ac.uk.
