So I've stumbled across the pages for some recent internet horror series like Marble Hornets and I remember the first time I read MAJORA and the excitement I had when the story was continuing... and the confusion and apathy I felt when I found out it was continuing as an ARG and if you wanted to be a part of it you had to start searching for forums and Twitter accounts and I don't even care what else.
I've never really be in to ARGs. First and only one I ever tried to be a part of was in the far wayback times when I was into Neopets. I read the first clue and searched the Neopets site up and down for answers, but found nothing. Eventually they published a solution: Save an image from the site and run it through a ringer of filters and treatments in Photoshop. Confusing, unintuitive, and taking you out of whatever you're experiencing. That's how I feel about ARGs, and that's why ARG horror makes me apathetic. No, I don't want to have to keep up with Youtube channels and Twitter accounts and Facebook pages and private forums. I just want to get my scares.
Another aspect of this is something that I felt when looking over the fan-wiki for the ARG that MAJORA became. An obsession with preserving the "masquerade." Acting like everything is real and everyone who reads has to act like everything is real. You're not allowed to just enjoy the story or even act like it's a story, because everything has to be real. Truth be told I didn't even realize this was bothering me until I read NES Godzilla Creepypasta and read the creator replying to his commenters and being open about answers and his process. He wasn't acting like everything was real and he wasn't making social netoworking pages for the protagonists. He just wanted to tell a story and have people enjoy it.
But I'm not everyone.
So how do you feel about this trend of ongoing horror stories have this ARG vibe to them, with multiple sites and media formats involved? Are you okay with it? Does it bug you? Am I crazy? Am I dead now because there's something I don't like about the presentation of Slenderman shows? Sound off!
I've never really be in to ARGs. First and only one I ever tried to be a part of was in the far wayback times when I was into Neopets. I read the first clue and searched the Neopets site up and down for answers, but found nothing. Eventually they published a solution: Save an image from the site and run it through a ringer of filters and treatments in Photoshop. Confusing, unintuitive, and taking you out of whatever you're experiencing. That's how I feel about ARGs, and that's why ARG horror makes me apathetic. No, I don't want to have to keep up with Youtube channels and Twitter accounts and Facebook pages and private forums. I just want to get my scares.
Another aspect of this is something that I felt when looking over the fan-wiki for the ARG that MAJORA became. An obsession with preserving the "masquerade." Acting like everything is real and everyone who reads has to act like everything is real. You're not allowed to just enjoy the story or even act like it's a story, because everything has to be real. Truth be told I didn't even realize this was bothering me until I read NES Godzilla Creepypasta and read the creator replying to his commenters and being open about answers and his process. He wasn't acting like everything was real and he wasn't making social netoworking pages for the protagonists. He just wanted to tell a story and have people enjoy it.
But I'm not everyone.
So how do you feel about this trend of ongoing horror stories have this ARG vibe to them, with multiple sites and media formats involved? Are you okay with it? Does it bug you? Am I crazy? Am I dead now because there's something I don't like about the presentation of Slenderman shows? Sound off!