ARG Netcast, Episode 18: Studio Cypher

 ARG Netcast, Episode 18: Studio Cypher [58:15m]: Play in Popup | Download

In the eighteenth installment of the netcast series, we are pleased as punch to have special guests Will Emigh and Nathan Mishler from Studio Cypher joining us for a fantastic discussion. Will, Nathan and I are joined by Brooke Thompson of Giant Mice, Nicko Demeter of ARGNet and Sean C. Stacey of Unfiction.com. Subscribe to the ARG Netcast feed through this link or via iTunes. Contact us at our special netcast email address, netcast@argnetcast.info with your tips, suggestions, concerns and submissions. Call us on the ARGNet voicemail at 630-274-5425.

Discussion about Studio Cypher

• Game-specific discussion about Perfect Friends Forever, Descry.us and High Stakes, including an answer for the IRC chat that took place during Descry.us.
• Will and Nathan talk about the restructuring process and what it may mean for user-generated content.
• Discussion about the larger picture of alternate reality gaming, and how Ares Station (their first game) got the Studio Cypher team interested in ARG.
• The duo talk about their subscription model and what it means for the future of their efforts.
• With so many themes used in the chapters of their Multiplayer Novel, Nicko wants to know where the motivation for the game themes come from.

Game and News Discussion

• OpAphid, the official ARG for the Lonelygirl15 video series, is looking for new leadership after Glenn Rubenstein is released.
• A donation by Andy Darley to Unfiction, Inc. makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside.
• The Brooke Thompson 2007 Conference Tour is over, but watch ARGNet for her series of articles about her experiences at ARGFest, GDC and SXSW. Alternate reality gaming was definitely a buzz term in these conferences, and Brooke, Will and Nathan talk about how cool that is.
• There may be an ARG at Indian Lake.
• Hey, listeners! Get over to IonARG and get involved in their important initiatives!
• Origami Shadows swag has been showing up in the mailboxes of ARGFest attendees. It’s a mysterious trailhead that you may want to keep an eye on.
• ARGDB is accepting applications for beta testers. The site is going to be a central database catalog for every ARG ever created and played.
• Nicko reminds us that “a href=”http://www.perplexcitystories.com”>Perplex City Stories launches in a week.

Listener Mail and Voicemail

• Celina Beach calls in to let us know how important Unfiction member catherwood was to the organization of ARGFest. We then talk about love.

Last note…

• If you haven’t already go read Will Emigh’s article at ARGNet about accepting criticism. It’s a must-read for the Puppetmasters-in-training.

See you next week!