To Make it Or Not to Make It: OneHundredDogs

Yesterday, I was talking with Ian Schrieber about OneHundredDogs and the date I’d posted for registration: February 29th. For those of you who don’t know, OneHundredDogs.com was designed for the Game Design Challenge at GDC 2008, but not for actual production. However, it seems there are a good number of people who didn’t see it as a part of the Game Design Challenge, but as a product pitch.

So, when I changed the registration date on the site to February 30th, I received numerous emails to this effect: “You mean it’s not real?”

It might be. I am currently reviewing a few possibilities and production models. It seems the design of playing a game with your dog really struck a chord with people out there both at GDC and in the days that followed. In fact, and judging by the comments I’m receiving, it seems more people are surprised that this game wasn’t initially intended to enter production.

The nutshell of the game, as listed from the site:

OneHundredDogs.com is a Facebook ARG (alternate reality game) designed to be played in 50 cities across the country. In each city, local dogs will compete to become the city’s AlphaDog. Each AlphaDog then becomes DogOne, DogTwo, DogThree…. DogFifty. That’s when you meet the other 50 dogs – all virtual (and maybe with real world owners, too). Cities compete with one another, then work together to work their way up the scale, solving missions on a national level as they go. Ultimately, all 50 dogs will need to work together to solve a serious problem at the top.

Sometimes, you will need your human cunning to solve the mission. Other times, you will be led by your dog as he or she solves a puzzle your senses are not possibly equipped to. Human leads dog. Dog leads human.