theorywatch

The “World Without Oil” ARG game launched back at the end of April, while our Competitive Intelligence class was immersed in other things, such as final projects and final exams, so we didn’t get a chance to jump in (although it certainly related to many of the things we were talking about — including how oil companies did competitive intelligence!)

Here’s an interesting update from Salon, focusing on the game’s designer Jane McGonigal: “The game was McGonigal’s most blatant attempt yet to test her theory that immersive entertainment has a unique capacity to change the way people think, and feel, and live.”

One of the things we talked about in class was how the CIA and other military intelligence agencies are drawing heavily on the private sector for its innovations: not surprising to hear that McGonigal is being courted by them (or, rather, by their contractors). And not surprising to hear that she’s creeped out by the implications.