Along with following the latest trends in digital printing, we at the Digital Printing Council also keep our eyes on innovative developments in social media and marketing technologies. When we heard about an upcoming event at the New York Public Library (NYPL) called “Find the Future: The Game” we were so intrigued that we knew we had to share it.
“Find the Future: The Game,” a combination interactive online game/real-world scavenger hunt, will coincide with NYPL’s Centennial Festival weekend, which takes place from May 20 to May 22 and honors the 100th birthday of the Library’s landmark Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. The custom designed, alternate reality game will have players collaborating and solving clues with the aid of laptops and smartphones. Their goal? Locate 100 significant artifacts from NYPL’s collection—and write about them.
Before it opens to the public, a group of 500 players will have the chance to experience the game in a unique “Write All Night” lock–in event at the Schwarzman Building. The pre-selected players will assemble into small groups and search for the hidden artifacts among 70 miles of books—including 40 miles of underground stacks not normally accessible to the public. Upon finding each artifact, players will record their discoveries using smartphones and a custom built iPhone/Android QR code App.
Additionally, each hidden artifact will present players with a specific writing prompt. The responses to these prompts will then be used to create a collaborative book, which the Library will actually publish and add to its public archives. As stated in the FAQ section of the game’s website “It is the first game in the world in which winning the game means writing a book together—a collection of 100 ways to make history and change the future, inspired by 100 of the most intriguing works of the past.”
For a chance to participate in “Write All Night,” prospective players (18 years or older only) must register on the game’s website (http://game.nypl.org/) and respond to the following prompt: “Just imagine who you are ten years from now. What do you want for the world? What extraordinary goal do you want to achieve? When you have a vivid picture of your future, just fill in the blank: In the year 2021, I will become the first person to_______________.” Responses will be judged on creativity, originality, and determination.
“Find the Future: The Game” also contains a unique social component. Right now, you can visit the game’s website to read and vote on entrants’ responses to the initial query about where they see themselves in ten years. Then, once the game has been “unlocked” by the participants in the overnight event, individual responses to the writing prompts for each artifact will appear online as well.
Understandably, few details are available about the identity of the 100 hidden artifacts. Information on NYPL’s website does identify at least one of the artifacts: a copy of the Declaration of Independence in Thomas Jefferson’s handwriting. Another rumored artifact is a cat-paw adorned letter opener originally owned by Charles Dickens.
The “Write All Night” lock-in event for “Find the Future: The Game” begins on May 20, 2011 at 8 p.m and continues until 6 a.m. the next day. On May 21, people in New York City and worldwide will have the opportunity to play the game on their smartphones, computers, or in person at the Schwarzman Building or other NYPL branch locations. Players have until April 21 to register for a chance to take part in the overnight event. The online component of the game will continue until the end of 2011 and will be free to play. To register and learn more, visit the game’s website at http://game.nypl.org/.
“Find the Future: The Game” was designed for NYPL by renowned game designer Jane McGonical, along with Natron Baxter and Playmatics. McGonical, author of Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World and creative director of social adventure game company Social Chocolate, is a highly regarded speaker and innovator in the gaming community. To learn more about McGonical and some of her other projects, visit http://janemcgonical.com.
Foursquare Badge Commemorates Library’s 100th Birthday
Another component of NYPL’s “Find the Future” Centennial celebration is a new Foursquare badge. Named the “Find the Future Centennial Badge,” it is the first Foursquare badge associated with a public library. To acquire the badge, Foursquare users simply need to check in at one of the 90 NYPL branch locations.
Users who acquire the new commemorative badge will receive a one-year Foursquare Friends membership with the Library, which will qualify them for benefits such as monthly ticket drawings for special events, special tours of the Map Division, and the chance to get a photo taken in front of the Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III Trustees Room fireplace. During the Centennial weekend celebration the Library will also offer additional Foursquare perks.
NYPL’s Foursquare promotion began on March 30 and continues until the end of June. It already has produced positive results. Only a week after announcing the new Foursquare badge, the Library’s number of Twitter followers had increased from 114,000 to 118,000 and its number of Facebook fans had increased from 30,000 to 31,000. Furthermore, just two days into the campaign, the number of mentions for the Library on Twitter had increased by 148 percent over the previous month.