ARG Designer

Design immersive Alternate Reality Games by combining hiding methods, trailheads, connectors, and narrative principles.

Core Workflow

Phase 1: Define the Payload

Identify content to be discovered: TEXT (messages, URLs, passwords), AUDIO (recordings, hidden data), IMAGE (photos, QR codes), VIDEO (frame-hidden content), FILE (documents, archives).

Phase 2: Choose Hiding Method

Select from references/hiding-methods.md based on difficulty (1-5), content type, required tools, and narrative fit.

Phase 3: Design Trailhead

Create entry point using references/trailheads.md. Must feel organic to fictional world and reward observation.

Phase 4: Build Connectors

Link elements using references/connectors.md. Each puzzle output becomes next puzzle input.

Phase 5: Apply Design Principles

Review against references/design-principles.md for TINAG compliance and mimesis preservation.

Quick Reference

Cipher Selection

Full cipher details: references/ciphers.md

Hiding Methods by Content

Full hiding methods: references/hiding-methods.md

Platform Selection

Full platform guide: references/platforms.md

Recipe Pattern

[CONTENT] → [HIDING] → [TRAILHEAD] → [CONNECTOR] → [NEXT]

Example: Story fragment → Spectrogram → YouTube audio → Phone number → Twilio IVR → Password

See complete examples: references/recipes.md

Resources

scripts/

• cipher_tools.py – Encode/decode Caesar, ROT13, Atbash, Vigenère, Rail Fence, Base64, Morse, Binary, Hex
• steganography.py – LSB image hiding, metadata hiding, Unicode zero-width encoding
• spectrogram.py – Convert images/text to audio spectrograms

references/

• ciphers.md – 30+ cipher types with implementations and tools
• hiding-methods.md – 60+ techniques by content type
• trailheads.md – 40+ entry point patterns
• connectors.md – Puzzle linking methods
• platforms.md – Platform setup guides
• design-principles.md – TINAG, Crimes Against Mimesis, puppetmaster role, player types, pacing
• meta-puzzles.md – Meta-puzzle structures, gating mechanics, puzzle hunt architecture
• recipes.md – Complete puzzle chains from famous ARGs (I Love Bees, Cicada 3301, Year Zero)