Films of every era reflect the concerns and fears of Western society. The acceleration of technology, the loss of a concrete world, the uneasy relationship with humans and ever increasing complex machines are inducing a fear of losing the ability to discern reality. The reality of ideas from science and the world around are woven into the narratives that we use to explain life.The films we watch reflect our hopes and fears and as the fears increase so do films with a shared theme of alternative realities. To know reality and search for the true Self is the job of the hero and the protagonist in recent alternative reality films.

Alternate Reality Games (ARG) have been one of the first and most prominent viral marketing tools. In a dynamic marketing world, where new practices appear every other day and seemingly ‘old’ practices lose their appeal very quickly, Blizzard Entertainment – a leading video game developer – gained much attention regarding its marketing strategy promoting the release of a new playable hero called ‘Sombra’ for their online game Overwatch, which is the third most-played game in the world with over 20 million unique users. For the campaign, the publisher used in-game hints as well as short clips with further hints (such as ASCII algorithms and hidden QR codes), which had to be decrypted by the users. This virtual scavenger hunt even included seemingly real websites of fictional companies with telephone numbers that could be called leading to further hints. In this paper we take a closer look at this particular campaign that has been praised internationally for its marketing both pre- and post-release. However, parts of the Overwatch community have complained on various online platforms about numerous aspects of the ARG experience. The paper serves two main purposes. Firstly, we explore the ARG participants’ experiences in terms of their customer satisfaction. Secondly, from a theoretical viewpoint, we investigate the applicability of the expectancy disconfirmation theory in this particular case. Thus, this paper may assist future ARG developers in creating engaging content by providing insights concerning the satisfaction of its participants. [... from the introduction]

Alternate Reality Games (ARG) have been one of the first and most prominent viral marketing tools. In a dynamic marketing world, where new practices appear every other day and seemingly ‘old’ practices lose their appeal very quickly, Blizzard Entertainment – a leading video game developer – gained much attention regarding its marketing strategy promoting the release of a new playable hero called ‘Sombra’ for their online game Overwatch, which is the third most-played game in the world with over 20 million unique users. For the campaign, the publisher used in-game hints as well as short clips with further hints (such as ASCII algorithms and hidden QR codes), which had to be decrypted by the users. This virtual scavenger hunt even included seemingly real websites of fictional companies with telephone numbers that could be called leading to further hints. In this paper we take a closer look at this particular campaign that has been praised internationally for its marketing both pre- and post-release. However, parts of the Overwatch community have complained on various online platforms about numerous aspects of the ARG experience. The paper serves two main purposes. Firstly, we explore the ARG participants’ experiences in terms of their customer satisfaction. Secondly, from a theoretical viewpoint, we investigate the applicability of the expectancy disconfirmation theory in this particular case. Thus, this paper may assist future ARG developers in creating engaging content by providing insights concerning the satisfaction of its participants. [... from the introduction]

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Libraries exist around us and for most of us they are a part of our every day life. But how often do we stop and think about their meaning? Libraries in fiction are usually not the center of the narrative, they play a role quietly in the background and offer a backcloth to the story. Yet they are a vital part of the story. Without them a big part of the magic in the stories would be lost. And what is their role in our lives? What do the libraries mean to the books they harbor, the readers who seek them out and society in which they have their axiomatic role? This essay’s focus is my story “Between the shelves”, which is about the young girl Julia and the mysterious passageway she discovers in her local library. Here she finds shelf after shelf with strange-looking books. They all seem to have peculiar titles, one of them is When Napoleon won the battle of Waterloo. Driven by her curiosity she starts reading the book, and soon finds herself inside it, living the battle. The library is not just a building, it is also a hub where different alternative realities can be reached through the books. In this essay I will compare the topics of my story, such as the interpretation of the library (both as a physical and mental place), the sense of mystery, interpretation of the librarians etc. to other fiction. I will compare these topics both with books for adults and for children to see if the interpretation differs.

En vanlig metod inom arkitektonisk visualisering idag är produktion av stillbilder som skapas med 3D-modelleringsprogram. Med sådan avancerad teknik blir det enkelt och effektivt att styra och manipulera vad som visas på stillbilderna, vilket ökar säljbarheten av arkitektoniska projekt. Men vad händer om vi tar det ett steg längre, med hjälp av Alternative Reality-teknik? AR eller Augmented Reality kan vara en annan användbar visualiseringsmetod, men vilka konsekvenser kommer det med, speciellt för de icke-professionella användarna? Om vi inte tänker på vilka konsekvenser det kan ha, på samma sätt som med stillbilder, blir det bara ett annat verktyg för att öka säljbarheten för arkitektoniska projekt. Denna studie kommer därför att försöka svara på frågan ”Hur implementerar vi AR inom arkitektonisk visualisering på ett sätt som är gynnsamt för de icke-professionella användarna?”De centrala begreppen som bör tas till hänsyn när man talar om arkitektonisk visualisering är autonomi, tid, medborgarnas tidiga medverkan, ocularcentrism och konceptet av verklighet. Eftersom arkitekturen måste bero på vardagens sammanhang, bör visualiseringen inte stänga av världen för att skapa ett fint ideal som bara fungerar som falsk annonsering. Att stänga ut medborgarnas röster leder också till att skapa en metaforisk mur mellan människorna inom fältet och människorna utanför, vilket leder till förlust av utbyte av insikter och perspektiv. En av rösterna som talar starkt mot den autonoma synen är Jeremy Till, hans ord från boken Architecture depends kommer därför att spela en central roll i det teoretiska perspektivet av denna studie.För att svara på frågorna i studien kommer observationslinsen vändas till både den professionella sidan och den icke-professionella sidan angående ämnet Alternative Reality inom arkitektur. Detta görs via metoden cyber-etnografi, där Internet kommer att vara det öppna fältet att observera. Potentialerna för AR som uttrycks av de professionella kommer att användas för att jämföras med de icke-professionellas perspektiv och oron. Resultaten av observationerna kommer att användas till ett förslag av en AR-applikation, vilket är denna studies bidrag till diskussionen av vilka sätt AR kan genomföras för de icke-professionella användarnas skull. / A common method within architectural visualization today is the production of still images made with 3D-modeling software. With such advanced technology, it is made easy and efficient to control and manipulate what is shown on those still images, increasing the salability of architectural projects. But what if we take it a step further, using alternative reality technologies? AR, or Augmented Reality can be another useful visualization method, but what implications does it come with, especially for the non-professional users? If we do not consider the impacts it might have, similarly to still images, it will just turn into another tool to increase the salability of architectural projects. This study will therefore seek to answer the question of “How do we implement AR within architectural visualization in a way that is beneficial for the non-professional users?”The central concepts to consider when talking about architectural visualization are autonomy, time, early involvement of citizens, ocularcentrism and the concept of reality. As architecture has to depend on the contexts of our daily lives, the visualization should not shut out the world to create a pretty ideal that only serves as false advertisement. Shutting out the voices of the citizens also serves to create a metaphorical wall between the people within the field and the people outside of it, causing a loss of exchange of insights and perspectives. One of the voices that speak strongly against the autonomous view is Jeremy Till, his words from the book Architecture Depends will therefore play a central role in the theoretical perspective of this study.To answer the questions of this study, the observation lens will be turned to both the professional side and the non-professional side regarding the subject of alternative reality usage within architecture. This is done via the method of cyber-ethnography, in which the Internet will be the open field to observe. The potentials of AR that are expressed by the professionals will be taken to compare to the perspectives and worries of the non-professionals. The results of the observations will be of use towards a proposal of an AR application, which is this study’s contribution to the discussion of which ways AR can be implemented for the sake of the non-professional users.