A strange thing in the post..
Yesterday, I received a package at work, addressed to me. My assistant opened it - a standard brown-paper photographs envelope - and looked worried. The contents were weird and scary-looking: a photocopied military report of some sort with a small brown envelope stapled to it. She looked at me: "ugh! What's in the envelope!? Anthrax?"
We called the post room, being new and not really knowing what the protocol is for Weird Mail, who said, "oh no we scan everything before it gets to you. It won't be anything dodgy, you can send it back down to us for investigation though if you like", so we did.
I put it down to random lunatic mailings to large national broadcaster corporations.
On telling this to Matt on his return to his desk, he exclaimed, "it was addressed to you? It must be an ARG!". An Alternate Reality Game? This hadn't occurred to me, what with the whole thing being geniunely loony-looking.
Then, today, I hear from the chaps over at Mint Digital that they received similar. We retrieved the thing from the post room, and opened the anthrax envelope: it's a prepaid SIM.
Matt stuck it in his phone, but couldn't find anything of any interest on it. Seems to be a prepaid with no loaded charge on it, so you can't call the voicemail, which is presumably where anything of interest is if this is an ARG.
I'm not going to find out: it's going straight in the bin. Nearly gave poor Carys a heart attack, and we both felt compelled to wash our hands after handling this stupid thing. Anyone else blighted with this?
UPDATE: John had the patience to stick with it, and write about it, despite his misgivings about writing about viral marketing, heh. It doesn't seem to be getting more exciting, though...
Please forgive my stupidity, but what's an 'ARG'? :P
Posted by: Nick | November 13, 2007 at 11:01
Forgive MY stupidity for sticking with acronyms!
I've fixed the post; an ARG is an Alternate Reality Game...
Posted by: Alice | November 13, 2007 at 11:04
It looks like an ARG for Crysis, the soon-to-be released game from EA. The bit about North Korean military on an island is the hint.
Posted by: pauln | November 13, 2007 at 11:21
"it's going straight in the bin"
Never put anything in the bin !
Everything can be useful... one day :)
(ask my garage)
Posted by: KaG | November 13, 2007 at 11:37
John Walker got one as well.
Posted by: sander | November 13, 2007 at 11:48
"It looks like an ARG for Crysis, the soon-to-be released game from EA. The bit about North Korean military on an island is the hint."
That is correct. It's just viral marketing for Crysis. I've seen it on a couple other blogs.
Posted by: Brian | November 13, 2007 at 12:00
Yeah, it's a Crysis viral, and it seems to be generating a universal meh along with a dab of scorn for the appalling writing.
Rock Paper Shotgun got it too:
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/?p=562
Posted by: David Hayward | November 13, 2007 at 12:06
I got one. My parents got it, they must've picked up a mailing address from my DNS WHOIS. It freaked them out a bit.
Posted by: Dan Hon | November 13, 2007 at 12:19
Ah, thanks!
Looks like it might be turning into an 'FMP' - 'Failed Marketing Ploy'. ;)
Posted by: Nick | November 13, 2007 at 12:30
Dear me, what a mess! :)
Posted by: Alice | November 13, 2007 at 13:55
I bet the poor game designer who's budget for sending a SIM with actual money in it was cut is pulling his hair out reading this. :)
Posted by: Sulka | November 13, 2007 at 15:05
At least it's not as bad as the infamous failed PSP viral campaign...yet!
Posted by: Nick | November 13, 2007 at 17:27
Make sure to extract the numbers from the SIM card into your contact list.
Posted by: Patient | November 13, 2007 at 20:20
And after I went to all that trouble sending it to you Crys. Do you realise how hard it was for me to get your address?
:-(
OK, that's all a lie, I admit.
Posted by: Mr Tom | November 13, 2007 at 20:56
Yeah, I realise I may be upsetting who's in charge of this, and all, but sending something quite so dodgy-looking to my work address - where all manner of evil stuff is sent on a regular basis, it's a natural target - well, it didn't fit happily :)
Posted by: Alice | November 13, 2007 at 21:48
"ugh! What's in the envelope!? Anthrax?"
this seems like a natural reaction? I must be terribly old fashioned or overly trusting. Or somebody has been watching too much TV.
Posted by: Eric the Red | November 13, 2007 at 21:51
"ugh! What's in the envelope!? Anthrax?"
Right, that would be due to the highly secretive work you do for the CIA then?
Posted by: Rob | November 13, 2007 at 22:08
You're running an ARG and this is the trailhead. I claim my 5 quid.
Posted by: Matt | November 13, 2007 at 22:53
DRINK MORE OVALTINE!
Posted by: Sudden Device | November 13, 2007 at 22:56
Damnit, rumbled.
Meanwhile, Kotaku has picked up on this, and it seems most of the commenters there think that we a) genuinely thought it was anthrax and b) put it in the bin for the cleaners to take away.
Bless.
Posted by: Alice | November 13, 2007 at 23:07