Comments on: WORKING. HAMMERS. SWEATING. POWER. CIRCUITS.

WORKING. HAMMERS. SWEATING. POWER. CIRCUITS.

cobra_high_tigers — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:39:57 -0800

This is my Milwaukee (SLYTP-esque)

No, I have no clue what it is either.

By: Damn That Television

Damn That Television — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:49:50 -0800

Just watched this over at the SA forums. It's almost certainly a viral for something. That being said, it is about as weird as anything I've ever seen. Funny too, but mostly just bizarre.

By: sveskemus

sveskemus — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:52:41 -0800

Yeah, I was thinking viral ad or (very weird) ARG rabbit hole.

By: doctor_negative

doctor_negative — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:57:48 -0800

Just remember to take your rebreather and a flare gun Words to live by.

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:01:56 -0800

VEGETARIAN OPTION This reminds me quite a bit of Look Around You.

By: dhartung

dhartung — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:20:05 -0800

At first I thought, Milwaukee doesn't have a Tourism Commission, it has a Convention and Visitors Bureau. But then again, the CVB is a bit strange too.

By: SJLaw

SJLaw — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:20:11 -0800

this is great

By: Senor Cardgage

Senor Cardgage — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:20:45 -0800

Now I really want a Ham Burger (barring that, a "Hammed Burger") (possibly a "Steamed Ham")

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:24:11 -0800

Is that a celeriac?

By: These Premises Are Alarmed

These Premises Are Alarmed — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:41:31 -0800

Did you call the number?

By: owtytrof

owtytrof — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:43:58 -0800

*FACT Do not remove the M-rotor. Do not push on the M-rotor in an atempt to re-seat during spin-up or cross-spin. In the event of a successful re-seat, catalogue "leaks" (real and anticipated) and jettison all affiliated personnel. Do not feel upset or confused - the re-seat was successful. effing bizarre, that

By: Damn That Television

Damn That Television — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:44:37 -0800

No, but a bunch of people at SA have. Apparently one is just a voicemail, but there's a second number where you can talk to a representative, and if you play along, you can ask him questions about the movie and he'll stay in character.

By: jrb223

jrb223 — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:50:53 -0800

Milwaukee's Canning District in that video looked an awful lot like Bleecker Street here in New York City...

By: owtytrof

owtytrof — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:52:52 -0800

Also: Countdown timer in the top-right of the page(about 55 days, 22 hours), link to www.syndyne.com that is a useless page with only a "contact" email addy and a link to itself, and Tale of Games Studios in the video credits make me think this is leading to some kind of video game announcement.

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:01:19 -0800

No, wait, I think that's fennel.

By: malphigian

malphigian — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:01:53 -0800

They also thank The Mountain Goats in the credits, so.... I don't know, but it's notable! Whatever it is in ad for, I like it.

By: kolophon

kolophon — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:02:22 -0800

probably what a tourist ad would look like after a lovecraftesque catastrophe

By: malphigian

malphigian — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:04:02 -0800

owtyrof: Tales of Games is the guy who made Barkley, Shut up and Jam, Gaiden -- which while kind of it's own amazing thing, is not a real game studio.

By: Hachijuhachi

Hachijuhachi — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:07:00 -0800

@ boo-radley You and I are going to get along just fine. Look Around You is one of my favorite things ever.

By: Civil_Disobedient

Civil_Disobedient — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:08:53 -0800

Here's a somewhat-related video about Halifax.

By: desjardins

desjardins — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:14:33 -0800

I can't listen to it at work, but after watching the first minute of it, I can definitively say that none of it was filmed in Milwaukee. (born and raised there, lived there for 32 years)

By: schleppo

schleppo — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:15:00 -0800

Also in the credits are thanks to Murderfist, a NYC-based improv comedy troupe. Other individuals thanked in the credits are members of this group, so it could just be a video by and for them.

By: desjardins

desjardins — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:17:35 -0800

Milwaukee's Canning District no such thing

By: eschatfische

eschatfische — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:18:03 -0800

This is completely awesome. Despite actually having nothing to do with Milwaukee, the strange tonal disparity between the big-city NYC locations, the "No, really, we have culture! And famiies!" jokes, the disconcerting J-Pop and the absurdist, post-apocalyptic vibe actually captures the feeling of being in Milwaukee. 10 years or so ago, Milwaukee woke up from its rust belt roots, rebuilt itself, became genuinely worldly and urbane, but never shook the vibe of the elements carried over from the city that it used to be. I'm not sure you could use another city for this kind of gag. I love Milwaukee.

By: desjardins

desjardins — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:24:10 -0800

However, the organizations listed at 10:18 are all real, except "The Jagoda Museum Center," which I've never heard of and neither has Google. (Also, VWM Post is a typo, surely meant to be UWM Post.)

By: Damn That Television

Damn That Television — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:26:17 -0800

The more I watch this, the more detail I notice, like a weird fever dream that you stop and think about. It also gets funnier upon repeat viewings.

By: desjardins

desjardins — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:26:25 -0800

absurdist, post-apocalyptic vibe actually captures the feeling of being in Milwaukee what Milwaukee woke up from its rust belt roots, rebuilt itself, became genuinely worldly and urbane, but never shook the vibe of the elements carried over from the city that it used to be. OK, I'll agree with you there. We still like beer.

By: raster

raster — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:40:07 -0800

Ok, before any rumors get started... I swear I had nothing to do with it!!

By: dhartung

dhartung — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:51:34 -0800

I can definitively say that none of it was filmed in Milwaukee What, don't you regularly ride the Milwaukee subway and Circle Line? You know, around Milwaukee?

By: owtytrof

owtytrof — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:54:25 -0800

Thanks for setting me straight malphigian. I should have checked that instead of assuming it was the name of one of the myriad small-games-studios-with-strange-names. I knew I recognized the name, and that was the best category my mind put it into right away. Still curious about that countdown timer, though.

By: hexxed

hexxed — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:57:04 -0800

What, don't you regularly ride the Milwaukee subway and Circle Line? You know, around Milwaukee? I do but we call it 894

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:59:19 -0800

Fennel.

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:07:19 -0800

How did they get a camera into my dreams?

By: desjardins

desjardins — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:49:34 -0800

I'm hoping for a followup post on Monday, 12:01 AM EST.

By: ferdydurke

ferdydurke — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:56:30 -0800

This Milwaukee-centric video from Barack Obama makes me miss my old hometown.

By: Manhasset

Manhasset — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:17:36 -0800

Genius. And yes, it's Fennel. I counted five of them. One for every star I'd give this video.

By: quin

quin — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:21:32 -0800

I can't believe they mentioned Sector 21; that is so not cool. I love my town, but there are some things that are just better left undiscussed. Every time it gets back in the public consciousness, all sorts of kids decide that the warding runes don't apply to them, and they slip in, and then a couple of weeks later we have to send in the cleanup crews. It's hugely expensive, and it creates a massive drain on our NBCS (Nuclear Biological Chemical Spiritual) resources. Still, I have to give them some credit for reminding people to always carry their flareguns. I can't believe that it hasn't become a mandatory law, like seat-belts and anti-dazzle goggles.

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:27:57 -0800

I got up to "Completely foritifed apartments" until I lost it. Brilliant.

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:41:26 -0800

Man, I hope (tiny hope) this is something awesome for Fallout 3.

By: drezdn

drezdn — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:57:28 -0800

This is what you get when you hire the people from "Look Around You" to promote your city.

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 15:03:45 -0800

from the makers of robot lawyer?

By: niles

niles — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 16:30:02 -0800

In the Children's Activity Center, one of the posters has the words "Jessica [and? can't tell, more words] years old. My father was taken by Blackstar for a problem he did. I am sorry Blackstar." Jagoda, as in Jagoda Museum, evidently means "berry" or "strawberry". And what's with the plant thing introduce when talking about family trees? The same poster has an coloring book style image of it with the phrase "These belong underground" and "Where is yours?" Then the plant (root? tuber??) shows up in the jobs section, where it is again put "under" (a bench). Ok, and here's Blackstar again, where "many young professionals" spend time. Ooh. Freeze frame..rewind..aaand...pause. "Fact. Do not remove the m-rotor. Do not push the m-rotor in an attempt to re-seat during spin-up or cross-spin in the event of a successful re-seat, catalogue "leaks"(real and anticipated) and jettison all affiliated personnel. Do not feel upset or confused - the re-seat was successful." Weird. Ok, here's another poster from the Children's Activity Center. It's the COOL DOG one, and it's on the church steps in the teenager section. Also another reference to "hoop it up", which was on the concert listing towards the beginning. It was something like a reference to Remember the Titans and 9/11. God seed fragments? Ok, sure. And look, there's that plant root again. And in the slideshow, here's Blackstar again. Who/What is that anyway? Don't know, but current and former residents get "Dark Dollars" from them, so hey, that's good. Looks like the give out jobs housing too. Hmm. They made a new God? That's hot. More plant-esque things. The last one has glowing letters, but I can't make them out. Hey, wait..maybe those tuber-things that belong under ground are god seed? Dunno. Ruby? Ok. What's the dew (do?)? Ok, what's with the weird emphasis on HAMburger? Are they just ham sandwiches now? The credits song references flax seed, which was mentioned previously as Milwaukee's biggest export. Well, looks interesting. Anyone else catch anything?

By: niles

niles — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 16:42:14 -0800

Ok, something awful says it's fennel bulb, a.k.a flax seed. Evidently it's featured in the Japanese anime "Blackstar no Blackstar" (which is at the end of the video), but that phrase doesn't seem to exists outside that page. Google hasn't heard of it, and I can't figure out when that section was added to Wikipedia. Recently, perhaps?

By: boo_radley

boo_radley — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 16:47:17 -0800

god DAMMIT we knew it was fennel HOURS ago. We won't crack this open if we ~~keep goi ng in circles&lt/string>~~.

By: niles

niles — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:29:21 -0800

Heh. I saw those comments and subsequently disregarded and forgot them since I had no clue what fennel is or what y'all were talking about. In other news, I think I'm going to try to con my brother into coming with me tomorrow to the address they figured out over in SA. I knew living near Milwaukee would pay off some day.

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:31:52 -0800

Fuck something awful, I said it was fennel in this very thread.

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:34:00 -0800

Also, fennel has nothing to do with flax seed. Fennel seeds, yes. Anisette? Biscotti?

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:37:32 -0800

Fnord.

By: malphigian

malphigian — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:39:47 -0800

A documentary from the same folks: Midwest Witches: "Hoopeston's" Hoopeston The doesn't seem to help clarify anything for me.

By: graventy

graventy — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 21:04:12 -0800

This is fascinating. And I'd never heard of Look Around You before, so thanks!

By: Navelgazer

Navelgazer — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 14:08:36 -0800

Fact: The "Milwaukee Margarita" substitutes vermouth for tequila. That's about where I lost my shit. Also, the blatantness of using NYC - singular landmarks and all, to stand in for Milwaukee simply amazes me. Later: "Teens. You're moving to Milwaukee." I don't know what it is about this whole thing, maybe just the Wes-Anderson-does-Resident-Evil feel to all of it, but I'm fascinated and confused.

By: burnmp3s

burnmp3s — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 09:11:11 -0800

There's now apparently a Wiki about it now.

By: sveskemus

sveskemus — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 11:29:21 -0800

Here's another wiki courtesy of the fine folks at Unfiction which has a great thread on the game.

By: desjardins

desjardins — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:21:28 -0800

Related YT video (according to the wiki)

By: desjardins

desjardins — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:36:41 -0800

How'd they manage a press release on an (apparently legit) website? What happens when the real visitor's bureau catches wind of this?

By: sveskemus

sveskemus — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:42:22 -0800

desjardins: "What happens when the real visitor's bureau catches wind of this?"

In recent days, a video entitled "This is My Milwaukee" has been circulating via the internet. VISIT Milwaukee is not associated with this video and is focused on redirecting attention toward continuing to promote Milwaukee as a prime tourist and convention destination. We continue to promote the entertainment, celebration and fun offered in our jewel of the great lakes, Milwaukee! The "This is My Milwaukee" video was created as part of an Alternate Reality Game by Synydyne. It is not associated with any legitimate tourism entity in Milwaukee. While we think the video is clever, we have so much more to offer visitors then just flak seed. And our Historic Third Ward has now replaced the Canning District as one of our must-see stops in Milwaukee.

(source)

By: sveskemus

sveskemus — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:44:00 -0800

Also, a lot of websites will send out your press release for a fee. And they don't fact-check them. :)

By: desjardins

desjardins — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 15:06:23 -0800

I knew exactly where they were talking about, but had no idea it was ever called the Canning District. Huh.

By: desjardins

desjardins — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 15:07:41 -0800

What's their obsession with canning, anyway?

By: sveskemus

sveskemus — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:47:00 -0800

Woohoo! The information pack is here!