Chain Factor: Addictive Puzzle Game, Numb3rs ARG

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 17th 2007 at 6:05PM }

Casual gamers with some time to kill (actually, casual gamers are, by definition, people with time to kill) would be wise to check out the latest distraction taking the nation by storm - Chain Factor. This simple, Connect Four lookalike is enough to captivate numerophiles and puzzle enthusiasts for hours on end. But behind the pastel discs and perky staccato chimes, there's ~~free advertising for CBS~~ a pseudo-alternate reality game just waiting to be discovered.

The game was the focus of last week's episode of Numb3rs on CBS. The episode featured it's own fictional ARG, where one pesky competitor was murdering other contestants to win a million dollars. The killer, named Spectre, wanted the money to create his own game, Chain Factor. Shortly after the episode, many Numb3rs fans and forum-goers started receiving emails from Spectre, telling them to play his game. We suggest that everyone set up a spam filter for incoming messages from serial killers - a lesson we learned during that whole Phoenix incident.

As a puzzle game, it's pretty charming, and extremely addictive. However, you might find the ARG elements a bit more engrossing. Players have been finding codes which will unlock in-game bonuses and further mysteries about the game's programmer all over the place: On billboards, TV ads, in error codes that appear under certain conditions in the game, even hidden in the episode of Numb3rs which introduced the game.

If ARG's aren't your thing, the standalone puzzle game is still pretty captivating. We'd definitely recommend it over, you know, getting murdered.

[Via ARGNet]

Tags: ARG, Chain Factor, chain-factor, ChainFactor, Numb3rs

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

sakvadorwii @ Nov 18th 2007 12:09AM

ERROR 001

LEVEL 1 / CODE NNN

* MEDIA MATRIX
* s, this printout is unreadable - i'm missing half the entries in the
* locations column...
* -F

* Yes, actually it would be useful if you could go out and confirm that
* these are up:
* LA Century N/L E/O Aviation - should be obvious.
* 1815 Hawthorne 90278 - not sure about this one, you may have to
* look around a bit.
* /s

* can't wait to see your mad media jamming skillz
* -F

* We're going to put Primacy to shame - not just sticking up a few
* posters but appropriating the media machine on a grand scale.
* /s

strange error message

mr nimblewick (SegaDF - Jogurt Ring) @ Nov 18th 2007 1:21AM

This is a really fun game. Thanks, Joystiq!

dylan @ Nov 18th 2007 2:35AM

haha, I broke it and got some of that, it looks like someones IM conversation

ERROR 037

LEVEL 3 / CODE DTP

* POWER / ENERGY COSTS
* ok, i've read the spec 5x and it still makes no sense, some of this
* looks like its cut and paste from the Primacy design, but CF isn't
* a virtual world, so wtf? a little help?
* -F

* This game is a chance to do it right - everything they +said+ they
* wanted to do in Primacy: user-generated economy, fractal markets,
* open-source currency. When push came to shove they threw it all
* away in favor of corporate sponsorship and in-game advertising and
* cheeseball sweepstakes. Now we make them pay for that mistake.
* /s

* um, yeah, that's great, but meanwhile i have to code the power
* energy costs, and this really isn't helping...

Dio @ Nov 18th 2007 4:35AM

High score: 104,182 =/

ERROR 003

LEVEL 3 / CODE NNN

* UPPER BOUND FOR BASIC SCORES?
* ok i've got to stop playtesting and start coding. i'm starting to see
* colored discs everywhere i look. do we know the upper limit on
* basic mode scoring? i'm thinking about memory allocation...
* -F

* No we don't. Figuring that out is the players' job.
*
* Here's another to do: find someone in the Minneapolis area to check
* on the OOH which should be up: 494 and hwy 77 - might need some
* searching around.
* /s

StalkerB @ Nov 18th 2007 7:39AM

Score - 172,096, level 25

ERROR 004

LEVEL 4 / CODE NNN

* ++ Media Matrix Checklist ++
*
* TO DO: Determine sms character limit for cbs sports mobile alerts
* [DONE - code should appear in 11/17 alert]
*
* TO DO: Star Trek.com, Showbuzz.com, CBSNews.com
*
* TO DO: Check on SF OOH: Geary & 25

StalkerB @ Nov 18th 2007 8:03AM

Score - 303,204, level 42, chain 10, gametype power

ERROR 041

LEVEL 4 / CODE DTP

* NAME IDEAS
* wow, i keep playtesting this thing instead of coding, i think i'm way
* addicted LOL. have you thought about other names, what about
* somethig like numberspheres? or numberdropz? somehow
* "chainfactor" just doesn't sound like a successful brand to me.
* -F

* First of all the name is Chain Factor, two words, and it's not open
* for debate. Secondly, it's not a brand, it's not a product, it's not
* another piece of disposable consumer trash. Why do I feel like this
* isn't sinking in with you?
* /s

* Ok, ok, sorry.
* -F