Editing Alternate reality game (section)

=== Rise of the self-supporting ARG ===
The first major attempt (other than EA's failed ''[[Majestic (video game)|Majestic]]'') to create a self-supporting ARG was ''[[Perplex City]]'', which launched in 2005 after a year's worth of teasers. The ARG offered a $200,000 prize to the first player to locate the buried Receda Cube and was funded by the sale of puzzle cards. The first season of the game ended in January 2007, when Andy Darley found the Receda Cube at Wakerly Great Wood in Northamptonshire, UK. Mind Candy, the production company, has also produced a board game related to the ARG and plans to continue it with a second season beginning 1 March 2007. This model was delayed till 1 June, and has again, been delayed to an unspecified date. Mind Candy's acceptance of corporate sponsorship and venture capital suggests that the puzzle cards alone are not enough to fully fund the ARG at this time.

In June 2006, Catching the Wish launched from an in-game website about comic books based on its predecessor, 2003's ''Chasing the Wish''. 42 Entertainment released ''[[Cathy's book|Cathy's Book]]'', by [[Sean Stewart]] and [[Jordan Weisman]], in October 2006, shifting the central medium of this ARG from the internet to the printed page. The young-adult novel contains an "evidence packet" and expands its universe through websites and working phone numbers, but is also a stand-alone novel that essentially functions as an individually playable ARG. Neither the cost of creating the book nor sales figures are available (although it made both American<ref>{{cite news |title=Bestseller List |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/12/books/bestseller/1112bestchildren.html?ex=1172120400&en=be7b8042fc5994ad&ei=5070 |work=The New York Times |date=12 November 2006 |access-date=20 February 2007}}</ref> and British bestseller lists) to determine whether the project was successfully self-funded.