I am formally announcing the development of two alternate reality games for the Chase Michael DeBarlo franchise.

What is an alternate reality game (ARG)? An ARG is a type of game that intertwines the real world with created game space. Two of my Mystery Games of the Month, Missing and Evidence: The Last Ritual, are considered alternate reality games since the player is sent seemingly real email and must hunt down clues on the web. There are also quite a few hacker-based games on the internet which have storylines that revolve around breaking into websites (controlled by the game developer, of course). For more information about ARGs, check out unfiction.com.

To be officially developed by R&R Developments, I've been designing an ARG for my second novel, System of the Dead, for some time. However, it makes no sense to keep that on hold while SoD awaits publication, Thus, I am designing a smaller ARG for Deadly Heirs to be released in early 2007.

The games are being developed to complement the books. While some information, such as character profiles, will be easily accessible, there will be mysteries to solve in order access deaper details about the books.

More information will be available in the coming months.