What's in the Box?

Back in 2009, a video appeared on Youtube titled "What's in the Box?"  This video detailed a short journey of an individual after they obtain a box and use it to cause some sort of disruption in a spiraling cloud around a tower.

This video was the beginning of an ARG (Alternate Reality Game).   These games are played by hundreds, sometimes thousands, of people.  With the internet, these players communicate each other, discussing leads, solutions, and theories to solving an ARG.  At it's core, an ARG is a mystery game.  Clues are hidden across the internet and at time, even real life.  Some famous ARGs have been made for Halo 2 and for the Dark Knight (officially endorsed).  In the Halo ARG, there was a website about beekeeping that existed (ilovebees.com) but slowly got corrupted by an AI trying to reach out to the outside world, calling for help.  Within the website's code, people found audio clips, some of which had to be played in reverse or could be opened with an image viewer to display a new clue.  Tons of hidden messages existed that lead players to discover more and more about this AI and what was happening.  in one part of the game, players were given 210 coordinates and time codes, which referred to pay phones and the time when they would ring.  Plays had to seek out the phones (across the world) and answer prerecorded questions to receive new clues.  One player waited at a pay phone in Floria while hurricane Francis was minutes away in order to continue the game's progression.  In the end, players were rewarded with the locations of four cinemas where they could play Halo 2 early.

What's in the box has become one of the biggest ongoing ARGs to date.  The creator, TimSmit, created the game to gain publicity for his film idea and to showcase his special effects prowess. For me to explain this ARG in its entirety would require a days worth of typing.  The complexity and amount of clues and theories are beyond any previous ARG's attempts.  Below, I have listed some links in case you are interested in learning more, and helping to solve the mystery of What's in the Box.

Original YouTube Video (notice: human audio track was removed from this version, check wiki for additional information)
http://youtu.be/IU_reTt7Hj4

I Love Bees wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Love_Bees


ARG Wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternate_reality_game

Dark Knight Arg
http://batman.wikibruce.com/Home

Current Status of What's in The Box ARG
http://wikibruce.com/2009/04/a-big-box-of-babel-research/

Whats in the box website:
http://www.whatsinthebox.nl/