Juegos de realidad alternativa (ARG) e implicación del

fandom en el universo narrativo de Taylor Swift

Alternate reality games (ARG) and fandom

involvement in Taylor Swift’s narrative

universe

ARTICLE

Universidad Abat Oliba CEU

Lucía Garrido is a graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Abat Oliba CEU University.

She holds a certicate as an expert in Communication Management and Event Planning from

the International School of Protocol and has studied Communication as part of the Exchange

Program at Florida International University. She has the distinction of having organized and

presented the XVII edition of the GoliADs UAO CEU Awards and of having obtained the CEU

Mérit100 scholarship for academic merit. She has worked as an Account Management Trainee

at Havas Media and in Production at the agency La Diferencia.

lgarridor@uao.es

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-7840-2162

Universidad Abat Oliba CEU

Alfonso Freire-Sánchez holds a PhD in Communication Sciences, a Bachelor’s degree in Adver-

tising and Public Relations, and a Bachelor’s degree in Humanities. He has been a collaborating

professor at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, the Open University of Catalonia, and the

ENTI School of the University of Barcelona. He is currently the Director of Studies in Advertising

and Public Relations and an adjunct professor at Abat Oliba CEU University, where he teaches

courses in Creativity, Cinema, and Advertising Writing. He received the Ángel Herrera Award for

the best teaching work (2013-2014) and the FlixOlé-URJC award for the best research article

(2023). He has specialized in audiovisual narrative in cinema, advertising, and video games.

freire3@uao.es

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2082-1212

RECIBIDO: 2023-10-19 / ACEPTADO: 2024-03-12

Lucía Garrido-Rodríguez

Alfonso Freire-Sánchez

OBRA DIGITAL, 25, June 2024, pp. 25-40, e-ISSN 2014-5039

DOI: https://doi.org/10.25029/od.2024.404.25

2626

Alternate reality games (ARG) and fandom involvement in Taylor Swift’s

narrative universe

Abstract

The study aims to determine which elements

of singer Taylor Swift’s alternate reality games

(ARGs) are integrated into her communication

strategy and narrative universe. To achieve this,

it proposes extrapolating the characteristics

that ARGs possess according to specialized

literature and applying these variables from

the Swift Universe as a successful ARG model

applicable to commercial brands. The results

demonstrate that the ARG fullls 19 out of 20

dened characteristics, and its communication

strategy revolves around a narrative universe

that has expanded across numerous platforms

and networks over the years.

Key words

Narrative universe, Taylor Swift, alternate reality

games, ARG, personal brand.

Resumen

El estudio tiene el objetivo de determinar qué

elementos de los juegos de realidad alterna

(ARG) de la cantante Taylor Swift se integran en

su estrategia de comunicación y su universo

narrativo. Para ello, se plantea detectar las car-

acterísticas que poseen los ARG según la liter-

atura especializada y extrapolar estas variables

del universo Swift como modelo de éxito de ARG

aplicable a marcas comerciales. Los resultados

demuestran que el ARG cumple con 19/20 car-

acterísticas denidas y que su estrategia de

comunicación pivota en un universo narrativo

que se ha expandido en multitud de platafor-

mas y redes durante años.

Palabras clave

Universo narrativo, Taylor Swift, juegos de real-

idad alterna, ARG, marca personal.

1. INTRODUCTION

Alternate reality games, or ARGs (Alternate

Reality Games), are fragmented, complex, and

gamied narratives (Rojas, 2020) that combine

elements of the real world and virtual elements

to create an immersive and highly participa-

tory game experience (Piñeiro-Otero & Costa,

2015). This typology derives from audiovisu-

al, interactive, and transmedia narratives that

have developed “strategies and mechanisms

to encourage collaboration, participation, and

involvement of audiences” (Gifreu, 2017, p. 7).

In this context, the manuscript aims to inves-

tigate the relationship between the narrative

universe of the American singer Taylor Swift

and alternate reality games (ARGs). This is done

to determine which elements of this interac-

tive storytelling technique are integrated into

the 360º communication strategy and the con-

struction of the Swift universe and are associat-

ed with the personal brand of one of the most

inuential and popular artists in the music and

entertainment industry today.

2. BACKGROUND AND

STATE OF THE ART

An ARG is a narrative that “requires a great deal

of cooperation from participants and articulates

activities inside and outside the media space”

(Scolari, 2013, p.265). It is also categorized as

transmedia because it is “a story composed of

a series of fragments that may be disintegrat-

ed in dierent media; which must be recon-

structed by users” (Villén, 2017, p.125-126), as

if it were a puzzle. The ecosystems where the

narrative develops signicantly impact the plot

and oer interesting options for the player to

enter and participate, especially in those on-

line, as they are “spaces capable of construct-

ing stories that expand ctional worlds” (Villén,

2727

Lucía Garrido-Rodríguez, Alfonso Freire-Sánchez

2017, p.120). These require the construction

of narrative universes where “other elements

such as gamication, transmedia marketing or

the creation of mixed narratives come to life”

(Freire-Sánchez et al., 2023, p.21).

According to Montola (2010), alternative reali-

ty games originated in Life Action Role Player,

traditional board role-playing games that ap-

peared in the 1970s and are characterized by

users adopting a role under certain conditions

and playing characters in a ctional world. They

also point to video games as their origin (Mon-

tes, 2010), especially the adventure games

created by Ron Gilbert, such as Maniac Man-

sion (1988) and Monkey Island (1990), a type

of video game based on exploration and puz-

zle-solving in an interactive environment. Par-

adoxically, according to the acronym and their

origin, these games are based on the principle

or axiom: This is not a game, as their elements

mimic reality and are perfectly integrated into

the universes in which they occur. This means

that the ARG does not look like a game and that

the players forget that they are playing.

Thus, the line between reality and ction is

blurred. ARGs do not fully adhere to the deni-

tion of a game; however, due to the intention-

ality of the design that shapes them in terms

of the relationship that is established between

the dynamics and mechanics that govern it and

the aspiration to win and reach the end of the

question, it maintains similarities and charac-

teristics. However, it should be noted that gam-

ication is, to paraphrase Werbach (2012), the

use of game elements and game design tech-

niques in non-game contexts, and it is also con-

sidered a driver of ARGs. Huotari and Hamari

(2012) claim that this technique transforms

non-game environments into more interactive

and fun spaces. Ramirez (2020), on the other

hand, points out that gamication “has to en-

tertain, engage, build loyalty and enhance the

experience” (p.26). This puts the focus on gen-

erating passion, motivation, and participation.

The internal structure and the elements that

constitute gamication, both mechanics and

dynamics, are largely extrapolable to ARGs,

hence their common denominator. On the one

hand, the most common mechanics that can

be present in both techniques are the accumu-

lation of points, levels, incentives with prizes or

gifts, the existence of leaderboards, the propos-

al of challenges, missions, and challenges that

are achievable and motivational. On the other

hand, as far as the dynamics are concerned,

we talk about, among others, the aspiration to

improve the status oered, the search for re-

wards, and the pursuit of the feeling of achieve-

ment and competition (Contreras, 2018).

The idea behind an ARG - whose narrative usu-

ally revolves around searching for a missing

person, stopping a catastrophe, or solving an

enigma - arises in very early forms of entertain-

ment, such as treasure hunt games or mystery

books (Lungo & Melon, 2016). Likewise, the

rst cinematic embodiment of an ARG is con-

sidered to be in the lm The Game (Fincher,

1997). However, it was not until 2001 that al-

ternative reality games took shape as such and

ocially materialized in the rst ARG in histo-

ry, with The Beast, created by Elan Lee in 2001

and developed by Microsoft and Warner Bros.

to promote the lm A.I.: Articial Intelligence

(Spielberg, 2001). The ARG lasted over three

months and generated millions of interactions

in forums and online communities, as seen in

its platforms and RRSS.

Therefore, it is not surprising that new propos-

als emerged that immediately gained popular-

ity among users due to the results obtained

from the implementation of ARGs in promo-

2828

Alternate reality games (ARG) and fandom involvement in Taylor Swift’s

narrative universe

tional actions and their potential for applica-

tion in other elds (Estanyol et al., 2013). This

was the case of Majestic (2001), Perplex City

(2005), and I Love Bees (2004); the latter was

part of the advertising campaign for the video

game Halo 2 (Bungie, 2004). Some ARGs are on

the Guinness World Records list, such as Why

So Serious? (2007), which was designed by 42

Entertainment to promote the lm The Dark

Knight (Nolan, 2008) and was active for fteen

months, during which more than ten million

people from 75 dierent countries participated

(Piñeiro-Otero & Costa, 2015).

The ARGs evolved and magnied in size, hand

in hand with new technologies and communi-

cation channels up to the present day (Rojas,

2020; Ruíz-García, 2022). Although there are

certain discrepancies among theorists regard-

ing the temporal division of the history of ARGs

(Ruíz-García, 2022), experts agree that the

boom occurred in what they consider the sec-

ond wave, with proposals such as Jejune Insti-

tute (2011), Cicada 3310 (2014) and The Black

Watchmen (2014).

The IGDA (International Game Developers As-

sociation) identies ve general typologies of

alternate reality games (Martin et al., 2006).

Firstly, promotional games are the result of

marketing strategies. They are characterized

by establishing links between the brand and its

followers, which makes them believe that the

game has been designed for them. Due to their

high media impact, promotional games gener-

ate conversations and content that become ad-

vertising content. They are also characterized

by the high interaction, emotional intensity, and

immersion they oer their players.

Secondly, there are product or service games.

These ARGs are products; therefore, something

in return is required to participate. An example

of this typology is Majestic (2001). Another ty-

pology is the single-player ARG, designed for

individual solving of clues and puzzles, which

goes against the dening principles of ARGs

and is, therefore, more of a surrogate for al-

ternate reality games. In contrast, base games,

created entirely by brand fans, can be consid-

ered ARGs in their entirety. These may be whol-

ly original or a continuation of an existing idea

from the brand’s narrative universe. Finally, we

nd educational games designed as a proposal

for a new learning model (Kapp, 2012) due to

their collaborative character.

The typologies identied by the IGDA are not

exclusive. In other words, more than one cat-

egory can be present in an ARG. It should be

added that ARGs are mainly based on three pil-

lars: the narrative component, the action me-

chanics, and community interaction (De Beer &

Bothma, 2016; Aldegani & Caballero, 2022). The

narrative that integrates an ARG is atomized

(Scolari, 2013); that is, it is presented fragment-

ed in a series of pieces that players must nd

and unify to create a coherent narrative thread

that makes sense of the story (Stewart, 2006).

At the same time, these pieces are determined

by a series of encrypted clues designed to be

deciphered by the users.

The story that is presented and eventually

shaped, as in any narrative, unfolds on a time

axis, but the players’ interaction develops the

narrative thread’s structure. This means it is a

spontaneous narrative arising from interaction

and what the individuals determine (De Beer

& Bothma, 2016). Furthermore, it will continue

based on the player’s progress and not on what

the creator wants. All this is done to encourage

and generate a specic obligation to resolve

the clues and problems from a group decision.

The aim is to enhance the user experience and

the link between the player and the game.

2929

Lucía Garrido-Rodríguez, Alfonso Freire-Sánchez

Moreover, in the narrative of an ARG, there is

direct contact between characters and players

(Rojas, 2020), which makes the user empathize

deeply with the story and become part of it,

also due to their essential role in the course of

the story. Even so, even though individuals are

playing, they are not shown in the game and the

interaction with the characters as just another

character or through an avatar; instead, they

“retain their identity and do not pass through

a threshold between real life and simulation”

(Sicart, 2014, p.60). In this way, the action me-

chanics of alternate reality games are based

on the search for clues and the determination

of the position/protagonism that these take in

the ARG story; therefore, it is sustained by dis-

covery and secrecy (Scolari, 2013). According to

Stewart (2011), the game is more relaxed if no

one knows what they are doing or why. More-

over, although initially, the correlation between

all the pieces of the narrative is practically null,

they are all a determining factor in the dis-

course of the plot.

On the other hand, ARGs take place in both a

simulated and an everyday world (De Beer &

Bothma, 2016), combining the media and the

extra-media (Scolari, 2013). Indeed, ARGs are

more dynamic if they reach viewers through

as many dierent conduits as possible be-

cause narrative expansions are not limited to

a particular medium but “depend largely on the

technologies that are available in the specic

temporal context in which they are developed”

(Aldegani & Caballero, 2022, p.45). These chan-

nels and formats can include virtual reality, aug-

mented reality, and geolocation.

Structurally, in an ARG, the beginning is known

- once it is discovered - and what the purpose

is, but the end is not known because it can

change; it is regenerative. The game begins

with a dynamic of searching for one or several

clues (trails) scattered through dierent media

that “can appear encrypted in paratexts, web-

sites, blogs, videos, emails, SMS, audios, texts

or objects from the real world to capture the at-

tention of the largest possible audience” (Villén,

2017, p.125). Once these materials and the en-

try point to the game, called rabbit hole or trail-

head, have been detected, the player decides

whether or not to enter the ARG.

From that moment on, as they progress in

the search and solving of clues, users sponta-

neously and naturally establish a knowledge of

what the game eld is, what their roles are, and

what actions they can perform. ARGs do not al-

ways establish a clear register that structures

and organizes their stages; therefore, it can be

considered that the player will not understand

the structure that has led them to the end of

the game until the game is nished. Likewise,

the game’s rules and how they aect the nar-

rative are established mainly by the players as

the game unfolds (McGonigal, 2011). This turns

out to be one of the elements that dierenti-

ates them, to a large extent, from gamied pro-

posals.

This mechanic that sustains ARGs is possible

thanks to the gure of the puppet masters, who

are responsible for producing, regulating, and

guiding the game. Experts such as McGonigal

(2006) or Kim et al. (2009) play a crucial role in

ARGs; they establish themselves as the point of

connection between the players and the narra-

tive. Puppeteers design the clues that players

will encounter, and that will motivate them to

continue playing. Consequently, they are con-

stantly listening to what the players are saying,

agreeing, and determining the resolution or

continuity of the narrative thread to determine

the channels and clues that will give succession

to the story and reach the nal objective for

which it has been designed (Janes, 2015).

3030

Alternate reality games (ARG) and fandom involvement in Taylor Swift’s

narrative universe

This active role makes it clear that the gure

of the puppeteer requires a lot of creativity

and adaptability, as the players may not act as

expected. As Schell (2008) argues, games are

about following the rules and breaking them. It

may be that users do not nd certain clues or

that the diculty of these clues slows down the

game and, consequently, the course of the nar-

rative. According to Rojas (2020), “ARGs teach

designers when to hold the strings of the game

like puppeteers and when to let go” (p.7). The

involvement is so high that “new experiments

have taken the puppeteer and turned him into

a character within the narrative, who leaves

cryptic messages to the audience intended to

connect him to the story” (Rojas, 2020, p.7).

Regarding fandom interaction, it should be not-

ed that “a game only exists when it is played”

(Hunicke, 2004, p.429), which implies the need

to make the ARG want to be played. Under this

premise, alternative reality games move, es-

pecially games that are born, live, and end de-

pending on the player’s will to continue playing.

The search for the link of complete dependence

that is established between game and player is

the engine and the explanation of everything

that happens in an ARG and, therefore, a ba-

sic principle that guides them in their develop-

ment and success is that “the participants are

the stars” (Scolari, 2013, p.268). Each challenge

and each clue has to get “the player to inter-

vene and perform actions beyond a mere inter-

pretation exercise” (Aldegani & Caballero, 2022,

p.45). The user has to search, think, and fully

immerse (McGonigal, 2011) naturally and deep-

ly (De Beer & Bothma, 2016) in the narrative.

They have to internalize everything thrown at

them and accept that the elements of the game

merge with their reality.

It should be pointed out that when we speak

of a player, we should not simply think of them

as an individual acting alone but as a user who

is part of a collective congured with a com-

mon identity. This identity captures the most

essential traits of the members of the collec-

tive, which creates a shared and coordinated

self-awareness and modus operandi (Turner,

2010).

ARGs thus create communities where the feel-

ing of belonging is persistent and solidied.

Without these interconnections, they could not

be fully developed since, due to the multi-me-

dia and narrative expansion that arises - which

moves both in real life and online life - it would

be impossible to solve the enigma by oneself.

Therefore, the very generation of clues itself is

based on the intention that it should result in

a collective, cooperative, and participatory ex-

perience (Scolari, 2013; Stewart, 2011), where

the eort is coordinated (Jerret et al., 2017) and

the resolution of each clue that gives continuity

to the story depends on the use of collective

intelligence (Hook, 2017).

As for the characteristic of collective intelli-

gence, it refers to what Jenkins (2002) calls

hive-mind and, according to Lévy (2004), to “an

intelligence that is distributed everywhere, con-

stantly valorized, coordinated in real-time, lead-

ing to an eective mobilization of competenc-

es” (p.20). This intelligence of many, unied in a

single line of thinking, is related to the emerging

participatory culture that has been solidifying

over time due to the synergy of three trends

described by Jenkins (2006): the new tools and

technologies that enable co-creation, the sub-

cultures that promote the Do It Yourself dis-

course, and the media ecology.

New tools and technologies allow consumers

to save, annotate, appropriate, and distribute

the content found in the media. From the be-

haviors from which this participatory culture

3131

Lucía Garrido-Rodríguez, Alfonso Freire-Sánchez

derives, it is evident that the interaction and

connection between users, especially in ARGs,

is based on communication and information

technologies. Initially, the rst virtual commu-

nities of alternative reality games lived in blogs

and chats; nowadays, social networks are con-

sidered the backbone of ARGs, as these digital

social experiences mainly take place. Finally, it

is worth highlighting the validity and topicality

of ARGs, as Ruíz-García (2022) states: “They are

ludonarrative experiences that are alive and

present, minority, although with an eerves-

cence fueled by new uses and new technologi-

cal forms that enliven and reproduce them” (p.

385).

As far as fandom’s contribution is concerned,

it is worth mentioning that ARGs are used for

the phenomenon of transcreation and trans-

authorship, which, to paraphrase Papadaki and

Volakis (2022), is produced by the character-

istics of the current transmedia environment

that cause synergies between many produc-

tion companies and cultural industries with the

users’ creations or the original creators of the

alternate game.

As can be seen, studies on ARGs and the trans-

media and interactive narrative universes that

form the ecosystem in which they develop are

very prolic and oer a very multifaceted vi-

sion of the state of the question. As mentioned

above, the study’s main objective is to investi-

gate the relationship between the narrative

universe of the American singer Taylor Swift

and the ARGs. In this way, it aims to determine

which elements of this interactive storytelling

technique are integrated into the 360º com-

munication strategy and the construction of

the Swift universe. It is associated with the per-

sonal brand of one of the most inuential and

famous artists in the music and entertainment

industry today.

Singer-songwriter, producer, director, and ac-

tress Taylor Alison Swift is one of the biggest

American stars in the world. In her 17-year ca-

reer, she has released ten original albums and

four re-recordings. Since her early days, Swift

has been committed to expanding the musi-

cal experience beyond simply listening to her

songs; she engages her fans, known as Swifties,

in the imagery she has built up after the release

of a new album. For this reason, it is appropri-

ate for us to extract the main characteristics

that have dened the recent history of ARGs

according to the existing literature and to check

whether the ‘Swift universe’ and its relationship

with its fandom could be considered an ARG,

even if it has not been dened as such.

3. METHODOLOGY

To determine which elements of singer Taylor

Swift’s alternate reality games are integrated

into her communication strategy and nar-

rative universe, an interdisciplinary analysis

methodology used by other authors such as

Castelló-Martínez (2020) or Vidal-Mestre et

al. (2023) is proposed. This methodology has

made it possible to extract the main character-

istics of the existing literature to date on ARG

games and to establish the state of the art

(McGonigal, 2011; Stewart, 2011; Scolari, 2013;

Villén, 2017; Kim et al., 2019; Rojas, 2020; Ruíz-

García, 2022, among others). The following ta-

ble summarizes these main characteristics that

allow us to analyze the Swift universe:

3232

Alternate reality games (ARG) and fandom involvement in Taylor Swift’s

narrative universe

Note: Own elaboration.

Base Characteristics Referents

Fandom

Participation and collab-

oration.

Scolari,

2013; Ruíz-

García,

2022

Voluntary and natural im-

mersion.

McGonigal,

2011; De

Beer y

Bothma,

2016

Coordination among

players.

Jerret et al.,

2017

Sense of belonging and

group identity.

Jenkins,

2006; Turn-

er, 2010

Hive-mind. Use of collec-

tive intelligence.

Lévy, 2004;

Hook, 2017

Social and mainly digital

experience.

Kim et al.,

2009

4. RESULTS

To analyze the ‘Swift universe,’ on the one hand,

the publication of each of her works has been

separated into what the artist has called dier-

ent ‘eras.’ Each one maintains a particular aes-

thetic and has its own identity, thanks to linking

the LP to a specic color and objects, among

other resources. But they all follow the same

narrative thread, which gives continuity and ex-

pands or changes the course of the story she

has been creating album after album.

On the other hand, it has meant that every-

thing that encompasses being in each of her

eras, with their respective events - such as the

release of a music video - as well as the jour-

ney and leap between them, has come about

as a result of a process of collective discovery

of clues and deciphering of cryptic messages

by the fans. Fans become brilliant detectives

who dialogue with each other to discover and

Base Characteristics Referents

Narrative

Fragmented narrative. Jenkins,

2006; Sco-

lari, 2013

Dynamic narrative and

co-created with the play-

ers.

De Beer y

Bothma,

2016

Story integrated with the

game and the players.

Aldegani y

Caballero,

2022

It is developed on a tem-

poral axis.

Scolari,

2013

Direct contact between

characters and players.

Rojas,

2020; Al-

degani y

Caballero,

2022

Players keep their identity. Sicart, 2014

Creation of a transmedia

narrative universe.

Freire-Sán-

chez et al.,

2023

Action me-

chanics

It is based on the discov-

ery of trails.

Stewart,

2006; Ruíz-

García,

2022

Rabbit hole. Stewart,

2006; Villén

Higueras,

2017

Combines both online

and oine worlds.

Scolari,

2013; Al-

degani y

Caballero,

2022

There is no structure to

guide the game.

Stewart,

2011

Roles are established

spontaneously.

Aldegani y

Caballero,

2022

The players mostly set the

rules.

McGonigal,

2011

There is a puppet master. Kim et al.,

2009; Ro-

jas, 2020

Table 1

Summary of the characteristics

of an ARG extracted from the literature review

3333

Lucía Garrido-Rodríguez, Alfonso Freire-Sánchez

understand the clues, called Easter eggs, in-

tentionally left by Swift; they also create their

theories. The singer listens to what the fandom

collectively decides and thinks and, based on

these guesses, is inspired and sometimes even

directly follows up on the cryptic game.

She mainly did this in his early days as a singer

because she wanted people to pay attention to

her lyrics. So, she decided to incorporate gram-

matically unjustied capital letters into some

of the words in the lyrics of the songs found in

the CD booklets. This way, if people paid atten-

tion and put all the capitalized letters together,

a word or phrase was formed that explained

what the song or album was about. However, it

was with their album Reputation (2017) that the

game went to another level, and its develop-

ment expanded to many more channels, which

meant that, nowadays, this dynamic expands

along an innite number of communication

channels that can take shape in dierent ways.

The tracks, which present dierent diculty lev-

els, are present in both virtual and digital space.

They can be found in places that, by their very

nature, make sense and allow them to be host-

ed, such as video clips. But they can also be

found in places that, to the naked eye of any

individual, would pass completely unnoticed;

being part of the swiftie world educates you

to pay attention to things like, for example, the

color of the nails she wears or the conditions

of purchase of her merchandise. On occasion,

the Easter egg has even been in the mention or

commentary on the artist by a brand or other

famous gure who initially seems to have no

direct relationship with the American but who

turns out to be linked to her in some way.

The rules and guidance as to what is consid-

ered valid and feasible in terms of where to nd

the clues have been shaped and established

naturally, based on what the singer herself has

explicitly determined and said; it is also based

on observation and knowledge of what Taylor

Swift would and would not be able to do; and

what has been collectively established as feasi-

ble within the fandom, based on theories creat-

ed and resolved, along with learning from trial

and error.

This has resulted in fandom developing inside

jokes and, at low levels, its own jargon. While

initially clues were given in relatively short time

frames, today, they can be given well in advance,

such as three years. But it is worth mentioning

that the dynamic works thanks to the existence

of a third gure directly linked to the singer,

known as Taylor Nation (TN); this “nation” con-

sists of a small group of people who are part of

Taylor Swift’s management team, whose iden-

tity and number of users is unknown to any-

one in the fandom. This group acts as a bridge

between the artist and her fandom, mainly in

charge of interacting with them and keeping

the game running.

The release on 21 October 2022 of the Amer-

ican singer’s tenth and most recent original al-

bum, Midnights, is a clear example of how this

dynamic interactive narrative is implemented.

Midnights is a thematic masterpiece, present-

ing the stories of thirteen sleepless nights

spread throughout the artist’s life. It beautifully

weaves the idea of insomnia and the myriad of

thoughts it brings, creating a compelling narra-

tive. The album’s seventies aesthetic adds an-

other layer of depth, with objects like a vintage

telephone or a disco ball becoming symbolic.

The clock, a central element associated with

the album, further enhances its thematic co-

herence.

Both Taylor Swift and Taylor Nation had given

signals of the existence of the album’s idea,

symbolism, and concept since 2019, following

the release of her seventh album, Lover. In ad-

3434

Alternate reality games (ARG) and fandom involvement in Taylor Swift’s

narrative universe

dition, to fuel the existing theories of fandom,

both had for months signaled when she would

announce the LP’s existence - 28 August 2022

at the VMAs gala at midnight - and the date of

its release.

Also, in the months leading up to the release

date, and specically in the week leading up

to it, there was an abundance of Easter eggs

and online calls for swifties to reveal informa-

tion about the title, song themes, and music

videos that would be released in the future for

certain singles. These included Midnights May-

hem With Me, Midnights Manifest, and #Count-

downToMidnighTS.

Midnights Mayhem With Me was one of the

most complex communication actions that

took place. In it, the artist revealed the titles

of the songs that made up the album and the

collaborations on it. It was a mini-series made

up of thirteen chapters lasting two to three

minutes, which were published on her TikTok

prole always at midnight, but not every day or

with a pattern that fans could guess. Thus, they

could not know when they would see the next

one. This action had thousands of fans world-

wide, keeping an eye on the artist and making

them analyze the chapters’ content. They would

check everything from her clothes and accesso-

ries to how she picked up the phone and wore

her hair up. All this was done to develop theo-

ries that would make sense of previously found

clues and create new ones that would reveal

information about the album.

Following the completion of this series, the art-

ist released the Midnights Manifest. This calen-

dar summarized, by way of clues, all the events

that were to take place from 20 to 27 October

in the fandom and were vital to understanding

the content of the album. On 20 October, there

was a live broadcast on Amazon—during the

third half of an NFL football game—of a compi-

lation trailer of the LP’s music videos.

In addition, this trail of events served as a bridge

to the nal countdown with #CountdownTo-

MidnighTS and brought the clue game into the

real world. With the collaboration of Spotify and

the clues left by Taylor Nation online, during the

three days leading up to the album’s release,

digital clocks following Midnight’s aesthetic ap-

peared in iconic locations around the world—

such as New York’s Times Square—revealing

lyrics from the songs as the clock struck mid-

night.

The swifties would discover, night after night,

the locations of the clocks. Once the lyrics were

revealed, the fans who were physically on-site

would share them with the entire online com-

munity to jointly discuss their meaning and the

song they were associated with. They would, in

turn, get conrmation from Taylor Nation, who

would interact with them to let them know if

they were on the right track or not.

5. DISCUSSION OF

THE RESULTS

The primary purpose of this research has been

to analyze the communication of the singer

Taylor Swift, intending to determine whether

the hypothesis that she incorporates alterna-

tive reality games in her communication strat-

egy is fullled. To do this, we retrieved the table

of ARG characteristics according to the special-

ist literature on the subject. This then allows us

to see which elements are fullled in its narra-

tive universe.

3535

Lucía Garrido-Rodríguez, Alfonso Freire-Sánchez

Base Characteristics It’s true

in the

Swift

universe

Narrative

Fragmented narrative.

Dynamic narrative and

co-created with the play-

ers.

Story integrated with the

game and the players.

It is developed on a tem-

poral axis.

Direct contact between

characters and players.

Players keep their identity.

Creation of a transmedia

narrative universe.

Action me-

chanics

It is based on the discov-

ery of trails.

Rabbit hole. X

Combines both online

and oine worlds.

There is no structure to

guide the game.

Roles are established

spontaneously.

The players mostly set the

rules.

There is a puppet master.

Fandom

Participation and collab-

oration.

Voluntary and natural im-

mersion.

Coordination among

players.

Sense of belonging and

group identity.

Hive-mind. Use of collec-

tive intelligence.

Social and mainly digital

experience.

Table 2

Characteristics of ARGs drawn from the literature

review that are fullled in Taylor Swift’s narrative universe.

Note: Own elaboration.

Based on the results obtained from the com-

parison, Taylor Swift’s communication—which

some researchers have described as cho-

reographed engagement (Ryan and Edlom,

2023)—incorporates practically all the charac-

teristics that dene ARGs. Specically, the re-

sults show that the ARG meets 19/20 dened

characteristics. Its communication strategy piv-

ots on a narrative universe that has been ex-

panded across many platforms and networks

for years.

The only element that is not entirely fullled is

the existence of an initial clue, clear and per-

ceived by all the players since the game dynam-

ic she proposes moves on a very broad time

axis in which several clues can coexist simul-

taneously. Therefore, in the case of the game

proposed by the artist, the fans themselves de-

tect the clue that could possibly initiate or, at

least, indicate a new game. This is motivated by

a previously non-existent pattern, a change in

the singer’s behavior, or something unusual in

the dynamics or the communication that was

taking place up to that point.

At the level of new components or consider-

ations detected that Taylor Swift performs dif-

ferently or that expand on what is stipulated in

the bases that dene an ARG, one should con-

sider, rstly, the broad durability of the game.

Secondly, the agreed, but also spontaneous,

collaboration of brands and media gures con-

gured to launch the clues and as alternatives

to give continuity to the narrative thread. Third-

ly, the very process by which the game comes

to life, which has been the motive for the study

of this work, is communication.

The artist does not normally create a playful

game as such but rather, on many occasions,

uses the communication she carries out for

non-game purposes—whether to praise the

work of a colleague, thank fans for attending

3636

Alternate reality games (ARG) and fandom involvement in Taylor Swift’s

narrative universe

her concert, or accept an award—to incorpo-

rate the easter eggs that give continuity to the

game that, in parallel, is developing in her uni-

verse and in that of her fandom.

6. CONCLUSIONS

The application of alternative reality games to

achieve non-game objectives can be very ex-

tensive. Moreover, ARGs can be very eective

with the right approach and management of

their development. Some of their most com-

mon uses are in marketing and advertising (Es-

tanyol et al., 2013), entertainment (Huotari &

Hamari, 2017), or education (Kapp, 2012).

Therefore, the list of benets and positive pur-

poses achieved with these types of games is

complex and extensive. They can inuence

user behavior, build user loyalty, or educate

them; they generate a good brand image, fos-

ter a sense of belonging to the group, help sat-

isfy innate human needs, raise ethical or con-

troversial debates, foster community building,

enhance certain emotions, stimulate critical

thinking, encourage creativity, etc.

This communication strategy carried out by the

American artist, which incorporates practical-

ly all the elements and characteristics of the

ARGs, could be considered a perfectly struc-

tured model that can be extrapolated to other

commercial brands. For all these reasons, we

consider it an example and a reference for in-

teracting with the fandom, which emerges as

an active, generative, and necessary part of

expanding the universe and all the fragment-

ed contents that, like a puzzle, are interwoven

in an experience as immersive as it is complex,

as deep as it is volatile and as original as it is

creative. A well-designed ARG does not have a

closed-end, and the limit will not be predened

by the narrative or the media and platforms but

will depend on the users themselves and the

interest of the universe created so that it can

be prolonged over time. Suppose brands now

want to spend time with users/consumers. In

that case, ARGs are a strategy that can lead to

a more advanced level with greater possibilities

than branded content or conventional adver-

tising. It is undoubtedly a much more gamied

experience and ts perfectly with the spirit of

choreographed engagement with fans (Ryan

& Edlom, 2023) that has always characterized

Taylor Swift’s personal brand.

3737

Lucía Garrido-Rodríguez, Alfonso Freire-Sánchez

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Universitat de Vic - Universitat Central de Catalunya

Universidad del Azuay