Author Games: Red Room

DEEPWEB 101

Anonymous Network Node

 These Games will be run anonymously, meaning none of you will know who you're competing with. When the reservations page goes up, you will PM us that you'd like to reserve a spot and from that point forward, you are to remain anonymous and you are not to tell anyone who you are writing for. If we find out you've been actively violating this rule, we will deduct points. Please do not try and guess who everyone is. We know it's fun to some of you but it defeats the purpose of anonymity. Yes, you're allowed to say you're in our Games as most people will find out that kind of stuff anyway, but nothing more than that. Preferably, you won't be snitching to each other either. 👀

No DOS Attacks

This should go without saying but we're saying it anyway, no attacking fellow hackers. If you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all. Should there be an issue with another competitor, you are to bring it to our attention as soon as possible. We'll do our best to resolve any disputes and we will not hesitate to remove anyone if they're being a dick.

Avoid Getting Hacked

By joining these Games, you're making a commitment to both we as the hosts, and your fellow competitors. You are agreeing to hand in for every task from beginning to end, and you should not sign up if you think you might be unable to. Dropouts and no-shows are frustrating for everyone and we ask that you try and stay dedicated to the best of your ability.

Insta Hack Block

Try to stay punctual. We will accept late entries, however, any entries that are handed in past the deadline given will suffer a point deduction per every half an hour. Any entries received after voting has already been posted will not be accepted. As a competitor, you will receive one twenty-four-hour-no-questions-asked extension. After this has been used up, it will be very hard to convince us to grant you another one.

Nearby Wifi Networks

All entries and forms should be sent to spades3games(at)gmail.com. Entries and forms will not be accepted otherwise. If you are having an issue with handing in because your email isn't working or due to other technical errors, please message us as soon as possible and we will try to work out a solution.

#HackerEquality

An entry is an entry, regardless of the author. We promise to score your entries impartially and without bias. Because honestly, we hate everyone equally. :)

Browsing the Dark Web

Mature content is allowed. No limitations. Run wild (at your own discretion, of course).

Node Systems

Using the lovely scoring system that the beauties over at PanemEtCircus have produced, we will be scoring each entry out a total of 60 points and dividing that total by 4 to get a score between 1 and 15 to reveal behind curtain #2 after each round. The score of 60 comes from 6 categories that can at a maximum receive a 10: Task requirements, creativity/idea, character, description, GUMP (grammar, unicorns, mediocrity, and punctuation), and last but not least style *hair flips*.

0: Nothing's sitting in the old inbox.

1-2: Maybe it was... one sentence? Two?

3-6: Either it was rushed or short or we couldn't find what you were trying to say. Try putting a bit more effort in the next round.

7-10: We're starting to feel your vibe man and we feel the effort. There's work that needs to be done no doubt, but it's getting somewhere.

11-12: This is roughly what we call the "average zone." Tis where a lot of competitors fall, and it's a good place to aim with a 7 or 8 in every category.

13-14: Pretty darn banging son. With a little spit and polish on the old boot there you'd have done even better.

15: 'Kay, so one or both of us is crying in a corner and rocking back in forth because everything was perfect.

Once the games reach Quarter Finals, we will be switching to a bye system instead of cumulative rankings from the previous tasks.

Click. Click. Dead.

Every task each competitor will receive X number of what are called ballot kills. They will be deductible and will subtract -0.25 from a competitor's score. These can be used on any other tribute you wish to target without them knowing. Say you don't like Suzan because she's still a place above you in rankings, just use a ballot and send it with your entry, preferably at the bottom. In-entry kills, which will only be offered during some of the tasks, work the same way. You don't have to specify that it was Colonel Mustard in the conservatory with the lead pipe, but vague in entry reference or not, please specify down below so we don't have to make assumptions.

ZeroDay Market

Four competitors will get chosen for sponsorships after the first task. Each sponsored person will receive various Gamemaker gifts throughout the Games to help them advance through the competition. For more information regarding sponsorships, stay on the lookout for those Gamemaker pages coming soon.

Dead or Not 

Starting task two, tributes with the lowest cumulative scores will go up for votes.

a) Voting will usually last for twenty-four hours, though shorter voting periods may be given. We ask that you vote for the number of people specified or otherwise your vote will not count.

b) Additionally, we ask that you vote for the quality of the entry and not which author you like the most. This is a writing competition, not a popularity contest.

c) As always, you may vote for yourself. However, begging for votes will not be tolerated. This includes directing others to the voting page or guilt-tripping. Any evidence of vote-begging or voting for yourself on an alternate account will result in immediate disqualification. We also reserve the right to investigate any unfamiliar accounts should we find them suspect enough.

Enjoy the Game

Or else. Please try to remember this is a competition that's meant to be fun. We don't like seeing our competitors under heaps of stress or anxiety from this and if you don't think you can handle these Games, maybe reconsider joining. We'd rather not be the cause of someone's depression or existential crisis and we absolutely refuse to pay for your therapy.