I'm holding a (mostly) just-for-fun contest with a few (small) prizes in conjunction with the release of my 2019 JoCoAlbMo album, "All A Game". Each of the album's 11 tracks is inspired by a memorable computer or video game from my youth.

If you'd like to participate in the contest, please see the contest info and rules below, and sign up using the Entry Form at the bottom of the page.

(The sign-up info is used ONLY for record-keeping on the contest; you will NOT be signed up on any other mailing lists, and your info will NOT be shared or used for anything else.)

The Contest

I'm no James Halliday, but i was born around the same time, so i decided that since i was writing an album about games from my youth, i'd work a few challenges of my own into the record. There are, as it turns out, three Challenges on the album:

• Challenge #1 is simple. Each track on the record is inspired by a computer or video game that was originally released in the years from 1980 to 1990. Each song is full of clues — mostly lyrical, but a few musical — to which game it comes from. The first entrant to correctly identify the game that inspired each song for all 11 tracks (and point out some of the clues that reveal each one) wins the Challenge #1 Prize: a $30 gift card to either Bandcamp or Amazon.

• Challenge #2 is for the "gunters": an Easter egg baked into the content of the album. The object of the search is a start to a very short personal story. The first entrant to find this Easter egg and submit it correctly to me wins the Challenge #2 Prize: a $30 gift card to either Bandcamp or Amazon.

• Challenge #3 is a "bonus round" for those who complete Challenge #1 and/or #2. I won't say anything else about this one yet, but i will give a special starter clue as an extra prize to the winner of each of the first two Challenges. The first entrant to solve this ending puzzle wins the Challenge #3 Prize: an extra $40 gift card to either Bandcamp or Amazon.

Note that prizes stack. ... so one entrant can win up to $100 in total prizes!

There's also a Bonus Prize:

• If ONE ENTRANT wins ALL THREE Challenges, they are truly a master of vintage games. To honor their excellence, i will write, record, and release a song based on one computer or video game of their choice (assuming it's one i can research and NOT one that will get me into trouble) within one year of their submission!

Hints

If folks seem stuck as time goes by, i may release some hints to help out the players. Here are a few to start:

• One of the games featured on the record is easy to figure out; the big D you're looking for is right on the album cover, holding his axe instead of his usual shovel.
• The start of our story for Challenge #2 should be pretty obvious, once found.
• In addition to the starter clues mentioned above, the answers to Challenge #1 and Challenge #2 actually each provide a big clue to Challenge #3 all by themselves.
• The "liner notes" for the album on its Bandcamp page contain a lightly hidden message with another hint: the make and model of the hardware on which i played many of the games that inspired the album.
• EARN A BONUS CLUE! If an entrant is the first to share the link to the album and/or this contest page on a public forum with more than a dozen or so subscribers (e.g., a personal or group page on facebook) and sends me a link to see it, i'll send them extra info about all the hardware systems on which i played the games that inspired the album!

Rules

Like Halliday, i don't like making rules, but to try to be fair to everyone, i gotta make some. Here they are:

• — IF YOU KNOW ME PERSONALLY, PLEASE CONTACT ME BEFORE ENTERING! —
  
  This is important, because i want the contest to be fair. Some of you out there, as friends of mine, know about the games i played back when, either cuz you were there, or cuz you've heard me talk about them. You can still try the Challenges, but depending on how long or well we know each other, i may need to exlude you from the running for the cash prizes. Contact me and we can figure it out. Either way, though ...
  PLEASE DO NOT SHARE ANY INFORMATION ONLINE OR WITH ANYONE ABOUT THE CONTEST!
  That said, if you can figure out any of the games, write to me privately and maybe i'll just buy you dinner or donuts or something next time we hang out as your prize. :)
  
  For everyone else, the bottom line is that we need to be fair, so please take note:
  
  BY ENTERING THIS CONTEST YOU AGREE THAT YOU DO NOT HAVE, WILL NOT SEEK, AND WILL NOT ACCEPT OR USE ANY INFORMATION THAT IS NOT ENTIRELY YOUR OWN OR AVAILABLE TO ALL PLAYERS.
  
  The contest is meant to be determined by the players' own personal knowledge and/or research of vintage computer and video games, and by analysis of the content of the album. Let's please stick to the spirit of it!
• There is NO PURCHASE NECESSARY to play! The album tracks can be downloaded FREE via my Bandcamp site (on the "All A Game" album page) by clicking on "Buy Digital Album" and entering $0 (zero) for the price. If you like the record and want to pay for it, that's great, but i will NOT be offended if you just wanna download it just for the contest or whatever. Enjoy with my complements!
• Notice the descriptions of the games above say "entrant", not "person". You want to clan up and enter the contest as a group? Go for it. Just use a single email for your group entry. ... but you'll have to share the prizes, of course! :)
• Feel free to ask questions about the mechanics of the contest or about the album (but please don't ask for hints). Any questions i do answer i may share with all of the players if i feel it's necessary to be fair. I will use the email you provide to contact you re the contest and share any new info as we go, so please make sure you're checking it.
• BE NICE! This is a contest for fun and music and nostalgia of cool games from back in the day. Embrace the shared love with your fellow players. I don't expect anything nasty to happen at all, but on the off chance it does, i reserve the right to add/clarify rules and/or disqualify folks for ANY reason. I promise i'm a fair and nice guy, but just in case someone out there surprises me, i gotta reserve that right. Like i said: probably a non-issue.

Entry Form

Please enter your email address below to enter the contest. Including your name is helpful, but not required.

(There is NO SPAM -- your information will NOT be shared, and your email will ONLY be used for occasional contest-related communications.)

Feel free to include any message you like!