What's the Riddler?

    It's not all nihilistic nonsense. There is fun to be had with games that exist in the real world and played across the web. You don't get to kill anything but you do get points and points make prizes.

    An example is the Riddler http://www.riddler.com. Nothing to do with Batman, Riddler uses web sites where players must search for clues, play games and compete for prizes.

    After registering which is free players get a stash of "riddlets", used to pay entry fees for games and of earn back Riddlets depending on how well they play. They also receive CAPS which are prize tokens for winning games outright. These can be traded in later for real prizes. Players' tally of Riddlets and CAPS are all held automatically on a database back at the Riddler server- which can be accessed anytime you feel like it.

    Don't rush to register just yet however. Unfortunately due to US tax laws you must be a US resident to win prizes.

    There's another side to these type of Internet games. If you run your own web site and want more people to drop by try getting in touch with Riddler. CAPS can be hidden on your web site and the Riddler logo can be licensed for display on your home page. The extra traffic generated by Riddler game players can only be good for your site.

    It's a trick not lost on sussed corporations using the net. Toyota's Australia http://www.toyota.com.au/quheads/quest.html subsidiary ran an online competition back in December 1995 where punters had to trawl through selected web sites to find missing words and enter a prize draw. The prize was pretty neat: A trip to the Northern Territories, a laptop Toshiba and free use of a Toyota 4x4 for the duration of the trip. OK so the game wasn't that hard but it was a way of getting people to view the Toyota and other web sites and maybe buy the cars.