Characters and organizations in the Year Zero alternate reality game
Encyclopedia
In the Year Zero alternate reality game several characters and organizations are mentioned. Most of them have websites, though some of them physically cannot be able to create a website (The Presence), and some hold websites of their subsidiary organizations (U.S. Bureau of Morality).
By means of the Art is Resistance website and Open Source Resistance, "Art is Resistance," often abbreviated to "AIR," is a loosely formed "resistance group" dedicated to creating politically-minded art as a form of non-violent resistance. Unlike the other characters and groups of the Year Zero game, Art is Resistance operates in the present and is primarily composed of participants within the game.
The intent of the group is to implement art as a form of political, grassroots resistance, and to create a politically conscious population in order to prevent a scenario like the one described in Year Zero. Although the group is technically in-game and fictitious, by allowing participants within the game to contribute via their art, "secret meetings," and similarly underground (though staged) activities, AIR could also be considered a real group, composed of participants of the game and a manifestation of the political awareness that the Year Zero game promotes.
The group's website allows users to download sticker
, stencil
, desktop
, and avatar
logos/images of the Art is Resistance flag. Use of the group's logo as graffiti
seems to be implied, though the illegality
of its uses as such has come into question.
The last few seconds of the "My Violent Heart" file found on the USB drive is static; spectrogram
analysis reveals an image resembling an arm extending down from the sky. This arm is known as "The Presence." This spectrogram image is later put at the end of "The Warning" and doesn't appear at the end of "My Violent Heart" on the album. Numerous, scattered, but increasingly frequent encounters with and sightings of "The Presence" are reported on much of the ARG's websites, although what the phenomenon is, exactly, remains unexplained. On Another Version of the Truth forums, "The Presence" is referred to as "these two giant arms reaching out of the sky, and they're real arms and the
hands are shoved into the ground but you can see the knuckles."http://anotherversionofthetruth.com/end.htm(the forum post is by Sunset Clause)
The Presence has been a recurring image in the media surrounding the album, including the trailer, album cover, and the music video for the album's first single, "Survivalism
."
http://www.cedocore.com/
by citizens.
, presumably as an act of revenge against the government. He is also speculated to run the Be the Hammer resistance website.
organization that threatens "Whoever Resists the Authority Resists God" to legitimize and support the Year Zero government. Not much is known about the Church, but it has taken a special interest in The Presence and is sponsoring a "Neighborhood Cleansing Program" so members can "put their faith into action."
, referring to its inmate populace as "offenders." However, indications suggest that Judson Ogram does not differentiate between criminals and people with psychological dysfunction.
Examination of profiles at Judson Ogram indicates that anti-psychotic substances are needlessly used on inmates, displaying no signs of elevated excitement, self harm or psychotic tendencies. Speculation would suggest that this is to make inmates so docile that they are willing to accept the mistreatment that goes on inside the facility - indeed, the staff page suggests that inmates are used as guinea pigs for the pharmaceutical company Cedocore, leading to the discovery that Cedocore's "Xerimax" product causes renal
damage and pulmonary edema
.
Jed Mather
Solutions Backwards Initiative
The Solutions Backwards Initiative is a group of students, professors, and IT specialists who devise, and succeed, in sending information back through time. The information sent back is theorized to be the websites that are connected to Year Zero. However, the data they send back through time gets somewhat corrupted, causing the garbled appearance of all of the sites in the Year Zero universe.Art is Resistance
The intent of the group is to implement art as a form of political, grassroots resistance, and to create a politically conscious population in order to prevent a scenario like the one described in Year Zero. Although the group is technically in-game and fictitious, by allowing participants within the game to contribute via their art, "secret meetings," and similarly underground (though staged) activities, AIR could also be considered a real group, composed of participants of the game and a manifestation of the political awareness that the Year Zero game promotes.
The group's website allows users to download sticker
Sticker art
Sticker art is a form of street art in which an image or message is publicly displayed using stickers...
, stencil
Stencil
A stencil is a thin sheet of material, such as paper, plastic, or metal, with letters or a design cut from it, used to produce the letters or design on an underlying surface by applying pigment through the cut-out holes in the material. The key advantage of a stencil is that it can be reused to...
, desktop
Desktop environment
In graphical computing, a desktop environment commonly refers to a style of graphical user interface derived from the desktop metaphor that is seen on most modern personal computers. These GUIs help the user in easily accessing, configuring, and modifying many important and frequently accessed...
, and avatar
Avatar (computing)
In computing, an avatar is the graphical representation of the user or the user's alter ego or character. It may take either a three-dimensional form, as in games or virtual worlds, or a two-dimensional form as an icon in Internet forums and other online communities. It can also refer to a text...
logos/images of the Art is Resistance flag. Use of the group's logo as graffiti
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
seems to be implied, though the illegality
Vandalism
Vandalism is the behaviour attributed originally to the Vandals, by the Romans, in respect of culture: ruthless destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or venerable...
of its uses as such has come into question.
The Presence
Spectrogram
A spectrogram is a time-varying spectral representation that shows how the spectral density of a signal varies with time. Also known as spectral waterfalls, sonograms, voiceprints, or voicegrams, spectrograms are used to identify phonetic sounds, to analyse the cries of animals; they were also...
analysis reveals an image resembling an arm extending down from the sky. This arm is known as "The Presence." This spectrogram image is later put at the end of "The Warning" and doesn't appear at the end of "My Violent Heart" on the album. Numerous, scattered, but increasingly frequent encounters with and sightings of "The Presence" are reported on much of the ARG's websites, although what the phenomenon is, exactly, remains unexplained. On Another Version of the Truth forums, "The Presence" is referred to as "these two giant arms reaching out of the sky, and they're real arms and the
hands are shoved into the ground but you can see the knuckles."http://anotherversionofthetruth.com/end.htm(the forum post is by Sunset Clause)
The Presence has been a recurring image in the media surrounding the album, including the trailer, album cover, and the music video for the album's first single, "Survivalism
Survivalism (song)
"Survivalism" is the first single by Nine Inch Nails from their 2007 album Year Zero. The song is the third track on the album...
."
Cedocore
A large pharmaceutical conglomerate with extensive government ties, Cedocore is the creator of a number of drugs, including Parepin which is administered on a national scale in the tap water. They are also, covertly, the sole manufacturer of Opal, distributing it illicitly.http://www.cedocore.com/
Bureau of Morality
A government agency whose task is to control numerous aspects of American life and to prevent and stop all instances of subversionSubversion (politics)
Subversion refers to an attempt to transform the established social order, its structures of power, authority, and hierarchy; examples of such structures include the State. In this context, a "subversive" is sometimes called a "traitor" with respect to the government in-power. A subversive is...
by citizens.
"Angry Sniper"
A former member of the 105th Airborne Crusaders, the "Angry Sniper" conducts a terrorist act at Wrigley FieldWrigley Field
Wrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...
, presumably as an act of revenge against the government. He is also speculated to run the Be the Hammer resistance website.
First Evangelical Church of Plano
The First Evangelical Church of Plano is a sola scripturaSola scriptura
Sola scriptura is the doctrine that the Bible contains all knowledge necessary for salvation and holiness. Consequently, sola scriptura demands that only those doctrines are to be admitted or confessed that are found directly within or indirectly by using valid logical deduction or valid...
organization that threatens "Whoever Resists the Authority Resists God" to legitimize and support the Year Zero government. Not much is known about the Church, but it has taken a special interest in The Presence and is sponsoring a "Neighborhood Cleansing Program" so members can "put their faith into action."
Judson Ogram Correctional Facility
Judson Ogram is a correctional institutionPrison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
, referring to its inmate populace as "offenders." However, indications suggest that Judson Ogram does not differentiate between criminals and people with psychological dysfunction.
Examination of profiles at Judson Ogram indicates that anti-psychotic substances are needlessly used on inmates, displaying no signs of elevated excitement, self harm or psychotic tendencies. Speculation would suggest that this is to make inmates so docile that they are willing to accept the mistreatment that goes on inside the facility - indeed, the staff page suggests that inmates are used as guinea pigs for the pharmaceutical company Cedocore, leading to the discovery that Cedocore's "Xerimax" product causes renal
Kidney
The kidneys, organs with several functions, serve essential regulatory roles in most animals, including vertebrates and some invertebrates. They are essential in the urinary system and also serve homeostatic functions such as the regulation of electrolytes, maintenance of acid–base balance, and...
damage and pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema , or oedema , is fluid accumulation in the air spaces and parenchyma of the lungs. It leads to impaired gas exchange and may cause respiratory failure...
.
Minor characters
[CLASSIFIED] inmate- First mentioned in Exhibit Twenty Four, an incriminating evidence dossier of a criminal investigation on the unnamed inmate. The inmate is mentioned twice within the dossier, in describing the "SurvivalismSurvivalism (song)"Survivalism" is the first single by Nine Inch Nails from their 2007 album Year Zero. The song is the third track on the album...
" music video as "Surveillance footage detailing the capture of inmate [CLASSIFIED]," and in describing video of the "first Open Source Resistance meeting" in Los Angeles on April 13, 2007 as "Archival footage [which] includes performance by dissident musician [CLASSIFIED]." This suggests that the "CLASSIFIED" inmate is none other than Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent ReznorTrent ReznorMichael Trent Reznor is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and leader of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. Reznor is also a member of How to Destroy Angels alongside his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and Atticus Ross. He was previously associated with bands Option 30,...
, incarcerated as a "dissident musician" 15 years in the future. The status of the inmate, according to the site, suggests the outcome of his trial: "Pretrial Verdict on Inmate [CLASSIFIED]: Guilty."
Jed Mather
- American ambassador kidnapped and killed by Algerian terrorists by means of the Red Horse virus. Subject of this video, chronicling his capture and death.
External links
- Official Year Zero page at NIN.com
- Year Zero Research at the unofficial NIN Wiki
- echoingthesound – discussion forum regarding the ARG
Relevant Year Zero phenomena
- IAmTryingToBelieve
- Another Version of the Truth
- 105th Airborne Crusaders
- Be The Hammer
- First Evangelical Church of Plano
- Art is Resistance
- Secure Broadcast Informatics
- The Water Has Turned to Blood
- Judson Correctional Facility
- Cedocore
- Open Source Resistance
- Mining for Life
- Brian Tsunoda
- Exhibit Twenty Four