►Asylum 626 & Hotel 626 - The haunted houses

►And hell, yeah these are the scariest websites in the world.

Hotel 626 – http://www.hotel626.com

Before you can enter, you need to sign up for reservation, and also it is open from 6pm to 6am only, so if you want to play this game then might be good to follow their time schedule, and also for the best feel of this game you need a headset and just turn your lights off.

Strange noises echo in the distance. Your breath quickens, your heart pounds, and some animal instinct screams that you need to get out. You throw on your shirt, dash into the hallway, and then the real game begins.

The storytelling technique they used was to put the user inside of the game. To give you instructions, they gave you vague phrases that you had to interpret in order to figure out what you were supposed to do to escape. The entire thing is really just a huge Doritos plug, so if this is how Doritos is appealing to customers, they definitely picked an original way to do it.

First of all, Hotel 626 is only open at night. Why? Because it's scary at night. You're trapped in a haunted hotel and believe me, it's truly haunted. Even the entrance page sends a chill down my spine. The site plays out in first person with lots of heavy breathing. It is particularly impressive because it embraces all the latest options in website interaction by using your webcam, your microphone, and even your mobile phone. If you want to experience this site full-force, then lock your doors, draw the curtains, put your headphones on, wait until midnight, and…don't blink.

For those of you who are either too impatient or scared of the dark, you can change the time on your computer to access this site before its opening hours (just remember to change your clock back when you are finished).

This game is an amazingly innovative, beautifully-produced nightmare of a game. After "checking in" (giving the website your name, email and creating a password), you are immediately whisked away into the opening movie: your awakening, in the middle of the night, in your room at this hellish hotel.

Asylum 626 – http://www.asylum626.com

We begin with a warning: This game is not for the faint of heart or those under 18. Asylum 626 has a plot yanked straight from an R-rated horror movie, complete with the requisite blood, screaming and slashing inherent to the current scary movie style.

You awake to find yourself in some sort of operating room, strapped to a gurney with creepy doctors lurking over you. One picks up a handsaw and slowly starts towards you…

Credits:

Agency: Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco
Executive Creative Directors: Rick Condos, Hunter Hindman
Associate Creative Director: Marc Sobier
Copywriter: Michelle Hirschberg
Art Director: Tim Semple
Agency Producers: Maggie O’Brien, Margaret McLaughlin
Production Company: B-Reel Films, New York/Stockholm
Director: Tom Malmros
Creative Directors: Petter Westlund, Seth Weisfeld
Executive Producers: Niklas Lindstrom, Nicole Muniz

These two websites are really a cool. I was amazed and stunned by the effects and the reality of the environment. Because when you play it, you can feel that you’re somewhat there, especially when your volume turned to fullest.

Try it and see for yourself. And one more thing, be very aware, play it your own risk.

►Julia Wang - Young and ambitious photographer

►Julia Wang is a 16 year old,... life and color obsessed artist who enjoys dabbling in the surreal and soft qualities of light. Living in a small town in New Jersey, this young artist has a dream and lifelong passion to travel the world and document the lives of people, culture, and diversity.

"I picked up my first DSLR in January of 2009 and I am head over heels in love. I would consider myself self taught, seeing as I’ve never taken a photography course. The internet is my teacher, my friend, my inspiration. A lot of people like to call themselves visionaries with unique visions of beauty, but I just call myself just a regular girl with a passion for taking photos of life on Earth and the people I love."

►Meredith Dittmar - Clay artist

►Based in Portland OR, Meredith Dittmar grew up in a world of pet pigs, horses, hay-forts and spy games.

Dittmar’s human-animal-plant-energy amalgams contain threads of common elements and colors to express deep levels of union across themes of biology, technology, and consciousness . Her characters are frequently involved in quiet expressive moments, or lounge facing their audience so they can share their inner space. Dittmar believes it is this space we recognize in ourselves, and through convening in that space, the interconnectedness of all things is revealed. She sees the act of spontaneous artistic creation as part of a larger practice of being present, and a way to better understand herself and reality.

►Ákos Major - Landscape photographer

►Amazing landscape photography by Ákos Major, a 35 years old Budapest (Hungary) based amateur photographer. Ákos Major is leaving the ad-agency buzz behind these days after having spent 10 years in the industry.These images were taken during his travels in Iceland, Germany, Austria and Hungary.

►Bruno Maag - Shape my language

►Some amazing typographic work by Bruno Maag (Dalton Maag Studio) goes on display at the Walking-Chair Design Gallery in Vienna, Austria.

"There are dozens of different script systems in use in the world today, giving shape to thousands of spoken languages. A typeface designer’s task is not only to visualize the emotion with which a message is spoken, but also to ensure that the reader can absorb the message with a minimum of distraction."

►Jonathan Rosser - When photographs speak

►This remarkable work of a self-taught photographer is tremendously compelling. Jonathan Rosser, based in Washington DC, has captured nothing but his passion with a purpose in mind.

Artist's Statement...

"What is different about myself than most other photographers is that I am self-taught. I took no classes to find the right setting on a camera or lighting to make an image successful. About two years ago I started studying the photo streams on Flickr of other inspiring artists and guessed how they caught their striking images. After trial and error I was able to obtain the moment and feeling in a street portrait that I was searching for.

My passion is for the people who have nothing, and continue their lives among so many who choose to just walk by. Their spirit is shown in their faces and eyes and I try my best to honor them by their portrait. My dream is to show a series of my street portraits in a gallery setting, and open the perspective to others that may not take the time to see otherwise... 

As with most of my work, each of these individuals has a story and a name."