Slopfest #90 · 2016 · Vienna

Gotta Catch 'Em All

A phone game sent millions outside to catch creatures that weren't there. Our dream, realized by others.

#90Image withheld pending a lawsuit from the Sachertorte people.

AR phone screenshot in the Burggarten: a map pin for 'Free drink, SLOPFEST #90' and no drink anywhere, battery at 2%

Museum status: Awaiting restoration by an AI that keeps adding fingers.

Venue: Burggarten, near the Palmenhaus
Attendance: 44,800
Fun fact: 400 virtual drinks, 60,000 km walked, 0 found

What happened

The committee hid 400 virtual items around the Innere Stadt, each worth a free drink, and forgot to write down where. Guests walked a combined 60,000 kilometers looking for them. No drinks were claimed. The Palmenhaus has since asked that nobody from the festival enter again while staring at a phone.

Elsewhere in 2016

Pokémon Go launches, sending millions of players outdoors to catch virtual creatures overlaid on real streets.

Tip: use ← and → to flip through the archive.