The B.U.G. Project

They called it "B.U.G.". B.U.G.? Big Urban Game. Obviously. "A citywide game that turns the Twin Cities into a 108-square mile giant game board. Three teams race three giant (26 feet high) inflatable game pieces — Red, Yellow and Blue — from three different starting points along three different routes between checkpoints in Minneapolis and St. Paul to a shared destination." Apparently, you could: "Join a team....vote for a route for your team," and then "come down to the checkpoints and roll the dice at the end checkpoints to give your team a speed boost."

A project of the Design Institute of the University of Minnesota, the game's avowed purpose was to "promote visual awareness of the Twin Cities' urban environment, frame new perspectives, provoke fresh perceptions and encourage wide input on how the Twin Cities' public realm design could be improved — from streets to transit to parks and other urban amenities. As the three oversized inflatable game pieces are carried (by a team of volunteer MOVERS) through a series of checkpoints, they will act like giant beacons or 'cursors' pointing out features of the diverse neighborhoods they pass through, and attracting attention to the Twin Cities in general."

Well, it sure got my attention. As well as the attention of 3306 registered online players. It is reassuring to learn that, given the efforts of a few crafty visionaries, for five whole days fun was alive and enlivening in the Twin Cities.