On a Friday afternoon, a listener tunes into Bowdoin College’s radio station, accompanied by ambient car honking sounds. Despite not being in Maine or in a car, this experience is part of “Internet Roadtrip.”
Internet Roadtrip is described as a massive multiplayer online road trip game (MMORTG). Created by Neal Agarwal, it functions as a “road-trip simulator.” Every 10 seconds, viewers vote on the direction a virtual “car” should travel on Google Street View, or they can choose to honk the horn or change the radio station. The direction that receives the most votes determines the next move on this digital journey.
The concept of Internet Roadtrip is reminiscent of Twitch Plays Pokémon, an iconic stream where viewers collectively decided the actions in a game of Pokémon Red. However, Internet Roadtrip is less chaotic due to fewer participants and better organizational tools, such as Discord.
Progress on this virtual road trip is notably slow, with the car moving at a pace slower than walking. Discord moderators manage expectations, explaining that ambitious suggestions, such as driving to Las Vegas from Maine, would take nearly 10 months in real time. A journey to Alaska faces additional challenges, as gaps in Google Street View images would stall progress.
The game lacks a specific objective, unlike other Street View-based games like GeoGuessr. Though some Discord members have contemplated driving to Canada, given the digital location in Maine, the destination is not the primary focus. Rather, participants enjoy spontaneously listening to college radio with a large online community while taking in the scenic backroads of Blue Hill, Maine.
