Petscop, a fictional lets-play series on YouTube, was created and published by Tony Domenico in 2017, on March 12. It follows a guy we assume is "Paul", since he named his character such. What he believed would just be a casual Playstation 1 game, would actually turn out to be a possessed, supernatural game produced by a relative.

The entire lets-play is free to watch on YouTube, and if you haven't already, I STRONGLY urge you to watch the entire thing, without an explanation, before reading the rest of this article. With that being said, this page will go over general details of Petscop, and how it is the most ground breaking ARG on the internet.

For those who are still confused about Petscop, it's a game designed for Paul to explain his tricky family past, and utilized the data of past players to create a machine that'd allow the playstation to be possessed (hence why "people" can join Paul and talk to him.) The game is very demanding, confusing, and ever-changing almost like it's a living, breathing creature.

Petscop's writing, pacing, and design is what makes it stand out amongst the slew of the "haunted game" ARGs. A main issue a lot of ARGs have in general is their overreliance on the gross factor, such as sexual themes and graphic murder (Lacey Games, UrbanSPOOK). So while it is disgusting and "terrifying", it's very juvenile and shallow when it's used to remedy lacking writing. Petscop's fear-factor comes from the unknown. In Moyer's "There's Something Hiding in Petscop", where he interviews Domenico, Moyer mentions "Nothing is said explicitly, but there are plenty of breadcrumbs that imply something larger, and darker, at play.", and later mentions Domenico said that "“I like stuff that leaves a lot of room for the imagination...I hoped to get across a feeling like there’s a lot more here, something strange and complex happening in the background, and you just aren’t getting a full view of it.”

The deeper you get into Petscop, the more odd and unnerving it becomes. By Episode 14, Paul doesn't speak anymore until much later in the series, and could suggest that someone (something?) is playing the game.