That being said, touch screens weren’t well-received at first either. As science progresses, I’m sure the consoles will improve too, and individual ability will be less of a factor. But we’ll first need to get to that point before these sorts of games really take off.
Actually, I think I heard something about that recently...
“Fret not, dear brother,” my little sister assured me. “The pod-type system has a built-in brain wave standardizer program, so it should be all right for anyone to use.”
“Ah, right. So that’s why the entry fee is so high.”
The pod-type was a higher-spec version of a VR gaming system. Unlike the usual setup where a head-mounted display was plugged into a normal computer, a person was fully immersed in a pod filled with a special breathable liquid as they connected to the game. It was a device straight out of a mad scientist’s lab.
As I’d let on before, this machine was why people needed to enroll to participate, and it cost a fair bit of money just to run it for an entire day.
“Okay, I get that even I would be able to play, but don’t you two have anyone else you want to invite?”
“I’ve been given the chance to play with two other people, so won’t it be more fun to play with my little brother and sister?” said my big sister.
“Yeah, yeah!” my little sister chimed in.
Finally, I relented. “Then I’ll join you. Thanks.”
Yeah, there was no way around it. It made me pretty happy to hear them say that. And so, I ended up participating in Dimension Wave.
†
Thus came the day of the game. The three of us hopped aboard a train and made our way to the venue. Even though my sisters had pestered me into coming early, the place was already packed when we got there.
All we had to bring were our entry tickets, and USB sticks containing character data, which were distributed to players in advance. Since character creation was a lengthy process owing to the game’s specifications, they wanted it done in advance.
My character was one I’d meticulously planned out three days prior—I’d decided to go with a muscular giant of a man. I realized that macho characters might not be the most popular, but I personally found them cool.
As for race, the options were Human, Demihuman, Elf, Jewel, and Spirit. I ended up going with Spirit. It was a rare race in these kinds of online games, one that apparently lacked the concept of HP, MP, and level. The official site only had a little bit of info, and I’d have to figure the rest out on my own. Honestly, it was a toss-up between Jewel and Spirit for me, but I ultimately settled on Spirit. I was a sucker for strange gimmicks.
Incidentally, my big sister chose Human, while my little sister went Demihuman. I didn’t ask them about it, but after I’d spent enough time putting off the question, they stormed up to me in a huff and told me of their own accord.
“Oh, it looks like they’re starting to let people in,” I announced to my sisters, who had become antsy in anticipation, prompting them to begin their fretful advance.
Along the way, we passed through a station where I handed an ID-embedded ticket to an employee in exchange for a blue, plastic key with a number on it. Then farther down, the path divided in two. It seemed to split between men and women.
“See you later!”
“Buh-bye!”
After waving my sisters goodbye, I went down the men’s path and arrived at a changing room. It was quite spacious too. I tracked down the locker with a number that matched the one on my key and found a set of clothing inside. They had to have been made with the measurements I’d provided to the official site along with my entry number.
I quickly started changing into them. The clothes had a design like those pilot suits you see in anime and felt strangely skintight. In fact, they were embarrassingly skintight. Seeing how the guys to my left and right were both donning theirs in embarrassed silence, they seemed to be thinking the same thing.
Apparently, the dive pods originally got a bad rap owing to the fact that players had to enter them completely naked, so the company went and designed clothes specifically for them. These clothes also contained emergency life-saving features, among other things. It was yet another cost that added to the high entry fee.
With that on my mind, I finished changing and made sure to lock my locker before hurrying along.
“Whoa...”
What greeted me was the sight of rows upon rows of the sort of pods I could imagine being used to put someone into a cold sleep. Each was meant to facilitate an entire person, being just about as large as my bed back home.
“Let’s see what we have here...”
Where and how to stick the USB, how to properly close the pod, it was all indicated with large, conspicuous stickers that didn’t leave any room for misinterpretation. As directed, I stuck my USB stick into the port, entered the pod, and made sure it was properly sealed before I slowly settled in.
As there was still time before it began, I thought about what I’d do in-game. My sisters both mentioned they’d take combat-focused jobs, but I had something else in mind. I wanted to try out the fishing I’d seen in the magazine.
Admittedly, fishing did seem like a bit of an odd focus when playing an MMORPG, but kicking back and taking it easy did seem to fit with the Second Life producer’s MO. Not that there was any point in dwelling on it now. Surely I’d find my own objective if I played enough of the game.
As I was lost in thought, I suddenly realized that I’d completely forgotten about the events that lent their name to the title of the game—the Dimension Waves. It was up to players whether they wanted to participate or not, and I was still on the fence about it. But I just knew my sisters were going to join and...I wanted to be able to provide a bit of support, at the very least.
“Oh?”
“Well then, participants, it’s almost time. We ask that you please refrain from exiting the pod until the game begins.”
I thought I had longer to go, but as it turned out, I’d been immersed in my own thoughts for quite some time. I was only snapped out of it when a voice played on the sound system, and a liquid began to fill the pod. The liquid was green... Or rather, it was just taking on the colors of the lights in the pod.
Was this part of the presentation? It seemed to be a colorless substance. It filled the space in no time at all, and though I immediately stopped breathing by reflex, soon enough I instinctively resumed out of want for air.
I was surprised. I could actually breathe. I’d still been half in doubt up to that point.
Loading Data 0%... 100%.
Load Complete. Performing Brain Wave Standardization Stress Test.
Images were streamed into my eyes—no, they were flowing directly into my brain. A scene unfolded before me, even more beautiful than reality. It was a video of a fantasy town with all sorts of people moving to and fro. The sound was also crystal clear, picking up everything from the touting of a nearby merchant to the disorderly footsteps of the crowd.
Due to my poor physical compatibility with VR, I usually got terrible lag whenever using a standard VR game system. Yet surprisingly, everything was playing smoothly, and the resolution was immaculate. That’s a specialized machine for you.
Test Complete. All Procedures Complete. The Game Will Now Begin.
I still wasn’t very comfortable with words being sent directly to my brain without going through my ears. It felt like I’d slipped into a world of science fiction, but surely the level of modern science was just higher than I thought. It would have been nice to say I was excited, yet honestly, I felt strangely unsettled. I glanced around nervously when suddenly, my vision cut out.
“That one was a bit unpleasant.”
This wasn’t limited to games; it applied to all dive-type systems in general. The sensation of having your vision go black like that didn’t sit right with me; it felt too much like turning off a TV.
An unsettling reminder that the world I was living in wasn’t reality.
Benedictio vitae tuae!
Blessing... Life... “A Blessing Upon Your Life”?
Latin wasn’t really my forte, so I couldn’t know for sure. I pondered these foreign words as my consciousness slowly faded away.