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 What is this game? An adventure game that released about a year ago, Gamedec is a Polish adventure game based on a short story collection by Marcin Przybyłek, which sadly doesn’t seem to be available in English. You play as the eponymous Gamedec, an internet detective in the far-off future of the 22nd century, who makes their living by solving MMO crimes. It’s not particularly good. But it is ambitious, and that’s worth a look if nothing else. Why are you LPing this game? Just for the hell of it. Also, it’s not that long, so hopefully I’ll actually finish this one. Updates Every 2-3 days, or whenever I can spare the time. Audience Participation Delaying the LP for every little choice would be impractical, but there are a couple of notable Big Decisions down the line that are probably worth a vote, so we’ll see once we get to those. Table of contents 01 - Meet Video James 02 - A talk with Timmy 03 - Pervertland 04 - Here comes the DARK AVENGER 05 - Down with the clown 06 - Hard times in Harvest Time 07 - The absence of birds 08 - I want a drink you digital prick 09 - Showdown at Sunset 10 - The Fall, part 1 11 - The Fall, part 2 Inadequately fucked around with this message at 03:06 on Oct 13, 2022 |
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Sep 7, 2022 09:57
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 Meet our eponymous Gamedec, Video James. Video James was born in Low City (the only options are ‘Low City’ and ‘High City’), but with hard work and dedication, rose up to the dizzying heights of…Mid City. Points for not tying pronouns to any specific body type, even if the game doesn’t always do the best job of tracking that. ‘Values’ doesn’t do a whole lot, we’ll see what it does fairly shortly.  We open with Video James in a reflective and expository mood.  [I didn't remember why I had become a Gamedec.]- Recall Career [I solved numerous cases, so people started to believe I was credible. And credibility was crucial in my line of work. Pretty much everything can be falsified, but you can't fake credibility. Games, besides being my workplace, also became my second home. Did I ever play for fun? Yes, sometimes I did.]- Look around [I was surrounded by the real world, that is, realium. I could hear Warsaw City humming outside the window. I lived in Towerstone in Wola.]Yes, the real world is called ‘realium’ and the internet is called ‘virtualium’. The worldbuilding will not improve as the game goes on. [It was the end of the 22nd Century and the people were crazy happy. Kidding. Some were, some weren't. Which group did I belong to?] [I wasn't sure.]- Start your day [It was time to check if there were any new jobs.]Before we do that, let’s have a look around our fancy Mid City apartment.  [Warsaw City. My polis.]- Look out the window [Walkways, squares, space and chasms. That's what modern cities look like.] [The middle layer - Mid City. Despite dense developments, you could still see the sun and pieces of the sky. As well as the long way down.]- I don't feel good here. Video James is a man of the street, born and bred. [It was all too cramped and too loud. I wished I lived somewhere higher, where you could see the sky, or below, near the Undercity abyss.] [This is where the rich meet the poor, and the light meets darkness. This is the layer of the city where...you can be pretty much whoever you want.] We have our first Profession related choice, so now's a good time to get into that.  Depending on how we act in conversations/observations, we can gain personality points, which we can then spend on Professions. The game has their own terms for them, but by and large you gain red points by being aggressive and impatient, yellow for charming/sleazing up people, blue for being calm and cautious, and green for being generally nice and caring. And yes, it's never shown which choices will grant you what stat point, so you'll have to rely on your own intuition for that.  Our starting stat spread from taking Self-Direction as a value lets us unlock Infotainer immediately - looks like our boy Video James is a bit of a budding influencer. There are four profession trees, each focusing on one trait: Green - Scalpel -> Sensory Surgeon -> Molecular Scripter/Brainfixer Yellow - Infotainer -> Sensory Celebrity -> Vox Populi/Mindfluencer Red - Sleeves -> Cheater -> Gangway Hound/Reeducator Blue - Glazier -> Programmer -> Supervisor/Cracker The trees are not mutually exclusive, and we'll be picking up many occupations over the course of this playthrough.  We also have access to a glossary of the various cyberpunky terms in the game, generally 'explained' via tedious in-universe cyber-encyclopedia entries/cyber-lectures etc. For the most part I'll be skipping these unless anything particularly interesting shows up or is requested - most of the terms are pretty easy to figure out via context anyway. Anyway, back to this drone. We can't send it away just yet, so we might as well contemplate life while staring at an obnoxious advertisement. [I had a few things I needed to think over...] [You can't really contemplate without a drink in your hand. Luckily, the servobot knew exactly what I needed.](Servobot whirrs over) [I greeted my robotic friend. It was waiting for instructions as usual.]-Coffee -Tea -Whisky -Vodka  [Infotainer] [Food and drink manufacturers regularly supplied me with high quality products for my servobot. All I had to do was mention their brand on my social media every so often.]Looks like being an influencer is starting to pay off for ol' James. [I decided to think some stuff over and get to work.]- Sensory Worlds [Thousands of games and millions of players mean plenty of cases for gamedecs. Hatred, greed and deviousness are especially common online. Two topics had been especially popular in the media recently - digital love and whether it's better to live online or in realium.]- Games or realium - Digital Love [I took a sip...Game fans say they let them fulfill their dreams and that they don't have to obey the rules of nature, "which are a bitch." They can choose their gender, looks, go on adventures... Opponents call it escaping and claim that 'you can only get tough in realium'.] ["Realium presents real challenges." But you can make good money online too, and it's no less complicated than in realium.]Well, we did become an internet detective, so presumably we've already made up our mind on the matter. - Decide that you prefer games - Decide that you prefer reality [Sensory worlds are kingdoms in themselves. There are plenty of affairs, people and nuances, so I'm not surprised that some people call them home. Experiencing something in a game is no different from experiencing it in realium. It's just a different and more interesting level of reality.]- Recent events [Some had been talking about the Pygmalion technology developed by Blue Whales Interactive. It upgraded AI to the level of the human psyche. Recent gossip - a man named Ken Zhou, a young Goodabads star, screwd up in the last game, and his Black Angels lost.]- Pygmalion Technology - Ken Zhou [BWI claimed they could create human beings. Obviously, for a hell of a price. Such..."humans" are called diginets. A diginet has a synthetic brain - a rendan - but no body. It lives online unless you buy it a mobrium. There were demonstrators at the company's location against this technology. The protestors claimed that diginets were unnatural.]- Decide that the protestors are wrong -Decide that the protestors are right Video James likes to think of himself as a forward-thinking man of the future. [A company introducing such risky tech must have tested it in thousands of ways. Otherwise, it wouldn't have put its reputation on the line. The protestors were a bunch of ignorant people afraid of progress. I wasn't going to waste time on them.] [It was time to get to work.] We don't get very far before we're interrupted by a phone call. [Someone was sensing me. It turned out to be a man called Geoffrey Haggis. I didn't know him. Nevertheless, I answered.] Oh, you're there! Please come see me. Blue Whales Interactive Tower, level 255, south entrance. I'll tell you everything when you're here.- Negotiate a down payment - Ask about the details - Agree Hold on, let's have a little respect for each other's time. I don't know anything about the case, and I'm not sure whether a certain amount - I get it, you want a down payment. I'm transferring it right now. I hope it's enough. Yes? Great. I'm waiting. [He disconnected.]Incidentally, we got that phone call because we spent a little too long faffing about and staring out the window instead of checking our mail.  Before we move on, let's check out the rest of our fancy apartment. - Couch [A virtual couch. Not the newest model, but I can still rely on it. At least, I think I can. A poet would call it a 'gateway to the sensory worlds'. To me, it was just a tool of my trade.]In the world of Gamedec, apparently all notable video games are VRMMOs you log into via your couch. - Look at the helmet [It was starting to fall apart. I needed to replace it. Dammit, such important gear wouldn't come cheap. I couldn't afford it at the moment. I needed a few jobs first, or one big job that paid well.]- Check fluid level [Fluid levels were low. I still had a few tanks left, but it's always good to have reserves.]- Order infusion fluid [Done. The delivery drone would be here in a few hours.]I don’t think that actually does anything, but it’s good to be prepared. - Check couch log [July 17, 2199, 3.30 pm. My last session took...The couch displayed an error message recommending to reset it to default settings. The model's reliablity had become questionable.] [The glory days of this thing are well behind it. A gamedec should spare no expense on things like this. It's time to think about getting a new one.]We could report the defect if we were a Glazier, but for now we'll have to leave it alone. - Computer [My computer. It controlled the couch, communicated with household appliances, let me send messages, and did...everything else. It was old and could use an upgrade, but it still worked well enough to be reliable.]- Net [A new case... I wondered if anything would surface on the Net.]- Look up Haggis [Who was Geoffrey Haggis? The director of the programming department at Blue Whales Interactive...] [Infotainer] [Gossip: disgustingly rich, art collector, has suffered repeated burglary attempts, in conflict with his wife Eleonora and son Frederick.] [He was supposed to have recently installed a safe in his office, which was opened with music. I wondered how much of that was true.]- Look up Blue Whales Interactive [Blue Whales Interactive, or BWI. The leader in the field of AI. Their flagship product - the dating game, Paradise Beach. A little less known but still popular was the game Knight's Code, a clan battle game based on medieval Japan. They made luxury helmets. And, ladies and gentlemen, they could make...human beings. Their Pygmalion-upgraded AIs mimicked human psyches.] [Infotainer] [Fame had its price. I had hundreds of emails to ignore. I'd have my bot reply to my most dedicated fans.]Apparently fame can’t be converted into cash quite so easily, but we are only a level one influencer at the moment. [There were also a few emails from clients I had helped. Those needed replies.]- Reply to emails. [First message. Senator Stone was grateful for working out what his daughter was doing in Ghoul Hearts.]- Reply kindly - Offer a discount for the next contract - Offer some advice Probably not the best idea, but I really want to see what advice Video James, budding influencer and internet detective, has to offer on raising a child. [The senator couldn't handle his children. I gave him some advice. He could use it.]Unfortunately we don't actually get to see it, but we do gain a red point for it. [I got through the other emails quickly. Some were invitations to events, some were spam. I replied.]- Check contracts [I already had one contract, but it wouldn't hurt to check. Maybe there would be another one.] [Infotainer] [Friends would tip me off when they heard that someone, particularly a celebrity, had a problem to solve...Nothing at the moment though.] [So the contract from Haggis was the best thing I could give my attention to.]- Games There's only one option here: [I earned in several games but was recently focused on one - Void Stars. Still in development, even though it had already been released. It was supposed to be bigger than all previous space simulations, though that was hard to imagine.] [I'd already bought a few ships. I just couldn't help myself. They were drat expensive, but what the hell. I loved looking at my fleet.] We could check these out, but I'll spare you the trouble of hearing about pretend starships. Spoiler - this game never becomes relevant. - Bliss [The control panel for the apartment's AI - a fine piece of software that didn't treat fridge contents as its first priority.] [You can also talk to it. It's name is Bliss. That's the default name, and I never bothered to change it.]- Activate the system A logo with two whales appeared on the panel.   You are activating Bliss for the first time! First, configure the software to your liking. [I cursed. Something had reset my settings. Probably another failure in the tower or a surge upstairs. I had to reconfigure everything again.]- Casual conversation A holographic figure appeared in the air  The default look for our AI assistant is a naked blue waifu. Quelle surprise. Hi...Wait, what do you mean? Don't you remember me? Why does everything break all the time nowadays...We still have the locked out option to analyze the system, but since we can't do that all we can do is leave for now. - Holovision   Today is Monday, July 17th. My name is Carla Kolumna, and this is the news! Ken Zhou, the young star of Goodabads, loses the game miserably! Zhou blames everything on glitches in the game! Could this be the end of the youngster's career?Here's a fun game for the audience: guess exactly what kind of esports game Goodabads is. I'd be surprised if anyone gets close. We have a Codex entry for it already, but we’ll learn a little more about it over the course of the game.  Well, that's enough standing around delivering exposition, Video James has a job to do. Solid doors protected me and my apartment...or maybe they protected Warsaw City from me.After that terrible attempt at a one-liner, we transition straight to Haggis’s office.  Alfred walks off, leaving us alone.  What kind of detective would we be if we didn't do the bare minimum of snooping around? [The computer on the desk was not secured. The empty workplace exuded corporate solitude. The nameplate on the desk read 'Junior Customer Support Specialist - Idris Ikari".]- [Infotainer] Assess the chair [An ergonomic chair adapted to the size and measurements of its user. It was configured by someone small, most likely a woman.]I'm not sure how or why we needed to use our influencer powers to figure that out. - Look at the monitors [The screensaver slideshow alternated between landscapes beyond the ABBs and the towers of Warsaw City. Breaking the sequence, an image of two women embracing appeared on one of the monitors. One of them had blue hair.]- Log in [I barely touched the screen and gained access to the desktop. It wasn't locked. There was an open BWI presentation and an unfinished hand of solitaire.]- Browse the presentation - Finish the hand of solitaire - [I saw 3D blue whales flying through the clouds - the company logo. The animated slides presented the financial results for the last quarter. I copied the presentation to take a look later.]It shows up in our Codex. tl;dr: most of their profit is from Paradise Beach, Knight's Code, a fancy gamer helmet, and the Pygmalion technology. We'll leave the hand of solitaire for now. Video James is a man on a mission.  The man took a deep breath and let the air out through his nose with a loud wheeze. [Past Choices] He took a good look at me. You're here? Good.If we had stayed to finish that hand of solitaire, we'd get yelled at for being late. - Take initiative - Introduce yourself - Discuss the job Hello, my name is... I know who you are. I'm Director Haggis. Something's wrong with my son - he won't get off the couch and...well, you'll see for yourself. It's been over four days. He entered some game with his friend, Timmy. I've tried talking to Timmy, but he's clammed up. His condition makes me worry even more. My son is on the couch in the next room. Let's go there now. Haggis's son was wearing an expensive, brand-name suit and a state-of-the-art helmet covered part of his face. The couch's side panel warned that he'd exceeded the online time limit. I couldn't help noticing that the genital area of his gaming suit was bulging.- Touch his hand [I took his hand - it was trembling slightly but had a normal temperature. That happens in games that generate lots of adrenaline. His fingertips were covered in sweat...No, not sweat. I rubbed the sticky substance between my fingers and sniffed. Berries and chewing gum.]- Examine his face [I leaned over and looked under the helmet's visor. There weren't any signs of an extended online stay. Expensive supplements did the trick. I noticed a healing bruise on his jaw under his ear. There was some discoloration - the signs of Scarstop overuse. I had no idea what could have caused them.]Haggis clears his throat impatiently. I welcome your conclusions when you're ready.- Check if he's faking [I grabbed his shoulders and shook him a few times. No muscle tension. He wasn't faking. The quiet sound of the suit's massaging devices grew louder as the supporters brought his body back to the optimal position.]- Examine the suit [The suit was equipped with advanced anti-bedsore software. It resembled the skin of a slithering snake.]- [Infotainer] Check the brand [The suit was the same brand as the couch - "RoyalMat". Top of the line. Blue Whales Interactive didn't own it though. I ran my fingers over the suit's surface. The synthetic fibers emitted more heat in the places where they needed to work harder.] Any conclusions? I'm starting to lose my patience.- Share your observations - - Please note that these are initial observations. It looks like your son is fine. He's just playing something...exciting. He's been logged in for over four days, but there are no signs of adverse effects from the session. This is some excellent equipment. Doing a hard extraction by taking the helmet off is a huge risk, and logging out remotely- It's impossible, I know. Like it is in most systems. Can you at least tell where he's logged into? Unfortunately, I wasn't able to determine that. I need to find out which game Fredo logged into and then take appropriate steps. I understand. Fredo entered with his friend Timmy - a spineless pushover. He's in my office, maybe he knows something. But hurry - he'll be picked up soon.He looked at me, then at his son, and sighed. All right, get to work.We can go back to examining Fredo now that he's stopped bothering us. - Look at the helmet - Check the screen [The visor screen had no info on Fredo's virtual location - an intentional safeguard. The helmet didn't have an observer port either. There was no way to see what he was playing. Full discretion.]- Check the helmet number [To get a look at the number, I had to lift the boy's head. I gently grabbed his head and tried to turn it a little. Fredo moaned.] Careful! You're hurting him!- Continue - Explain - Give up I know what I'm doing. He'll be fine. Do you think I'm blind? You're hurting him! Leave him the gently caress alone or I'll throw you out myself!We give up on this course of inquiry. Doesn't seem like it'd help, anyway. - Check the couch [The "Royalmat - discretion and comfort" couch reeked of luxury and unattainability. The system masked the player's login information.]I imagine it reeks of quite a bit more than that after four days. - Check the couch's panel [The small screen displayed Fredo's vital signs: pulse, muscle tension, and brain activity. Despite the high-end hardware, the kid was sweating and using a lot more nutrifluid than he should've been. His body was exhausted.]That's all we can do about Fredo for now. Let's talk to his dad again. He looked at me with disgust, as if to let me know that I was wasting his time. - Ask about access to the couches Who has access to the room with the couches? My guests and I, but no one except Fredo uses them when I'm away.He looked at the couch the woman was using. At least, that's what I thought. Oh, right. We should probably get to her. -Woman's Couch [There was a rather provocatively dressed twenty-something-year-old woman on the couch. Warnings flashed from the device's panel.]- Check the couch's panel [She'd exceeded the safety limits for logged-in time. Over four days without a suit! She must've taken a gamepill or her bladder wouldn't have held out.] [She started revitalization but something interrupted the process. Even though she couldn't control her body, I thought she could hear me.]There's absolutely no indication of this, I think Video James just fantasizes a lot about women listening to him. [Her helmet had an external monitoring port. I could connect to it and see what happened.]- Take a closer look at the woman [She must've been planning a short session since she didn't put on a suit.] [Gathered info] [She looked like one of the women I had seen on the computer screen in the hall.] Is that your assistant? She's just a random lowlife. Leave her alone and get back to my son!Haggis's face swelled up with anger. I’m beginning to think Haggis might not be a very good person. Incidentally, everyone’s face only has one expression in this game, which certainly saves me time taking screenshots. - Explain - Hold your ground - Give in She may have some crucial information. Alright, just hurry up.- Ask Haggis about her Who is she? [Relations] I don't know. Timmy was babbling something about her being in the game with them.- Make contact Hey, lady! Can you hear me? She didn't answer and she didn't move. Either she wouldn't talk or couldn't. I was betting on the latter. Is...is the same thing happening to Fredo? I don't know yet.- Connect to the helmet Haggis noticed what I was doing. [Relations] The observer's port.He nodded. I see you're prepared. When I connected to her helmet the image was transmitted to my lenses. Hello, I'm a gamedec. I was hired by Mr. Haggis. I connected to your helmet. You can talk, and I'll hear you on my walktel. According to the login, your name is Starlett. Is that right? - Question her I want to ask you a few questions. If it helps you get me out of here!- Ask what happened What happened? How did you get here? I don't know. I don't even know where 'here' is. I was in the game with the guys when someone attacked me. Who attacked you? In what game? Was Fredo Haggis there? I'm confused and exhausted. I can't...someone definitely attacked me. I blacked out.- Ask about Idris [Gathered info] Do you know Idris? I saw your picture on her computer.She looked at me in surprise. Yes, she's my girlfriend. Did you come here to see her or the guys? Can we not talk about it right now? Get me out of here and I'll tell you everything.- Ask about her condition How are you feeling? I can't move or feel anything. I can only talk. And this emptiness! I'm going crazy here. Your revitalization was interrupted. I've never seen anything like it before, so I don't know how to help you yet.Alright, enough talk, let's try to get her out of here. She’ll probably be more receptive to conversation in the real world. Let me try and help you. That's a weight off my shoulders.- Analyze the problem [Interrupted revitalization is rare. I could've just pulled off her helmet, but that might have ended badly. There was a safer solution.] [Revitalization is like waking someone up. The senses are activated in a specific order. Hearing is usually first - Starlett's was already active. Revitalization stages are displayed on the progress bar, but I couldn't recall the right order. I only remembered that vision was definitely last.] Okay, Starlett. I think I know how to wake you. Ominous red flashes begin showing up. [My deck detected the girl's helmet being bombarded with exabytes of data. Someone wanted to overload it and terminate our connection.] Starlett, someone is trying to stop us from talking or probe me. drat it! What are you going to do? [The attack was intensifying. I didn't have much time.]This next part is a rather tricky puzzle. We have the option to do all the following actions in any order we like, but if we make the wrong choice or do any of them out of order, it’ll fail. - Observe the attack signal [My connection was being overloaded with streams of incoming data. The walktel wasn't able to interpret it.] [One thing was certain - the attack was getting stronger by the second.]- Activate the firewall [I'll activate some barriers to block the signal, but it's only a matter of time before they crack.] [It was possible to use jamming barriers to slow the attack, or some weaker reflection barriers to track the attack's source.]- Use jamming barriers to slow the attack - Use reflection barriers to trace the attack [I activated the barriers, but I didn't know how long they would hold.] Starlett, I put up some barriers. I bought us some time. Great. It's about time we got out of here.- Revitalize Starlett We don't have much time - I'm going to try to get you out of here. Finally!-Awaken her by stimulating her senses. The correct order was key. The revitalization bar had stopped on 'stimulating proprioception'. It seemed right to start with that.Unfortunately, Video James dropped out of medical school to focus on his budding streaming career, otherwise he’d have known the correct order instead of having to guess. Starlett, I'm going to try finishing your revitalization. I'm going to need to touch your body. Is that okay? Do whatever is necessary.- Move Starlett's arm [I felt around for Starlett's arm in realium, raised it, and moved it around.] [The revitalization bar moved forward. "Proprioception complete." A good start, but the screen didn't display the next stage.]- Stimulate the sense of balance [I decided to stimulate her inner ear - her sense of balance.]- Rock Starlett - Raise Starlett's head [I gently raised the girl's head.] Oh, something's happening! I feel dizzy. That means your inner ear has been stimulated. I can stimulate another sense.- Stimulate the sense of smell. [It was time for the sense of smell - I knew it was connected with taste. I hesitated...]- Blow in her face - Give her a piece of mint gum [I dug into my pocket for a pack of mint gum, took out a piece, and carefully slid it under Starlett's helmet.] Hey, I smelled something strange, and now I have a weird taste in my mouth. That means we're on the right track. - Stimulate the sense of touch [I took Starlett's hand and squeezed it.] I can feel your hand! Finally! Now comes vision. [The hacker broke through - we only had time for one action.]- Unfasten Starlett's helmet I'm about to take your helmet off. It should stimulate your vision and motor functions. [I gently slid the helmet off her head.] Finally! Thank you! [Those words didn't come through the walktel but directly from her lips.]Fortunately, Video James is very lucky, and definitely not subconsciously channeling information from a parallel universe. I was just about to terminate the connection when I saw a message. "GO HOME AND GO TO SLEEP - IT'S FOR YOUR OWN GOOD. DON'T GET INVOLVED." [The attack ended and I got disconnected.] I'll do what I can, Mr. Haggis.With Starlett out of immediate danger, we can question her in more detail now. How are you feeling? I was without a suit for too long. I'm still a bit shaky, but my back is cooling and my stomach is warming up. You pulled me back from that...void. Thank you.The girl glanced at Haggis. You probably want to ask me some questions before I leave.- Ask about Fredo's condition Fredo can't seem to log out of the game. Do you know why? No. The boys were fine, and then I blacked out. I guess someone hacked me.- Ask where they logged into Do you remember which world you and the boys entered? I took them to Twisted and Perverted. If only I had known how it would turn out...Well, there’s our first case. We have to rescue some rich rear end in a top hat’s son from Pervertland. The glamourous life of an internet detective, everyone. - Let her leave That's all. Thank you. You should get some rest. I've overstayed my welcome. Drop by Yeti's Coming in Low City sometime and I'll buy you a drink. Oh, Mr Haggis?The man looked at Starlett with disgust. What do you want? Who do I bill for the escort service? You or the company?He wanted to say something but just stood there holding his breath with his mouth tightly shut. With that, Starlett leaves the office. We can talk to Mr. Haggis again, but he has nothing to say.  Anyway, now that we have some evidence, we can start forming some conclusions. This is our Deduction screen, where we can review the evidence we've discovered.  We don't have a lot of evidence for now, but it's still enough to unlock one of the possible conclusions as an option. As long as we have one conclusion available, we can select it, but once we’ve committed to a deduction there’s no backing out of it, even if you find contradictory evidence down the line. Generally, the plot won’t progress past a certain point until we’ve committed to a deduction. And yes, we can choose option 1 at any time, in which case we just bugger off and go home – the game even warns us about it, but does nothing else to prevent us from picking it. Anyway, we have a solid lead now, but it never hurts to go in fully prepared, so we'll do a bit more snooping around next update before we make a decision. Inadequately fucked around with this message at 11:17 on Sep 7, 2022 |
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Sep 7, 2022 09:57
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I'm slightly disappointed that the protagonist is investing crimes like "someone's trying to turn this VR MMO into Sword Art Online" and not "who griefed me and stole my +5000 Dicksmasher Sword." I was looking forward to Hardboiled McTough trying to interrogate an elf with a goofy name dressed like a clown while he was grinding rabbits for XP.
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Sep 7, 2022 10:43
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It's very funny to me that the best drat space sim ever is just about buying spaceships and looking at them. But I can't tell if it's an intentional Star Citizen joke.
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Sep 7, 2022 11:13
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Can we go back and finish that game of solitaire now?Anticheese posted:But I can't tell if it's an intentional Star Citizen joke. Neither can I. If the player character had mentioned it was still in development, even in (appropriate-cyberpunk-distancing) years later, well then that'd be our answer Left 4 Bread fucked around with this message at 15:52 on Sep 7, 2022 |
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Sep 7, 2022 15:49
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I like how seriously the game takes itself, it's like watching a cheesy 1990's technology thriller. Also I don't even want to imagine the kind of damage you get from laying still for 4 days without the futuristic medical suit, Ms. Starlett is lucky we got here.
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Sep 7, 2022 16:39
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That is absolutely 100% a shot at Star Citizen. It's also probably the funniest thing in the game.
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Sep 7, 2022 18:13
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As a completely wild guess, I'm calling Goodabads is Tetris. Every single screenshot of the rooms makes me wonder why the gently caress the ceilings are so high. Seriously, just look at the apartment of our hero: Everything (including his lockers/storage space) only go like, 50% of the way up the wall. You could literally fit a second apartment in the entire upper half. No way in hell 22nd century megacorps are letting that space go to waste like that. I assume it's because of the angled perspective the game but drat I just can't unsee it.
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Sep 8, 2022 23:35
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One thing that's not immediately clear is that there's actually a lot of timing related things going on already. On my first run, I got in trouble for being late even without ever interacting with the computer outside the office. Real time apparently matters in this case, so if you distracted by, say, reading the codex, you're probably going to be late. Also, the "tricky puzzle" is actually all in the codex, so you the player don't actually have to guess even if the player character doesn't have the right profession to know it properly. The attack itself is also based on how many interactions you've done in the conversation: In my own experience, if you just go straight to helping her, you have a bit more time before the attack happens, and with more time, you can try the tracing barriers. (Doing that picks up that they have some anti-tracking technology, iirc.)
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Sep 9, 2022 04:03
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A short update today since I want the game world to have its introductory update to itself, probably tomorrow. We have a solid lead, but not a lot of evidence, and we still have a witness to interview.  Our first interrogation. The meter above the conversation options is a general good cop/bad cop meter - being nice and charming and letting the suspect talk about stuff they like shifts the bar to the right, while being rude and standoffish and forcing them to talk about topics they dislike shifts it to the left. Neither of those are outright bad - shifting the bar to either extreme unlocks progressively more and more secrets from them, as they come to trust us/get agitated enough to spill. A half-hearted approach, however, gets us nowhere. Questioning is best left to the police. I'm here to help Mr. Haggis's son, so let's just talk, all right? Okay. I wanna h-help too.He nodded vigorously. Tell me what happened. It was Fredo's sixteenth birthday, and we...we were inside an a-adult game.He turned red and stared intently at his shoes.  -Ask about Fredo Your friend...-Get him to talk about Fredo Tell me something about Fredo. Anything you want. He's my b-buddy. Same school. Once, this kid Alex c-called me names, so Fredo flushed his walktel down the toilet.He smiled at the memory. Then, he altered the holophotos in the school g-gallery to give Alex a pig's snouth that oozed this dis...disgusting mucus. Fredo's brilliant. Okay, I...I believe you want to help. It was F-Fredo's birthday. Did I mention that? So we logged into...Paradise Beach. It's a place where...Adults...get together there. You can read all about it in the d-description.He turned red like my grandma's geraniums. He seems to like talking about Fredo, so let's keep going. -Ask about enemies Has anyone been threatening Fredo? Did he have any enemies? No way! Everyone likes him, admires him. He's the best in graphics and has awesome skins and "Fast Fury" scores. He bought the best 15k speeder, and...-Point out the bullshit -Listen to the story [I was amazed as Timmy recounted Fredo's achievements. The kid burned through money, offending anyone in his way, yet was always able to avoid any consequences. Timmy seemed to revel in his friend's insolence. He obviously believed that arrogance and poor manners were 'cool'.]I don’t think Youtube Star and Internet Detective Video James is in a position to lecture anyone about ‘cool’. I believe you. R-really, I do! And I want to h-help. It's just that I...can't quite remember! I d-don't know what actually ha...happened. [He had trouble putting sentences together and remembering events. It wasn't just shock. Something had really disturbed his nervous system.] Your nervous system is overloaded, but it will regenerate. It will pass. Breathe.-Ask about the virtualium  -Ask what they were doing in the virtualium What were you doing inside the game? Well, what you n-normally do in an adult game...-[Infotainer] Try flattery You guys probably turned all the girls' heads, eh? Girls like you, admit it. They love such soft features. Come on, what were you doing?Video James is a terrible liar, but fortunately Timmy is equally terrible at reading people. He straightened and tried to puff out his chest. There...there were these cool enpecs. We've flattered him enough to unlock the first secret. ‘Enpecs’ are NPCs, by the way. You seem alright...I'll tell you what Fredo looks like in the game. He b-bought us both skins, and mine was almost as cool as his! Old man Haggis doesn't know. We used an agent and covered our track so no one would f-find out we were going into an adults-only world.-Ask about Starlett [Gathered Info] What can you tell me about Starlett? She...she's a stripper. She knew the game well, so Fredo hired her as a guide. She was very...brave.He started to pick at his suit collar. -Ask why she was brave She was brave? What did she do? She was dancing so...flirtatiously. And t-teasing us. She was so...direct!He was embarrassed just thinking about the girl. She knew little of that world but was brave enough to guide us. And she was so...provocative. Thankfully, mainly toward Fredo. She barely spoke to me.I have a feeling rarely getting spoken to is a fixture in Timmy's life. He seemed to be gaining courage. W-what do you need to do to become a g-gamedec?-Lie and tell him it's difficult -Tell him he's got a shot at it -Admit it's easy Video James does not have a very high opinion of his job. So you want to be a gamedec, Timmy? I'm sure you could handle it.He smiled with disbelief. -Talk about Timmy What games do you like, Timmy? Whatever Fredo p-plays. Space sims like Dream Space or Dying Stars. Shooters, too. Crying Guns is our f-favourite.He loosened up. He liked to talk about games. He was no longer terrified and just waited for the next question. Why is Fredo still inside the game? I...I don't know. He liked it there and w-wanted to stay for as long as possible. Maybe...maybe he's having fun? [Did Fredo lose track of time? It would have to have been an amazing session to disregard the danger of exceeding the permitted play time.] We didn't know...'cause...w-we always buy the most expensive tech and win...And everyone envies us. N-no risk, you know? This was supposed to be like that. Y-you know how it is, don't you?We do. Sure wish we didn't, though. -Confirm -Take him down a peg Sure, everyone likes to show off now and then.He nodded vigorously. I think he liked me. -Ask about Paradise Beach [Gathered Info] Why did you choose Paradise Beach? Well, t-to have some fun... We're pretty close to unlocking that last secret, just need to butter him up a bit more. -Help him choose his words People normally log into Paradise Beach to pick someone up, flirt a bit, or go to bed with someone. Is that what you were looking for?He started daydreaming. Yeah! Fredo says that you n-need to have an instinct, and we have it! We were, we were...godlike! Because we...we...always know how to handle...girls. [He had no idea how to handle girls or gamedecs. I knew he was lying.] I trust you, I'll tell you the truth. Just don't tell Mr. Haggis! We went into...Twisted and Perverted. A world where people, uh, hurt each other for pleasure. It's horrible, and Fredo - he's still there! Please, f-find him! Hurry!So about that...well, we'll get into that next update. Thank you, Timmy. You've been a great help.At this point our conversation options are exhausted - we can't talk to Timmy anymore.  Let's check out the rest of the office. -Sticky Stain [The floor was sticky in that spot.]-Sniff [Berries and chewing gum... a barely noticeable trace of liquor.] [Infotainer] It was 'Blue Mistress' - champagne often mistaken for something more expensive. Haggis didn't seem like a fan of such drinks.-Take a closer look [The stain was light blue.]-Taste it [I ran my fingers across the stain and brought my fingertips to my tongue. Sour. The ethanol was long gone.]Video James is very dedicated to forensic science, but not so much to proper analysis or hygiene. [Relations] [I caught Timmy's surprised look. He cleared his throat and looked away.] I was running an investigation. All details mattered.-Panda [The animal looked as if it was frozen in time.]-Take a closer look [Submerged in a transparent resin substance, the panda seemed alive. I noticed a panel with a single red button at the base of the display.] The panda separates into three chunks. -Take a closer look [The split blocks revealed the creature's intestines. There was still some digested food left. It seemed like the organs moved slightly in a barely visible contraction...or maybe it was just the light.] [It was time to move away from that...decoration.]I’m not sure if the panda is there for any reason other than to show off obscene decadence. Maybe if we passed the occupation checks on the upcoming objects, we could have learned more from it.  [There was no chance of a flaw in the design, not in a building like this. It looked like a hatch.] [Gathered info] It had to be the sound-activated safe that Haggis had installed.-Try to open it [The safe was sound-activated. Such devices typically reacted to their owner's voice, but could also be tuned to something else.]Nothing more we can do about that for now.  Thank you. I hope you can help Fredo. Bye Timmy. Hang tough.Alfred and Timmy leave. I guess that's all we're getting out of him. -Infolia -Read [The article was about Pygmalion, the flagship BWI product. It allowed you to create living human psyches. I copied the rest to the Codex. I'd get back to it when I had more time.]It mostly just restates the same thing as the 'finance report' we collected earlier. -[Infotainer] Information about me [Infotainer] [I searched for information about myself. After all, I had once done a recording about artificial intelligence...] [Not a word.]-Computer A stream of stock market quotations appeared on the screen. The hardware was high-end - like everything else in these rooms.  -Panda Incorrect password. Upon a second failed attempt, the terminal will be locked for 48 hours.Oh well, let's leave it alone, best not to piss our employer off.  Anyway, we have enough evidence to lock in our decision.  This unlocks a new path, but we'll need more data before we have a clue about where to proceed.  Mr Haggis, I've made my decision. [Gathered info] Fredo might be inside the adults-only world Twisted and Perverted. You know, the one combining sex and violence. I should look for him there.Haggis sighed. That's what I was afraid of. Do your thing. The access fee for that virtualium will be taken care of. All expenses are on me.Before we hop in, let's do some investigative work on that couch. [The casing was slightly loose.]- Leave We really need to pick up some skills beyond having a silver tongue. Anyway, we're out of options, so let's hop into the darkest pit of depravity the web has to offer. Next update.
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Sep 9, 2022 08:00
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I have a distinct feeling that we won't find the kid merely having good consensual fun in there.
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Sep 9, 2022 10:38
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By popular demand posted:I have a distinct feeling that we won't find the kid merely having good consensual fun in there.
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Sep 9, 2022 14:42
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I think I actually read the short story collection? If it is the one I remember, I noped out of it the moment it tried to turn into harem anime. Based on that, I think Goodabads is some kind of (spoiler in case I'm right since it would be technically cheating)deathmatch with pain sensory stimulation? I distinctly remember the hero turning into a Badass Superhuman by training his pain threshold for it.
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Sep 9, 2022 18:18
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Crepuscule Adepte posted:One thing that's not immediately clear is that there's actually a lot of timing related things going on already. On my first run, I got in trouble for being late even without ever interacting with the computer outside the office. Real time apparently matters in this case, so if you distracted by, say, reading the codex, you're probably going to be late.
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Sep 9, 2022 18:46
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As we enter the world of Twisted and Perverted, a kaleidoscopic whirlwind of colors and sounds surrounds us, a phantasmagorical wonderland of pleasure and pain and pure sensation far beyond the capacity of a mere human mind to comprehend. The sheer sensory assault of simply existing here rends our very soul to dust. We may never be the same again.  Just kidding, it’s a crappy city street. That's our in-game HUD for our current world. It doesn't do much, but it does tell us that we have a perfect K/D ratio of 0/0, and also we have a gun. Above us, there’s a bulletin board that lets us download a copy of the rules into our codex.  tl;dr: - No minors - Anyone who doesn't opt out will be recorded at all times - You can only log out at certain 'refuge' points - Please practice proper RP, gunning down randos in the street is NOT what this game is about  We also have an advertising blurb in our codex. Note that last paragraph at the bottom - just about every other sensation is implemented, except for pain. Firstly, that seems like the opposite of a selling point to anyone who would actually be interested in this game. Secondly, that’s going to make a couple of upcoming plot points a lot wilder.  We cross the street and immediately get into an altercation. Dude, leave me alone!The man was talking to the tall guy in a dark coat, but he glanced at me as if asking for help.  You cheating bastard! And who's that? Your bodyguard? Hey! Help me out! Dude's a psycho! Shut up! And you, chief...He looked at me, drawing his weapon. Stay out of this.-Stop him -Kill Ken -Kill Zed -Let him die Maybe there's a way to talk our way out of this one? Take it easy, gentlemen! We can surely reach some kind of agreement. What is there to talk about?! That drat- [Zed sniffed the smoke from the gun barrel. He had the smile of a madman.]-Reason with him -Kill Zed You know, that hardly seemed like proper RP. We should probably talk to him about that. Relax, buddy. Let's not make any rash decisions. Tell me, what... Ow.  When we get back to the same location, both Zed and Ken are gone, though Ken is still around. If we had chosen not to intervene - or took too long to do so - Ken would have gone on a tirade and eventually shot Zed, before standing around steaming mad. We do have someone else to talk to, though.   You seem like the only normal person in this whole circus, and I have a sensitive problem... VERY sensitive. I'll just say it. I'm looking for my wife.-Leave -Investigate -Hear him out -Make a joke Tell me more. This is how it is. I've been standing here for an hour and can't find Rhonda anywhere. At the same time, I just know she's cheating on me.Turns out just standing around hoping for answers is not an effective investigation tactic. Who knew? - Say he's not looking right - Cut to the chase Let me tell you a little secret. If you want to find someone, you need to GO look for them. Go is the key word. Now let's cut to the chase. I'm a gamedec, and I need specific information.See, even Video James knows that. A gamedec? I've lucked out! I was told that she plays here often and has quite the results. Ugh.-Mention your rate I'm a gamedec. Get it? I don't work for free. drat...I'm a little short on money right now. But maybe we can come to some other arrangement, eh?-Ask for his proposal I know Harvest Time very well. There's a gap in the code. I can tell you how you can exploit it. I'll take it.I personally wouldn't have, but apparently Video James disagrees. Phew, I knew we would find some common ground! So, will you help me? All right, I'll look for her. Really?! Thank you! There are some good people left in the world.- Ask him about himself Who are you, anyway? A loser! Can't you tell?- Ask about him being a loser A loser? I rarely hear someone being so critical of themselves.Says the man who thinks so little of his job that he thinks even Timmy could do it. What am I supposed to be like? My wife's running off to that...He desperately searched for the missing word. He finally gave up and sighed. You know where she's running off to!-Comfort him Hey, it happens. It's not the end of the world. No? No?! Just wait. I was tipped off that she hangs out here, doing awful things...So, I started looking for the location - it's some kind of exclusive level. I spent all my savings to get here, to this Sodom and Gomorrah...My own money.-Ask if the game is expensive It costs that much to get in here? It's pretty expensive, and I didn't get here right away because I'm a loser! The tipster wanted money, but I, a great designer, didn't want to pay. I started looking around alone. I told myself - Bob, you've been making games for years. You can't let yourself be fooled by dirty tricks.-Shrug -Listen Buddy, the paywall took me for a ride. I ended up in some premium events, and, like the loser I am, I had to go back to the tipster and pay. That's how I got here. Broke.Sounds like you just got ripped off, my dude. - Ask about his work So, you make games? I'd never touch an abomination like this one! But it doesn't matter. I was fired. Why did they fire you? Long story. I was working on harvest systems for Harvest Time, and they gave me an AI assistant. I trained it, taught it, adjusted it...and then they finally let me go. Too bad they didn't tell me earlier. I wouldn't have spent all that money on looking for my wife.- Ask about his wife - Ask about her handle Do you know the handle she uses? There was something in the anonymous letter. Uh, "Horny" or something....that's not a lot to go on. -Mention her skin Do you know the skin your wife is wearing? SKIN? On top of everything, she's wearing people's SKIN?! I meant a skin. You know, a gaming avatar. It's like - Oh, I know what a skin is. I thought you were talking about another fetish - humans skinned alive. I have no idea what she looks like here.-Mention her preferences Does your wife have any special sexual preferences? Any fetishes? The letter said 'she's into some strange things' and 'likes to push the limits'. How can you 'push the limits' in a world like this?I'm not sure I want to find out either, but a job's a job. It also said, "Everything with everything with everyone and everything." Ugh...I don't even want to think about it. Listen, I'm looking for someone. Maybe - Anything to do with Rhonda? God, I don't even want to think about it!Well, we can't rule it out, but we also can't say for certain. No, a different case. But I agreed to help you, so maybe you could help me? Yeah, all right...I'll try.-Ask about Fredo's skin I'm looking for a young man with access to money, okay? Did you see anyone in an expensive skin? Something top-of-the-line? A while ago, I saw two guys and a woman. One kept looking around, but the other seemed to like it here. The first had a cool skin. They called him Flapdoodle. I...damnit! I can't focus! what could she be doing now?-Answer professionally -Scold him -Say nothing -Comfort him An investigation needs time and intelligence. Trust me.Might as well solve this sidequest before we question him any further, we're not going to get much out of him like this.  Up the street, three old men are huddling around near a burning barrel and having a conversation.   We value hospitality. Come, have a drink with us.He offered me a bottle smelling of strong liquor. -Drink -Refuse Not this time. I came here to talk.The drink is spiked with a cheat code. If we drink it, it briefly paralyzes us and exposes our personal data, which Panisantor downloads before telling us to be more careful and releasing us. -[Low City] Comment on the tattoos Your tattoos depict relics from the Undercity. Are you a scavenger? They're drawn from holophotos of the objects I brought back. A commemoration of my greatest finds. I'm too old now. But Ramona, my granddaughter, can poach even better loot. She takes after me, little devil.He spoke with obvious pride. -Ask about his age You have an old avatar. Is this some sort of fetish? The skin is a statement! In my time, you could sneer at lots of groups - immigrants, the ugly, or anyone fornicating with the wrong people. Nowadays, everyone's accepted except for us! The old are eliminated! They're supposed to grow young again or disappear in Low City to die out of sight. Horrid ageism. That's why I plan to flash my wrinkles at everyone! IF they don't like it, screw them! Figuratively. And literally, I hope.-Say you're looking for Fredo I'm looking for a new player. He logged in about two days ago. He had a horrendously expensive skin. I saw two kids log in together. One joined the trolls for a while and wandered around T&P like a stench around Low City. It was a pleasure hunting them. You have to play nice in other virtualia. Trolls are players too, supposedly. Here, I can lurk with a brick and ambus them from behind.-[Infotainer] Ask who they were You seem to be a frequent visitor here. I'm sure you know everyone. Who are these trolls? They're not our trolls! It's a gang cruising from world to world, bugging people. You raise kids like they're made of glass and... Do you even know what glass is? Anyway, they can't cope with realium or virtualia. They wandr aimlessly, five seconds in every world. I miss them, I could use a hunt.He's done talking, so we move on to the next one.  [He stilled when I came near. His sleepy gaze noticed me and he sprung into a more upright position.] Wanna fight?!-Don't fight I didn't come here to engage you in combat. I have a business- Too bad...everyone wants to do business! They order, buy, pay... Nobody wants to fight. Not even rob me! You're discriminating against the old!-Ask what he's selling What do you have for sale? [He eyed me suspiciously and waited as if he expected to hear a secret password.]-Improvise one Hmm...show me your wares? You must have mistaken this game for another.-Move on to the investigation I'm looking for a kid in an expensive skin. Logged in with a friend. Their behavior probably stood out. Their behavior stood out...That's putting it mildly. The brats caused mayhem and vanished. That's all I know.That's KTA exhausted, one left.   [His face wrinkled into a warm smile as soon as he met my gaze.] Hey there, good looking! I'm Trepanator.His calm eyes held a hypnotizing joy. Given the nature of this game, I'm not sure whether that's supposed to be metaphorical or literal. [Low City] [He extended his hand to me the way people used to in the old days. Only the oldest Low City inhabitants remembered the custom.] [I shook his hand.]According to a quick Google search, the handshake dates back to prehistoric times. I’m not sure about a century would be long enough for the custom to be near completely forgotten. -Mention his avatar Interesting choice of avatar. Extremely unusual. I know. It stands out for its refined simplicity. But I gather that's not what you had in mind. Go ahead, be nosy all you want. You wouldn't be the first person to shamelessly pry.His smile was disarmingly honest. Or he was an exceptional actor. Your avatar looks very natural. Most of the players use the opportunity to beautify themselves. You mean to ask why I chose to look like a fossil? You don't have to coddle me.He stared at me from under his bushy eyebrows and smiled. For me that'd be a compliment. I paid a small fortune for the avatar.He laughed heartily upon seeing my confusion. -Say it's an interesting choice - Say it's an interesting fetish - Ask about the price. You had the means to become anyone you wanted and you chose an old man with liver spots and a broken nose. Not all that glitters is gold, good-looking. Although I do appreciate the way you look here. I have features here you've never dreamed of. My blood tastes like strawberries! I've always liked them.He pondered something thoughtfully. So far I've only seen one player here with an avatar of this class. Why did you choose such an avatar? It offers me a semblance of what it's like in the real world. A normal life, you know? It's an estimate of how I'd look if I had the chance to grow old. You didn't have the chance to grow old? What do you mean? I died. And I was reborn. I'm free from pain, exhaustion, and all the humdrum problems of everyday existence.  How do you earn money if you can only function in virtualia? I manufacture cheats, the old type. Nobody else is doing it anymore so they're selling like crazy. They're all secured from external examination. They'll just self-delete, so they're practically untraceable. 99.999% success rate. There was only one case in my entire career when someone traced me. How come someone traced you? She was an even bigger fossil than I was. Used a DDOS on my emergency access gate to the virus. So naturally, I wasn't prepared for that. What year were they from? 2040? That method has been obsolete for decades.-Ask about his death How did you die? I'm almost embarrassed to say...My overconfidence killed me. I was young and stupid and I overestimated my own skills. A lot. I wanted to join the Painers, the famous gaming team. I broke into Happy Hunting Grounds to show off and dazzle them with my skill. I used and untested cheat. By the time they reached my flat, necrosis had already set in. Panisantor was gracious enough to pay to have my brain saved.-Comment on his happiness Despite all that, you seem quite content. It's just...I've been a gaming nomad all my life. I have a second chance thanks to the boys. They made the rendan transfer possible for me, even though I was an insignificant brat back then. Now my brain rests in a safe. I do dream of seeing realium again sometimes. I miss some places. But I can't afford a mobrium. How long has your body been dead? My avatar shows my correct age. I died before my voice changed. … [I didn't know what to say.] It wasn't so bad. Puberty in Twisted & Perverted has its perks. I could show you a thing or two.-I know enough -Say no way Not to boast, but if anyone was to do the teaching, it would probably be me.He flashed a cunning smile. I think we should check which one of us is right. Preferably in a cozy, secluded place with no interruptions.Yeah, that's enough of this topic. -Ask about Panisantor's granddaughter I hear Panisantor's afraid of his own granddaughter. Yep! He's hiding because she forbade him from playing here. She's not gentle. At times even I feel...let's call it a nervous respect for her. She's right. His heart's not what it used to be and he could drop dead of excitement, which is easy to come by. You know that, right? Or should I show you? Could you tell me more about her? What can I tell you? She's a slick chick. Never got to know her closely. KillThemAll might have more to say about her.-Ask about Fredo I'm looking for a kid. He might have attracted attention with the way he behaved. Have you seen anything unusual? Stop looking for kids and pay attention to elders. Experience and skill are more important when having fun.He winked at me. Fine, there was one guy like that. Had a fitting handle - Tugay Bey. Made some noise at the entrance to the level through the subway. Wasn't worth my time. Can you tell me more about him? I keep telling you, that's the wrong person to take an interest in. You're in Twisted and Perverted. Go on, experiment a bit.-Stick to the investigation -Maybe after the case I have a job to do - rescuing the kid. Let me see...He must be someone important, because he had someone hovering over him the whole time. What else? He entered with a friend. The latter had a funny name, too. Flapdoodle, that's what it was.That's all we get from him, but as we turn to leave - [Relations] How about you come back here after you find your kid? I could show you around the virtualium. You want to show this game world to me? That or a different one. I've spent my life in virtualia. I know a lot about them. I'd gladly show a couple of places to a cutie like you.-Refuse -Make a date Sure, what the hell. We can always livestream it for content down the line. I always wanted to learn how zoenets see the world. Relaxing after the case in some pleasant virtualium sounds good.He seemed happy with my reply. Hurry up, then. I'm not growing old but that doesn't mean I want to wait for eternity.That's all we get out of the old men for now, so time to head downwards.  Excuse me? Her eyes were cold and completely sober.  Only two kinds of people log in here. First, there are those who know what they want. They seek pleasure in exploring their fantasies. They are ready for it. -Ask if she's Bob's wife You look like someone I'm searching for. Are you married to Bob Zappa? No. When I saw that pathetic man lurking here today, I understood why his wife decided to spend her days here.Ouch. She’s not wrong, though. -Ask about sex You said you helped people explore their sexual fantasies. Sometimes. I am good at it, but I doubt you are a partner suitable for me to play with. [Her arrogant gaze appraised me.]-Ask who is -[Infotainer] Check who was -Chat her up [I checked who she played with recently. I went through the game's marketing stream with a facial recognition algorithm set to the skin she was wearing. On each of the holophotos she was with someone different. Only one showed her with someone wearing a skin less than extravagant. Ramon. She bossed him around.] [I spotted her last date.] Who is Tugay Bey? Oh, I never kiss and tell. Especially to scruffy-looking strangers.Rude. It does raise a question, though – are we actually using our regular body as an avatar in this game or not? We appear to be, but that could just be an abstraction. I don’t think the game ever makes it clear. -Ask about her helping people You mentioned you help people find meaning. Here?I couldn't hide the irony. Why? Because meaning is only where you see it, gamedec? It is in places like this that meaning may be needed most. Our clan gives people access to truths about life they so desperately need. Your mind is closed more than a BWI vault, so you might have problems understanding. -Say you're looking for Fredo I'm looking for a player. A new one. And I am searching for attractive ones. Seems as though none of us will get what we want in this conversation. [I left without another word. We had nothing to talk about.] Nothing more on this side of the street but a fancy red car, which we can look at but doesn't tell us much.  We cross the street and immediately find ourselves in a conversation. I think so... I'm glad, handsome. I think we should continue this conversation somewhere more private.-Interject -Listen Give me your deets. We'll meet somewhere in realium and talk further. Or closer. He smiled roguishly. That sounds like a good idea.A unicorn appears out of thin air.  What the hell is that? A talking horse? Oh, I beg your pardon! I'm a unicorn. Ignore him. Focus on me, handsome. A unicorn that knows magic tricks! Do you want to see? You're not going to leave us alone, are you? Not until you watch the trick! Come on, choose a card!-Say you want to look at the trick -Observe Okay, let's see the trick. Great! As he speaks, a flash of purple smoke engulfs the three of them and they all vanish. Guess we're not getting anything out of Ramon for the moment.  Above Ramon, we find Ken still brooding. I'll ask you one question. Think carefully before you answer...Are you a drat troll?-Deny -Say you're a gamedec -[Low City] Say that you're from Low city -Confirm I'm a regular Low City dweller. Like you.He smiles wryly. I thought I got rid of the manners of the lower walkways, and yet... You just found yourself a friend!-Ask Ken about himself So in general, who the hell are you? Give me something to think about.He exhaled loudly through his nose. So you don't know me, huh? A few hours ago, I was 'a rising Goodabads star.' There was an important match, my way to a great career, but it went to poo poo because of a few trolls.-Ask about the match What's the deal with this match? I was about to score. Then some trolls appeared with a strange structure. I froze, lost my seal. So I rage quit. Probably ruined my career. Now I want revenge. I'm looking for them now.All that stuff about Ken Zhou at the start of the game? It happened a few hours ago. Ken has been on a virtual tear since then, scouring the net for trolls in order to…frankly I’m not sure what his plan is here. -Ask about his career You're in e-sports? I play Goodabads. I'm pretty good - immune to pain. This match was loving important, with sponsors watching. And I blew it. loving trolls. So as I mentioned earlier, we got a Codex entry on Goodabads at the start of the game, which does very little on clarifying what Goodabads is. We’ll learn more about it over the course of the game, but there’s really only two things we can definitively say about it: -It’s a football-like game(?) where at least one objective is to get some kind of seal from one point to another -The players play under excruciating amounts of pain, with higher levels being some sort of score multiplier. It’s hard to tell what the game is actually like or how the game is played because the second point is the only thing people will ever talk about whenever it comes up. They don’t talk about cool maneuvers, or particularly interesting tactics, or notable feats of athleticism or skill. All they talk about is ‘yeah, it was real impressive when That Guy cranked up the pain to ‘dipped in boiling acid’, but did you see how Our Guy cranked theirs up to ‘eyeballs broiled in lava’?’ This is, by all accounts, one of the most popular esports of the 22nd century. Ken’s particular skill is not any sort of finesse or mastery of the game – it’s his near-inhuman capacity for pain tolerance. As a reminder, there’s no pain implemented in Twisted and Perverted, the game about sex, murder, and sexy murder, but the most popular esports game in the world is literally built around it. -Ask about the trolls But how were the trolls involved? I saw them, grinning and malicious. I tracked them here to a dead end. Zed is my only lead. Investors must be furious. Leaving mid-match, what was I thinking? I logged out in the middle of the game. So embarrassing.He didn’t stew over this for a while or anything. He got trolled, messed up the match, and literally logged out mid-match to go on a virtual troll hunt without delay. -Ask about Bob Zappa's wife I need to find this one guy's wife. I see you're a person of many talents. A gamedec, a matchmaker...what else are you hiding? You a culinary prodigy? Maybe you collect beads?Half the people we meet seem to recognize us as a gamedec right away. In this universe that’s probably explained by Video James constantly livestreaming his cases, but it’s more questionable in other cases. Maybe we’re just wearing a badge that says ‘HELLO I AM A GAMEDEC’ but never think to mention it. He was looking at me with a cheeky smile. Sorry, just messing with you. Did this client of yours provide any details?Well, we really don't have a lot to go on, but... -Mention her skin -Mention her handle -Mention her preferences Zappa said they call her 'horny'. I'm not sure if he meant that as a handle, or... Yeah, chief, probably everyone is in here. Wait, Zappa is looking for her? What do you know! There is such a woman. Her handle is 'Hor Ney'. I saw her a few times, north of the subway entrance, I believe. Good detective work, right?…well, that was easier than expected. - Ask about Fredo I'm looking for a kid. In realium he's a son of a wealthy businessman. His name is Fredo Haggis. My cheats are not good enough to see a player's real name. What nick did he use? I don't know yet. But I'll find out. We have the option to ask him to be our sidekick, but we'll hold off on that for now.  Heading up, we see two women talking in front of the Subway.  I have a question for you. - [Infotainer] Flirt I overheard you talking about skins, and damnit, you've piqued my interest. You have sublime taste. It's a rare thing here. Vifon skins - amazing! And only for the chosen - most can't tell the difference. They think flashing a tit or cracking a whip is enough to make people go crazy. Appearance isn't everything. The skins have customizable blood - you can choose how it tastes. Have you ever seen anyone with such a skin? Yeah, but I've never tasted one. It's probably only a matter of time. A kid named Tugay Bey was intoxicated, so he'll be easy to get to.- Mention Bob Zappa's wife [Gathered info] I'm looking for a certain woman. Everyone knows her here. They call her...horny. Horny? They're almost all - Oh, you mean Hor Ney! Honey, I doubt she'll be interested in you. She's out of your league.I still can’t believe this is the actual solution to this ‘puzzle’. -[Infotainer] Ask where she hangs out -Ask where she hangs out Babe, get your facts straight first! Ignore the skin, look deeper! Let me know where I can find her, and we can verify 'my league'. Wow, you're so sensitive. She's a complete wacko! I doubt you'd want to hang out with her. Such psychos aren't worth your time. She usually hangs around the alleys with shady guys. Let it go. It's a completely different story. Unless you're into stuff bordering on the dark web.- Ask about Fredo I'm looking for a kid who was around here with a friend. They may have been acting strangely - it was their first time. I don't know what they looked like, but they probably had top-of-the-line skins. The kid's friend might have been a little frightened. Know anything about them? Oh, that guy - Maybe we do, maybe we don't. Who are you, anyway?- Lie about being a relative - [Infotainer] Get creative - Say you're a gamedec I'm a gamedec. I'm conducting an investigation. So what do you want with him?- Say he did something bad - Say he's in danger I need to find him as quickly as possible. He's in danger. Like everyone in this game, you silly person. Real danger. Should we care? Sure, two kids with dumb handles were hanging out - Tugay Bey and Flapdoodle. The first made quite a commotion. Should've been beaten up for it. Dicks like that always get away with everything.- Ask about the Hon Clan They were having a speech-bubble conversation about it earlier, but we missed it. I heard you say something about some clan...what clan were you talking about? The Hon Clan in Knight's Code, sweetheart. Have you ever wondered about the point of human existence? [The woman sounded like an informercial.] Have you ever wondered if there is a higher power in charge of everything? Is reality really as we see it? [I couldn't get drawn into sectarian babble.] Of course, every intelligent person starts to look for something deeper at some point in life.-Ask how they ended up in the clan How did you end up in this organization? The Hon clan only accepts prominent people. Nothing more, nothing less.We’ll find out later that this is a lie (although I’m sure you could have already guessed that). Anyway, that’s it for this update. So far we’ve met: -several people recruiting for their cult/MMO guild/pyramid scheme -an unemployed game dev complaining about his wife -some grumpy old men griping about how good the kids these days have it -a washed-up esports star hunting trolls on the internet because he has nothing else to live for Just like a real MMO. There’s still some people left to talk to, but we’ll be meeting them next update.
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Sep 10, 2022 10:55
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Just like the current day online experience most of the people you meet are terrible wastes of time and oxygen. If I lived in that 'VR is serious business' environment I'd be trolling nonstop.
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Sep 10, 2022 12:14
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By popular demand posted:Just like the current day online experience most of the people you meet are terrible wastes of time and oxygen. Yeah, I'll give the story this so far, all we're missing is someone telling us we're doing everything wrong and should be doing it this way, and a person deciding to die on some unrelated hill. It really is the online world.
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Sep 10, 2022 15:13
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I hope the trolls mentioned turn out to be literal trolls
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Sep 11, 2022 08:35
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This ain't Shadowrun compadre.
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Sep 11, 2022 09:10
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I am a sucker for games and stories like this. The, uh, Goodabads thing is... not anything like I would have expected. That is wild.
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Sep 12, 2022 04:28
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Odd Wilson posted:Yeah, I'll give the story this so far, all we're missing is someone telling us we're doing everything wrong and should be doing it this way, and a person deciding to die on some unrelated hill. Yeah I'll take the OP's word that the game isn't very good and its setting isn't well-crafted but as it stands right now it feels pretty real compared to the anime "MMO shenanigans" subgenre in terms of the sheer amount of petty drama and the way the characters are presented.
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Sep 13, 2022 01:09
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 Before we head upwards, we see Ramon log back in and walk back to the corner, so let's go talk to them. Have you seen...It's you! You're working with the unicorn guy! You've wasted so much of my time! I'd been working this guy for four hours when you came. He got spooked and ran off! Umbra's going to flip out!-[Infotainer] Make him talk I'm a gamedec. Best in the business. Answer my questions and I'll owe you one. It's a privilege not many have enjoyed.He laughed in my face. You mean I answer your questions and you'll owe me? That's some bullshit right there.- Ask about Fredo I'm looking for- Do I look like a help desk to you? I don't think so. I'm busy with my own problems and I have zero time to deal with yours. There's this player situation I need to take care of. I meant to do it after meeting my quota, but the loving horse ruined everything!-Help with the "player situation" I can help you with the 'player situation'. This will save you some time and you... Can give you the information you need? Deal. I need you to find somebody for me. The job's easy. I even have a locator. Who is this man? He's somebody who doesn't listen to what's being said to him. I need to straighten him out for good.- Say you should talk - Say you understand I understand. Give me the locator. Great. Find him and bring him to me. If he tries to fight, just kill him. But listen. Try to be gentle. We now have a locator around us. If we follow the arrow it points to...  Are you sure you won't have a drink with us? Not this time. I came to talk. I meant to tell you...-Say you want to show him a unicorn -Say you're taking him to Ramon -Shoot him I saw a troll wearing a unicorn skin. He set off purple explosions and acted like an idiot. Want to see? I wondered what those loud blasts were...Let's go! I love hunting trolls. [The veteran immediately took to the idea of hitting someone.]We head over to the corner and...  Look who's talking! You lied when you told me you wouldn't log in here anymore. [The veteran forgot about me. All his attention was on Ramon.] And you promised me you'd be a good granddaughter. It seems we were both less than honest. [He seemed to enjoy the banter.] Grandpa, you can't play so much! It's dangerous for you, even more so with the gear you're using. At your age- Don't teach a troll how to swear. I was playing with bad gear while you were still logging into cartoons. Precisely my point! The longer you do, the more dangerous it gets. And your body isn't able to withstand so much anymore! And yours is? Barely older than a toddler and...He fell silent upon seeing his granddaughter's reaction. [At the mention of his body, Ramon reflexively grabbed his own arm. He avoided Panisantor's gaze.] I was just looking out for you. Should I not care? Fine! Don't be mad, kid. I'm glad you care. The veteran’s voice was suddenly soft and gentle. [Past choices] I'll log out now if you promise to visit me in realium tomorrow! We aren't done bickering.He smiled provokingly, and Ramon smiled back. Panisantor then walks away towards the subway entrance, and logs off. We can now talk to Ramon again.  -Ask what he's doing here You talk about quotas, about working people...what exactly do you do around here? I tell the truth to those who are ready to hear it. How do you know someone is ready? It's simple. I start by saying that we've all sensed there must be something more. That this world couldn't have been created by accident. I talk and observe their reactions. If they listen attentively, I tell them the truth.-Ask about the 'truth' What is the truth that you tell? Fewer and fewer people die, but more and more can't see the point of living any longer. You'd expect gods to show up more often. You don't think the world came to exist by itself, that it's a coincidence? With the right attitude, purity, and ritual, it's possible to communicate with gods.-Ask about the rituals What rituals are there? Purity is key. Don't look at me like that! I mean spiritual, not physical. Fasting and meditation...I don't know, I could only do it once.-Ask about those who aren't ready You tell the truth to those who are ready to hear it. What about those who aren't? I assess their bank balance and if they're worth it, I bullshit them. Don't look so offended. We need to make money somehow. You can't even imagine the extent of human stupidity. They won't accept the truth, but they'll pay for a luck buff. Just in case.-Say he's a true believer It's not a scam for you. You're really dedicated to this idea. You don't know how it is. It's survival of the fittest in Low City. The clan is the first place I've had a chance. It gives me hope.-Ask what grandpa would say Panisantor doesn't mind that you're in a clan? He wouldn't dare tell me what to do with my life! [He pretended to protest, but his face lit up at the mention of his grandpa.] Grandpa is getting older. He keeps saying he can't afford a BLB and that I should expect him to be gone soon. He sees the clan as helpful.-Say this is no world for religion You talk about truth, about purity...Twisted and Perverted is not exactly the best virtualium for these things. Purity should be taught to the sullied. It's them who need it. We're present in many worlds, but most players log in here because they're looking for something. They're open to the unfamiliar and rolling in money. We pay for skins and subs because it pays off. We have so many recruits and donations that Lord bought a theater. We've lost it now, but it was a big deal.That's all we can get out of Ramon for now. We can ask if Ramon is Bob's wife, but we’ve pretty much already confirmed that’s not the case.  We still have a couple more areas to check out, but let's check out the area above the subway first.   ...else. [She addressed the last sentence to me, winking encouragingly.]-Show interest -Refuse -Say nothing I'd rather not get into whatever you two are doing. Oh come on! It won't hurt a bit! She smiled at me suggestively. It's adorable and all, Rhonda, but...how do I put it? The butterflies in my magical tummy seem a tiny bit inappropriate. I'm sorry my friends, farewell!The unicorn disappears. Thank goodness. Hmph. It seems my friend didn't like you either. I think we'll have to say our goodbyes.-Ask about the horse -Ask about sex -Ask about Rhonda Let's...stay far away from those first two topics. [Gathered info] So your name is Rhonda? How do you - oh, you heard the unicorn addressing me. I would prefer you to call me by my handle. Seriously, I'll take care of you later, but for now let me spend some time with the horse.-Mention the husband Sorry for doing this to you, ma'am. Oh! I almost forgot. When Bob Zappa asks, "Why is my Rhonda doing this to me?!", what should I tell him? Oh, for crying out loud. I guess we do need to talk.-Ask about her I'd like to know some more about you. What can you tell me about yourself? What's there to tell? We're in 'Twisted' and I'm also trying to be a bit 'Perverted'.-Mention her husband's case Your husband wants me to confirm you're here. Consider it confirmed - Rhonda Zappa spends plenty of time in a disgusting virtualium for deviants! Do you have any idea how he'll react? It'll never end! Listen, I have a counteroffer for you. Tell him it's not true. Convince him he's wrong and I'll owe you....well, since they're clearly not talking to each other at the moment, no harm playing both sides of the field for now. -Agree -Refuse -Say you'll think about it Sure, I'll get him out of your hair. Wow! Thanks, you have no idea how much it means to me.Back to Bob we go.  -Tell the truth -Lie and say that his wife is not playing T&P [Gathered info] Buddy...your wife's playing T&P. Oh, god! Everything's going to hell! Could you...could you tell me what she's doing here?-Say she's playing -Say she's cheating -Say it doesn't matter She's playing the game. T&P is unusual, but it's still a game. You're a designer, you should understand. Maybe you're right. Maybe we can work it out somehow. [Relations] Okay, listen. If you ever need help in Harvest Time, say the password 'mycorrhiza' to the bartender and I'll sense you.-Ask about strange behavior Was anyone here acting strange? Taking into consideration the behavioural standards of T&P. People were yelling 'Flapdoodle, you idiot!' and 'Don't be mean, Tugay Bey!' I heard a shot, and people gathered. I didn't go - I just care about Rhonda. -Confirm it's done I've talked to Mr. Zappa. And? How did it go? I did what you asked. He won't be looking for you in T&P. Great! I'll have a serious talk with him sometime later. Looks like I owe you.-Mention your investigation I'm looking for a kid who really shouldn't be here. A rich, troubled boy. He probably came with a friend. Wait, there were two guys who made a mess here not so long ago. One had the handle 'Tugay Bey'. Quite bossy and rude to the other one. He had one of the priciest skins in the game. The 'we probably won't sell any of those, but if one sells, we're set for a long time' ones. There's still one...person we have yet to talk to. Despite disappearing earlier, he comes back whenever you re-enter the area. I'm no horse! He involuntarily started chewing the end of my coat, just as a horse would. What I am is a unicorn! And what unicorns do is bring magic and a glimmer of happiness to life! [That was the silliest skin I'd ever seen. Especially considering the wearer hadn't fully learned to operate the extra two legs and a tail.]He threw his head back and shook his tail. Come here! I'll show you a magic trick!Sure, what the hell. -Watch the trick [The last thing I needed was more magic in my life, but the horse seemed eager to show me the trick.] All right, let's see it.He bucked, tripping over his leg and just barely maintaining balance. Oh yes! Pick a card! [He offered a deck of cards with his teeth, the cards becoming more soaked in spit by the second.] Mmm?-Pick the right card -Pick the middle card -Pick the left card It doesn't really matter which card we pick. I pick this one. Great...Splendid! Now, focus on your card. Keep it close. [His face showed an expression more akin to a cunning fox than a horse.] We're engulfed in a cloud of purple smoke, immediately dying and respawning at the subway.  You don't look dead. Do you want to see a trick?-Ask about the skin I've seen a great many things, but...why this skin? That's not a skin, I'm a real unicorn! I prance around the world, have adventures, and bring magic and joy to people. Want to rub my horn?-Remind him that he's human -Rub the horn You're human, don't you remember? [I tried to speak softly. If he meant it, then he was in a bad spot.] You mean to tell me I'm not a real unicorn? Well, maybe you're not a real boy!He neighed, outraged. Maybe it was different once, but now I have the magical horn and I'll always prance with joy.He was sure of his magical horse identity. -Ask about the code that turns you into a horse Can you show me the script that was run when you became a unicorn? What script? What? I was always a unicorn. I emerged from the fantasies and good intentions of children! Pity. Because, you know, if I had a piece of code like that, maybe I could be a unicorn, or give it to someone who wanted to become one. The only thing that's better than one unicorn is two unicorns! He agreed wholeheartedly and gave me a card with the code - a joker. We now have the option to turn him back into a human, but only if we're a Sensory Surgeon. Apparently wearing a non-humanoid form for a significant amount of time causes brain damage, which probably explains why everyone’s avatar is so…restrained, even in Pervertland. -Say you're looking for Fredo I'm looking for a new player sporting an expensive skin. I saw two! Two is better than one! Tugay Bey was rudely yelling at Flapdoodle, who was behaving. Tugay Bey sure wasn't a rainbow friend. Did I help? Did I? I always help my rainbow friends. Let's find the one in the hat and prance on toward a new adventure! See you around. [He neighed goodbye.] That's everyone talked to, and that's about all I can get out of them for now. We need to make a deduction to proceed.  This one isn't too hard.  I haven't been mentioning it every time, but we've earned quite a few stat points over the last few conversations. Most have been yellow, since we've been focusing on charming up people. Blue points seem hard to get - you get them mostly by showing restraint (i.e. backing off whenever you have an opportunity to push further), sticking to the rules, and generally being a buzzkill. It goes against both the player's instinct to see everything and the snoopy nature of a detective.   We pick up Sleeves, and level up our influencer skills.  Now that we've made our deductions, we can proceed with further questioning about 'Tugay Bey'. Not everyone has something to say, so let's just do a quick round of the ones which do. I asked him about Rhonda, but he told me to go gently caress myself because he had a date with some chick in some 'remote location.' Or something like that. And that would be all. Tugay...Yeah, I did here something. Apparently he wanted to find a secluded place for him and his girl. There is an alley here, a dead end. Supposedly, strange things happen in there. I think he was going to some secluded place with his lady. I'm not sure where. I've been quite busy, as you know. But there is this alley in the southern part of the area. People go there when they want to experience something without prying eyes. Yeah, we saw him groping some random chick. I don't know what he saw in her. They were looking for a place, if you know what I mean.We've also unlocked another line of questioning for Mia. Would your clan notice a player wearing a very expensive skin? Sure, but money isn't everything. The clan doesn't just take - it mainly gives. Nice turn of words, sister. We welcome all lost souls. What does your clan offer to those lost souls? The truth, sweetheart. What truth? About reality, about life...About the meaning of existence. About the fact that nothing is as it seems. About gods. About the fact that life is more than just gaming, sleeping, making GBS threads and buying. It's not just another technofaith. The Hon Clan walks the path of discovery. We discover reality without the limits imposed by the mind and community. Well, we haven't filled out all the evidence, but the answer seems pretty definite from what we have. Making the alley deduction unlocks some more investigative dialogue: Not my area, and I'm not sure anyone is debugging there right now. But ask the old guys. They probably see whoever goes in and out of there. That alley? No, we don't play there. But there's one guy who always hangs out there. His name is Trepanator. Ugh, he gives me the chills. Ask him. A bugged alley, chief? The one in the south? Haven't checked it out yet, but people are talking. If it's as broken as they say, then you'll want to start with a developer stack. It should be hidden there. Come on - I'm hiding here so no one can get to me, and you're asking me about back streets? As far as I know, there is one guy - Trepanator. A scary dude. He often hangs around there, ask him. What? An Alley? No, I'm more stationary these days. My friend, Trepanator, visits it from time to time. Ask him. -[Sleeves] Mention his shady business Hold on. You have your business. I have mine. I don't want to presume anything about yours, but I really need something. Experience tells me it's prudent to begin the search by asking this level's big shot. I don't know what happened, but a bunch of admins occupied the alley yesterday. If I were you, I'd look for a developer stack. There's bound to be one in there. If something went wrong, the cause would be recorded there.The other two approaches get us stat points, but no new information. The game evens out that way - using occupations whenever you can tends to be the 'best' solution, but alternative options, while suboptimal, tend to be more stat-lucrative, allowing you to unlock occupations quicker.  Let's visit this alley. We could access it earlier, but we had no reason to investigate then.  There's a trash can here. All that's inside is a mine. All we can do with the mine is blow ourselves up with it. -[Deduction] Look for the developer stack [Developers often leave access points to their tools in characteristic and easy-to-find scenery objects. This can might have been one of them. I decided to check the code.] [The code's comments said Janek hated creating garbage and there were 617 unique trash can models in the game. But nothing about the stack.] -The aestheticizing of reality [...how people need beauty, the kind they create. Realium and virtualia are becoming more attractive due to anonymous activity, often AI. People want to create something to express themselves, to stress that the individual means something among twenty billion people.] [Graffiti did exactly that in the lower layers of the polis. "I am." "I exist." "I mean something.]That gets us a green point. 'Indifference' gets us red, 'vandalism' gets us blue, and 'art' gets us yellow. [Graffiti usually means something else as well in virtualia: "This place is different."]-Inspect [The graffiti didn't look like it was made by AI. The stains and sloppy curves were proof that it was made by a human.]-Look for the developer stack [Graffiti was sometimes created by game devs. It pointed to a nearby developer stack. I turned on my deck and started looking for a familiar Chi-Tong sequence.] [I finally discovered signs of the tool. I removed the line responsible for transparency and saw the access panel.] [Low City][...a cart used by early-century food services. Some Low City eateries still used them. The horizontal windows flashed and protruded slightly where I held my hand. The stack was on.]-Show operation history [I moved my fingers along the window edges and selected recent operations. Just two results. The login screen and a local scan.]-Show local scan [There was a scan that was stopped. The report covered the list of errors that blocked it. There were tons of defects at this level, many big enough to cause glitches, but the program had applied a filter to make them invisible. I turned off the filter.] It's hard to see, but this makes a flickering blue glow appear below us. -Show login screen [Admin TPA-06M was still logged into the device and was probably somewhere nearby.]-Show logged-in user [I needed to display the admin.] The blue holographic figure is trapped in a loop, just walking back and forth across the alley. -Check developer tools [I touched the right window. It required additional authorization.] The blue holographic figure is still strolling around. We can't interact with them.  We actually have enough points to unlock the third influencer tier, but for now we'll pick up Scalpel first. This early in the game, more choices are locked behind lower-tier occupations than higher-tier ones.  -Consider it logically [A manifestation of the code, like all other in-game creations. But this code was flawed, so it looked like a strange spatial distortion.] [I felt a vibrating pain inside my head. Initially distant, it drilled deeper with every second.]-Examine [My deck recognized some object in the center of the glitch. It was a dagger. It flashed and its level of transparency changed.]-Touch the glitch [I moved my hand closer. It seemed cold and sharp. When it cut through my skin, my head exploded with a torrent of sounds. A pulse shot through my veins, burning like molten lead. It whirled inside my stomach and shot out toward other errors in the alley.] [It ended. The glitches faded and I was whole again. I learned the locations of the system's weak points but had trouble remembering them.] This causes a bevy of glitch spots to show up on the path. We need to touch the ones that lit up when we examined the glitch - wrong ones reset our progress. The glitch spots are very close together and it's hard to spot all of them unless you're standing at the right angle, but fortunately we have unlimited tries and can try touching the glitch to get the right ones to show up again.  Touching all three materializes the hologram. The admin whispered something, mechanically entering commands in windows I couldn't see. ...again, don't panic, open the window, enter... Why can I speak and hear myself?She saw me and froze, hands shaking like she was delirious.  -Ask if she's okay Are you okay?She fumbled as she tried to quickly touch her thumb with successive fingers. She did it twice. Her middle finger froze while contracting. Been better. I probably still need some time before I can fully regain my motor skills, but...generally? I'm good.She thought for a moment and shuddered. Definitely better than in that crap hole.-Ask what happened What happened here? I wish I knew. It was just another call, and then we fell into some damned trap... Tell me about the call. The subway gates reported that minors were trying to log in. Two people. Jeremiasz took the harder cases, and I came here and fell into this damned loop. The loop - what do you think about it? I've never seen anything like it. It looked like code from at least a few different companies. Just like...No, that's dumb.- Give up - Insist - [Infotainer] Tell her to cheer up Come on. In my first podcasts, I always used to say, "Foolishness is my specialty! Like and subscribe!" That didn't get me too many followers. What I mean is that you can tell me anything. I won't judge you. Listen. The loop shouldn't work - this code is screwed up. And don't think I'm crazy, but I think I saw a...jester. With a jester hat. -[Infotainer] Tell your story Wait, you mean THAT Jester? I was creating a report about him. Best creepypasta in the network's history! [I assumed a theatrical position and lowered my voice.] Have you heard the ballad of Jester? The player damned by the network and corporations after getting stuck in- I heard a different version of this story. Want to hear it? Tell me about it. All right. Ages ago, we created the Internet. Then the urban monitoring systems, social media and full virtualia. We scanned brains, created diginets. People. And most of this knowledge is online. Programs communicate and watch. They don't assign meaning, aren't self-aware...-Cut to the chase -Listen -Say it's nonsense Been going on for years. They're observing and gathering data without understanding. Mindless learning. Random links are increasing, starting to form something. Some complex, multidimensional structures like those in our brains. We didn't understand them, but we knew that consciousness might emerge. Not like ours. Not based on millions of years of evolutionary brain structure, but on dynamic connections to hundreds of virtualia.Okay, we can cut to the chase now. Get to the point. I don't have time for stories. It's a curiosity. A ghost in the network. But it's just a stupid tale for young hackers, right?-Answer rationally -Answer with faith -Say it's nonsense -Answer agnostically The code used in virtualia created worlds similar to realium. Brahma copied realium. We can't dismiss the possibility of an anomaly.We get a codex entry for 'Brahma'. It's a simulation of the real world that zoenets live in. I don’t think it ever comes up as a plot point in the game. Well then, that's it for confabulations out of thin air...Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a job to do.She entered a few commands in a window I couldn't see and disappeared.  Now that the glitch is gone, the dagger is exposed too. [There were words engraved on the blade. 'We seek refuge...' or 'We need refuge...' and something else.]-Take a closer look [I picked up the weapon and carefully examined it. The blade was serrated and had an inscription. 'We seek refuge in the shade of its branches.' Not quite suitable for the vulgar atmosphere of T&P.] [There was a tree symbol shining on the dagger's head. The sign of the clan...]-Take [It dematerialized and disappeared.]So much for evidence. I actually missed this entire branch of events the first time I played - didn't notice the graffiti could be interacted with, missed the whole dev stack thing. I'm quite glad we got to see it this time - partly because of the plot-relevant conversation, but mostly because we learned Video James canonically has a creepypasta podcast.  Only one thing left to investigate here. -Take a closer look [I carefully inspected the stain. Hoofprints? There were no animals in T&P. But there were trolls...]-Taste it [I rubbed the dried-up gore with my fingertips, brought my hand to my lips, and tasted the collected secretion with the tip of my tongue. I tasted nothing besides the skin of my own budget avatar. There was no way this was the boy's blood - they had expensive skins.]Video James is still committed to good analysis and terrible hygiene, even in the virtual world. -Take a closer look [I carefully inspected the stain. Hoofprints? There were no animals in T&P. But there were trolls...] I found hoofprints in the alley. There's no chance anyone but you could have left them. What were you doing there? Tick sent me. I mean, the king of trolls. Unicorns always listen to trolls, especially ticks. [He spoke oddly. Being a unicorn didn't serve him well.] Someone sent you down an alley. You went and took something small. I saw the prints. I had to find the glitches and the girl. I only found a card with the glitch code. The king was fixated on the code and vanished. Maybe he'll return. At this point, we can't move forward unless we make a deduction. Either one works for progress, but since someone mentioned they wanted to see the trolls, let's go for that one. [Deduction] I'm looking for the trolls that roam this level of the game. I was a troll. Now I'm a unicorn. The trolls left with Tick through the portal behind the generator. That's where your colorful adventure begins! The portal's between the three old guys and the entrance, behind the generator. [He didn't share much valuable info.]-[Infotainer] Mention a magical creature My friend! Maybe the adventure started right here with you? In every good story, there's a magical creature waiting to reveal a tiny part of the mystery. Oh, I'll reveal something! Here's a magical encoded card. Use it next to the generator and your journey will follow the glittery trail!He took out a spit-covered king of spades. After a quick scan, I found a code on it. With this card, you can summon the king. Just call out: 'Oh king, enough chatter, open the gate through space and matter! Don't be a quitter, come wearing glitter!' [He spoke as if singing to power generators was the most ordinary thing in the world. Well, seems it was to him.] We can now interact with this generator. We could before, but couldn't do anything with it. If we didn’t manage to persuade the unicorn to hand over the card, there’s an alternate way of progressing by scavenging a ‘cheat code’ from the tire area to summon the trolls, but I’ve never gotten it to work myself. -Use the King of Spades [Gathered info] [I grabbed the card I got from the unicorn and recollected the words of the Unicorn's Magic Nursery Rhyme.]-Perform it theatrically -Perform it mechanically -Perform it quickly [I waved my arms and sang as if it were the performance of a lifetime. Pity there was no audience - I did so much better than the unicorn.] A portal opens up in the air and a dumpster materializes, being pushed by two people...  ...before disappearing into thin air. We now have a new objective to 'Talk to the Troll King'. This would be a good place to end the update, but let’s have a bit of extra fun first.  Sure thing, chief. Anything that'll keep me from thinking about my career. Meet the mighty troll king and his entourage. To the one person who was expecting literal trolls: sorry, but get used to disappointment.  Chief...Ken leaned in with a whisper loud enough to be heard across the street. -Listen -Shush him That's the noob who hosed up my match. Let me handle this. I have a plan!This is going to be terrible. I can't wait to watch. -Shush him -Agree -Tell him to wait Do what you must.Ken smiled casually, pushed up his glasses, straightened his shoulders, and put on a threatening look - in his opinion, at least. We meet again, troll.He spoke through clenched teeth, and then revealed his gun holster.  [The King raised his hand, finger pointing to the sky, ordering him to wait. He then looked for something in the recesses of the junk throne.]-Take initiative -Observe -Rebuke Ken This time I'm not prey. I came here as a hunter. Your trolling ends here and now. [The man finally pulled a can of beer from between the burned tires and opened it with a loud hiss.] Here comes the DARK AVENGER, the last fair man. I am VENGEANCE.He paused, losing composure. Then watched, completely disoriented, as the troll greedily drank up the beer.  lol. lmao. So much for the dark avenger. What can I do for ya?He addressed the question to me, pulling another can of beer from behind his back. Alright, we’ve had our fun. Time to make some actual progress on this case, next update.
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Sep 14, 2022 17:47
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That's a RIP for Dark Vengeance the Ex-Esports Superstar 
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Sep 14, 2022 18:12
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I took the clan route here and now I regret it. This is much better
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Sep 14, 2022 18:49
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Still strong in that online experience feeling, how I hate everyone on this game world. I hope the other places we get to have more depth.
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Sep 14, 2022 19:04
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Warning: some skeevy stuff in this update. Nothing too explicit, but, well, this entire quest has revolved around a kid being trapped in Pervertland. Not that anyone cared, but Ken is fine. Presumably, getting so thoroughly owned cooled him off a bit. Not that he was ever really going to accomplish anything, given that the entirety of his plan seemed to be 'shoot them' - in a world where pain is nonexistent and death is an instant respawn.  Anyway, time to talk to the Troll King. -Ask who he is Who are you, by the way? You wretched worm, forgotten by the might of Perun! How do you dare not knowing King Tick? I mean, how dare you! The freest of spirits! An outlaw! King of all trolls! Banned in almost - no! Literally in 72 worlds! You got that?-Investigate I'm looking for a kid - Fredo Haggis. He - I know where he is, and I can even help you get there. But first, you need to complete a quest.-Ask if there's another solution Look, I don't have time to play fetch quests. Maybe we can sort this out differently, huh? Why? Fetch quests are perfect for a king like me. They're cheap, straightforward, and can last for a long time. Like me. In the bedroom. What were we saying? So as you can tell, there's a few ways to get through this interaction. We actually have one of those alternate ways available to us right now - as a level 2 influencer, we're a big enough name that doing a puff piece on him is enough to get him to hand over the info we need. But let's do the fetch quest for the hell of it.  For the sake of brevity, let's just summarize the quest: - Find the red car - Bring the left mirror of the car to Herman - Bring the license plate of the car to Herman - Get a special nail from KillThemAll (He doesn't like it, but we remind him he owes us a favor for helping Panisantor out) - Nail the license plate to the spot where the mirror used to be  -Say you appreciate the trolling 'Asphalt seeds', huh? Okay, I admit - that's funny. And you got me, pranked a gamedec. Now, I have to get back to work.He burst out laughing and clapped his hands. It was fun, wasn't it? You've earned my trust. Maybe even a little bit of respect. Perun tells me that you deserve the support of Tick! Where's the kid? Fredo is in the theater. But we can't let you go in there like a plain noob, no, no...You passed King Tick's test with dignity! We trolled you beautifully. That's why I'll give you something special. There are elevators in the alley behind the theater. Use them and you'll give whoever holds the kid a gift fit for a troll!Incidentally, attempting to kill him just results in him teleporting the bullet back at us, but when we respawn he appreciates the chutzpah.  Anyway, we can use the elevator in this alley now. Well, one of us can, Ken's not coming along.  Entering the theater via the walkway, we see...Fredo repeatedly stabbing a woman on a large bed, and a little man in a jester costume wandering around the stage.  The jester will very noticeably pause under the walkway ropes as he walks, allowing you to get the jump on him fairly easily. Of course, he notices us while we slide down and teleports away, but that's better than nothing.  [It seemed that both were climaxing. That's what gets you the most points. That and a melee kill. Everything would have been fine if the ending were normal. The woman should have disappeared, but this was some kind of loop.] [He stabbed her. The woman lost. He stabbed her again, she lost...]-Examine [I scanned their vital signs. From what I could tell back by the couch, Fredo was holding up, but the woman...wasn't doing so well. Dying inside the game wasn't painful, but it was unpleasant. A nauseating feeling of the blade stabbing the body, and the presumably endless orgasm. The loop must have been weakening her. If this went on for much longer, it might not end well for her.]-Log the woman out [This could have painful consequences, but it was better than doing nothing. Hold on, lady...or dude. I really wasn't sure.]We can try forcefully logging Fredo out, but we get some pretty major hints that it's not going to be that easy, and warnings that it'll probably result in some pretty serious damage even if it works. As we log the woman out, both of them disappear, and...   The woman has been logged out. So predictable. Either way, look...Fredo is completely stripped of his avatar skin. This is his own realium self. Carnal. Sweaty. Fredo's a minor. He's killing a woman inside an adult game.-Keep calm What do you want? Everything you see here is recorded from every possible angle, and if Haggis doesn't do what I'm asking...the footage with the boy's full name will be published all over the Net. It will be titled 'Like Father, Like Son'.-Ask what he wants from Haggis What do you want from Haggis?He knows exactly what I want and it's not about money. He's got to do what I tell him. No more, no less. What do you want from me? Just tell him to listen to orders and wait for further instructions. What if I refuse? You don't want to say no to me. Not unless you like jokes and value the truth. If so, then feel free to refuse. [If I log out now, my session will be disrupted.]- Agree and log out -Refuse I don't appreciate being forced to do things. Let me see what it is you've prepared here first. A gallant knight without his horse...I've made some modifications. I hope you like a good show. We're teleported to the front of the theater. Incidentally, if we just walked into the front door, we'd have been trapped in that conversation with the jester, without a chance to log the woman out. Not that it seems to have done much, given that the jester appears to have reset that too. Attempting to enter the stage just results in being teleported back to the theater entrance again.  The only thing we can interact with is this stranger. Yes, yes, you're right. We shouldn't have let the kid do that.He looked down at me and bit his lip. What are you doing? Who are you talking to? What're you saying?! You know how companies work. It's the son of the director! Day in, day out...Those cabins...stop interrupting. You're making it a big deal. You didn't answer my question. Okay, maybe we should have done something about it. But it was just two times, and he was clever. He did it online, in Paradise Beach, so...I figured it out, but why are you nagging? Others knew, too. Firing someone for a hot photo in an era where everyone edits images?! Haggis vouched for him! [The guest was gesturing and talking to somebody. I couldn't hear what the other person was saying.] gently caress, alright, so you know. What are you going to do about it? Intimidate me with your little bells on your little hat? Are you gonna blackmail me? Burn my feet? What are you doing? Is that a cheat?! What the fu-We're teleported to the front of the theater again.  We're immediately drawn into conversation with the stranger as soon as we enter. The conversation plays out the exact same way as the last one. We're stuck in a time loop, you get the idea. Any attempts to say or do anything that we didn't do the last round fails. This time, instead of being immediately teleported at the end of it...  -Ask how you are talking How are we talking? Just a second ago... I can do a lot. You see, I'm an archi- but let's not get ahead of the facts! So, what now? Will you log out and tell Haggis to do as I say?-Say no I won't be your errand boy.We're teleported to the front of the theater again.  This time, we get some new options. -Check if he's conscious [He kept repeating the same sequences of words and gestures, but his eyes...Yes! He wasn't looking at his invisible companion, he was looking at me! The 'spell' he was under didn't control his eyes! Could I use eye control?]-Try eye control [I tried moving my eyes a few times. Yes, I was able to move them and my programs were responding.]-Run the 'Guardian Angel' program [I issued a command and separated myself from my body.]As an experienced gamedec, of course we have a selection of useful programs that we can call upon in times of emergency. No, we never get to see them or find out what they are. That would prevent us from pulling new ones out of our rear end whenever the plot calls for it.  We're now a virtual ghost, and can interact with other things around the theater. -My skin [My skin. It felt strange to see it like this. Even more strange seeing it repeat the same actions again and again.]-Analyze [Showtime. I wouldn't see anything unless it was something simple...Found it. Looked like a replay code. There was even a note from the designer.] [Right. The game was supposed to have a replay feature, but it hadn't been implemented. So it wasn't a cheat surrounding me, it was unused game code. That's why the admins and security algorithms weren't reacting.]-Cat [I wondered why there was a cat in such a game. To set the mood?] [A typical enpec. Well, not typical, but just as lifeless as everything around it. Caught in a loop.] [Relations] Boss, I'll be watching you, staying vigilant in case there's trouble. I'm keeping my finger on the pulse.Even though we invited him on a lark, Ken seems to be at least taking this sidekick thing seriously. Maybe he’s just happy to be a team player again. [Damnit, I couldn't say anything. I needed to focus and send him the answers mentally.] Ken, can you hear me? I'm sending my thoughts to you. I can hear you. You've figured out mental control. I'm impressed. I think I'm stuck inside a loop. It's probably an external cheat, not an exploit. From what I know, there are no normal loops in T&P, but I could be wrong. Alright Ken, thank you for your interest. I'll try to work something out. I'll do some work too. I'll let you know if I figure something out. Back to looking around. This particular guy tends to stand still, then glitch spasmodically all over the place. [According to the analyzer, he couldn't see a thing nor was he aware of what was going on. Time topped for him. But that didn't make sense. Every few seconds, he looked at me. I could tell he was conscious. It seemed as if someone was trying to conceal the cheat's true nature.]-Stage [They were making love - or whatever it was - on a rather unusual bed. A waterbed. You only see them in games these days. The sheets moved rhythmically, forward and backward. A loop.]That's all we can do for now. We have to make some deductions to progress.    This set isn't very difficult. Answering them all leads to a new path...  We don't have a lot of options, but it's as good a shot as anything.  wheeeee After we spawn enough cats, the scene overloads, and...  We're teleported to the stage, where we can finally free Fredo from the loop.  The kid seemed to be in a trance. He kept rhythmically opening his mouth and making spasmodic motions, as if he were still thrusting and killing. He was tring to stop his digital body from moving, but there was nothing he could do.  H...H...agh...God...Make it stop...I can't...I can't stop it... Breathe. It will help you control the spasms. I'll take you outside. It's all over now.As we try to leave the theater through the main doors...  ...To just walk out of here? I was counting on this being more interesting. [He had paralyzed me. I couldn't move a muscle.] All you had to do was log out and tell Haggis what you were supposed to. But people need drama and to play the hero. Alright chief, I have a plan. Let me know when you're ready.- Be passive - Say no -Give the signal [I couldn't say anything, but he must've known the old gamer code. One blink. One click. "Yes."] All right, knight. Allow me to show you a couple of things.  A speeding car teleports into the theater, crashing full-speed into the Jester. Credit where credit’s due, that was a nice save. With the jester dealt with for the moment, we exit the theater and...  You again? What a cliche. Give me the child - you can't take care of it. I'll wait for you somewhere near the end of the rooftops. This game is all about killing and it has a lot of tools for taking someone's life. We now have to find Fredo. This isn't particularly hard if we're just gunning for the objective - there's not that much room to run around, and the timer is generous. The only 'obstacle', if you can call it that, are holograms which play out various scenes from the life of the Haggis family – a couple of which you will in fact have to go out of your way to find.  Idris Stone? You called me. That's me. I have a problem. Someone altered my photo to make it look like I'm...doing something bad. How can I prove it's not true? If it was done by a pro, you can't. The most important thing these days is credibility, Ms. Stone. Help me! Plea- I'm a gamedec, not a photo editing expert. I need some details. I...I can't. Then I'm sorry. Good luck. God...What am I supposed to do?  You're drinking again. I can't remember a time when you weren't drinking. But it's your health and your business. And you were probably screwing some model. Probably. Problems at work? I had to authorize the dismissal of a good employee. That's logical. Good employees are a threat to your position, no? You don't understand. That's also logical. I'm just a former Miss Universe, the wife of Director Haggis. You. Really. Don't. Understand. Then I shall leave you with your wise thoughts, Teddy. [walks away] Bitch. Fredo, you son of a bitch...you son of a whore! Is there anyone there? Hello?  You called, sir? Alfred, was Fredo here today? At the company, yes, but here? I don't know. Feel that couch. Warm? Yes, sir. This one as well. The logs of both have been deleted. Mine reeks of women's perfume, and I found a hair on it. Look. Fredo's hair is not this long. That would mean that a woman and another person were using your couches. But why? The only one with access here besides me is Fredo... I shall look for Master Frederick.You have enough time to watch about two of the above scenes in their entirety before the timer starts getting a little tight. In any case, once you near the end of the path...  Indeed. You are present. Although you most likely do not understand the word 'presence'... [Past choices] I don't have any more digital tricks up my sleeve. And I'm a little tired from all this. You win. The kid looks battered, but he'll live. He's at your disposal. And I, the avenger of wronged women, will go back to my clients and tell them that the world won't learn of their misery. What do you mean? Just like you, I'm a contractor. Starlett hired me - you met her in Haggis's office. She was looking for justice for her girlfriend. The secretary of Director Haggis, who was blackmailed and taken advantage of - she wasn't the only one. There was another woman taken advantage of by this son of a...If not for me, there likely would have been even more. You see, our boy Fredo is quite the rogue, rascal and scoundrel. No, wait - he's a son of a bitch and a juvenile scumbag. Let me have him. Let me finish what I started.-Ask more about what Fredo did What did Fredo do? He sexually abused the women working for his father. Clever boy, eh?-Ask about Jester's plan What were you planning? I wanted to make a movie entitled 'Like Father, like Son" and post it online. I could use a few more scenes. See for yourself! I think you mentioned it before. You said that it was all to make Haggis obey. Yes? Perhaps. I'm getting confused with all the...There can be more than one cause for human action, gamedec.- Leave Fredo to Jester - Log out with Fredo It's a tempting offer, but I'm not particularly inclined to take the clown that traps people in time loops at face value. Also, only one of these paths results in getting paid. And frankly, I'm sure there's more than enough material in that film already, and no shortage of future opportunities to gather even more. I realize the significance of the accusations, but I came here for a specific reason. I'm taking the boy. You heard me out. I will not stand in your way. Tell Haggis whatever you want about what happened here, but remind him that it's his own fault. I wish you the best in this and future lives.The jester teleports away. Hey Fredo, you all right? We need to log off. Yeah, I guess so. But sir, in this game you can only do it from an asylum... Not when you're a gamedec. I'll fix it for you and see you on the other side. W-w-wait a second, s-s-something's happening... You're alive? He's not well, but he'll make it. Mr. Gamedec, please wait in the office. Of course. Th...thank you.Haggis looked at his son for a while. He seemed both angry and sad. You called, sir? Clear my schedule for the rest of the week. Get the pneumobile ready and call Dr. Chrzaszcz for an urgent house call at the apartment. Let's go home. The doctor will examine you. We have the money to fix you. I'll get you back to normal. Go to the car - I'll be right there.Haggis extended his hand to the kid, who automatically took a step back. Instead, he looked at me. Goodbye. Thank you, again.Alfred and Fredo leave. Your effectiveness is impressive. But I still have a few more questions. I want to understand what happened there. Why wasn't Fredo able to get out of the game?-[Sensory Celebrity] Answer dramatically Twisted and Perverted. A game where you kill for sexual pleasure. That's where I found your son and the hacker who captured him. Tough guy. He wore a jester skin to look more menacing. He caught the kid in a loop. Fredo kept repeating the same actions and couldn't break free. But you were finally able to get him out. Continue.-Tell him about the hacker The hacker had a jester skin. He didn't look threatening, but had quite the arsenal. He could modify the game almost without limit. He trapped the admins. And my son.He said nothing more for a while. -Ask point-blank if he knows Jester Jester seemed to know you well, but you didn't mention him when you hired me. Do you know him? I don't trust you enough to share my list of acquaintances. I suggest we steer clear of this matter. Gamedec, tell me more about what happened there.-Tell him about the scene in the theater There was this...theater. With a stage and a bed. Fredo was having sex with a woman, stabbing her with a dagger in a loop, likely for hours.Haggis turned pale. My Fredo... Everything was recorded. The recording was supposed to be called "Like Father, Like Son." It was to be used as blackmail.Haggis was moved by my story. He looked at me with respect. He struggled to control his emotions as he wiped his face. I need to know what impact this situation will have on...Fredo's psyche.-[Scalpel] Express your opinion He may have trauma for the rest of his life, or his mind might metabolize it all without a trace. Perhaps he'll even grow thanks to this. It depends on the parameters of his nervous system. Inhibition, resistance, the thickness of the myelin sheaths, and development potential. You're talking like our doctor. I'll tell him your opinion. Anything else I should know? About what happened in the game?-Tell him about what happened on the roof Fredo was the prisoner of the hacker dressed like a jester. I freed him from the loop in the theater, where he was stuck inside a horrific scene... That's not all. The hacker moved us up to the theater roof and I had to take part in a disgusting game with your son's life at stake.The game was 'move along a short and fairly linear path'. Then again, I suppose it never pays to admit that your job was fairly trivial to your employer. I was ultimately able to pass the test. Then the hacker released Fredo. I truly don't know why. He seemed omnipotent. What was it all for? What was the point of trapping Fredo?-Tell him about the 'avenger' The hacker claims he's avenging the wrongs suffered by the women who work for you. He calls himself an avenger, says that's the reason why he was hired. Avenger? That's absurd! That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. You were tricked, gamedec. You got lost in your opponent's smokescreen. Excuse me - the pneumobile is parked at platform 12. Your son is waiting. All right, I’m coming. Well, gamedec, I’m satisfied with your work. Anything else?We still have the option to press him further on the topic of the Jester or on the sexual assault, but frankly I just want to spend as little time as possible talking to him. If he gives us an exit from this conversation I’ll take it. So what about my pay? You'll get it, don't worry. Just like we agreed. Let's go. Well, that will be all. Goodbye.As we leave the office...  He didn't wait for my response, smiled to himself, and left. He took the elevator, and I started to make my way back home. Well, that was our first case over with. Not the most glamorous of cases, but on the plus side we’ll see much less of the Haggis family going forward, and no more of Pervertland. Surely there can’t be anywhere to go but up, right?
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Sep 17, 2022 19:32
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Inadequately posted:Well, that was our first case over with. Not the most glamorous of cases, but on the plus side we’ll see much less of the Haggis family going forward, and no more of Pervertland. Surely there can’t be anywhere to go but up, right? Well, I'd give a click and a blink (the universal gamer signal) to that, but your previous comments suggests somehow we can go down from here.
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Sep 17, 2022 19:57
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So a morally bankrupt troll for hire just gave us good reasons to believe that this rich family is even worse. We are completely surrounded by assholes on all sides. I hope we get to shoot someone because I have no doubt that we are a magnet for horrible people.
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Sep 17, 2022 20:41
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 -Recall a dream [I was covered in sweat. A moment earlier I had been lying on the floor in Geoffrey Haggis's office, paralyzed. Jester was there, and so was the panda. Fredo, Haggis, even Timmy...they were laughing at me. I thought I was going to get hurt, even die...but I couldn't do anything. I was helpless and vulnerable.] [There was no time for slacking. I needed to restore power to my apartment. Luckily, Bliss had a separate source of power. Home inspections are where majordomos really shine. -[Glazier] Check the system [BWI had been developing AI modeled after the human psyche for quite some time. Even the holographic visualizations looked like brains. Everything seemed fine, but it shouldn't have. If there was a surge or failure in the tower, it should've left a sign but there was nothing. The software truly looked like I was activating it for the very first time. It made no sense.]-Check the electrical grid [The system didn't find any defects in the apartment. The fault was on the provider's end, which in this case were the tower generators.] Oh, our holo-waifu is working again. That's nice. Could you contact the electricity provider and report a problem? Of course...problem reported. I've been assured that everything has now been restored to working order. By the way - you got a new contract. Before we can even check that out, we're directed to watch a not-so-breaking news report. The creation of diginets by BWI is still a very controversial topic. The company's spokesperson strongly denies the gossip saying that psychoscans have been performed without the consent of the psyches' owners. The spokesperson stresses that any attempts to discredit the company will not go unanswered. This has been Warsaw City News, your source for up-to-date domestic and international news all day long.Let's check our computer.  -Open the email from Rhonda Zappa [You lying piece of poo poo, it's a shame you neglected to tell me that you'd ratted me out to Bob. Because of your loving twisted ethics, my marriage is hanging by a thread. I hope you're pleased with yourself.] [I hope to never see you again - in this life or any other.]-Open the email from Bob Zappa [My life got completely upended. I'm unable to look at my wife after all this. We'll probably split up.] [I regret ever meeting you. How do you gamedec types sleep at night?]Haha, whoops. Well, their marriage was probably headed for the rocks even without our intervention anyway. -Check contracts Mr Gamedec. Got a problem. The transfer's gone through. Find me in Harvest Time. Once you're there, I'll toss a clue your way. Let's hope this new job is better than the last one. Before we hop in, we should probably do some research first. -Check the official Harvest Time website "Harvest Time is a Free-To-Play farm game with an outdoor adventure! What are you waiting for? Get horses, cows, pumpkins, strawberries..." [Strawberries? In the Wild West?]Oh, I have a bad feeling about this. -Check the Harvest Time forum [Every detail matters in a gamedec's work. I looked at the 'Tips' section, 'strawberries' thread...] "Folks, put barrels of ice near strawberries. They'll grow like crazy! Mind, though - only Premium players have access to barrels!" [Next. 'Community', 'Cheaters'.] "You know those players in orange? You think they're cheaters, or just loving lucky?" [Nothing like a pleasant community of farmers. I've seen enough.]-Look up the Hon Clan "The clan values vigilance above all. Being in the moment keeps one's intuition and senses alert for signs. This is the only way we can reach the truth, fellow clan members." [Typical marketing copy. I looked for a contrasting opinion. Page six, ninth result...] "They preach equality, saying that 'the truth will set us free'...Bull! It was all about getting suckers to pay!" [That was enough. If the number of results was anything to go by, this topic was a bottomless pit.]Well, not much more prep work we can do. Might as well hop in.  As we enter, the tutorial informs us that our HUD above us tracks the following statistics: - our current level - our cash - the number of treasure boxes on hand - whether we own a gun  Name's Handy Joe, I'm a help bot (but don't go telling anyone) and I'll answer all your questions. As long as you give me a 'Yeehaw!'-Let out a 'Yeehaw' -Don't 'Yeehaw' after all -[Sleeves] Stare the bot down I'm not saying 'Yeehaw'. You don't know what you're missing, pardner! It's so liberating! Anyway, what can I do for ya?-Ask about the game rules What's the general premise of Harvest Time? I didn't hear a 'yeehaw', cowboy. Friend. You're testing my patience. Oh! That Wild West temper sure is hot! Anyway, here's your answer, maverick Harvest Time is a Free-To-Play game! Improve your farm, work the field, breed animals, and get coins and unique treasures from crates! The crates are in fact lootboxes, but you didn't hear that from me! As a newbie, you get a trial farm that you can improve up to level 10! Yeehaw! Once the trial period is over, you can buy a premium account! That's where the fun starts! Yeehaw!-Ask about public farms How do public farms work? They don't work past level 10! They're still grrreat fun though! Yeehaw! I can set you up with a locator that'll get you there. Want one? No, thank you. Public farms are in a charming little vallye outside of town, northwest of here. It smells of basswood, chamomile, jasmine and lilac!-Ask about premium membership How do I get a premium account? Ah, someone's looking to go pro! Yeehaw! A premium account carries a monthly subscription fee. I'll send you the form now. There ya go! [I saw a stylish form made to look like paper. I reminded myself that I was here to do a job, not to have fun. I spotted a few phrases hinting that it would be hard to get out of this subscription. I didn't want to get it unless I had to.]-What are lootboxes So what's the deal with these lootboxes? They're crates that pop up during pumpkin harvest! You plant, you harvest, and bam! Treasure! You can get items or coins from them! Items will spruce up your farm, while coins will speed up its growth! Yeehaw! So exhilarating! I'm tickled pink!-Ask about places of interest Are there any sights of interest around here? Nah, cowboy, this game's boring as beans. Yeehaw! Got ya, eh? Explore all the sights and smells and feel alive! Visit your farm! Once you hit level 15, you can go to the saloon! At level 20, you get access to the Guild House! Pretty neat, ain't it?We can ask for directions to any of the notable features, but we'll find them soon enough just wandering around. Map's not that big. -Ask about Stanley I'm looking for a guy named Stanley. Know where I can find him? Oh, searching, tracking, fascinating. Alas! I can't give you this information! You're not on this honest farmer's friend list. Tough luck! Take a gander at them notice boards! Folks write all sorts of things on them! So if you're looking for something, maybe look there? You'll find one right there, next to the broken stagecoach! Yeehaw! That's enough chit-chat for now, Joe. Grand! Holler if ya need me! I'll answer all your questions, except the one about the meaning of life, of course! Yeehaw! Before you ride off into the sunset, meet our lovely game guide! Here's Wild Poppy!  So, you'll have the chance to taste a rancher's life! Your uncle dreamed you would become the best farmer ever!-React enthusiastically -Roll your eyes That's amazing news! I've got land! I'm going to be a farmer! I can't believe it! Yeehaw! Exactly! Do you want to go to your farm now to start the adventure of a lifetime?-Teleport -Don't teleport No, thank you. I will be waiting with anticipation for your arrival! On your ranch! Poppy teleports away. We can check out that board mentioned now. "Our work could be fancier, on the board you'll find your answer! The loot we farm is always dank, check the board by the bank!" [The writing on the board looked like what you'd see in a game of paper chase. This had to be a clue. I realized I should look for the next one.] [I had found another clue! But the nursery rhymes and misspellings...It all seemed so puerile. Who wrote this?]Let's just speed through the boards... - "Bang-bang, we're robbin' a bank! The gravedigger has your boon, or it may just be by the saloon." - "If a catfissh is your friend, make a splashh from end to end, cross the market like a muwle and look for anything that's kewl. - "Like an eagle through the air, fly to places no men dare. Yullow flowers will put you on track, and I'll see you in...a shack." - "I'm all out of rhymes, jump down a well, you're in for some good times." - "Jump in the wel, don't be such a geek. You'll find something curious that you seek." - "Tripping, sowing and picking. Looting makes your head start tweaking. Cloimb the ladder straight to heaven, just to krash before eleven!"   If we try to enter the saloon or guild house, we get blocked by an energy barrier and the game yells at us for being underleveled.  Might as well advance the plot. There's two ways we can reach the next area, and as mentioned above, one of them is the well. [A village well. That was how we used to get water. I gave it a closer look. Someone had carved an inscription in the middle of the casing - "Do a flip into the water. S." A message from Stanley? I didn't know what could come from jumping down a well in Harvest Time.]-Jump into the well [Risk was part of my job. I jumped into the well.]  -Game Code [The area looked like a fragment of some old seasonal event. These kind of attractions were designed to extract money from players. The location was surrounded by a barrier closing off the playable area. It should be inaccessible, but the code wasn't perfect.]-[Glazier] Analyze the code [The game code showed some leftovers from the Pumpkins and Ghosts event. The main prize for completing the event was a ghost skin.]-Check player activity [The activity log showed that other than me, there was a player with a freemium account logged in here... It was Farmer Stanley - my client!]As we walk along the path, a stranger emerges to meet us.  Hello? Sir? [I had seen this model before. It was one of this game's basic avatars, just in orange tones. The player picked a default name - 'Farmer Stanley'. Was it a lack of imagination, laziness, or cautiousness?] -[Sensory Celebrity] Impress Stanley Maybe you've heard of me. I'm not just a gamedec, I'm also a sensory worlds personality. Professionalism, Class, Modesty. These are my avatars. Wooow! Lemme take a screenshot with you! Cool! People from the guild will be so jealous!He looked around nervously. For a moment he gazed at the door of a nearby shrine. He faltered ever so slightly, but regained his balance and pinned his eyes on me. You seem tense, what's wrong? Oh, nothing. Sorry, I thought I... heard something. So what should we talk about?-Have him tell you about himself Can you tell me a bit about yourself? I'd like to know who I'm working for. Umm...I'd rather not talk about myself too much. You know, it's a matter of security. And trust.-[Infotainer] Earn his trust -[Scalpel] Earn his trust -[Sleeves] Force trust -Don't push him I'm a gamedec and a doctor. You can trust me. Okay, but I don't know what to say. I like games, but now I only play Harvest Time. My boss is a pain in the rear end, so I work hard to bring in money. Once, the Enigmatic Sphere dropped from a lootbox. Ultra. My friends say I'm lucky with my rolls. And I like a girl from the organization, but I don't talk to her cause I'm too shy. Gamedec, I want to make sure that this dough - I mean this money, is enough? [The advance was enough. The pay rate was low but acceptable.]-Play the money issue down -Say it's enough -Suggest a bigger amount -[Sleeves] Demand more Let's leave it. It's not the most important thing right now. Phew, that's good.Stanley sighed. He looked tired. -Ask about Stanley's organization Tell me about your organization. Organization is a stretch. More of a group. It's called 'Orange Dream' because we wear orange. We farm on public farms. We play on free accounts, so we don't have access to the Guild House. But we do have some small perks. We've got our outfits, voice chat...but we don't talk anyway.Stanley sighed deeply. Oh man, I didn't realize there would be so much talkin'. Sit down, please. [I didn't feel tired, but I sat to be polite.]-Ask about the lootboxes Those lootboxes you mentioned - can you make money on them? Ha! If the gods of RNG smile on you, you can roll some rad items and throw 'em on RMAHs for real dough! [Stanley's lingo was a mix of Low City dialect and gaming jargon. What he meant was artifacts from lootboxes could be sold in legal auctions.] Can I tell you now why...why we hired you? Okay, tell me, Why do you need a gamedec? We need help. Me and my friends from the group. We get disconnected a lot. Especially lately. [Weird. It was a job for IT, not a gamedec.] You get disconnected from the game? It could be software. Or hardware. Or the connection. No, that's not it. All those things are good. For sure. We just get kicked out of the game and all the progress gets piss- thrown away. [Forced logouts were rare and usually caused by software issues - either in the game or in the computer controlling the player's couch. The cause would be displayed in the logs, and the player had access to that data.]-Ask for logs from his computer The computer your couch is hooked up to must have reported the cause of those logouts. Did you keep those logs? Can you share them with me? Um...I don't know how. I don't really know much about it. [The technical knowledge of players was often limited to turning on the equipment and launching the game.] You know what, I could come over and check what you play on, take a look at the software... Uh, that's not possible. Please, gamedec, find another way, OK?Stanley froze suddenly. He looked still as a frame. -Ask if he's okay Stanley? Are you okay?I checked the game log. He was still logged in. He hadn't been disconnected. Ugh, there's a small problem. My boss noticed I'm not where I'm supposed to...to be. He's looking for me.-Ask about the boss Who's your boss? He's an rear end in a top hat. He's just an...an rear end in a top hat. I'll get in trouble if he catches me here. I'll be brief.-[Scalpel] Diagnose his condition [Tachypnea, issues with balance and speech, distraction. These could be symptoms of exhaustion, but also side effects of pharmaceuticals.]Stanley took off his hat and wiped his forehead as if he were sweating, even though the game didn't include it. He smiled apologetically. Ugh, I don't know what time it is but I'm dead on my feet. I can see you're not doing so well. Tell me how you feel. Well, pretty bad lately. Work's getting harder. I've got a headache, my arms and legs are sore. Almost everything hurts. It's fu- it's bad.-[Scalpel] Ask about the other's condition Do any others from the Orange Folk have similar symptoms? Yeah. Almost everyone complains they're tired. And mu...muddled. All that getting in and out of the game makes it hard to remember what day it is, what happened, and so on... [Harvest Time didn't simulate physical effort. It could have been caused by some specific location, or something in realium was tiring Stanley.] Oh fu...gently caress! The boss is going to check on me in realium! I need to go! Others from the Orange Folk will help. They're on public farms. Oh, you can exit the graveyard through the shrine. Let's meet here later, when you know something, OK?Stanley left the game and disappeared from the active player's list.  The only other thing of note in this area is this grave. [If the candles burned completely, some enpec would have to come here regularly to replace them. That's why in cheaper games candles are eternal.]Nothing else to do but return to town. As we exit through the shrine door, we're accosted by Poppy. Video James! That has to be a terrible oversight! You haven't even been to your farm once! Don't worry, though! That's why I'm here! So, shall we?-Teleport -Don't teleport gently caress it, let's teleport there, it'll save some travel time.  You'll see, soon this place will bustle with activity. But to make it happen, we need to start at the beginning. The pumpkins in your fields are ready for picking! Just tap them, and a gold coin will appear! Collect the coins by tapping them. You know, with your finger, as you do with hovering windows! You can also just walk through the coins!Let's do that some other time, investigating comes first.  The orange folk are hard at work at their public farms, in the fields just outside. Their fields are sealed off by an energy barrier, though. -Take a closer look at the gate. [The gates required me to have a digital key. I knew I could try to generate a matching program, but it was a long procedure. There was also the option of breaking it with the 'gamedec's Battering Ram', but I risked drawing attention to myself.]-Generate a keycode to the gates [It was a lengthy process.] [I waited...] [It took a while...] [I suddenly felt a cold breeze and heard a quiet, feminine laugh. The gate disappeared, and so did the others. It was strange. The code hadn't generated yet.]Huh, we have a guardian angel on our side. We should probably look into that some other time.  She glanced at me, half awake.  Tell me, please. What's going on with us? Is it s-serious? I'm working on it. I need to ask you a couple of questions. Go ahead, but I don't have much time. I need to work.-Why she plays this game Why do you play this game? I don't think it's for entertainment. It's my...job. We even have a supervisor. He keeps an eye on our group. Who's your supervisor? And what do you mean that he 'keeps an eye on you'? His name is Acke. He makes sure we meet our daily targets. We can't talk to anyone or even go to the town. It's just sowing and reaping. And then these h-health problems...started to appear. Acke says that it happens sometimes and that we just need to...to wait it out. It's so...so hot. I'm not sure how long I'm going to last. [She said she was hot, but the weather was perfect. On a couch somewhere, her body should also have been kept at an optimal temperature.]-Ask about the Orange Folk's problem Stanley asked me to find out what your problem is. He mentioned something about you getting disconnected. Yeah, it happens when we're really...tired. But I'm not sure that's the source of the problem. The disconnects have become more frequent. I got dis...connected a couple of times myself. I woke up in this cold, scary, empty space. Like a v-virtual void you can't escape from. [Gathered info] [It sounded like the void Starlett got stuck in at Haggis's office. I managed to save her by stimulating her senses. I wasn't sure if I could do anything for the Orange Folk without physical contact.]-Ask about her health problems You don't look well. Can you tell me about your health problems? I get dizzy and faint...it's like I'm not sleeping at all. We're all really, really...tired, even though our supervisors make sure our...online sessions don't last longer than...than four days.She looked as if she was losing touch with reality. Please...I still have w-work to do.She runs off and gets back to harvesting pumpkins. Let's talk to some other people.  I'm a gamedec. I want to find a solution for your probl- I can't speak with you. I know that some people get disconnected. If you can do something about it, you'll have my gratitude.He runs off. We can talk to him again, but he won't give us much more than that.  Some others are similarly unhelpful.  I'm a gamedec. Stanley said you could help me. Oh, it's you! Fantastic! Hold on. I'm looting. I guess you brought me luck. That will make up half of my day's work. We can talk.-Ask about the Orange Folk What can you say about others from your organization? Heh, they're not as good as me. Well...maybe except for Jack. But he's like a machine. Hardly ever leaves the game. He's completely off now, and you can't get through to him. He lives in la-la land, because time runs differently for him. Oh, there's a treasure chest! Let's see what's inside! Oh, man, it's... Stanley said you get disconnected a lot. Has it happened to you? Not much. Almost never. Only when I'm really tired. But I take the right mix, and everything's fine. What kind of mix is that? Telomin, vitatel, strobo 5, protein, and vitamin and mineral supplements. And something for reinforcement. I can't remember the name. Another box! And inside...an Empty Crate For Attracting Named Insects! Ornate! For Potato Beetles!-Ask about loot boxes I'm new to this game. Tell me more about the loot boxes. Better ask Handy Joe, the bot by the station. He'll explain it better. You basically grow your crops, wait a little, click and sometimes a box pops out. There are goodies inside. [From what he said, those boxes dropped very fast. Suspiciously fast.] Do you use any cheats? Um...I've got my method, but I can't tell you what it is. [Relations] Tell me the secret! No, I can't...I can't talk about it. Man, you really do bring me luck! My treasure is...a Carmine Twofold Draped Mantilla with a 5-Star Renown Bonus during the Farmer Fiesta! That's quite a lot! Could you give me a hand? I need to take my loot to the fence in town. If you could help me, I would owe you one. A big one. All right, Guy. I'll help you. I need you to deliver this loot to the fence. Talk to the stall keeper. Fruity Betty, I mean. All clear? Why won't you go there yourself? I could, but time is money, friend. And I'm even losing it right now! Sorry, but that's the truth - I could be looting right now. I need you to remember that my time is valuable, too. I don't work for free. Sure, sure! What do you need? Gold coins? A weapon?-Gold coins -A weapon -Some information in return -You'll think about it I'll want some information in return. All right. Where can I find the fence? In the town on the hill. Black Rook used to do it, but Fruity Betty took over his business. Got it. I'll deliver your loot.That's all we'll get out of him till we clear this sidequest. Moving on.  [His avatar's name was Sundance Jack. It was one of the default names suggested by the game.] Hey, Jack. I'm a gamedec. I'm handling your case.He didn't respond. -Examine his packets [I opened my deck and checked his activity. The data transfer was massive! This player was really busy! If you see someone who doesn't seem to be doing anything, and their data packets are still going wild, then you know something is off...]We can't do anything about him unless we're a level 2 programmer or better, though. Only one farmer left to talk to.  -[Sensory Celebrity] Impress Sally When I was younger, I loved playing Havest. Sun-scorched Earth, the neighing of horses, the smell of cows...ah, the memories! Oh no. ...::!!!0M6!!!! |1k35 4r3 F|0w1n6 0MF6!!!::... [Sally used a chat box instead of a voice communicator. Plus, she was using a program that swapped a number of characters for others.]-[Infotainer] Analyze the translation key [Peppered with flourishes, the 'cipher' was typical of young schoolchildren.]-[Low City] Suggest a change in dialect Honey, I don't much care for that mumbo-jumbo. How about we have a serious rap like true Low City homies?The girl rolled her eyes. ...::!!!800000R1N6!!!::...-Ask about the Orange Folk's problems I've heard the Orange Folk have got some problems. They're getting disconnected. Do you know anything about it? ...::U 45k m3 4nD 1 45k U!XD p30pL3 k33p p4551n6 0u+ L4+3Ly 4nD 4LL +h3 Pr06r355 6035 +0 w45+3!>:[[[::... ...::+h3n w3 h4v3 +0 m4k3 uP f0r 1+ 4nD w0rK +w1c3 45 h4rD......+h4+5 wHy 1m 4LL......h0pp3d-uP!!!XD::... [I had to analyze the chat to figure out what she wanted to tell me.] You're talking about fainting, accidents and losing progress. You're getting hopped-up to work faster.She nodded. -Ask about her behavior You're behaving...a little odd. Your movements, I mean. How long have you been like this? ...::h0w L0n6??!! dUUUd3 1t f33L5 L1k3 f0r3v3r 1m 500000 w002y!!!!::... ...::w3r3 t4k1n6 50m3+h1n6 c4u53 +h3 8055 54y5 w3 n33d 1+::... I see. You're saying you're muddled from the medications you get.She nodded vigorously. -Ask if she needs help Do you need any help? ...::Y34H, 5uR3, h3Lp 15 4Lw4y5 w3Lc0m3...w1+h +h3 cR0p5 |0|!::... ...::y0u n33d w0rK - 5uR3 +h1n6 - 1+5 jU5+ 50 3xH4u5+1n6::... Oh, you're exhausted from working on the farm non-stop. She clapped and jumped happily. She pulled out a leather-bound notebook and handed it to me. It was a chat-decoding program. I checked and installed it. [Relations] LOL, I can see you're struggling a bit. It'll be easier this way. You're cool, you know? That's nice of you to say. How about I ask you a few more questions then? Okey-dokey. Shoot.-Ask why she plays Why do you play Harvest Time? You gotta play 'cause you gotta eat. Gotta make a living. Everyone as to work. Well, except that bitch, but she's not my friend anymore. Is Harvest Time your job? I could do worse. Couldn't I? Sure I could.-Ask how she's doing in the game How's it going? I can see you're working hard and... Well, you gotta push. You gotta play. There must be progress. It's been going faster lately as we've got more speeders. Speeders make everything grow and drop faster, but you get tired for some reason. Can you tell me more about those speeders? It's sort of a boost. Makes plants grow faster. And boxes drop faster. I mean, it doesn't happen faster. The world around you just slows down. Oops! I wasn't supposed to talk about it! To anyone! So hush! Promise you won't say a word! I promise! Thanks. Luv ya.-Ask who she is in realium What's your name in realium? Samantha. My folks came up with 'Borgia'. Can you imagine? I don't think that's even a name! I was a laughingstock! So I got the gently caress away. You ran away from home? You bet I did! If you're stuck with hosed-up parents, what else can you do? And don't try to push me about it, or I'll put you on my ignore list. That's all, Sally.We can in fact try to push her about it, but she will proceed to ignore us, and even though we've exhausted all other topics for now it's probably better to keep her on our good side. As we head up the hill...   Damnit! Third time this week! [Something was wrong. She should have immediately logged out. I knew she could fall into a coma if her gear didn't start devitalization.]-Extract her data -Have her do an emergency log out -Don't intervene [I turned on my deck and activated devitalization. I had no idea why her computer hadn't done that already, as it's standard procedure for unconscious players. I managed to log her out safely, but the system didn't allow me to save the game.] What have you done? What have you done, man?! Please, tell me that you saved her progress!-Say that you saved her -Ask why it's so important I saved her life. Saving her progress in a game about weeding seedbeds was the last thing on my- loving hell! You have no idea what you've done!The cowbow in shiny boots spat out the blade of grass he was chewing. Stop whining and get back to work. And you! Stop hanging around here. You're casting your shadow on the seedbeds, and it stops the plants from growing. Now I'll have to work like a horse just to catch up on the progress you didn't save!-Say that her health is more important -Explain what you did -Reply ironically Her couch was supposed to log her out, but it didn't. Her suit was overheating. I didn't want to risk it. Would you? That's your department, isn't it? I have my own job and I stick to it! We work fairly here! If somebody finds more, they give back to the less fortunate! Or save it for later. And when one of us faints, we have to finish their work! No rest for the wicked!-Offer to help All right, listen. I'll help you. It can't be that complicated, right? Thanks. No, it's quite s-simple, actually. You sow, wait for the thing to grow, harvest it, and hope a loot box drops. You'll figure it out. Get three loot boxes, but don't open them. Take them to the town, give them to Fruity Betty, and say it's from Orange Dream. Got it? Alright, I'll help you. Thanks. I'll get back to work then.Ugh, we’re going to have to actually interact with the game’s mechanics, aren’t we.  Only one person left to talk to - the man patrolling the area around the farm. Quite a sunny day, isn't it? You just want to stretch your legs and have a...nap on the grass, don't you, friend?-[Sensory Celebrity] Present yourself Howdy, partner? Don't you recognize me? Have a closer look.I put on my special advertisement smile. You're quite astute! Indeed, these are no regular players. They're in all work and all play therapy. They are *exploited*, understood? 'Drepty Tiger! Comfortable, reliable and old fashioned! Only for the quick-footed!' So nice to meet a celebrity inside a game! Props, bro!I'll be the first to admit I didn't understand that exchange one bit, but he seems to have opened up to us. [Sensory Celebrity] Suggest interviewing him Have you ever wondered what it's like being a celebrity on the Net? I could interview you and post it on my channel. Really? I'm not sure I have anything interesting to say.-Have him tell you about his job What kind of work do you do? Well, I watch the cattle - as all true cowboys do, haha! Looks to me like the farmers you're supervising aren't regular players. Am I right? What an intuition! They're in therapy. It's a work-and-fun kind of rehab. They abused pharmacological substances if you know what I mean. They're...junkies. Poor, addicted junkies. That's the sad truth. All right, one more question, and then I need to get back to work.-Ask who he is in realium Tell me, Acke, who are you in realium? I'm a regular guy in his late twenties. My friend and I are trying to save some money. We live low in Warsaw City, and we'd like to move up. Acke raised his head and basked in the digital sun for a moment. All right, that's it. You can get back to work. May the sun always shine on you. Thanks, partner! Have a nice day!He goes back to patrolling.  I think it’s pretty clear what’s going on at this point. At least there’s no question that we’re working towards the right thing this time, even if it’s not exactly the problem we were hired to solve. Unfortunately, we don’t yet have a way to stop it, so we’ll have to work on that next update.
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Sep 20, 2022 09:18
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Ah, stuck in literal lootbox farming hell. A job that's existed since real money could be extracted from online multiplayer games, now with more dystopia!
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Sep 20, 2022 15:07
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"Enpec" is literally NPC acronym, but with Polish pronounciation instead of English (so "en pe c" instead of "en pee see"). I don't think any of Przybylek books is translated to English (in fact, I think that no Polish fantasy sans Sapkowski and Lem is), but you are not missing much.
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Sep 21, 2022 20:34
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 Our first order of business: farming lootboxes to help the Orange Folk out. The process is pretty much what you'd expect: click on an empty pumpkin patch to start growing, wait out a timer, and click on it again once it's done to harvest a coin.  After a bunch of scripted tutorials, lootboxes are eventually unlocked and we harvest three for the Orange Folk. We need to talk to Fruity Betty, so we might as well make a round of the people in the town square we haven’t talked to.  Fruity Betty is in the market at the center of the town square. The stall keeper waved at me in a friendly manner and gestured towards her wares. Howdy! Isn't it a beautiful day? The only thing that could make it better is some shopping!-Sell Guy's loot Hi Betty, I have a couple of items for sale. I'll take it all and pay you immediately!-Transfer part of the money to your account -Transfer everything to your account -Transfer everything to the Orange Folk's account I want you to wire the whole sum to the Orange Folk's account. Sure thing, sweetheart. They've just received the money. Thank you, Betty. [Relations] The pleasure's all mine! From now on, you're one of my regulars and a friend, sweetheart!-Support the Orange Folk I'd like to support the Orange Folk by selling a couple of lootboxes and transferring the profits to their account. Is that possible? Of course, sweetheart. I'll take it all. The money will be transferred to your account in a couple of days, after the auction. Excellent. Thanks for the help, Betty. The pleasure's all mine!-Ask about the Orange Folk Could you tell me anything about the Orange Folk? They're good clients - resourceful and exceptionally effective. They bring me wares, I sell them and transfer the money to their account. On the other hand, if you asked me my personal opinion, it wouldn't be as favorable. Why? What do you really think of them? I spoke to Acke, that handsome fella. He told me everything. They're drug addicts. The game is their virtual rehab and Acke is their supervisor.-Ask about the fruit I see that you have a lot of goodies! Does it all come from your farm? I haven't grown anything myself in a while. I buy it all off other players or from the game's warehouse, which is available only to merchants. Can you make a living off selling crops in a game based on farming? Why would anyone buy stuff from you when they can grow it themselves? You can't grow everything from the start, and my fruit will get you seeds that'll develop your ranch faster. Just try them. They're delicious. Besides, I have access to the RMAH auctions. That's where I sell rare items from lootboxes. That's where the real money is.She has nothing more to say on this or any topic. We can buy rare fruit from her, but let's not touch this game's mechanics any more than is absolutely necessary.  Next to her is Fruity Hilda. -Ask about Stanley I'm looking for a player named Stanley. Do you know him? Sorry, no. I've just logged into the game. You should ask Betty, she knows this place better. You know, I overheard that some players address her in a particular way. They lean over and say "Show me your wares" very emphatically. I think it's some kind of password.Why does everyone in this game use the very first thing that comes to their minds for…well, just about everything? -Ask what she sells What do you sell? Nothing at the moment. My trade channel is closed. I'm getting ready to take on the Town Profession of a Merchant. Currently, I'm practicing slogans.-Ask about the orange farmers Do you know anything about the orange farmers? Only that they trade stuff with Betty. She might know more. She's a talker.That's all we get out of her. Let's try that 'password' with Betty. "Show me your wares."Betty winked at me knowingly. I have a firearm for 5000 coins. Interested? Thanks, but I can't afford it.We have no particular need for it right now, but we'll keep that in mind.  Rusty Ed sits to the left side of the market. Long beard, dust on his shoulders. He looked like he'd been gathering that dust for a decade. -Say hello Hello. I'm a gamedec and - And I'm the guildmaster of Rusty Ed's Guild. Ha! Just a fun fact! You want to ask an old-timer about farming tricks? Go ahead! Rusty Ed has a lot of stories up his sleeve!-Ask about the guild Are you the guildmaster of Rusty Ed's Guild? I am. It's a guild open to all players of adequate level. Hehehe. What level do I need to be at? In order to join Rusty Ed's Guild, you need to listen to three Daily Stories. Ha!-Ask him for a story Tell me a story. I've got three stories today. The topics are - a legendary artifact, how I became sheriff, and old game systems! Which do you want to hear?-Sheriff You used to be the sheriff here? Tell me about it. Where do I start? You know, we're not all up and about in here. We're not waving our arms around. Our bodies lie still on couches. Mine at my place, yours at your place. And sometimes it's all about speed here. Especially with duels. But I mean your neuronal speed, not bodily. If you want to be sheriff, you must beat the previous one. You must be faster. More precise. This guy was good. Everyone could see it. But I noticed something - he would enter the game for up to three hours. Maybe four. It was always like that. But once he lingered, playing poker. It was...six hours? Seven? And guess what - the guy was staggering! Dropping off! I noticed his fragile brain - quick, but easily fatigued! It was his vulnerability. Next time I played him myself. I kept letting him win. Then I challenged him to a Sunset Duel after he had spent 12 hours here. He couldn't turn it down - that's the rule. He was good, but I could see in his eyes that he had already lost. His eyelids were twitching from the adrenaline rush!-[Scalpel] Set him straight It's not adrenaline. Human eyelids are innervated by two motor nerves: autonomous and autonomic. Part of the sympathetic nervous system. When you're tired the latter turns off and your eyelids droop, even though you consciously try to raise them. He was just exhausted.He completely ignored me. So he wouldn't give up without a fight. He knew that would insult me. Don't get me wrong, he was a good guy. He knew I'd discovered his weakness. Maybe if he had money he could've paid to get his neurons enhanced. Maybe that's what the poker was for? I never saw him in here again. Maybe he had a breakdown? Was he fed up with his quick fatigue? That bothered me a bit. Anyway, I was sheriff here for a full month before I lost a duel. But I've never forgotten that guy. He had a nice vintage nick...KillThemAll.-[Infotainer] Say you know him KillThemAll? I know him! I've met him many times! I even invited him to my show once. Really? Hot drat! Well, I'm glad he's still holding up. All right. I suspect you want to ask me a question now? Go ahead.-Ask what he does in the game What are you doing here, gramps? Ah, so there are still curious people in the world. I mean people that possess the virtue of curiosity. I'll tell you. I look at those young players and I can see they don't know a thing. And you know what they do about it? I guess nothing. Exactly. They don't ask the elders, they don't look for the so-called know-how. They think they know it all. I've played this game for years. I've achieved everything. I know everything. And no one asks me a goddamn thing. I see them growing carrots and I know they'd grow faster with a barrel of ice beside them. But does anyone ask? No. You know why? You tell me, Ed. The Dunning-Kruger effect - rookies overrate their knowledge, mentors undersell theirs. But the world is changing too. Especially this game. It all used to be more true to life, more difficult. And those scallywag youngsters would get the bum's rush...But I digress. And I bet you there's something you want to talk to me about, isn't there? -Ask about the Orange Folk Do you know anything about the orange farmers? Yeah, I've seen them, I've heard them. They act like bots. Or like idiots or enpecs. They play using freemium accounts and they talk weird. There's no point mingling with them.Ed yawned. Forgive an old man. I've talked myself out, I need a nap.He goes to sleep. We can’t wake him up for the moment, so no getting into the guild house for now.  Pretzel, my precious, want some more hay? Morning, can I ask... Can't you see I'm talking to Pretzel?!-[Infotainer] Chat her up That's one beautiful horse! Look at that lean profile! That swanlike neck! Those ears pointing perfectly forward! You know your horses! I'd be happy to continue this conversation once I'm done talking to him.-Ask about the Orange Folk Do you know anything about the Orange Folk? Don't know them, don't talk to them. Fruity Betty says they're drug addicts. I think she's right. They sure act like they're on drugs.She hesitated, as if wanting to add something, or realizing that she'd said too much. You had more to say about the Orange Folk, right? Oh, it was nothing. I just feel sorry for them. They're all playing on freemium accounts and don't have access to horses. It's sad. I see...-Talk about horses They say you know a lot about horses. I'm considered an expert around here! I'm a decent rider too! Horse secrets are a hobby of mine, you could say! For instance, who else knows that a hungry horse stamps its hoof three times. I know it - from the game! Games are great educational systems! [Did this girl actually believe what she was saying? It was nothing but nonsense.] Horses don't behave like this in realium. Some designer had the idea to have the animals communicate their hunger like this.The girl made a rude gesture with her hand. This game is my reality, get it? So I'm in the right. Bye Millie, I'll see you around. Good morning! Nice day, isn't it? System message: Yeehaw! You're attempting to interact with the Town Profession: Gravedigger. It is currently held by an inactive player. Player //Gravedigger Hank// is unavailable. Do you wish to report them for inactivity?-Report them -Don't report them We’re a detective, not a snitch. No, there's no need. System message: No report. We wish you a successful harvest! Yeehaw! By the way, the game has voice acting. It’s not much – generally just ‘Hello there’ or something equivalent whenever you talk to someone notable. I mention that mostly to say that every time you talk to this bot, he very loudly and slowly yells ‘I’M. OUT. OF. loving. ORDER.’ and it amuses me every time. Anyway, moving on. -Check the bot [The bot had been hacked well. Any attempt to access its code would require a lot of work and was unlikely to go unnoticed.]-Withdraw money Can I withdraw some money from you? You know, a loan, a line of credit...I don't know how these things work in here.The bot responded in a thundering voice. I'M OUT OF loving ORDER! ALL HAIL THE BLACK ROOK! CHECKMATE, MOTHERFUCKERS! [It was a neat hack, the work of a pro.]If we were a Cheater, we could counter-hack it, but we’re not. We really need to save up points for that one, it’s a pretty handy shortcut for a lot of things down the line.  That’s everyone we can talk to in the town, but there’s one location we have yet to visit.  Hi, Professor Locke. No birds around. Hello. Why...did you say that? That's my name. I mean, my last name. Locke. And I'm a professor. Ornithologist. A virtual one. I observe the fowl of Harvest Time. I haven't been here long, but you're right - no birds here. Fascinating, isn't it? No birds during the day, no birds at night! I've confirmed it after weeks of observation!-Ask about the lack of birds Do you know why there aren't any birds in Harvest Time? A splendid question! Nobody knows. I wrote about it on message boards, asked the admins, but there seems to be no clear answer. Some say it's a bug the devs don't want to fix. Others say they deleted them on purpose in order to get smoother animations. Simulating bird behavior was too resource-consuming? It doesn't make sense, right? It's the end of the 22nd century. It's unthinkable.-Ask about the Orange Folk Do you know anything about the so-called Orange Folk? Any information could help. Well, in that case, you're in the right place! I know almost everything there is to know about them. Really? I'm all ears then. Let's start with the robin, one of my favorite species with orange plumage. They were introduced to the game with the European Emigrants update, which was quite a surprise for me. I'm sorry to interrupt, but I was talking about the farmers from the Orange Dream Guild. Oh, them. In that case I can't help you.-Ask about bird-watching I just want to make sure - even though there aren't any birds in the game, you're watching them? Yes. I have documented one hundred and one species. More and more disappeared with every subsequent patch. Poor birdies. I see you're interested in birds. Would you like to watch them with me? I would, but I don't have binoculars. Patience and a keen eye. That's all an aspiring ornithologist needs. It's a drat sight better than growing pumpkins, anyway. He does, however, allow us to borrow the binoculars, whereupon we can share the joys of watching the complete and total absence of birds.   We can also check out a couple of other areas, but there's nothing of note going on at the moment. That's everyone we can talk to for the moment. If you recall, the messages on the board mentioned an alternate route to the graveyard, so let’s try that one this time.   As we head up the path, we meet...   I'm the sheriff in this town. Not many players know about this place, especially newcomers...What brings you here? As you can see, he starts off with a default rating of slightly unfriendly/suspicious towards us. We'll need to put in some work if our aim is swinging him over to our side. Or we could piss him off, but so far schmoozing up everyone has largely worked in our favor, so let’s stick with that for now. What do you want? I'm doing Stanley a favor. He's a friend of mine. He asked me to talk to you on his behalf. If you don't mind, of course. But before I do, allow me to proceed with the formalities...He straightened up and cleared his throat. As the sheriff of High Rock, I'd like to officially welcome you to our community. I'm here to help beginners and uphold the law...The game's rules, that is. Welcome, rancher.-Greet the sheriff -Don't greet him [I reached out my hand. The sheriff looked me in the eyes, smiled, and shook my hand.] Not only will I answer all your questions, but you'll receive something else...a Welcome Package and a pouch of coins for your farm! Cool, ain't it? Let's go down to the saloon and talk over a drink! What do you say?-Agree -Ask about the Welcome Package -Disagree What's in the Welcome Package? 'Boosts' to speed up farming, vanity items for your farm, things like that. But not here. This graveyard isn't the proper environment for it. Let's go. I might have a job for you that will get you something more than gold coins...gamedec.As we head to the saloon, the sheriff stops to chat with a few people along the path.   The sheriff typed a few commands into the game's interface. I saw that I now had access to the saloon. Be my guest.-Express admiration -Ask if it's cheating -Enter the saloon Not a bad trick. Oh, it's one of the privileges of being sheriff. I can grant access to the saloon to whoever I want. I'll have whiskey. Bottoms up, then. To the meeting. I'm telling you, friend, this stuff may be digital, but it tastes like the genuine article. It's phenomenal. Where would you like to begin?-Ask about Stanley First thing, you offered to do Stanley a favor when we were in the graveyard. Stanley was waiting for you, but he had to log out of the game. You can talk to me if you want. Why did he log out of the game? He wasn't feeling well. It happens sometimes. You had information for him on some issue concerning the Orange Folk. Is that correct?-Tell him the truth -Inquire about the Orange Folk -Give him false information Hmm, yes. I've arrived at certain conclusions. I'll get right to it, seeing as Stanley's already clued you in. [I didn't want to tell him the truth, but I had to tread lightly with the lies so he wouldn't get wise to them.] I was called here to investigate a case involving...-False admins -Sick cows -Crop circles False admins. It's a rather delicate matter. A group of players gained access to developer stacks. I have to find out who they are.The sheriff's eyes went wide. drat, that really is serious! And? What did you make of it? What do they use that access for?-Deleting farms from other people's accounts -Collecting personal data -Duplicating rare items They use it to duplicate rare items and auction them off. For real cash.The man was nodding enthusiastically. drat, this could disrupt the game's economy. This could cost the Orange Folk. [It seemed like the Sheriff was buying my little story.] For now, I've nothing more to add. Do you think the players you're looking for are still in the game?-Agree -Deny -Shrug Hard to say. I believe that a player named the Outlaw is responsible for the Orange Folk's problems. [Outlaw seemed like a peculiar name to choose.] I've suspected for a while that they're a fraud duplicating rare items. These kinds of machinations not only hurt the game's economy, but can also cause malfunctions of the game's systems. If you agree to work with me, I'll tell you my plan to catch the Outlaw. You'd play a central role in it.-Ask about your pay Just one thing. I don't work for free. There's real money in it for you. After the job is done, that is. [Gamedecs were generally paid upon completion of the job.]-Accept the job -Refuse and say goodbye You convinced me, sheriff. I'll work for you.He offered what I usually charged for searching for someone in virtualia. I nodded, then realized he hadn't told me what the job actually was. [We shook hands. You never signed contracts in my line of work.] Alright, let's cut to the chase. First of all, I need you to confirm the Outlaw's location. When you do that, find out whether they work alone or have accomplices. Then we'll meet and draw up a detailed plan.-Ask about the Outlaw What do we know about the Outlaw? I'm sure this player uses many different accounts and characters. Recently they've been known as the Outlaw. They were in some shady business with Black Rook - a known hacker and fraud who had been permabanned from the game. Rook did a lot of nasty stuff. He once hacked our banker, Mr Adams, and gave him an insulting name. The next update should finally fix it.-Ask what he's going to do What are you going to do in the meantime, Sheriff? I'm going to collect evidence against the Outlaw and inform the admins about our plans. I also have some...real-life obligations.-Ask what he expects of you What is it exactly that you want me to do? Confirm whether or not that thug is still in their hideout, the Guild House. A sheriff can't belong to guilds or enter their houses. Dumb, I know, but rules are rules. Just find out if the Outlaw works alone or not.-Ask if you can get a badge Could you give me a deputy star?The sheriff burst out laughing. I don't have one on me, but if you care about it so much, I can try to get one for you. That's all for now. I'll get to work. Wait for me in the saloon after you've found all the answers. I'll be there at nightfall and we'll think up a plan. Oh, hold on, let me give you the Welcome Package. Ahem..."Welcome to Harvest Time. Please accept this humble gift." Yeehaw! You've received three mystery gifts! I can't wait to open them for you! Come to the ranch! Thanks, sheriff. That's a nice gesture. The pleasure's all mine, friend. [I still had an obligation to Stanley. I had to understand the Orange Folk's problem.] See you later, sheriff. We'll meet at nightfall, gamedec.He tapped the brim of his hat and left the game. As the sheriff leaves...  [The woman must have been listening to our conversation. She wanted to meet me outside the saloon.] [The woman looked noble and serious, though she kept looking around as though she was afraid of something. When she noticed me, her face took on an imperious look.] You're a gamedec, aren't you? Yes, I'm working on a certain case here. I accidentally overheard your conversation with the sheriff and I think that I might have a simple, but lucrative, job for you. I'd like you to provide me with intel about the sheriff - who he is, what he does, how many zeros he has in his bank account, and so on. Anything you can tell me about his life in realium would be helpful. Can I count on your help?-Ask why she needs this information Why do you need this information? I'm considering entering into a financial arrangement with this person. I'd like to make sure he's solvent and trustworthy. That's all.-Accept the job All right. I'll vet him. Wonderful. Once you acquire the information, please come to the Guild House. I'll be waiting for you there. Tell Rusty Ed that you work for me. He'll invite you to the guild. [I suddenly felt the air move, as if someone had walked right past me. But nobody was there. I resumed the conversation with Lea-Anne.] I'm terribly sorry. I got a bit distracted for a moment. Yes, I noticed. Well, that will be all. Unless you have more questions.-[Sensory Celebrity] Have her say something about herself Can you tell me something about yourself? I sense that you're a strong and interesting person. I'm sure I'm not wrong.She blushed. Oh, stop it! I'm not that interesting. I'm just a regular Harvest Time player. Well, all right, I am a big fan. It's been a while since I last played, I was pretty busy in realium. I finally managed to come back, but to be honest I'm here on business.-Ask what she does in the game What do you do in Harvest Time?The woman burst out laughing. What haven't I been doing! I used to run a prosperous farm, I was on top of the leaderboards. Now, I'm mostly here for the people. This community is one of a kind. Sadly, you can't trust everyone, which is why I asked you for help.-Ask what she knows about the sheriff Do you know anything about the sheriff? I heard that he's very respected here. Everyone speaks very highly of him. What's your opinion?-Nod in agreement -Say that you don't trust him -Refuse to answer My instinct tells me not to trust him. Right? I felt so myself. I'm glad I met you.That's all we get out of her for now. She turns and walks into the Guild house.  Talking to the sheriff and Lea-Anne has unlocked our next set of deductions - find data on all three of the subjects we're being tasked with looking into.  As we check out the cows, we get a reminder that we're still being stalked by some kind of invisible creature.   On our way to make the rounds again, we meet a couple of familiar faces.  It will only take a moment! Unless you're like Ben Bo. Don't be like Ben Bo.-Ask what the questions are for What's the point of this interrogation? We're collecting data. You'll learn more over the course of it.-Answer the questions OK, go ahead. Here we go. Question One: How long have you been playing Harvest Time?-Lie -Tell the truth Not long. Less than a day. Question Two: Have you ever been to the graveyard on the hill?-Lie, say you haven't -Tell the truth No, I've never heard of it. I need to learn more about it. All right, here's question number three - have you heard about the Tree of Knowing?-Say that you haven't -Say yes -Don't answer -Stop the survey I saw a very large tree in Deep Past World once. I think it was a sequoia. Is that what you mean? Sadly, no.The girl struggled to conceal her embarrassment. Another question. Focus - Have you ever experienced flashbacks that weren't yours?-Answer ironically -Say that you haven't -Say yes That usually happens when I forget to take my meds. Oh, you're a bundle of laughs! Do you ever feel like someone is telling you what to say? As if they've taken over your mind and will?-Say no -Say no -Deny -Stop the survey [I felt a wave of intense anxiety. A part of me flipped out upon hearing the question and made me say...] No, not at all! Hey, easy, we're just talking, okay? It should go smoothly now. Give me any number that comes to your mind.-Say the number 314 -Say 314 -Say 314 -Choose 314 Three hundred and fourteen. Wait...What? What kind of question is that? What are you trying to drag me into?! Take it easy, don't freak out, it's cool. Uh...yeah, thanks, that's all. Your turn - is there anything you want to ask us?-Ask why they are interested in the Tree of Knowing Why are you asking about the Tree of Knowing? We're collecting info for our clan. It's a top secret mission, you know, so we can't tell you too much. Actually, we don't know much either! Haha! If you learn anything make sure to let us know! Totally! Come back with some solid info on the Tree and you won't regret it! The Hon clan knows how to return a favor!-Ask about the number 314 What was behind that question about a number? Does 314 mean anything? Maybe it does, maybe it doesn't. We're not quite sure. But we're checking it out! Actually, it's not the first time we've gotten a response like that from an interviewee-Maya shot her a look and Mia clammed up. But the fact that you reacted quite oddly to that number may mean something.-Ask about the Clan So, how's your clan doing? What was the name? It starts with a 'H', right? Oh man, the Hon Clan! The best org in the world, with the most profound message, concept and narrative - it's a riot, dude! Make sure to drop in to Knight's Code. That's where our headquarters are! Jeez, it's so amazing, like everything starts making sense!-Talk about the investigation -Ask about the Sheriff -Ask about the Outlaw -Ask about Lea-Anne Do you know a played called 'The Outlaw?' Yes. I mean, no. I mean, we've never met any Outlaw but people say there is this guy, an outcast... I've heard he pissed off the sheriff himself and now he's looking to bail out to another level. They also say he's covered by Rusty Ed and it's the only reason why the sheriff hasn't nailed him yet. I hope we helped at least a little bit.They proceed to stroll off. We can try talking to them again, but they won't tell us anything new. “Find data on the Tree of Knowledge” is now added to our sidequests, along with figuring out that digital ghost that’s stalking us. And of course, we still need to gather more info on our mysterious triumvirate. Looks like we’re going to have our hands full, come the next update. Inadequately fucked around with this message at 01:47 on Sep 28, 2022 |
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Sep 27, 2022 17:48
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Well this is quite a bit more interesting than the situation on S&M world. We got several distinct plots to uncover.
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Sep 27, 2022 18:38
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By popular demand posted:Well this is quite a bit more interesting than the situation on S&M world. We got several distinct plots to uncover. Lotta drama in this harvest moon
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Sep 27, 2022 20:25
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You say that this game isn’t very good, but the first impression is solid? The people and characters are off-putting, but in that way that actual people online can be weird and off putting. The NPC bot characters are funny in how derp they are. The premise is pretty good overall. The environment maps look great. Probably the worst part is the deus-ex rear end pull save from the first case, and how the game definitely shows the signs of continuing down that path. But so far, my overall take is positive on the game so far. The farming game gives me some horror vibes from how uncomfortable the shown game mechanics make me. But that just adds to the genuine feeling of how bad games can get.
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Sep 27, 2022 23:24
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I was going to get into this discussion later, but since it's been brought up, for the most part my disillusionment with the game stems from how it ends up, rather than how it starts out. I certainly don't think the game's entirely irredeemable - if it was, I wouldn't be showing it off. It's largely a matter of unfulfilled potential. The main issue with the first case is that it hinges around an impossible promise they'd never be able to fully commit to ("let's throw the player into the sleaziest, most twisted and hosed-up place on the Net"), but in broad strokes the central premise of "kid who thinks he's hot poo poo gets swept up into something way over his head" is still a decent core for the first case. There's also the issue, as people have pointed out, that both sides involved in the central conflict are such terrible people that by the end of it you mostly just want to wash your hands of the whole affair - not necessarily a bad thing if that's the tone you're going for, but it certainly doesn't endear the game to most people. A minor change I'd probably make on that front would be to have Timmy as the one who contacted you in a panic, with Geoffrey Haggis as the disapproving figure who insists on being the Big Man that wants to settle this affair all by himself. That way, when Fredo is rescued we get a reminder that there are people who (even if it's for somewhat misguided reasons) actually care for Fredo for who he is, rather than "hooray, we returned Fredo to...his clearly abusive father  "We haven't finished the second case yet, but for the most part I think it's pretty solid. Might have one too many cheap shots at Farmville and other mobile games of that ilk for my liking, but by and large this case could probably be run largely unchanged in any successful incarnation of this game. The third case, however, is where the metaplot starts to factor more and more heavily into the game's storyline, largely to its detriment. We'll get more into why that is later, but for the most part the ways in which the game goes downhill are fairly self-evident. Inadequately fucked around with this message at 01:54 on Sep 28, 2022 |
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Sep 28, 2022 01:45
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Well, I guess we'll enjoy this case while it lasts before Video James's potential career is wasted.
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Sep 28, 2022 01:49
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What really dragged the game down for me was the XP system. While certain skills are biased towards costing certain types of XP as you might expect, every skill costs at least 1 of all four flavors, which means whenever you get an RP choice that gives XP (they become fairly easy to spot, they're kind of meaningless "reaction" junctions that always have 4 choices) you're discouraged from picking the choice that seems most appropriate and encouraged to check which type of XP you need and then to try to figure out which choice will give that type. I hate when games do this. You can just have one kind of XP. If it's good enough for Disco Elysium it's good enough for you. I ended up just cheating to buy every skill and explore as much of the game as possible in a single playthrough without worrying about it any more. Sindai fucked around with this message at 04:47 on Sep 28, 2022 |
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Sep 28, 2022 04:44
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Inadequately posted:I was going to get into this discussion later, but since it's been brought up, for the most part my disillusionment with the game stems from how it ends up, rather than how it starts out. I certainly don't think the game's entirely irredeemable - if it was, I wouldn't be showing it off. It's largely a matter of unfulfilled potential. I'm not surprised by any of that, really. I look forward to seeing how it trips the landing, and the game's writing has enough heart to it that I hope it keeps that, at least. I do feel that the first case is a good tone-setter if the game wants to go in that direction. Plus it does have some good character moments like the grandpa/grand-daughter sidequest. This is also the first game (or the first piece of media period) I've seen where you have someone who's over 60 and presents as over 60 flirt with someone and have it be played straight. I actually like the Farmville jabs, largely because that's how satire works. It's a proven form of humor after all, and I do appreciate that some media is calling out mobile gaming nonsense in SOME form. I feel that mockery and pressure does need to be applied to that kind of poo poo, to slow down people accepting that kind of poo poo as acceptable status quo.
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Sep 28, 2022 07:56
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Getting close to the next page, hopefully this post should bump the update over to a new one.
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Sep 29, 2022 16:28
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