EOrRRoR

by Zencolour

The year is 2073. Virtual reality has taken the world by storm and Pokémon is no longer just a game. James was once an avid player until a freak accident abruptly turns his life inside out. Waking up inside the virtual world itself, James quickly learns the repercussions of being uploaded into a computer generated world - and why he might not be the first. Rated T for language.

1. Introduction

EOrRRoR

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"I guess you guys aren't ready for that, yet. But your kids are gonna love it."

Marty McFly

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[INTRODUCTION]

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Virtual reality was supposed to be a fad. The craze would fade away given a few years. At least, that's what all the critics said. Little did they know that within a couple decades the use of so-called 'VR' would occur in every home, classroom, boardroom meeting, and parliament on the planet. A simplified VR was even travelling with the first astronauts on route to Mars!

This unforeseen surge in popularity was thanks to the completely unprecedented technological singularity in 2044 - the advent of the first true Artificial Intelligence (AI) by the name of 'exDEV'. Ever since, runaway technological growth stormed the planet in a previously unimaginable way.

The second true AI was developed by GOKIA, a joint venture by an American and Japanese company based in the Eurozone state of Britannica. The company aimed to design and build the first AI-driven gaming environment - something which turned out to be hugely successful. 'HORIZON' became a universal sensation alongside the release of the highly-immersive SONY 'Dreamcatcher' hardwear in the summer of 2052. GOKIA rapidly developed the procedural generation of different virtual gaming environments to be micromanaged by the AI; before expanding their capabilities into an fragmented universe hosting hundreds of sub-environments. These were sold as real-estate to various game developers to host their own virtual gaming platforms. Today, the most popular is the Nintendo-owned timeless classic "Pokémon".

Leaks from various corporations, including GOKIA itself, have suggested that progress is being made in "uploading" human consciousness into the virtual game platform for a fully immersive experience. Why play games when you could live, breathe, and die inside of them? Although many doubt that the technology is even feasible, raging ethical debates on such a process remain unresolved. However, the surge in popularity of VR only hides much more invasive issues. It's not a question of what is possible - but whether we have the responsibility to manage the repercussions.

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XXX