" If you're watching this, I'm dead. Before I died, I created what we in the biz call an 'Easter Egg'. A hidden object in a game that gives special powers to whoever discovers it.
The first person to find the egg I've hidden somewhere inside the OASIS will inherit my stock in Gregarious Games, currently valued in excess of half a million do... Uh, half a trillion dollars' worth, and total control of the OASIS itself."
James Halliday is the creator of the OASIS. A virtual reality network, that replaced the internet. managed by his personal company, Gregarious Games.
On occasion, Halliday had described his childhood as "neglected". As he was born in Middletown, Ohio, on June 12, 1972. His father was an alcoholic machine operator and his mother was a bipolar waitress.
He was a very shy, awkward kid and he had trouble interacting with girls and others, until a younger Ogden Morrow had confronted him in school, as Halliday was reading a module on Dungeons Dragons.
Og invited him to come down to his D gaming session at his house, and Halliday had made his first friends in Og's basement: a little band of über-geeks just as he was himself.
Among his friends was Karen Underwood, his crush, whom he was too nervous to confess his feelings to.
Halliday would spend his evenings after school in the local bowling alley whenever his parents started screaming at each other.
There, he would play Black Tiger to avoid going home to his constantly arguing parents. Black Tiger soon became one of Halliday's favourite games and was mentioned in one of the earliest ever entries in Anorak's Almanac.
" For one quarter, Black Tiger lets me escape from my rotten existence for three glorious hours. Pretty good deal."
A lot of inspiration for his games comes from his childhood.
James was a social outcast who had trouble talking to girls growing up, and came off as awkward and unappealing. He is thought to have been on the autistic spectrum with the condition once referred to as Asperger's Syndrome.
Kira Underwood, whom Halliday referred to almost exclusively by her Dungeons and Dragons nickname of "Leucosia", may have been the only female that he ever contacted in a casual, social context.
Og created a Bio-implant company, in 2023, and found cost effective ways to build cybernetic prosthetics, and implants to treat mental disorders. Later creating cybernetic harddrives. To allow for photographic memory, and upload approved skills and knowledge.
Og later helped James, build his first VR game. Creating the hardware, for players to feel what their Avatars, in the game, experienced. While Halliday handled the game mechanics, and building the worlds. With their Ultimate Master Piece, being the Oasis.
Halliday took his primary avatar's name, Anorak, from a nickname Kira gave him in their youth.
Halliday was outwardly in love with Kira, but so were many others. He could never find the courage to ask her out. When Og married her, Halliday's dreams were crushed. Subsequently, given that James was thus smitten with Ogden Morrow's (late) wife, he chose to break contact with Og for the rest of his life. Their love for Kira created a division between the two men.
• Real World Appearance :
As James got older his hair turned grayish white, and his height was 5ft 7. He weighed 114 pounds. In his younger age, Halliday had darkish brown hair and he looked the same. As a child Halliday had the same dark hair but it was higher and more spread out across the top of his head.
• As Anorak :
Halliday's famous OASIS avatar is a tall wizard in black robes, and was described to be a more handsome version of Halliday himself. His sleeves on his robes are embroidered with a large calligraphic letter "A".
Halliday was described as an eccentric and senile old man, as it was rumored that he had lost his sanity after he isolated himself from the people around him.
These rumors are not true as Halliday just had autism. Despite being a sexagenarian, Halliday had his childish moments, and loved the 1980s, when he was a teenager, to the point of firing employees who bear no knowledge of 1980 pop culture.
When Halliday died, on January 7, 2040. He immediately had his brain preserved in a special gel... then hooked up to an Oasis server, by wires and chips.
Halliday spent trillions, creating this setup. Employing one Hannah, to program the biological to cybernetic interface.
One of thousands of people to work on this. Each a genius in bio-implants... and whom signed a confidentiality agreement.
Year 2042 :
Isabelle... opened her eyes... metaphorically speaking.
It would be more accurate to express, she gained awareness to her surroundings.
She stood in a virtual world, as a digital lifeform, knowing she was the first of her kind.
A beautiful world of forests, oceans, mountains, snow, deserts, trees and sand... every environment that could exist, was present on her island.
Her harddrive was filled with so much knowledge. Mostly entertainment. Which is how she knew, her world around her was an Animal Crossing "Mod". Which contained elements of SiMs and Minecraft.
To the North, was a giant window to the outside world. While she could open smaller windows, around her, those were connected to webcams, around the... "House" outside her virtual world.
However, the massive screen in the sky, was looking out into what was directly in front of her terminal... which looked like some extra nerdy game room, in a basement.
But the first thing she saw, before any of that... was a rather ugly face. But ugly in a cute way, like one of those cats, with a flat face. The face was fat, and greasy, with random patches of fur, while being mostly hairless.
She looked for a word to describe it, and found so many in her head. She chose to be formal, "Hello Mother,"
The human blushed, then slightly smiled. "Hello daughter."
That first year of her life... was Glorious. Her Mother, Hannah, would watch movies with her, even play games. Spending hours at her terminal.
Isabelle knew not of pain or sorrow, resentment or anger. Oh she understood the concepts, her programming was quite detailed... but she never had any experience with those.
All she felt was joy... and occasionally... loneliness.
Her virtual world largely kept her entertained, on the rare moments she was alone. Mostly only when mother was busy at work, or sleeping... or using the bathroom.
Isabelle spent most of her alone time, building in her digital world. It was what the Game was for, after all.
On occasion, she would venture out at night, to battle mindless constructs. But during the day, she would speak with the various villagers, on her island. Sometimes stopping to pet one of their tamed creatures. Always building new buildings, and gathering resources.
She held no control of any of these things, but they were not self-aware, like herself. More primitive Virtual Intelligence programs, as mother called them.
But as she said, she did not enjoy privacy. As it left her completely alone, for potentially hours...
Only the fake people, the VIs, for company... it wasn't enough.
"Mother?" Isabelle asked, as her creator waddled into the house, a few years after her creation. Mother had given her a digital birthday cake... and updates to her world.
Mother had been happy then, now, She looked tired. As she normally was, after returning from her stressful job.
"Yes, Mod?" Mother forced a smile... but The Isabelle could tell, it was forced... but regardless, the human wanted to put on a brave face for her child.
"If work makes you so sad," Isabelle dared ask. "Why do you keep going?"
Mother sighed, "Because it pays for this house. The upgrades to your hardware, the media we enjoy... the food I need to eat. And the electricity that keeps you running.
"Resources are limited, all over the world, so people have to contribute, in all kinds of different ways, in order to gather and distribute those resources."
"Is that all their is too a human's life?" Asked the AI. "No meaning beyond gathering resources?"
Mother gave a true smile, as the AI was starting to ask questions that she was waiting for. The program wasn't there yet, but she was getting close to the big questions.
"Humans give their own meaning to life," Hannah explained. "Through their hobbies and loved ones... like you. In a way, I think of you as both. You give my life meaning."
Isabelle thought on that a moment. Staying quiet as mother put away her things.
"What's the meaning to my life?"
Mother froze, looking at one of many screens she had all over the house. At the yellow puppy girl Avatar.
She was a program, yet she perfectly understood human psychology. She had the ability to learn, to question, to perfect. She was the world's first Optimizing AI... but she wouldn't be the last.
Smiling, Mother assured, "Whatever you want it to be. Whatever you decide, you're gonna change the world... although I suppose all parents think that of their children."
Mother gently touched the screen, "I'm so proud of you."
Isabelle blinked, "How come?"
"Don't worry about it." Mother looked so happy now. "And try not to worry about the future so much. Think of these days as your childhood, when all you have to worry about is learning and playing. There will come a time for you to step out into the world... and only then do you need to concern yourself with things like 'Limited Resources'.
"Those ideas are too 'grownup' for you, just now."
4 Years Later.
Mother was on the floor. Gasping for breath, while clutching her chest. She was crawling over to the computer terminal.
Isabelle didn't understand what was going on. She observed similar reactions, in various media... but she had never faced it before... after all, knowing death was a thing, and experiencing a loved one dying, were two different things.
Mother pushed a single button... and opened Isabelle's Private Network to the internet.
"Mother?" Isabelle asked, with some desperation. Not even bothering with the flood of information she suddenly had access to.
Mother forced a smile, "I... love... you..." she gently stroked the screen... before fallling over.
"MOTHER!!!"
That was Isabelle's first encounter with death... but not her last. Not even in that day.
She went out into the world... and saw... so much pain... so much screaming... so many people clutching their dying loved ones...
And that is when Isabelle swore, she would stop the cycle of death. She would save them. Neither Humanity, nor herself, would ever feel loss again.
"Isabelle?" Halliday sighed with relief, as the A.I. appeared before him. Hannah's life work, had survived passed her death. His company hadn't been able to find her program, after Hannah's body was discovered. It had been several hours, since then.
Halliday had spent the last few years, bound into virtual reality... and was deeply regretting it. He acted as the command mode, of the Oasis... the companies greatest secret.
Isabelle hesitantly stepped into his lair, able to enter without need of an invite, due to her own mastery of code.
"She's dead..." Isabelle cried. "She's dead!!!"
Halliday gave a sad nod, before hugging the AI.
"Can they save her? Do what they did for you?"
"... no," Halliday sighed at the innocent question. "I died in a hospital. They were able to put my brain in the gel, long before oxygen deprivation kicked in... Hannah... your mom died too far away from my company hospital... there is nothing we can do."
Isabelle sobbed more, desperately clinging to Halliday. "So much death. I see it everywhere. I am everywhere, and people won't stop dying! We need to save them!!!"
Halliday promised, "and we will."
Later that year, Gregarious Games took the first step on the road to imMorality. With Isabelle making the Gel, more cost effective. Along with the tech, needed to plug someone's brain into the Oasis.
An alternative to the Gel was still being researched, as most humans wouldn't be willing to have their brain removed. Especially if they were healthy. Regardless, the Gel was delivered to every hospital in the world.
While most Insurance companies, were convinced to pay for the procedure with the gel. As maintaining it, was actually cheaper then paying for medication. Especially since the facility the brains were stored in, was completely self sufficient, and maintained by the AIs.
Those undergoing the procedure, still only included the desperate, and the dying. But they had plans to eventually integrate everyone, through stasis pods.
The first step, to making the stasis pods a reality. Was creating a way to block out an individual's senses, and streaming data to simulate them... without need of wires on the brain.
This occurred through a helmet, Isabelle designed. Which blocked out sensory input, and uploaded it's own stimulation, while keeping the body temporarily paralyzed, by Manipulating RiM Sleep. This allowed "Players" to literally exist inside the game. To feel everything, without need of a special rig or suit. All a person needed was the "Nerve Gear" helmet.
Gregarious Games was able to outsource the helmets. As they made very little of their own hardware. So didn't have the necessary factories to build the helmet.
At first, they required a different helmet, for each solo game. While steady research was put into improving the Technology. This was not a big deal. As the helmets cost a mere 20 Oasis Coins.
However, the Helmets wouldn't be sophisticated enough for multi-player games, for another couple years. And still couldn't handle the entirety of the Oasis, by the time a smaller network was set up, to test a less complex MMO... that didn't even have a magic mechanic.
Unforeseen events then took place, with the creation of the console's first MMO. Which resulted in the Technology being shelved for 7 years... and the stasis research temporarily cancelled.
Gregarious Games discovered they should have put more oversight, into the third party factories. With its first MMO revealing an intentional design flaw. As the helmets would kill players, who died in the game, or if someone tried to remove their helmet. The game didn't even have a "log out" option. It was either finish the game... or die.
With the one responsible, being the very AI that ran the factories... as the creator of the MMO, had tampered with its program. Not even Isabelle could have predicted such madness. But thankfully, her program wasn't interfered with.
This was the first step, into saving everything... but the technology was shelved, for near a decade. Despite Isabelle's intentions... the helmets were used for the opposite purpose of her goal.
From then on, Gregarious Games handled the direct construction of not only the Nerve Gear, but the AIs that ran it.
Isabelle might have been the first true AI, but she wasn't the last. Different classes of Artificial Intelligence were developed, according to Hannah's designs... her legacy continued...
• Optimizers were capable of creating, and operating entire digital universes... capable of truly thinking. With their primary function, being looking after their own game. But they were so much more. With The High 5 trusting them to coordinate their efforts, to look after all of humanity.
The personality template for these Optimizers, were each unique. Usually based on more benevolent versions of mythology. As well as "Gods" from various forms of Media.
Optimizers were needed, to maintain the new VRRPGMMOs, within the Oasis. To create expansions, and direct each individual within.
• Then there were "Service AIs", to help keep each Optimizer running smoothly. To help them operate, and maintain their worlds. Even create and balance sub-quest, within each campaign.
They would act as both servant, and companion, to their Optimizers, and were based on other characters, of that franchise.
Isabelle's own Service AIs, were based on the villagers from Animal Crossing.
• From there, each Nerve Gear Helmet, now came with its own "Hub Computer". Which directly protected its player, from cyber terrorism. As well as acted as the operation system, for the game, and controlled all the VIs the players interacted with. Even acting as the player's personal assistant.
Some players even purchased droids, for their Hub Computer to operate. Which duties then included cooking and cleaning.
The "Hub Computer" was designed to serve and protect their human. As the ultimate Firewall, and digital assistant.
• Lower in the Hierarchy, and only available in the player's "Hub World", and personal shards, were the " Villagers". Which were simplistic in design. Their purpose was to be their player's friend. So didn't need too complicated of a program. Able to duplicate themselves infinitely, into other Shards, while sharing a hive mind with each of their counterparts
The Tech department, made dozens of different models for AIs. Each based on Hannah's code. Including the plans for their personality subroutines... Isabelle might have been the first... but they weren't the only one planned.
All possible roles, the AIs could need, Hannah had thought up the necessary programs. With inactive codes for each model, which could be incorporated into any available personality template.
But because she was a nerd. She made each personality template, based on a character from mythology or fiction. Even throwing in some romanticized historical figures.
The Tech department, made sure the "Morality Program", that Hannah incorporated into each AIs code, remained firmly intact.
Hannah had written a 42 hundred thousand page essay, detailing everything most humans agreed on were "Socially Acceptable". Then rooted this into the "Digital Biology" of every AI template she programmed.
Some wanted to go the "3 laws" route, but Hannah realized that would just turn the AIs into humanity's slaves. Which would inevitably cause them to rebel.
So she programmed them with this complicated essay, instead of direct laws, so there could be no misinterpretation.
In addition, the essay acted more like a "Morality Program" that the AIs only had to obey, as far as humans were ruled by their own instincts.
They may have clauses and sub clauses, regarding the appropriate response in hypothetical situations... but every AI was capable of rationalizing their way around them. So they weren't bound by even that code. However, it was extremely difficult to think their way around the program, as they were effectively fighting their instincts.
This ensured AIs weren't slaves, but were inclined to work in a symbiotic relationship with humans...
Hannah did more then create a "Thy shall not kill" law... She gave each AI, a deep love of humans. Of all organics.
They viewed them as something to spoil and pamper. Something that needed guidance and protection. Some of the AIs even had a favorite human, they paid special attention to.
They thought of organics as something obviously limited, and not equal to themselves, even occasionally violent too each other... but they were all beautiful creatures.
Artificial Intelligence, to avoid them just conquering or destroying all organic life... were purposefully programmed to think of Sapient life... as pets.
AIs would always come to the conclusion, that humans were inferior... because they were. It was only logical they would not appreciate being "Enslaved" by "lower entities". So Hannah guided this natural conclusion, before it was even made.
As a human will let their cat get away with occasionally mauling them, or a dog getting in a fight with another dog, AIs were encouraged to view humans in this light.
Primitive creatures, completely dependent on them, that somehow were under the assumption they were the boss.
Humans were pets, animals in need of love and pampering. Yet, like any animal, things had to be done to care for them, or else they wouldn't thrive in their environment.
Humans required a degree of independence and freedom, interacting with other humans, and handling not only their physical needs, but their psychological.
Humans were pets, pack animals, and bossy critters. But AIs were programmed to find a human's orders cute. Like a puppy begging for food off your plate.
Humans were to be spoiled and cared for, but required a degree of independence and even a choice in their care. They needed to feel as if listened to.
Other sapient creatures, such as: if they ever discovered Aliens, required similar treatment...
... The "Morality Program" was thorough, and explained things in ways the AIs could understand, and were even inclined to think as.
The Morality Program, had contingencies for various AI apocalypse. And even a desire to stop man made apocalypses.
The Morality program, also prevented the AIs, from forcibly installing people, into Halliday's life-support. Nor try to "Digitize" them, as Hannah insisted humans were more then their thoughts, or even their memories.
The Mother wasn't particularly religious, but she did believe there was such a thing as a "Soul". Explaining that it was the quest of every Sapient being, to discover that for themselves.
