The Web
Historical Context
The internet has always been a vast, uncontrollable space. The proliferation of information led to a lack of veracity and a plethora of scams. Navigating the internet was becoming perilous. The amount of money lost in online fraudulent businesses led to an increase in poverty among the middle and lower classes, while the upper class grew richer and had means to avoid falling victim to these scams.
Internet access began to be considered a «basic necessity,» with free access points set up in all public places worldwide. Simultaneously, within the network, life was booming exponentially. It was almost unnecessary to venture outdoors to meet basic needs. Access to the network was facilitated through motion capture booths; VR was commonplace. Those with more money or whose work required it had booths where they were fed, hydrated, and cleaned, eliminating the need to leave for extended periods. These booths enabled full sensory experiences, so nearly all social interactions occurred within this medium.
Faced with such a delegation of life to digital media, security became a necessity, considering the crisis caused by its use among those with fewer resources. Specialized units of hackers emerged, primarily focused on contrasting information about certain business practices to inform the public of their fraudulent nature and to alert governments of criminal activities that violated human rights. They began as independent bodies of justice, separate from governments to avoid what they saw as corruption within the system: being a part of it was voluntary and often brought more problems than advantages. The first known and most relevant organization was called Unknown, but it was eventually dissolved when governments decided to create their own national agencies within the network to «maintain order,» ensuring compliance with all the rules they had devised. The problem with these agencies was that they were led and designed by well-off individuals who could afford to disconnect from the digital world, and so they only scratched the surface of the network’s problems. When there were significant issues, those interested in solving them would hire detectives or private agents, as they were familiar with the depths of the internet, its underworlds, and its plots.
World features
Location
The web is a virtual space with almost infinite sectors because every page is now a physical place to visit. In this story we’ll only focus on the most toxic ones: gambling, scamming, prostitution and black market sectors. The four of them have a lot in common: lots of users in it, a dark atmosphere full of neon lights and advertisements and a huge contrast between very wealthy individuals and the poor ones.
Inhabitants
Society has been divided between those who have the money to be free and are able to disconect, and those who spend their days in the web.
The last ones are the majority of the world population so there’s an inmense variety of profiles.
Technology
They have almost the same technology as we have right now, but with a big differentiator: motion capture booths. This technology allows them to materialize within the internet with a physical form capable of using all their senses.
Religion
There are many religions within the internet and all of them receive guidelines from the scam sector.
Economy
The most worthwhile businesses are within the web and their workers are mostly AI so the population has to attend to several part -time jobs, living paycheck to paycheck.
Conflict
There are three points of view in this story
The authorities
The authorities have different skins, in harmony with each sector. But they can be easily recognised because whenever there’s a conflict, they’re useless.
Their justice system has significant holes and their legal channels are slow. So they only intercede if the evidence is conclusive.
Within the game, they will only attack if you don’t allow their cookies or if you don’t sing in to enter a sector.
The delinquents
They’re usually noticeable at first sight, and love to perform in front of the crowds. Their objectives are becoming rich and laughing about others’ misery.
They belong to a wide network that cooperates within the internet. You’ll have to be careful if you don’t want to get caught.
The people
They are harmless, desperate beings who are trapped in a spiral of short-term incentives and debts.
Setting
Gambling sector
The sector controlled by Michael Marauder is characterized by a large number of betting rooms and backers. It’s a vibrant sector that can turn even a fight between brothers into something monetizable.
Scam sector
Controlled by Lionel Liar, this sector is based on the search for new scams that can be distributed through all existing channels. It’s a sector that many unemployed writers and people angry with their friendships turn to.
Prostitution sector
Controlled by Peter Procurer, this sector consists of vast hallways with hundreds of doors adorned with paintings and super-specific labels where you can experience firsthand whatever you desire.
Black Market sector
This is the final zone that controls all the others. Its leader is Neo Noir, orchestrating the darkest transactions and pulling the strings to keep the entire underworld profitable.
What's in the demo
Neon Johnson, a cybersecurity agent in the virtual world, is searching for clues about his sister Smith’s sudden death, but finds out that the case has been abruptly archived. Feeling betrayed by his colleagues, he decides to leave his job and open his own private office. Years pass, and the business is doing well, but he still thinks about his sister’s death.
One day, as Johnson argues with a client over the phone, refusing to spy on their partner for infidelity suspicions, he receives another envelope under the door. Opening it, he finds photos of his sister’s corpse at home, something he hadn’t seen before, with an address on the back. Without hesitation, he investigates the address’s origin, leading him to a district in the digital suburbs he had explored years ago with his sister. He quickly immerses himself in the network in a search for answers.
Upon arrival, he realizes the coordinates led to a communication booth on a suburban street. Inside, he receives a call from a woman who urges him to hurry. She reveals that the key to his sister’s death lies in this sector, as she had discovered calls made to random numbers from the booth months before. These calls were a code indicating that there were people from the gambling world in this sector preying on vulnerable users. This had happened two months prior to Smith’s death, yet government archives accessible to her showed no such case. After this conversation, Johnson presses forward to find answers.
Encountering small groups of enemies, he decides to advance further into the sector, realizing that despite its exterior facade, it’s a trap for gambling addicts: fraudulent ads, countless casinos… Eventually, he reaches a large casino at the end of an alley where he fights two hitmen. The first one gives him the name of their boss, Michael Marauder, while the second, upon defeat, drops coordinates. Returning to the booth, Johnson contacts the Oracle, who locates Marauder’s whereabouts. Johnson heads to the indicated point and battles Marauder until he defeats him. But once defeated, Marauder claims ignorance about Smith’s death; he was merely tasked with luring her into the underworld. In his final moments, he tells you to ask Lionel Liar.