I open my eyes to a scene of a once grand hall. Debris lay scattered across the floor and chips of stone have been carved out of once majestic pillars. The remains of a horrific struggle. A man sat lounging on a dilapidated throne, all around him were the fresh bloody corpses of soldiers. The years have been unkind to this old soul. Stringy white hair rests on his wrinkled head while atop his head sits an enchanting crown of gold encompassing a blood red gemstone. His vacant eyes, without a glint of their former glory, drift in my direction. As if staring through my soul, he begins laughing maniacally.

My vision fades as the camera pans to a vast barren landscape in which two armies clash.

Right and wrong matter not in this conflict of ideals. The armies of man have waged countless wars for honour, glory, and the chance of become the momentary masters of a fraction of the world. Chaos reigns supreme in this desolate land.

The camera zooms out to show the continent hovering in the sky above a swirling vortex. Cracks begin to form, eventually separating the continent into 100 distinct pieces. As if guided by an external force, these islands drift away from each other as they rotate to the vortex’s lead. Time accelerates as the scene changes to that of a magnificent city.

Citizens are going about their daily lives, oblivious to the vast world around them. Children can be seen laughing in the streets, playing games to pass the time. Crowded markets lined with merchants haggling over their wares concerned only with the extent of their profits.

Near the centre of town a giant colosseum dominates the skyline. The camera zooms in on the arena where a fight was commencing.

Two challengers, a knight and a barbarian, clash steel against steel without rest. These evenly matched fighters trade blow for blow as no clear advantage is seen. The barbarian rushes in wielding his dual battle-axes, but the attack is parried against the knight’s shield. While the barbarian was recovering, the knight seizes the opportunity to attack. The knight seems to gain the upper hand as he slashes the left forearm of the barbarian causing bright red blood to dye his arm. But when the knight goes in for the killing blow, the barbarian counters with an unexpected strike to the side. The barbarian’s axe lodges firmly in the knight's neck dealing a decisive blow. As the knight struggled to breathe, gurgling with hands grasping his throat, the screen faded to black.

The view returns to that of a multitude of floating islands in a spiralling pattern away from the largest island in the centre. Time has brought prosperity to some, while devastation to others. From lush forests to dry deserts and frozen plains to scorching lava fields none of these islands look alike with every island having its own distinct environment. They are spread far apart from each other and would only be faintly visible from the edges of one territory. Beyond all this was endless void as far as one could see. As I stare into the void my vision becomes blinded by a white light.

I was now in an all white expanse and a server message pops up in my User Interface.

Welcome to EndGame Online

The system generates a generic male avatar in front of me after the announcement and proceeds to set up my account.

Select a username This will be used to identify yourself within the system and cannot be changed.

After pondering for a while I choose a name I had come up with five years ago during the end years of my last MMORPG adventure.

“Anti Prime”

Username unavailable. Please select another username.

“Ughh”

Username unavailable. Please select another username.

"..."

“Quinn”

My naming sense is terrible. My first choice was based off a person’s username whom I had met in one of those low level guilds. His name was “Prime Gamer”. And so, rather than choosing a name with a long strand of numbers like “Flame131415”, I devised this name. I hadn’t expected it to be taken, so my second choice was simply my real name.

Username available. Confirm the name “Quinn”

“Confirm”

After a few seconds I look up at the username above the generic avatar displayed in front of me. The name is outlined in green.

All players will start out with their name in green. If a user assaults another, their name will change to yellow. If a user kills another, their name will change to red. To remove this effect, the player is required to wait an appropriate amount of time based on the nature and quantity of offences. Once a player kills over 100 players their name will change to black. This effect is permanent and cannot be removed. However, this doesn’t include official duels between players.

Select a class

This will determine your starting stats and equipment.

Note: It is not possible to change classes once in the game; however, other than the profession exclusive skills, all skills are available to every user.

Looks like there are nine options to choose from: warrior, barbarian, knight, mage, priest, summoner, archer, assassin, and rogue. We are provided with a chart of beginning stat bonuses and a list of applicable skills, so I give a quickly glance over it. I had looked up information regarding the game ahead of time on forums and news postings, but there was only minimal information available. They offered information on what classes there were, but not what made them unique from the others. Therefore, I was left with only a vague idea of the class I would choose.

I knew Phil would take the knight route, while Chris would most likely go for the warrior. I had always been drawn to characters with a dark alignment, so perhaps either the assassin or the rogue would be best.

Warrior Starting Bonus Skills

+50 Vitality

+10 Strength

+10 Defence

Shield Bash (Active) - Level 1 - Bash the target with your shield dealing blunt damage and 10% chance of stunning target for 3 seconds.

Battle Cry (Active) - Level 1 - Increases strength of self and allies within a 20m radius by 10% for 1 minute. 5 Minute cool down. Knight Starting Bonus Skills

+50 Vitality

+ 20 Defence

Shield Wall (Active) - Level 1 - Increases defence of self and allies within a 20m radius by 10% for 1 minutes. 5 minute cool down. Guard (Active)- Level 1 - Increases defence and reduces physical damage received by 15% for 1 minute. 5 minute cool down. Barbarian Starting Bonus Skills

+50 Vitality

+20 Strength

Fierce Roar (Active) - Level 1 - Intimidate your foes. User has a 20% chance to stun enemies within a 20m radius for 3 seconds. 5 minute cool down. Rage (Active) - Level 1 - Increases strength and physical damage by 10% for 1 minutes. 5 minute cool down. Mage Starting Bonus Skills

+100 Mana

+20 Intelligence

Mana Regeneration (Active) - Level 1 - Increases rate of mana regeneration by 10% for 5 minutes. Mana Reduction (Active) - Level 1 - Decreases amount of mana required for casting spells by 10% for one minute. 5 minute cool down. Summoner Starting Bonus Skills

+100 Mana

+10 Intelligence

+10 Spirit

Support magic (Passive) - Level 1 - Allows user to increase selected stats of target by 10%. Targets limited to party members and summoned creatures. Summoning magic (Passive) - Level 1 - Allows for the summoning of spirits, familiars and other creatures to aid user. Duration 10 minutes. Priest Starting Bonus Skills

+100 Mana

+20 Spirit

Purification Magic (Passive) - Level 1 - Cleanses the target of negative statuses. Effective against undead. Holy Magic (Passive) - Level 1 - Allows user to borrow the power of the heavens to heal target. Archer Starting Bonus Skills

+50 Stamina

+20 Dexterity

Steady shot (Active) - Level 1 - Increases accuracy by 10% for 10 seconds. 1 minute cool down. Minds eye (Active) - Level 1 - Enhances field of vision by 10% for 10 seconds. 1 minute cool down. Assassin Starting Bonus Skills

+20 Strength

+10 Dexterity

Cloaking (Active) - Level 1 - Shrouds the user in shadows making the user invisible for 5 seconds. Backstab (Passive) - Level 1 - When conducting a successful sneak attack, deals 200% damage. Rogue Starting Bonus Skills

+50 Stamina

+10 Dexterity

+10 Strength

Shadow Stealth (Active) - Level 1 - User’s body melts into the background for 5 seconds. User is 110% harder to notice. Nimble fingers (Passive) - Level 1 - 10% greater chance of successful lock picking, disarming traps, and pick pocketing.

The assassin seems to start out with a good combination of strength and defence, but I can see the lack of stamina being an issue in the future. The assassin’s unique skills seem like they would provide a good advantage. The 200% damage is particularly appealing. Perhaps the scaling for Backstab would lead to ridiculous amounts of damage at higher levels. As for the cloaking, 5 seconds is not a lot of time, but that is only for level 1.

As for the rogue, the stats are more balanced when compared to the assassin and there is definitely that stamina boost; however, the skills leave something to be desired. An increased chance for lock-picking, trap disarming, and pick pocketing could have some interesting implementations. Perhaps they could be able to steal from other players without the player noticing. Now that is a frightening thought. It would mean one’s inventory is not entirely safe. However, the shadow stealth skill seems like it is a lesser version of the assassin’s cloaking skill.

Alright! I have made my choice. I will be an assassin.

"I choose the assassin"

Confirmation required. You have selected: Assassin. Once you have confirmed the selection is final.

"Confirm."

Alright! One step closer.

Generating avatar. . . Scanning body. . .

. . .Generation complete.

The system generated a figure of a generic assassin, which slowly morphs to match my features. The game had actually devised an avatar that was so lifelike, it felt like I was looking in a mirror.

"No matter how I look at it.. It just doesn't have the assassin feel"

What I can see is a decent looking 21 year old. Brown, slightly unkempt, hair and brown eyes with an average build standing at 5'11". The avatar is wearing simple cloth attire, while holding a kitchen knife in reverse grip in his left hand and a wooden short sword in his dominant hand.

My stats can be seen by opening up the user interface and selecting the [Player] tab from the menu. I select this, which brings up a large holographic window displaying my character’s basic overview.

Player Status

Player Name: Quinn Class: Assassin Level: 1 Guild None Experience 0/10 Stats Vitality 100/100 Stamina: 100/100 Strength 30 Mana 100/100 Defence 10 Intelligence 10 Dexterity 20 Spirit 10 Skills Active Passive Cloaking Level: 1 Backstab Level: 1

“Hmm. Just generic stats and two basic skills. Looks like I won’t be one of those cheat protagonists from the stories. Damn...”

I suddenly got the thought that this might be more challenging than I previously imagined. Since this is virtual reality I will have to perform these skills with my own body. I’m not too sure how that will turn out. Typically, with traditional mouse and keyboard type games, even if a person was physically weak in real life, they could still dominate within the gaming world. However, with the new onset of virtual reality gaming, one’s real life physical health can turn into an early game advantage. Now, I am not the most physically fit person as I prefer to exercise my mind rather than body, so hopefully the in game mechanics can assist me in that regard. I am sure the developers would not make it too difficult for physically unhealthy players.

Do you wish to enter the game world immediately? Yes No

I select [Yes] and wait as a blinding flash of light surrounds me. Before long I am sent into the game. I look around while standing on the side of the road and see several confused players getting accustomed to their characters. I might as well do the same thing. Typically one is sent into a beginners village until they reach a certain level threshold, but this is apparently not the case. In EndGame Online we are thrown into the world seemingly at random with only our beginner equipment.

Before I get moving I decide to check out my inventory. I bring up the UI and this time select [Inventory]. What I get is a long list of item slots with only a few taken. I can see ten pieces of barley bread, a minimalistic map of the surrounding areas, and ten copper coins. I cannot see the weapons or clothes I saw in the character building screen, so I imagine they must be under the [Equipment] screen. Sure enough, when I open the [Equipment] screen I can see four equipped items.

Equipment Head Empty Primary Weapon Wooden Short Sword Cape Empty Shield Empty Torso Villager Top Secondary Weapon Kitchen Knife Legs Villager Pants Thrown Weapon Empty Hands Empty Necklace Empty Feet Empty Ring Empty

“Really. No shoes...”

I guess I should be lucky to even have clothes at this rate, but it’s not like they provide any decent defence. The top has a rectangular neckline, which reveals part of the traditional shirt worn beneath and is matched with a thin rope belt tied around my waist. The pants are simple and quite narrow, reaching down to my bare feet.

I bring up the item’s stats in a separate window.

Kitchen Knife Wooden Short Sword Strength 7.5 Strength 10 Attack Speed 1.5 Attack Speed 1.0 Durability -- Durability -- Villager Top Villager Pants Defence 1 Defence 1 Magic Defence 0 Magic Defence 0 Durability 50 Durability 50

The stats on the weapons aren't bad; however, the clothing is basically useless in terms of defence. I take another look around me and can see some people staying still, while others are doing all sorts of odd movements. My vision is completely clear without the need for glasses. In the real world I have become near sighted thanks to spending hours on end staring at a computer screen, and I have to wear glasses to view distances. But, none of that matters now. It’s as if the world around me is in HD. I look down at the ground to my bare feet and even the specks of dirt on the ground are detailed. It seems no expense was spared in making this as lifelike as possible.

I bring my hands out in front of me and try flexing my fingers. It feels a bit strange, but I think I can get used to it. It’s not too unlike real life and, all in all, I have to say I am impressed. I try unsheathing the wooden short sword at my waist and hold it in my hand. It feels a bit light, but I imagine that is thanks to the initial class strength boost. I try a few practice swings to get the feel of it and the sword moves awkwardly through the air. This will take some getting used to.

Sword in hand, I prepared to take my first steps in this new world.