SPECIAL SHORT AFTERWORD A Gaming Journey in 2026 One day, Karen Kohiruimaki and Miyu Shinohara were hanging out and being lazy. “You know, I’m getting my fill of playing a teeny-tiny avatar in GGO, so I’m wondering if I should try branching out to other games…” “You said it! I heard you say that, Kohi! Yesss! Then leave it up to Miyu Shinohara, the Gamer Princess of the North, as she assembles a comprehensive buffet of full-dive virtual reality games specifically for you!” “I’ve never heard you use that title before.” “That’s ’cause I just came up with it.” “Oh, you made it up… Are there really that many VR games now?” “There’s gobs of ’em. There’s even gob-related games.” “I don’t want to be a gob.” “Well, it was a year ago when you did your whirlwind tour of looking for the right avatar, so in terms of sheer numbers, there are probably several times as many games out there now. Not that I’ve actually counted them or anything.” “That’s amazing.” “And all this is thanks to the mysterious core system called the Seed—not that we need to get into the complex details. The point is, if you really want to, it’s easy to make a game, and everyone’s doing it these days. Okay, time to show you some options!” “I’m looking forward to this.” “First, I’ll start with one of the more unique picks. This one’s called Broth of the Dead, abbreviated to BOTD.” “Hmm? If it ends in of the Dead, does that mean it’s one of your favorite, um…zombie games?” “That’s right, it’s a zombie game. The player is a living person in the midst of a world full of the living dead, and…” “You fight to survive?” “No. You get broth from them.” “……Excuse me?” “The zombies in that world make delicious broth when you boil them. Bonito broth, kombu broth—they don’t stand a chance. Basically, you risk your life capturing zombies, then boil them in a giant pot and extract the most amazing broth to cook with. The point of the game is to master that system. If I had to classify its genre, it’s like hunting and cooking rolled into one game.” “……How about you show me a real game instead.” “But this is a real game! And it’s pretty popular! We should go check it out! You can taste the best ramen in the virtual universe there!” “I’d prefer a game that’s a bit more normal…” “Okay, fine. How about this one? It’s called Battle Mamas, though everybody calls it Batomama or Batoma for short.” “You don’t eat any zombies in it?” “Just get over that one, okay? In Batomama, everyone plays a young mama in the game.” “What?” “A mama. A mother. Mommy. Mutter. But the guys who play it end up being mama-lookalike papas instead. The point is to carry your baby around.” “So it’s a child-rearing game?” “Close, but no, not at all.” “Is it one or not…?” “As a young mama, you have to raise your child and fight at the same time. In this virtual world, there’s a critical shortage of baby formula, diapers, and bottles. If you want to raise your baby, you have to beat all the other mamas out there.” “So it still involves combat.” “You bet. Mamas gotta fight for their babies, and you do so with household items. The kitchen knives are tough, for sure, but for blunt weapons, the planters are deadly. When you get to a high level, you can smash people with strollers and shove them into washing machines and stuff. And you get big experience bonuses if your kid grows up strong. Also, the worst damage you can suffer isn’t even from enemy mamas, it’s from the careless comments from your unsympathetic workaholic husband. When it comes to fierce, bloodless battles amid the peace of the family home, this is a really popular one.” “Um. Okay. Well, that’s better than the last game, but…” “Still doesn’t whet your appetite? What a highfalutin gourmet you are…” “If you don’t wanna fight, there are some good racing games, too. I like Fright Flight, known as FriFli.” “Sounds like it’s gonna fly away. Interesting alliteration, though. So it’s like a horror flight simulator?” “Wow, you could tell that from the English title? Are you…American?”
“No… I’m Japanese…” “Anyway, in this game, you’re the pilot of a passenger plane, flying at superfast, supersonic speeds. So yes, it’s a type of flight simulator. It has a realistic cockpit, and you have to hold the flight stick and everything. The view through the windows is incredible.” “Sounds pleasant.” “But since it’s a consumer airline, you’ve got to beat out the flights from rival airlines flying the same routes.” “I see. So it’s also a racing game.” “Exactly. You take off at the same time and head for the same goal, but there’s a technique to winning beyond just checking the forecast and executing a smooth flight plan…” “And that is?” “How many passengers you can throw off.” “Huh?” “You start off with a few hundred passengers in three different groups. Economy class is where the majority is, of course. Each passenger has their own weight and paid ticket value. If they bought it direct at full price, that’s a high value, but package tours and ultracheap tickets are low value. Now, the lighter the plane, the faster it can fly. You want to dump as much dead weight as possible. So if you designate the seat number and hit the switch, you can eject that seat straight outta the plane to lighten the load.” “Wha—?!” “But since you pay back the ticket value of anyone you throw off the flight, your profits shrink. You have to consider their individual weight and ticket value to end up with the most efficient combination of speed and profit. It’s almost like a puzzle. It’s really fun when you’ve got, like, a sumo wrestler in first class at maximum price, and you know you can win the race if you dump him, but you’d take a huge hit to your profits. And the side-to-side balance of the plane matters in the calculations, too.” “So here’s my big question… What happens to the people who fall out of the plane?” “No clue.” “So none o’ these tickle your fancy yet, Kohi?” “Nope. It’s more like, I’m amazed these all didn’t get rejected in the planning stages. I want to compliment the creators just for their games being finished.” “Aww, that’s so sweet…” “That’s not my point. All I’m saying is: Aren’t there any games that are a bit softer and sweeter and happier?” “What? A game is a battle! It’s kill or be killed. Dead or alive.” “There’s gotta be something else.” “Okay, fine. Then I’ll show you a game where nobody ever dies. It’s called 75 Days, which is read Nana-Go Days, because it’s made in Japan.” “What kind of game is it?” “It’s a virtual lifestyle game, set in a world pretty similar to the real world but completely different. Your avatar lives a normal life. It’s a world without hunger or war, so your character can’t die. The goal is to get friends and lovers. You can meet them and talk directly—or use in-world social media and forums and stuff. But since it’s a full-dive game, it’s better to meet them in person, you know? It’s good practice for looking people in the eye when you talk to them.” “Sounds good. Sounds soft.” “But while you’re playing, BS rumors will start swirling around.” “What?” “Rumors. Really bad rumors. Like, that person is doing drugs, or cheating on their spouse, or that they’re a wanted fugitive who killed three people in the past. And you have to do your best to continue your life despite these out-of-control rumors. People will believe the rumors and sever all ties with you. You could make a whole bunch of friends and lose them all overnight. You really have to keep your spirits up and avoid losing heart to enjoy this game.” “That’s messed up.” “Well, that’s the game. Didn’t you notice something about the title?” “The saying, ‘A rumor only lasts seventy-five days’…” “That’s it. Oh, and half the fun is making up rumors and spreading them yourself, see? It’s a game about being happy, but that doesn’t mean everyone has to be happy.” “……” “Oh, and since there’s no dying in this game, no matter how far down in the dumps you get shoved, your only option is to keep trying to crawl back out of them.” “……” “This game is ‘alive or alive.’” “Miyu… I get it.” “Oh? You get what?” “I’m good with GGO. I feel like shooting and stabbing and blowing up people here is the best fit for me.” “I had a feeling you’d say that.” The End
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