VirtuON

In the world of the novel, VirtuON is a massively multiplayer online virtual-reality video game, created by Ruby Entertainment and published by Virtual Online Experiences. It is the second most popular MMOG in the world, and the single most popular VR game in history.

History
VirtuON is the result of many years of research and development at Ruby, and is the brainchild of the company's founder, Marsden Brinks. In his youth, Brinks was an avid player of Dungeons & Dragons, and his fascination with fantastical worlds and creatures led him to create a series of tabletop role-playing games. However, despite the moderate success of his previous works, particularly he found that he could not design a system incorporating all of the features he desired, nor could he achieve what he felt to be the perfect balance between a structured world and player freedom.

[more to come]

Lore
VirtuON's story takes place on a myriad of floating, hexagonal islands called worlds. The worlds were created long ago by the Artisans, an ancient race who wielded an extraordinary, poorly-understood power somewhere between magic and technology. With this power, they sculpted the worlds like works of art, and though every world was different from every other, all were, in their own way, places of wonder and beauty.

Unfortunately, this led the Artisans to disagree on how their creations were to be treated. One group believed that the worlds were pristine paradises, and that they needed to be protected because the Artisans' own society was too sinful to be worthy of such majesty. The other group believed that the worlds were the key to achieving enlightenment, and that experiencing their splendor up close would allow the Artisans to overcome their own flaws and become better people.

All too quickly, what had started as a mere squabble boiled over into war, and soon, the Artisans had destroyed themselves in their pride. Ironically, the worlds they built are the only things that remain of their once-mighty civilization, and the shattered remnant of their homeland has become a deadly forbidden zone known only as Cataclysm Land.

[more to come]

Gameplay
[under construction]