By: Stephen Chen

You are the inventor of a popular video game. One day the main character from your game knocks on your front door. What does he want?

Keys

2054

“It’s you,” I said, as I opened the door, “I thought it was going to be you.” When I opened the door, James showed me the attractive smile I would have expected and three keys. “Alright,” I said, “from now on, you are the owner of this game,” I was trying to calm down for a few seconds, “I hope that you can make the game better.”

2050

I named my game “Virtual World” and published it. Players can do whatever they want in this world without the worries of death. “Virtual World” has its own currency and rules. I gained millions of money from this project, which impact most people’s lives.

2053

However, this is not my original purpose to create it. I would like to let users realize that this game can’t replace the real world. Hence, a game within the game, the hunt for the three keys started. This is likely to be a process of understanding and selecting. For the part of understanding, players will seek ideas and inspiration. The selection part is prepared to find a new leader of the game through

Three keys (copper, silver, and golden) are located in three areas. Each of them represents different challenges that can test players’ abilities of thinking and strategy.

The first day after my announcement of the game, all people were trying to find the solution to drive for the copper key. A great number of monsters took the risk of stopping and destroying players’ cars. A few days later, James found a method to finish this race, going backward. He became the record holder in this challenge. “Congratulations here is the copper key,” I said.

The second challenge took place in a maze. You have to find a friend to participate with you. For people who were not brave enough to face the last choice in the maze, they failed. In this situation, James chose to die and gave the living opportunity to his friend. He got the silver key that represents courage.

The final challenge started to be harder. I made a games console for all players to find how to pass it. The target of this game is to check that he/she can enjoy the process of the gaming experience. Not surprisingly, James got the last golden key.