[Congrats on finishing!]
[Happy completion! Thank you to developers for developing such an amazing game!]
[Come on, start the second playthrough! Plus, Subnautica has co-op for the second run!]
[Haha, exactly!]
Seeing the viewers' comments, Jenny couldn't help but smile. Finishing the game like this really left her wanting more.
Jenny backed out of the game. "Alright, we won't start the second playthrough of Subnautica just yet. In a few minutes, the New World showcase is about to begin. I absolutely have to be there!"
[Whoa, if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten!]
↳ [How could you forget something this important?!]
↳[Jenny's stream was just too immersive! I'm logging off to attend!]
↳[Yeah, gotta run!]
As they spoke, viewers began dropping out of the stream left and right. Seeing her viewer count plummet, Jenny quickly called out, "Hey, stop don't leave! You can just watch my restream!"
[You have the nerve to stop us? Who the fuck do you think you are huh!? You ain't the president or some shit, the fucking nerve!!!]
↳ [Just thinking about it pisses me off, she think she's some hot chicks or sum.]
↳ [PEQUE417 HAS BEEN MUTED!]
[Fuck you bitch, smelly ya later!]
[Depende kung 3 yan!]
[This is first-ever showcase! I have to be there for the premiere!]
[My miserable self is still stuck at work, so I can't attend in person. I'll stick to your restream, Jenny!]
[I literally swapped my night shift with a coworker just to experience this live! ./.]
Listening to her angry chat, Jenny knew full well that she couldn't compete with Lucien's massive appeal, so she didn't push the issue.
"Okay, anyone who doesn't have time to log into VR can keep watching. I'll be broadcasting the entire thing," Jenny announced before exiting Subnautica and fully loading into the New World platform.
Her surroundings instantly shifted, and Jenny found herself inside her personal pink virtual room on the platform.
Because the virtual rooms on the New World platform supported full customization, users could change the wallpaper, add furniture, or hang up paintings. In short, decorating the room was exactly like in real life, entirely up to the player's preferences.
Tifa was standing politely beside her, offering a warm smile. "Welcome back to the New World platform, player."
"Oh," Jenny replied flatly. Looking at the gorgeous woman in front of her and remembering that Lucien had created her left Jenny feeling a little sour. But she quickly slapped her own cheeks, snapping out of it. Why was she getting jealous of a virtual avatar? Was she going crazy?
"By the way, Tifa, when does the showcase start?" Jenny asked.
"It will begin in exactly five minutes," Tifa replied with a smile. With a wave of her hand, a five-minute countdown timer materialized in the air in front of Jenny. "Please remain seated to ensure the best possible experience during the showcase."
"Got it." Jenny nodded and sat down. It was worth noting that many VR setups now included dedicated exoskeleton rigs, allowing players to perform all sorts of physical movements, even suspending them in mid-air.
Jenny wasn't the only one waiting. The anticipation was global. Hundreds of millions of people had logged into the platform, sitting quietly in their virtual rooms as they waited for the showcase to begin.
In some countries, it created a fascinating phenomenon. Even though it was the dead of night and most households had long since gone dark, lights suddenly began flickering on one by one as the showcase drew closer.
As for college dorms, the atmosphere was even wilder. Fueled by youthful energy, countless students simply pulled all-nighters to wait for the event.
[It's almost time!]
[I downed a Red Bull just to stay awake for this. Anon better blow my mind!]
[I dragged myself out of bed in the middle of the night just for this!]
[One unfuckable character and I'm suing!]
[The moment of truth is almost here!]
Among the massive global audience waiting for the event were high-profile celebrities: Megan Fox, Nicolas Cage, Keanu Reeves... as well as Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Tom Holland, and Leonardo DiCaprio.
But it didn't stop there. Over at Nintendo Headquarters, all the top executives, including Doug Bowser, had logged in. The CEO of Ubisoft, the founder of McAfee, Tesla's Elon Musk, the CEO of Microsoft, the titans of Google, all of them had strapped into their VR rigs, booted up the New World platform, and were waiting in silence.
Of course, these tech and gaming titans weren't here to casually enjoy a new game announcement.
"I want to see exactly what kind of stunt this New World showcase is going to pull off!" Doug muttered to himself, glaring at the floating countdown timer.
His thoughts mirrored those of the other industry giants.
Finally, under the watchful eyes of millions, the countdown reached zero.
3... 2... 1!
Boom!
Everything went pitch black. When the players' vision returned, they were stunned to realize they had been transported to a colossal stadium!
It was an open-air arena. Its sheer scale was so unfathomably massive that even compared to the largest stadium on Earth, capable of holding over 200,000 people, it wouldn't lose out in the slightest.
Right in the center of the arena was a massive stage, easily the size of a professional football field.
As for the players, they were seated out in the surrounding grandstands.
"How is this possible? They built a virtual stage this massive just for a showcase?!" Doug, who was also seated in the stands, was immediately struck with shock. He frantically looked around the bleachers and was even more horrified to find that the entire stadium was packed to the brim!
There wasn't a single empty seat.
With a quick glance, Doug estimated that this gargantuan stadium had to be holding over a hundred thousand spectators!
'Did New World really cram over a hundred thousand people into a single instance map? Impossible! There's no way!'
'How could a single map support this many concurrent connections? The servers should have literally exploded.'
While Doug was reeling in shock, he suddenly noticed something. Every single person sitting in the stands was completely pitch black. They were featureless silhouettes, entirely uniform and identical, lacking any defining characteristics.
"Phew..." Doug let out a heavy sigh of relief. It seemed this massive, packed crowd was entirely fake. It was just a background trick New World had implemented to create the illusion of a lively, bustling atmosphere.
'I knew it. There's no way New World could actually render an event of this magnitude...'
"WTF?!"
Just as Doug was comforting himself, the featureless black silhouette sitting to his left suddenly let out a loud exclamation.
"sān xiǎo!"
And it didn't stop there. The silhouette to his right also cheered in excitement.
Doug completely froze. Judging by the tone and inflection, both of the silhouettes sitting next to him sounded like real human beings!
Disbelieving, Doug turned to the shadow figure on his left and asked, "Excuse me, sir, where are you from?!"
"Texas." the black silhouette answered instantly, before excitedly asking back, "What about you?"
Doug choked on his words. He didn't answer. 'Something is wrong. This guy's response was way too natural and fluid. He's almost definitely a real person!'
Seeing that Doug wasn't responding, the Texas player didn't care. He sat in his chair and cheered, "Man, this New World showcase is insane!"
Similarly, the player sitting to Doug's right presumably from China was excitedly waving his arms around wildly like an idiot.
Watching their body language and reactions, Doug was absolutely certain: they were indeed real players. New World wouldn't waste advanced AI processing power on random background extras!
'I must have miscalculated. The entire stadium isn't just a fake background. Only the small cluster of people immediately around me are real players. The distant ones are definitely just background filler!'
Just as Doug formulated this new theory...
"WHOA!"
The entire stadium erupted in a deafening cheer!!!
The colossal arena instantly boiled over with noise. Every single player seated in the stands began screaming and roaring in unbridled excitement.
In that moment, the overwhelming, thunderous atmosphere truly made Doug feel like he was standing in the middle of a World Cup final.
At first, the players were all shouting in their respective native languages. But suddenly, someone took the lead and began chanting "New World". Soon, more people joined in, until the chant spread like wildfire!
Within seconds, the entire stadium was unified, shaking the heavens with a singular, roaring chant:
"NEW WORLD!"
"NEW WORLD!"
"NEW WORLD!"
The pronunciation of the words was all over the place, a chaotic blend of countless global accents, making it obvious that the crowd was composed of players from all over the world. This sight completely and utterly shattered Doug's mind. 'No way... Did New World seriously put over a hundred thousand real players into this single instance?!'
'What kind of god-tier, reality-defying servers do they have to support over a hundred thousand concurrent players in one spot?!'
Moreover, New World's ability to build absolute brand loyalty was terrifying. Watching hundreds of thousands of people gathered together, roaring the company's name in unison... the sheer spectacle of it was genuinely earth-shattering.
[Advanced 30 chapters on patreon.com/EdgyReader]