Making Game: CH 153 – Stellar Tech Expo (Patreon)

The massive orbital structure of Luprime buzzed with millions of excited attendees. Among the endless sea of diverse alien species waiting in the primary queue, two figures stood completely rigid. 

Horus and Nehsy kept their heads down, hiding their distinct Dagmani features under heavy, unassuming cloaks. They had attached synthetic external limbs over their hands to perfectly conceal their naturally sharp, elongated fingers. Now, they simply appeared as a pair of travelers with smooth, jet-black skin waiting patiently in line.

They were here for one specific reason. The galactic news had recently announced that the highly elusive company, Round Table Studio, was finally showing its face at this exact expo. 

The horrifying realization that their divine deity, Bepoo, originated from a simple video game was entirely too much to process. 

The revelation brought absolutely zero comfort to the Asgardian leaders. The layout of the Mastery Cave, the exact placement of the altar, and even the specific wording of the letter Horus had found were perfectly identical to the game's digital code. 

It felt like blatant blasphemy. High Priest Atum strongly disagreed with this expedition, loudly demanding they stay isolated on their homeworld. Ultimately, Horus and Nehsy were the only ones who dared to cross the stars to unearth the truth.

Horus shifted his weight and glanced nervously at the towering convention center doors. "Are we actually doing the right thing by being here?"

Nehsy looked up toward him, her dark eyes filled with equal parts fear and determination.

Horus leaned in close, continuing in a harsh, low whisper. "Bepoo saved me when I was one single step away from death's door. Those blessings gave our people a future. Yet now... I feel my faith completely shaken to its core."

Nehsy did not offer empty platitudes. She simply leaned her shoulder heavily against his arm to give him silent, grounding support. For the millions of tourists chattering around them, this was a simple technology expo. For the two High Priests, this event was the ultimate test of their faith.

…

The grand doors finally opened, and the massive crowd of attendees began pouring inside. The outer exhibition ring was already fully active. 

This specific sector was packed with eager startups and small companies still deep in their research and development phases. The floor was completely filled with glowing simulations and massive promises for the future. 

Intricate blueprints hovered in the air alongside hardware mock-ups, while complex AI tools and bare, skeletal robotics were displayed on pristine tables. Most of these smaller companies were stationed here to desperately attract wealthy investors.

As the attendees pushed further into the venue, they reached the premium sector. The main booths remained strictly hidden behind thick, light-splitting holographic curtains. Among these massive, secretive displays sat Round Table Studio.

Behind their secure curtain, Raja Farzir stood at the center of the development team to give his final briefing.

"Alright, listen up," Raja instructed, his voice cutting through the nervous energy of the room. "The senior staff will need to maintain a presence here. We must have at least one senior developer on their side of the booth at all times. If you want to go out and explore the convention floor, you guys can easily take turns."

Raja then turned his sharp gaze toward the eager junior developers. "You guys will be the ones who talk to the public first. Read their body language, see what their initial reaction is, and introduce the absolute basics of the hardware. If they seem comfortable and genuinely interested, pass them directly to your seniors or the department heads walking around the floor."

He adjusted his tailored jacket and looked at the core founders. "And lastly, the heads. All of you need to look after the flow of the booth. We must always have two or more department heads present on the floor."

Arthur, fully disguised in his imposing Zagreus form, clapped his large hands together with a booming echo. "I will head out to the main stage right now and deliver the opening keynote. The very second I'm done speaking, this holographic curtain will drop, and we will officially open our doors to the public."

He took a deep, steadying breath, looking closely at the faces of his dedicated team. "This is it, guys. All the grueling research, the sleepless nights, and the countless errors led us exactly to this moment. Believe in these machines just as strongly as you believe in your own hard work."

Arthur stepped forward and held his massive hand out in the center of the circle. Logan, Bem, Kasavin, Liseli, and Dalle immediately rushed forward, stacking their hands on top of his. The senior and junior developers quickly joined the massive huddle.

Arthur looked up toward the ceiling. "Gawain."

A soft chime echoed through the booth. The AI's glowing holographic form appeared directly above the table and placed a digital, translucent hand over the physical pile.

Arthur smiled widely. "Believe on three. One, two, three!"

"Believe!" the entire studio shouted in unison, their voices filled with absolute, unshakeable confidence.

…

Outside the secure perimeter of their holographic curtain, more and more of the main corporate booths were slowly being revealed to the public. Each time a keynote speech concluded, a shimmering barrier dropped, accompanied by the excited cheers of the gathered attendees.

Inside the Round Table Studio booth, the team dealt with the mounting anticipation in their own unique ways. Lin Liseli leaned against a display table, furiously tapping her physical Pokégg device to collect the limited edition Luprime accessories dropping in the area. 

A few feet away, Kasavin meticulously re-checked the merchandise section for the sixth consecutive time, making absolutely sure the exclusive trading cards and plushies were perfectly aligned. 

Behind the main reception desk, Bem and Ross Dalle completely ignored the stress, aggressively battling each other on their virtual Pokemon saves.

Logan Kim crossed his arms and looked around the expansive booth. "Raja, when exactly is our turn to reveal?"

Raja checked his chronometer and offered a calm smile. "There are only several minutes left. Each major booth does an introductory keynote on the main stage for two to five minutes tops. It functions essentially as a quick opener for those interested in visiting their specific section."

Logan let out a heavy breath and stood up straight. "I think I need to go to the restroom first. Does anyone want me to pick something up on the go?"

Bem raised a hand without looking up from his screen. "Some snacks would be nice."

Logan nodded and slipped out through a side exit of the curtain.

Walking around the massive expo floor, Logan could hardly believe the sheer scale of the event. There was so much happening in every direction. He saw all kinds of advanced robotics and simulation interfaces he had never imagined seeing when he first started working as an engineer many years ago. 

The Ministry of Technology had deployed numerous departments across the floor. He even spotted his old division. Their booth had already been revealed, displaying sleek, familiar looking government hardware. He just offered a brief glance and kept walking to do his business.

After visiting the restroom, Logan intentionally took the long way around the convention center to see the other exhibits and find a vendor for Bem's snacks. As he was looking over a selection of packaged energy bars at a kiosk, a familiar voice called out to him.

"Senior Kim?"

Logan paused, his hand hovering over a snack box. He slowly turned toward the voice. Standing a few feet away was a Gunnosian woman wearing a sharp Ministry uniform. It was his old junior from his days before the scandalous termination.

Her eyes widened in surprise. "Oh my stars, Senior. It really is you."

Logan stared at her, trying desperately to pull her name from the dusty archives of his memory. Her face was familiar, and her name was right on the tip of his tongue. "Mirah?"

The Gunnosian woman chuckled softly. "It is Mizah."

Logan cleared his throat awkwardly. "Ah, yes. Mizah. How are you doing?"

Mizah nodded, a proud smile spreading across her face. "I'm doing good. Our department ended up combining with several others a few years ago. I'm actually one of the project leads now."

Logan offered a polite nod. "Good for you. That is a great accomplishment."

Before the conversation could stretch into deeper, more uncomfortable territory, several other Ministry officials called out to Mizah from a nearby aisle.

She looked over her shoulder and turned back to Logan. "I'm so sorry, I have to run. Please come by our booth later. We have an interesting capsule device that we believe has completely revolutionized the virtual world for the galaxy."

She waved politely and jogged away to join her colleagues. Logan just waved back in silence, grabbed the snacks, and turned back toward the RTS sector.

As Mizah rejoined her group of engineers, one of her colleagues looked back at the retreating figure holding the snack boxes. "Who was that?"

"It's my old senior from back before the big department merge happened," Mizah explained casually.

The colleague tilted his head. "Oh. He does not seem to be nearly old enough to have retired already."

Mizah lowered her voice. "It is Senior Kim."

That specific name instantly brought a wave of mild, grim understanding to some of the faces of the other engineers. To anyone working within the deep bureaucracy of the Ministry of Technology at that time, that name was a famous cautionary tale. It belonged to Logan Kim, the infamous research stealer.

…

The main hall of the Stellar Tech Expo typically emptied out as the day progressed. Attendees usually left the auditorium immediately after watching the specific keynotes they were interested in seeing. 

In theory, the crowd size should have dwindled significantly by the final hour. However, the exact opposite was happening.

The empty seats were slowly being reclaimed one by one. The new occupants all shared a distinct fashion statement. They had physical Pokégg devices dangling proudly from their belts, waistbands, and backpacks. 

Ever so slowly, the massive auditorium was being completely overrun by Round Table Studio fans. By the time the final scheduled panel was called, the hall was at ninety percent capacity. In fact, it was practically overflowing, with eager attendees standing shoulder to shoulder in the back aisles because there were absolutely zero seats left.

The final panel belonged exclusively to RTS.

Arthur walked confidently onto the stage, fully maintaining his imposing Zagreus form. He looked out over the massive sea of faces. It seemed the event organizers had intentionally placed a gaming studio at the very end of the schedule as a slight trick to minimize their exposure. That trick completely failed. The crowd was significantly larger than the one that had gathered for the highly anticipated opening keynote that morning.

Arthur grabbed the microphone. "Hello everyone! It is my absolute pleasure to stand here today to announce something that will completely revolutionize the gaming industry."

A ripple of excited murmurs swept through the crowd, quickly escalating into loud, hyped cheers.

Arthur offered a wide, charismatic smile. "Before we get into the heavy technical details, let us have a little bit of fun since we are the final panel of the day. Some of you have definitely played our daily Avalon forum trivia, specifically the 'Who's That Pokemon' tab."

A wave of knowing laughter and instant recognition washed over the auditorium.

"Let us play a live round right now. I will throw in some exclusive plushies and limited merchandise for anyone who guesses correctly."

The crowd cheered even louder, completely energized by the sudden shift in tone.

Arthur snapped his fingers. "Alright, to keep things entirely fair for everyone, we will pull silhouettes from all of the RTS intellectual properties."

The massive screen behind him flickered, displaying the dark outline of a sleek wrist bracer. Dozens of hands shot into the air instantly, accompanied by desperate shouts to get picked. Arthur pointed to a young man in the front row. "You."

The fan correctly guessed the Hidden Blade. A compadre drone immediately flew down and handed him an exclusive Assassin's Creed plushie and a merchandise bag.

Arthur rapidly cycled through more silhouettes. The fans flawlessly identified the Exp Share from Pokemon, the divine bow of Artemis from Hades, the towering Meowscular Chef from Monster Hunter, a standard wooden Barn from Stardew Valley, and a glowing flying Cape from Sky.

Then, the final silhouette appeared on the screen. It was a bulky, highly complex mechanical chair.

A woman in the third row raised her hand. "Is that the Animus 2.0 from the introductory sequence of Assassin's Creed?"

Arthur shook his head with a gentle smile. "That is so close. Let's give her the prize anyway for the great effort."

The drone dropped off another bag of merchandise as the massive screen behind Arthur slowly zoomed in on the mysterious silhouette.

"When we first developed Assassin's Creed, building the concept of a game existing inside another game was the core foundation that expanded the entire narrative," Arthur explained, his voice echoing clearly through the hall. "I took a lot of creative liberty regarding how the Animus actually functioned. However, after we released the game to the public, the core concept of the Animus kept echoing in my mind."

He tapped a command into his wrist console. A master project directory flashed briefly on the giant display. The folder minimized a second later, replaced by a historical timeline of VR hardware.

Arthur slowly paced across the glowing stage. "I kept asking myself a simple question."

The screen behind him shifted, displaying the earliest, clunkiest iterations of VR technology. "What exactly is virtual reality?"

The image shifted to the next generation, showing full-body haptic feedback systems. "I have thoroughly seen the virtual."

The display changed one last time, showcasing modern VR rigs with complex ground setups and heavy suspension harnesses.

Arthur stopped walking and looked directly into the silent, captivated crowd. "Yet, I have not seen the reality."

A collective, rippling breath was drawn across the massive auditorium. It was as if the room itself were holding its breath, waiting to see exactly what was going to happen next.

Arthur smiled, letting the heavy suspense stretch for just a second longer. "Introducing our very own virtual reality device."

A chorus of loud gasps and shocked shouts immediately erupted from the audience.

Arthur raised his voice to cut through the escalating noise. "The Caliburn VR Seat!"

The crowd completely lost their minds, cheering at the top of their lungs. There was a thick air of incredulity filling the hall. A gaming studio stepping into the realm of advanced hardware was entirely unheard of, yet the sheer hype radiating from the fans was highly contagious.

Arthur paced the glowing stage and raised a finger. "Unlike the heavy glasses currently on the market, your neck will never need to be sacrificed to enjoy a long session."

A massive round of cheers followed the statement.

"Unlike those restrictive haptic suits, you don't need to suffer from extreme heat or pay exorbitant custom fees just to find gear that fits your specific race," Arthur continued, his voice booming over the speakers.

Even more cheers joined the growing roar of the auditorium.

"And unlike those massive suspension rigs, there will be zero chance of a mechanical malfunction crushing you while you play."

Somehow, an even louder wave of cheering rattled the entire convention hall.

Despite the overwhelming hype, a quiet, lingering doubt still floated among the more analytical attendees. Just a few hours earlier, one of the prominent departments from the Ministry of Technology had proudly announced their own revolutionary VR capsule. However, that specific device required the user to purchase and maintain a steady supply of specialized neural liquid.

Arthur knew exactly what the competition had presented. He flashed a knowing, victorious smile and prepared to end the keynote. "With the Caliburn, all you need to do is take a seat and get comfortable. The reality of the virtual world will come directly to you with absolute, full immersion. All without a single injection."

Arthur turned and walked off the stage as the fans roared with the deafening intensity of a sold-out rock concert.

Meanwhile, several rooms away, Mizah stood frozen inside the Ministry of Technology booth. All the color had completely drained from her face as she watched the live stream of the RTS panel on her datapad.

Their government-funded capsule had indeed made a lot of progress throughout the last year. However, it still fundamentally required invasive neural injections to function. To make matters worse, it was incredibly hard to convince the general public to willingly inject unknown substances into their nervous systems. 

The biggest secret of all was that their conductive liquid did not even work for all alien biology yet. Her department had actively tried to hide this embarrassing limitation by simply refusing to manufacture the capsules in non-humanoid sizes.

Yet, Round Table Studio had just casually dropped a universal, non-invasive alternative right in front of the entire galaxy.

Mizah slowly lowered her datapad, a deep sense of dread pooling in her stomach. This was incredibly bad.