RE:WRITE

1.0 Zero_Chapter 1: Cracks on the ceiling

I stared at the cracks running across the ceiling. They spread out from the corner of the ceiling directly above the bed where I lay, making it easy to follow them as they snaked across patches of crumbling gray paint and plaster.

I raised my hand towards the ceiling and watched my fingers curl into a fist right below the center of the cracks. My vision blurred as the images of the fist and the cracks superimposed for a brief moment.

What if...?

And then I slammed my fist back onto the bed.

Fuck! Stop dreaming! You're pathetic, pitiful and powerless. You couldn't stop them from taking away your life's work and ruining everything!

I sighed and let my gaze fall from the ceiling onto the only thing in the room that was almost as useless as me - my old PC.

It was an ancient machine that wasn't even worth the effort of scrapping and the only reason I hadn't thrown it away was because it was my very first PC.

It was also the PC I used to make my very first Role Playing Game or 'RPG'.

Heh, I thought I'd come a long way since then but I guess I haven't huh?

I closed my eyes and allowed myself to drift back in time...

Kos Kara, Escalon, Wyvern's Quest, The Last Fantasy ... all of my masterpieces. My childhood dreams turned into reality. And yet, I couldn't save them. I couldn't stop them from fucking them up!

-

I walked through the heavy wooden doors.

"You called for me Mr.Smith?" I said

"Kai! Welcome, welcome. So good to see you. How've you been? Living it up in the new mansion I'm sure?" said Mr.Smith, flashing me a quick smile. The small wooden plaque on his desk identified him as the CEO of Palcrox, the largest video game company in the world.

"Hehe, course I am! Had to celebrate our new deal right?" I said, smiling back at him.

"Of course, of course. In fact, that's exactly what I wanted to talk to you about today" he said, while leaning forward on his chair and putting on his 'business' face. "You see, we've consulted with some of our top analysts and editors and they've proposed a few edits that I'd like you to go over. Nothing too serious, but I would really appreciate your input on this. It is, after all, your game."

"Right." I said, wiping the smile off my face and settling down on the seat across Mr.Smith. I grabbed the file he passed me and began looking through it's contents.

"Add repetitive motions to increase hours of game-play...need catchier soundtrack...tone down story...plot too thick...focus on action..." I murmured, going over some of the recommendations the experts and analysts had so graciously given to me.

"Uh, Mr.Smith-"

"Hold on for a second- Yes?" he said, picking up the phone that had started to buzz with an annoying jingle. "Yes, yes. The fifteenth sequel is in the works. We'll release it on time and fix up all the bugs in the first ten patches or so. We already have people working on the patches so rest assured. Bye. "

"Right, sorry about that Kai, you were saying?" he apologized as he put down his phone.

"Mr.Smith, I'm sure you realize that Kos Kara is a fantasy RPG. The story is meant to be thick and immersive and nobody likes endless hours of grinding, even if it does increase the hours of gameplay." I said

"Well Kai, our experts believe that modern audiences don't care about stuff like that anymore. I understand that you're one of the few game developers out there who still sticks to the old formula, and that's worked for you so far. But you'll fall behind your rivals if you don't change with the times. Adapt to your audience. You understand right? Besides, we aren't asking for big changes, just a few tweaks here and there. They're all there in the file so just keep reading." he said, in a measured, professional voice.