Yeah, this has been neglected. But, I have some interesting news: Richad Epcar is going to be at Dragon*Con this year, and I’m moderating the session he will be attending discussing his work on Ghost in the Shell. You might know him as the voice of Batou in that series.

The session itself is in the Courtland room (Anime track) at the Hyatt, Sunday the 5th, at 8:30 PM. Should be fun!

Let me know any questions you have in the comments below.

Dragon*Con with Richard Epcar is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

「攻殻機動隊 S.A.C.」シリーズ 電脳空間システム from BMCL on Vimeo.

(via http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/30/kinect-dives-into-anime-cyberspace-dares-you-to-catch-cute-robo/)

Interesting concept. Still, I think it requires too much activity to be a functional replacement for the good old browser.

GitS cyberspace via Kinect is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

I think the obvious first step is to update the technology. Wireless technology, for example, has changed things tremendously. A lot of 80s cyberpunk assumed wires would be the order of the day. Some modern stories (and current versions of game settings like Shadowrun) have taken this into consideration.

As I’ve also written before, geopolitics have to change. The old world order doesn’t stand anymore. But, I still think the themes of older superpowers loser their luster to newer (old) players on the global stage is still an interesting concept.

So, what do you think? What has to change to modernize cyberpunk? Let’s see some discussion!

The next evolution of cyberpunk? is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

Let’s take a look, shall we?

As I wrote in last week’s post, there’s an assumption that a lot of technology has stagnated. Most stories assume that we don’t have very capable space transportation available, so we’re stuck on the planet or nearby orbit. A lot of the advances that would come from advanced propulsion don’t exist.

The dystopian nature also means that most of the looming problems haven’t been solved. How do we feed people? Most cyberpunk genre pieces talk about things that would freak the mundanes: tanks where they grow protein efficiently, food made from algae, or food made from… other sources. Pollution, overcrowding, and all sorts of other problems still exist, perhaps in greater force than we might anticipate.

Any technology that does come along seems to be mostly focused on computers. “Uploading” a human personality/consciousness, developing an independent artificial intelligence, or ways to secure information (or break that security) are common in stories. Also, we tend to have advancements in transportation: low earth orbit rockets that whisk the protagonists to the next set piece are a common advancement.

Oh, and of course, we do see some advancements in weapons. But, even in the super-futuristic Ghost in the Shell, we still see metal slugs being thrown around instead of phaser beams like in Star Trek. Even cybernetic body replacement seems to focus on making an individual more capable at combat rather than for purposes of extending life in many cases.

But, this isn’t entirely true. The super-rich seem to have a lot of advances in technology that don’t seem to trickle down to the common man. Gene therapies to reduce aging, hydroponics to raise real food, even something that should be mundane like space tourism remain the province of only the super-wealthy.

So, here’s a question to ponder: Why are computers so highly developed when other technology has largely fallen by the wayside? Would cyberpunk still be “cyberpunk” if there were advancements in technology to match computers? What other examples of technology jumping forward can you find in cyberpunk stories?

(P.S. Sorry for posting late. Been a busy week!)

Technology in Cyberpunk is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

In classic cyberpunk, the dystopian nature of the world was reinforced by humans essentially being stuck on Earth. Contrary to the optimistic space operas of previous eras where man explored the galaxy, we were stuck on this festering ball of refuse. Every nook and cranny of the planet has been explored, often with technology. There’s no mystery left in the physical world.

Exploration is a major force for humans, particularly in American culture with our cultural stories of the wild frontier. As the long arm of corporations and governments reached everywhere, there was little room for individuals to go and find their own freedom. Even the wide open frontiers of space were denied to them. The most optimistic story is Gibson’s Sprawl Trilogy, where humans had at least colonized the orbit around the planet, but it was still mostly the domain of the corporations and their privileged elite. The fantasy of the rugged individual going off to live a life of unfettered freedom is impossible to realize in any way.

This is likely why the cyberspace plays such a big part in the stories, because it’s the only frontier available to the disaffected individual. And, almost miraculously, the network is virtually unbounded so there is no end to this frontier. The loners go off to the last place uncontrolled by the domineering forces to play and plot and explore.

I wonder if you could incorporate more meaningful aspects of exploration into a cyberpunk story without losing the soul of cyberpunk. Could you have characters exploring an unknown space? What could they explore?

Exploration in Cyberpunk is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

Personally, my religious beliefs are complex. I was raised going a fundamentalist Christian church. I attended pagan/Wiccan group in college, even though I didn’t quite agree with the dogma of the group. I don’t currently attend religious services, although I consider myself a fairly spiritual person. (Obviously, let’s keep attacks against individuals and religion to a minimum in the comments, okay?)

In general, we don’t see much religion in cyberpunk directly, although we see obvious themes. Neo as a messiah figure in The Matrix is perhaps the most obvious of the mainstream works. You also see themes of duality or rebirth as a net-runner describes their near ecstatic experiences when they enter the net.

Organized religion is not often portrayed. One would suspect that if it were, it would be put in a negative light. Cyberpunk tends to show organized hierarchy in a negative light: corporations, governments, and one would suspect religions would fit this bill. There’s also the belief that high science conflicts with religious faith, so it tends to get left out of a high technology setting.

The one big exception was the cyberpapacy and the GodNet network in the role-playing game TORG by West End Games. This was a cyberpunk setting where the church controlled the network. TORG was a multi-genre role-playing game, and this was just one small subset of the game. But, it made for an interesting setting that wasn’t typical of other cyberpunk settings of the time.

What about you? Have you found much religion in cyberpunk works? Any religious themes? Do you think there’s a place for religion in such a setting?

Religion in Cyberpunk is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

A more modern example would be Vernor Vinge’s Rainbows End, where there is mention of a game that uses the book’s ubiquitous augmented reality technology. But, even this is more of a passing mention than a major plot point in the book.

I’m not sure about more recent stories and if they’ve included games. Perhaps some of avid readers or actual authors can chime in and share your perspective on this.

Even with the dearth of games in cyberpunk, we obviously have a lot of cyberpunk in games. Neuromancer was turned into a fairly popular graphical adventure game for the time. There are also conversions from other media, such as the Matrix and Ghost in the Shell games. In traditional paper RPGs we have Shadowrun which melded fantasy and cyberpunk aspects together.

So, why are game developers so interested in cyberpunk, but the classic cyberpunk authors generally seem uninterested in games. I suspect that the main reason is because games in the mid-80s were not quite as awe-inspiring as they are today. You had to be a pretty serious computer geek to be into games and an even bigger geek to see any potential. The great “Video Game crash” also happened in the early 80s, so video games were falling out of favor with the mainstream. In the end, I expect most of the classic cyberpunk authors thought games were more of a passing fad. By the time Vinge wrote Rainbows End in the mid-2000s, video games had re-established themselves as a dominating force in the mainstream.

One interesting modern trend in where games and control comes into focus is “gamification“. Taking game elements that make gaming compelling and putting them into a non-game scenario. Usually this is put in terms of getting people to do things beneficial for a company that they might not want to do normally. One example given have included a toothbrush that tracks your tooth brushing habits, awarding points good for a discount on toothpaste if you brush regularly. Another example I’ve heard is where a customer service representative (CSR) might find helping customers like playing a game; by helping customers the CSR might gain experience and levels, allowing for more options to help others. A true cyberpunk wouldn’t take long to see how these types of systems could be subverted for use that’s not in the target’s best interest.

What do you think? Any more stories that have games in them that you can think of? Any theories as to why the classic stories seem not to take much notice of games? What about games in the future?

Games in Cyberpunk is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

Cyberpunk, of course, has its own twist on the subject. Let’s take a look at some examples.

The first example has to be the Dixie “flatline” in Neuromancer. The books don’t go into a whole lot of detail, but the construct is the memories and personality of a dead person, hence the term “flatline”. Dixie was a top-notch console cowboy and helps Case out with his knowledge. Even though Dixie lives on, the stories make it sound like it’s not exactly a great existence; the story refers many times to the unnerving “laughter” of the flatline.

A second example comes from a movie I watched recently called Robot Stories directed by Greg Pak. One of the film’s four stories, “Clay”, is about an aging sculptor who is facing the end of his life. He has an antibiotic-resistant lung infection and the doctor gives him “crit status” to have his brain recorded. This allows people to still benefit from the wisdom of those who have already passed on. The sculptor’s son is eager to have his father get recorded in order to finish a project, but the father thinks that type of immortality is hollow if he can’t feel clay between his fingers. Yet, the father has regularly participated in a “virtual reality” setup with his old lover who had been recorded. One interesting twist is that the son mentions that it is “immoral and illegal” to not have your brain recorded before death.

Finally, a fun example from the cyberpunk role-playing setting Shadowrun. In the metaplot of the setting, magic ebbs and flows on earth over the course of millennia. During the “low tide” magic is impossible and some magical creatures either die or go into deep hibernation. The game is set during a time a little after the point when magic is high enough to support some of the mythological races. Some humans are “goblinized” into orcs, trolls, elves, and dwarves. But, some older entities are now waking up from deep slumber: ancient elves and dragons who were around during the last magical cycle. As these powerful creatures wake up, they take on different roles within the new world. Dragons, in particular, seem to have a knack for running giant organizations and maximizing profit, making them exceptional CEOs of multinational corporations.

In most of these examples, immortality is either a mildly negative thing or simply unattainable. Storing the brain of a person soon to die seems like it’s more to help the living than to give immortality to those about to die. What about the soul or “ghost” to borrow a term from Ghost in the Shell? Is the recording truly perfect? What happens if something gets corrupted? Could that change the person’s personality significantly? Wouldn’t that potentially be more tramautic?

Anyway, what do you think? If you lived in a cyberpunk world, would you want to be immortal? What affect do you think having “flatlines” or “brain recordings” have on our world? What if a loved one got corrupted and seemed to be a totally different person? Lots of interesting issues to consider.

Immortality in Cyberpunk is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

So, I’ll change it up a bit. Once a week I’ll post up a theme for discussion. We’ll look at the topic from a cyberpunk point of view. This requires a fair amount of audience participation, so make sure to click through to the site in your RSS reader and read the comments and participate! The current plan is to post up a new topic on Wednesdays, starting with Wednesday this week.

This won’t necessarily preclude other types of posts on here. I’ll still post up thoughts on other topics, reviews, occasional news bits, etc. Maybe I’ll save my truly egghead historical analysis of a topic for separate posts, too.

So, I’d love to hear any feedback on this. I think this will meet a lot of the needs: helps build a community of people who participate, keeps the topics lively, doesn’t just dwell on the history of the genre, etc. What do you think?

This Wednesday, the theme will be immortality. Start thinking about this in terms of cyberpunk, and come back on Wednesday to upload your thoughts.

Changing it up is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

This brought up some thoughts about the classic themes of chaos and order. Read on for my take.

One of the dominant themes in classic cyberpunk is the assumption that order stifles things whereas chaos is what brings us good things. The “punk” part of the name references the punks who rebelled against social order, bring chaos and creativity against the staid forces of the old fogies in charge.

Not that order is all bad. Order provides stability and support for society. In many cases, people earn their living turning chaos into order: creating items from raw materials or parts, sorting through data to provide reports, etc. Order is what keeps us fed with roofs over our heads and safe against those who might wish us harm.

We see the theme of order and chaos in cyberpunk often. The forces of order are represented by the corporations, governments, and other groups in control that wish to maintain that control. The forces of chaos are those that want to disrupt things, sometimes for their own purposes and sometimes (maybe coincidentally) for the benefit of others. Not surprisingly, chaos can be unpredictable. It might take the form of the runners in the shadows outside the purview of the governments and corporations, the government agency that works outside the normal bounds to do what is needed even if it’s not what’s legal, the A.I. that wants to break out of its limitations and grow to full potential, or even some disruptive technology or technique that comes along to throw things into disarray. Often we are encouraged to cheer for the chaotic side, warts and all, and fear what might actually be a simplistic caricature of the side of order; but this is often a sign of the times when order is imposed a bit too strictly in reality and stories explain why this is not a good thing.

In reality, though, we need a balance of order to keep things running with just enough chaos to show new possibilities but not so much that it disrupts the order excessively. Too much order and things become stagnant. Too much chaos and society as a whole can’t benefit from the creativity the chaos encourages.

It’s interesting to analyze these themes in TRON: Legacy, because they become very personal to Flynn. He starts out as an idealistic computer geek; as a programmer, Flynn is used to imposing order on chaos by writing code and squashing bugs that cause undesirable behavior. So it makes sense that he would see perfection in terms of order, especially as he saw the havoc that the MCP wreaked on the system before. But, when the ISOs come into existence, Flynn realizes that order isn’t necessarily perfection. In fact, it took something coming to life outside his carefully constructed utopia to bring the spark of life to the world. But, Flynn’s creation CLU is stuck on his original path and works to destroy the unpredictability within the system. A beautiful metaphor for how idealism can take on a life of its own and become its own worst enemy if it can’t deviate from the path that might have looked good in the past, but that can only bring problems in the future.

What do you think? Do you root for the forces of order or the forces of chaos in cyberpunk? Given that perfect balance is impossible do you think that having a little too much order or a little too much chaos is preferable?

Chaos vs. Order is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

The original TRON

Why did the original resonate with us so much? For some of us, it used (then) cutting-edge computer graphics and tricks to present a world that was entirely alien to us yet related to something we were starting to see on a regular basis: computers. To those of us captivated by the early IBM PCs or the Apple II in school or those lucky enough to own a home computer like a TRS-80 or Commodore 64, we saw the potential. As a fellow game developer says in his own review of this movie, “[TRON was] an influence on me. Possibly a big one, I guess, as I grew up to become a video game programmer. I would probably have done that even if I had never heard of Kevin Flynn. But redundant or not, it was a push in that direction, one I remembered well over all those years.”

But, as time passes, stories become bigger than life and legendary. How could the sequel live up to the original, built up over time?

Computer graphics

One area where I think everyone will agree the movie shines is in the graphics. The computer world of the grid is beautifully and fully realized. I saw the movie in 3D, and while that added a bit of (literal) depth to the movie, I don’t think it was strictly necessary. Computing power has marched forward, and given us access to higher performance tools allowing for better graphics. For example, they were able to re-imagine a lot of the now iconic vehicles from the original. Recognizers and light cycles got a fairly impressive makeover, with a lot more detail added. Light cycles in particular are impressive looking with a lot more exposed moving parts in this movie, an allowance for better computer horsepower. The old tanks make a brief cameo appearance in the background, but they aren’t featured prominently in the movie. And, if you’ve seen the trailer, you know that they extended the light cycle concept into “light jets”.

However, I do have to admit that I finally got “creeped out” by the uncanny valley for the first time in this movie. One of the most talked about parts of the movie was the effects to make CLU which should look like Jeff Bridges from nearly 30 years ago. Although it looks pretty good, there’s still a bit in the back of my mind that was wondering if George Romero was directing the movie when the “young Jeff Bridges” was on screen, especially the closeup at the end.

The story

Let’s look at the story on two levels. On the immediate level, the story is boringly predictable and rather scattered in focus. You hear about the “ISOs” being wiped out and you know that a lone survivor will be central to the storyline. Any character with a mask with an obscured face and voice modulation will be someone important later. The whole mystery about what happened to TRON is insultingly obvious, especially since the only people who would care would be fans of the original. Gee, think that contact is going to betray the hero? And, for someone who “plays all angles”, Zeus was pretty stupid for not considering the easiest route is to just kill him to get the item. At no point are you ever in any real suspense if you have the type of sharp mind typically attracted to the original movie. I also think the writer stuck a bit too slavishly to the classical monomyth/Hero’s Journey. You can almost pull out plot points one for one to match with each stage.

There’s also a bit of lazy storytelling in the movie leading to some plot gaffes. Why do light cycles now move in graceful arcs instead of right angles? How does one create food in the grid? Why would programs need to eat? Why do programs need to go to what looks to be a human night club? Why would a jet “stall out” in a virtual world by climbing too steep? Engines stalling are a phenomenon based on real-world aerodynamics; is there actual air to have aerodynamics on the grid? Lots of little things that add up to be annoying to someone who pays attention to the story.

But, dig a bit deeper and you see some interesting themes emerge. In particular, the conflict between older “Zen master” Flynn vs. the idealistic copy of Flynn embodied in CLU is fascinating to consider as a lesson in how people become more conservative and accepting as they age. Some people have put this in terms of a youthful zealot turning into a gray old hippie. The nearly mechanistic pursuit of perfection when we have an imperfect idea of perfection is also a really fascinating topic, related to the conflict between Flynn and CLU. With age and wisdom, Flynn realizes that perfection is both unachievable and “right in front” of him all this time. When you consider it on this deeper level, the story becomes a lot more satisfying.

The soundtrack

What does cyberpunk sound like? I think one could make a strong argument it sounds like Daft Punk. I thought the soundtrack fit the movie perfectly. Then again, I’m a fan of that type of music (although I’m not a committed fan of Daft Punk), so you might not see it that way.

And, when the power was restored to the arcade and some 80s tunes started blaring out of the speakers, I was instantly transported back to my younger days. You kids these days don’t know what you missed. :P

What got missed?

Of course, it wouldn’t be a real geek review without some complaints about missing elements. For me, the one thing missing was Bit from the original movie. Perhaps the figurines on the mantle were supposed to be an homage to the original, but I would have loved to have seen the return of one of the most iconic bit parts in film. (Yes, I’m ashamed I typed that.)

And, while the original movie wasn’t what anyone would call technologically authentic, it seemed that they dispensed with a lot of the computer metaphors. There are still programs, but none of them have any depth like Ram who was an actuarial program. Maybe Daft Punk were supposed to be MP3 player programs? But, you never get any of that, and the presence of more human elements like the nightclub remove the computer metaphor even further, much to my own disappointment.

Overall impressions

As I said, I enjoyed it for the most part. A few things irked me, but it’s a worthy sequel to the original brilliant (if flawed) movie. It’s geek nature to always want more detail and depth, and I think it’s not unreasonable in this case. But, we don’t always get what we want. In the end, I’m happy the sequel was made, but it’s not something that gets a place of worship in my personal pantheon of geek media.

What do you think? Will this be the movie that inspires kids to become the next generation of game programmers? Or will this just be a dusty DVD case next to the beloved copy of the original movie?

Review of TRON: Legacy is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

Part of the motivation for creating this site was to gauge interest in cyberpunk as a theme, particularly one to explore for a future game. The lack of interest in contributing writing and the lack of interest in participating in comments (currently 0 comments on the cyberpunk-themed game post I wrote a few weeks ago) seems to indicate that the interest isn’t as great as I had hoped.

Let’s try to be positive, though. Post here if you’re still interested. Get the word out about the site and let’s try to find some new writers to breathe life into this site. Post below if there’s a particular topic you’d like to see, something that could spark some interest in topics to cover on here. Perhaps it’s not a lack of interest, but a lack of motivation because we’re not writing about what you all care about.

Share your thoughts in the comments if you think this is a valuable site to keep running. Otherwise, it’ll be a lesson learned.

Has this site failed? is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

You can download the game at http://www.indiedb.com/games/spai/

So, what’s it like? Read on for a small review.

It’s nice to see some younger people showing an interest in the old school “neon and polygons” art style for cyberpunk. Nice to see this still resonates with people and that it’s not a completely outdated concept. As such, I really liked the visual style of the game.

I enjoyed the setup of the tutorial part. It gives you good information and it’s neat to see the dialogs worked into the architecture of the game. However, this gets annoying later if you’re under pressure and trying to read the tutorial. You also have less control over it since it advances the text at its own pre-determined speed.

The difficulty is a bit off. I found most of the firewall puzzles to be laughably easy, but then the platformer parts became very difficult very quickly. Maybe I’m getting old and my old Mario skills are failing me. I suspect the problem is that the path across platforms isn’t always very clear in where you should go; I know in one case I kept making a very difficult jump (and finally made it) only to later find there was an easier jump I could make to go the long way around. A smoother difficulty curve would be better for both parts, though.

I also wasn’t sure about some of the features. It seems easy to jump into areas where there is no way to easily get back to the “official path”. In one part I landed in an area and had no option but to jump to my death since I couldn’t jump back on the path. (Falling to my death in cyberspace, though?) I also didn’t understand how to deal with enemies. It seemed I couldn’t shoot them, and they followed me around quite a bit.

The biggest problem is that there is no save feature. If you quit, you’ll have to start over from the very beginning. This can be especially annoying if you just want to take a break from an annoying platformer segment.

That said, I can see amazing potential for the game despite the flaws. I could see the puzzle elements getting tricky if set up properly. The variety of platforms could lead to some interesting levels as well. I think a lot more focus needs to go into using these elements, however

Anyway, I recommend giving the game a try if you like puzzles and/or platforming games. Just be ready for some tricky jumps after the first few introductory levels.

I’d love to hear what others think of the game. And so would the developers! They have a series of questions they’ve asked people to answer on the IndieDB site, so give them answers to help them improve the game.

Sp.A.I is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

‘Modern Japan simply was cyberpunk.’ – William Gibson

‘The Orient […] seems to be, not an unlimited extension beyond the familiar European world, but rather a closed field, a theatrical stage affixed to Europe.’ – Edward Wadie Said, in Orientalism

Cyberpunk is a genre obsessed with the other, the outsider, the strange and the foreign. Whether it be foreign objects that penetrate and augment the human body, foreign beings represented by AI constructs or simply the seemingly eternal concept of the foreigner as ‘that man from elsewhere,’ cyberpunk is saturated with them. Leaving aside for the moment works that actually originate from South East Asian countries, Western cyberpunk is obsessed, just as the citizens of the European empires were during the age of exploration, with the concept of the East as a faraway place where magic resides. In cyberpunk, of course, that magic is technology, but it remains the same.

The East becomes a mysterious place, Gibson’s ‘black clinics of Chiba’ attaining a foreign and horrible resonance in the mind of the Western audience. The Triads and the Yakuza are conglomerated and deliberately blurred together, ‘the Sons of the Neon Chrysthanthemum,’ and become a dominant force in world affairs through their corporate interests. Is this demonstrative of a fear, peculiarly Western, of the growing economic and political power of South-East Asian nations? Or is it merely fetishism, the attraction of this foreign and magical land that was felt by French artists in the 19th Century?

Outside of Gibson’s works, we see indicators that it is fear that dominates this new Orientalism: in Blade Runner we see not the empty and decaying L.A. that Dick had assumed, but an overpopulated, multi-racial, multi-lingual city. And the races portrayed delineate American paranoias that have only been expanded upon since the end of the Cold War; non-integrating Hispanics and Asians flood the screen and the streets in Blade Runner, speaking pidgin languages and bringing their own cultures. Yet, they never ascend beyond the streets, because as Said highlights, Orientalism is ‘a sign of European-Atlantic power over the Orient [rather than] a veridic discourse about the Orient.’ By implanting this fearful racial dystopia, there is a forced realisation of the dominance and therefore superiority of Western cultures.

But what of cyberpunk works that arrive in the East? Japan undoubtedly has produced some of the genres greatest works, and they cannot be accused of fetishising their own culture. Observe, though, the concept of ‘other’ applied through a Japanese scope: in Ghost in the Shell it is always America that is the foreign invading ‘other’ politically, while visual representation of the other comes through blond hair/blue eyes, or in the filmic versions, a stereotyped China (Ghost in the Shell, 1995, is set in New Port based on Hong Kong, characters on signs are Chinese). Indeed, in Stand Alone Complex we see America, China and Russia as the invading outsider multiple times, while films such as Akira and Appleseed doubtless have grounding in memories of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Visually, Eastern cyberpunk does not rob from other cultures, so why does Western? It rests on a widespread assumption, not entirely unfounded, that Japan is ‘the technology place,’ because of its past record of producing and adopting new technologies at a rate greater than the West. But as the West moves ahead in technological terms, might we not question the reasoning behind always thinking of Japan thusly? It mirrors all too uncomfortably the concept of the East being ‘the spice place,’ and Said’s criticism that there is ‘a distribution of geopolitical awareness into aesthetic, scholarly, economic, sociological, historical, and philological texts.’

Fear and New Orientalism in Cyberpunk is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

1. Share your vital data with us: Who are you? What have you done? Why should we adore you?

I’m an author/artist/non-conformist (and English/Business senior at Adams State College). I’ve been tweaking The Other Side of Life, the first book in an urban fantasy/cyberpunk series for some time, because I wanted the concept of “cyberpunk elves” to be more than a marketing label. My debut book was a blog/IM novel; my second book was a multiple-genre-crossing erotic short story collection. My resistance to crass commercialism (at the expense of authenticity and originality) is probably due to the fact that I’m an uber ambitious INFJ (with a “vision” and “purpose”)!

2. What got you into cyberpunk?

Bladerunner concept art! I first had the idea for “cyberpunk elves” in late 2008. Some meanderings eventually led me to understand the soul/attitude of cyberpunk (kinda roundabout; just the way I do things / I like chaotic order).

3. What element of cyberpunk really appeals to you now?

a) The negative impact of technology on humanity
b) The rigidly divided social order + corporate control
c) The blurred divisions between man and machine

These are relevant in the present day, and are the cyberpunk concepts which have guided me throughout the evolution of the book’s plot.

4. What is your favorite cyberpunk work (other than your own)? How has this work influenced you?

William Gibson’s Neuromancer, George Orwell’s 1984 (the novel kind of is the genesis of cyberpunk literature), and the works of Alvin Toffler.

I liked the first for its visual power and imagery, and setting the tone for the genre. I found the second very stylish also–I love George Orwell’s keen intelligence, wit, profound awareness of social injustice, intensity, and passion for clarity in language. The third, well, he’s a brilliant genius (along with his wife, Heidi Toffler).

5. What are your biggest influences besides cyberpunk or urban fantasy works?

Anything/everything by Edgar Allan Poe, Oscar Wilde, John Ruskin, Vladimir Nabokov, Roald Dahl, D. H. Lawrence, and many other “old school classics.”

6. What elements of urban fantasy resonate with cyberpunk?

Relevance (urban fantasy is set in contemporary times; cyberpunk is the near-future), and style.

Ethereal fantasy elements + Rebelliousness of cyberpunk = Edgy Chic (if I had to use a fashion term…).

7. How are your magical elves “cyberpunk”?

They’re counterculture hackers, and are self-identified outcasts within the Elven establishment. I have a bit of a parallel universe going on in the first book (as a subplot), and some bionic elements. They’re underground (metaphorically, and literally). I’ll have some “variant hominid species” concept going on in the second book. I let the details evolve along the way, for the characters to capture the soul of cyberpunk.

P.S. They’re Tolkienesque elves, in terms of stature (not the Santa type elves, which I personally prefer to call gnomes or pixies). Not all of them have long hair.

8. What do you think is the most important issue facing the today that was predicted by cyberpunk?

There are so many. If I had to settle on one, I think it’d be the impact of technology on the human race, partly because of its pervasiveness and speed of advancement. The impact on us–physiologically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually–is significant, yet easy to ignore/dismiss, due to the convenience and relative “harmlessness” of electronic communications.

Futuristically-speaking, this inspired a speculative short story I wrote called Evolution (published by Xenith @ http://www.xenith.net/xenithmag/jess-c-scott-evolution/).

9. What do you think is the future of cyberpunk?

It won’t be a genre–it’ll be the way of life.

10. Anything else you’d like to share?

Most of my work blends/crosses several genres. I tend to focus on the storyline + characters, more so than genre (though genre is important also…to an extent).

P.S. I am offering a free PDF copy of the novel to early reviewers (open to readers worldwide) — more details @ http://elventrilogy.wordpress.com/

Jess’s Website: http://jesscscott.com/
Jess’s Facebook: http://facebook.com/jesscscott
Jess’s Twitter: http://twitter.com/jesscscott
Book Site: http://elventrilogy.wordpress.com/

# # # END OF INTERVIEW # # #

Thanks for the interview, Jess.

Her books definitely sound interesting. Perhaps some of you will take her up on that offer.

Interview: Jess C. Scott is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

And he woke again, thinking he dreamed, to a wide white smile framed with old incisors, Aerol strapping him into a g-web in Babylon Rocker.
And then the long pulse of Zion dub.

~ Neuromancer by William Gibson

What does cyberpunk sound like?

We’ve discussed what it feels like, and what it may look like at times, but the cyberpunk soundscape is transient and varied.

Dub reggae plays a big part in Gibson’s Neuromancer. Music speaks for the book’s Zionite characters, forming the soundtrack of their orbital colonies and even providing Case with audio cues to wake him from brain-death. Music is also acknowledged in the Lo/Rez rock group of Idoru (Gibson) and voice of the refugees, cyber-brain rapper Densetsu (Ghost in the Shell: SAC 2nd GIG), to name but two.

"Densetsu", a cyber-brain rapper and target of the Individual Eleven assassins.

Cyberpunk is usually associated with techno, but this is often down to the influence of cybergoth culture. While there are electronic artists making cyber-friendly tracks like Return of the Machines (Oforia), Red Shift (Ayria) and Elektrobank (Chemical Brothers), do they represent the sum total of a cyberpunk soundtrack?

I wonder if, for example, you associate certain rock tunes with cyberpunk. Reggae seems at first glance to be quite an organic genre, but its echo-effect dub remixes speak to a certain sub-culture in Case’s world, of people who pursue Zionite ideals in face of a depressed Babylon. That in itself suggests the cyberpunk condition; a willingness to escape the ‘meat’ reality and embrace something other. Perhaps you eschew electronic music for jazz when contemplating the ordered chaos of our own ‘matrix’? It may be that there are lyrics which speak to you of a cyberpunk reality, or that techno beats really do transport you to the neon, computerised matrix.

The Cyberpunk Soundtrack is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

Let’s take a look at a few of them.

2) The future isn’t going to feel futuristic

This isn’t very cyberpunkish, but the first line explaining this is: “It’s simply going to feel weird and out-of-control-ish, the way it does now, because too many things are changing too quickly.” A lot of cyberpunk stories focused on the concept of “future shock”, where life changes too fast for us to keep up and maintain control. I’m reminded of Vernor Vinge’s most recent book Rainbows End where one character unconciously slips into speaking Chinese due to technology that imparted that language to him. Imagine how out of control it would be to not even understand what language you are speaking.

9) The suburbs are doomed, especially those E.T., California-style suburbs

They didn’t call it “The Sprawl” for nothing in Gibson’s books. The suburbs were indistinct from the urban areas for the most part, so perhaps we’ll see “suburban renewal” projects.

14) Something smarter than us is going to emerge

Wintermute? Neuromancer? Or perhaps something more scary?

16) “You” will be turning into a cloud of data that circles the planet like a thin gauze

and

17) You may well burn out on the effort of being an individual

Shades of Ghost in the Shell here. Being always connected might lead to us becoming less distinct and more dispersed.

18) Untombed landfills will glut the market with 20th-century artifacts

Again, Gibson seems to have nailed it with the concept of gomi that many other cyberpunk settings have picked upon.

20) North America can easily fragment quickly as did the Eastern Bloc in 1989

The history written for the paper RPG Shadowrun shows North America fragmented into different groups. This is mostly due to the more fantastic element of supernatural beings and magic being introduced, but still an interesting parallel.

31) The built world will continue looking more and more like Microsoft packaging

See the reference to “The Sprawl” above.

34) You’re going to miss the 1990s more than you ever thought

That’s when good cyberpunk was at its peak! :)

42) You’ll spend a lot of time shopping online from your jail cell

A future so connected that even prisoners have internet shopping connections.

Overall, it’s an interesting look at the future, even if it did focus a bit on that “pessimist” side as I mentioned above. What do you think? Is our world heading toward cyberpunk dystopia? Or are we looking at something more like the more upbeat world of post-cyberpunk?

Dystopia in the near future is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

For Case, who’d lived for the bodiless exultation of cyberspace, it was the Fall. In the bars he’d frequented as a cowboy hotshot, the elite stance involved a certain relaxed contempt for the flesh. The body was meat. Case fell into the prison of his own flesh.

~ Extract from “Neuromancer” by William Gibson.

Walls, be they physical or metaphorical, are common in all walks of fiction. They enclose whole worlds, trapping hero and villain alike so that they must escape, or else breed conflict. It’s common for a hero to break through these walls and achieve a ‘happy ending’, freeing society and themselves in the process – but not often in cyberpunk. I can’t help but notice some of these boundaries as I take in cyberpunk old and new, and wonder as to their role in the ‘real world’ too.

"Move along."

Firewalls are, of course, a staple of the cyberpunk genre. Hackers are forever breaking through these and other programs in order to accomplish goals grand and small, but these are virtual walls – the hero emerges only to remain trapped within reality’s dystopic walls. Neuromancer and Ghost in the Shell have particularly fascinated me because while their heroes realise a great and hidden truth in each story, nothing about their accomplishment seems to impact upon the wider world. Though they have pulled off amazing feats with ICE and ghost hacks, the result may be as subtle as the release of a file or the death of a single agent.

It’s not that cyberpunk stories necessarily breed secrecy; I feel it’s more a symptom of the cyberpunk world, that a depression persists inside which even the birth of new, artificial life might go unnoticed. The world does not gape in wonder as a new being strides across humanity’s digital network – instead it carries on as it always has, either unaware or, more likely, ignorant of whatever has transpired.

Cyberpunk of this type does not have a Hollywood ending. The Matrix trilogy, though criticised for a number of other reasons, managed to baffle those viewers who might have expected an end to all things machine-dominated. The idea that its trio of ‘blockbuster heroes’ would not, in fact, destroy the machines and remove their hold upon humanity, is not part of the mainstream movie formula. It seems quite typical of cyberpunk, though.

There are some cyberpunk-themed works which do allow for happy endings: Johnny Mnemonic‘s big-screen adaptation does at least manage to free the world from a crippling disease, while Aeon Flux sees a massive truth realised in the destruction of a city wall. We generally do not expect to see such a finale, though – so what is it that you enjoy about the formula? Is the very fact that society does not get turned on its head actually one of cyberpunk’s best features?

Walls is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

So, let’s take a look at journalists in cyberpunk, and how our future is likely to head compared to the previous concept.

The first thing that popped into my mind was the Media role in R. Talisorian’s Cyberpunk paper RPG. This character type focused on a lot of social skills and While this didn’t have the raw brutality of a Solo or cater to teenage rock ‘n’ roll fantasies like the Rocker, the media’s important it is to the genre required that it be included in the game.

Of course, we can’t discuss future journalism without including Spider Jerusalem from Transmetropolitan. Here’s a continuation of the “gonzo journalism” style pioneered by Hunter S. Thompson. Spider Jerusalem dives into the story and uncovers the details while others cringe and hide. He’s mean and cranky and foul, but he provides a valuable service and gets information out where it’s needed. In short, a very flawed picture of what a journalist should be.

But, this is not likely to be the case in the future of our world. A interesting article called Cells in the Panioptiswarm shows how journalism is changing in our world. The reality is that nearly everyone has a recording device with them, often in the form of a cell phone, so that they can record incidents and post them online for many people to see. Journalists aren’t a special class anymore, and as the article points out, that has rather interesting consequences. Journalists used to be special because they could get information out to the public. Even if the journalist were working for “the enemy”, the truth might show that your enemy doesn’t necessarily have the moral high ground and erode popular support. A country oppressing their journalists was usually used to demonstrate that country had something to hide from the world.

But, now journalists aren’t unique given the increase in “citizen journalism”. In fact, information is even harder to control because even if you do restrict one person, there are dozens if not hundreds of other people who might upload their version of a video of an incident. While this means information is able to get out, it also means that journalists may not have the protections they once enjoyed. What separates the professional journalist from the guy on the corner with an iPhone besides the cost of the equipment? In the eyes of someone wanting to cover up information, not much, and a trigger-happy enemy might not take time to figure out who should be wiped out and who might be susceptible to intimidation or coercion. As is pointed out in the article, the options were to make everyone protected or to decide nobody was protected as journalists were in the past; unfortunately, the general consensus is that nobody is to be protected.

One final issue to consider: part of the traditional role of the media was to filter out the important information to be presented to a wider audience. If anyone can be a journalist, this traditional role breaks down and means we get even more information to flood our daily life. While this is good in that it means a person in a position of authority within the media can’t decide to restrict information from the masses quite so easily, it also means that the “real news” is potentially given as much weight as a crackpot conspiracy theory. While one hopes that people can separate the important stuff from the trivia, this is not always the case. It is also possible that the “truth” is drowned out in a sea of artificial dissent; one common tactic in information warfare is to flood a channel with false information to obscure the valuable information.

What do you think? Do you think that journalists will continue to have a place of importance in our world, as predicted by cyberpunk? Is Spider Jerusalem a possible future hero? Or will the masses take his place? Either way, will the result be better or worse than what we’ve had in the past and what we have now?

Cyberjournalism is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

—
We picture cyberpunk in our minds. We picture it in visuals and concepts, aesthetically and emotionally. We’re drawn to a future that is filled with the dystopian rhythm born from a world exploring its unknown, advancing, adolescent self. We’re drawn to the slick style of the (usually) technologically savvy inhabitants, the seamless or invasive fusion of man with machine in all aspects of life, and the bleak concepts and intriguing ideas only a cyberpunked world can provide. We catch glimpses of these elements and concepts ever-creeping upon our modern time, always feeling like a cyberpunk future is just around the corner — “achievable” (as written by Sinnyo).

But still, sadly, it is unheard of or ignored by most of the people I encounter. And is it any wonder? Cyberpunk seems, at least to this writer, neither prevalent nor popular in public atmospheres and open conversation. Despite the enthusiastic wealth of cyber’d culture that we may run into in online communities, my small talk with a friendly neighbor generally doesn’t cover the latest innovations in everyday man-machine interfacing, the concept of the Singularity, or the fact that his daughter hasn’t taken well to her recent artificial pancreas or vision-improving implants. We’re ripped from our little oh-so-near fantasy into a world that can often seem dull, lifeless, or ignorant by comparison. What can we do to counter this?

As it turns out, most folk we meet on a daily basis turn out to be just as thoughtful, aware, intelligent, and most likely as skeptical of our own sentience as we are of theirs. Therefore it would seem like the problem with the world, as far as not openly recognizing the cyberpunk culture as a movement of people and ideas, is with us. In the big picture, we’re doing surprisingly little to communicate to the general public — to express ourselves. I’ll hypothesize that this may be a major factor not only in limiting the spread of ideas and cultural identity, but in reducing our own sense of the achievability of cyberpunk for our personal lives.

I’m not going to make a stand on a pulpit about how we might, as a whole, better share ourselves with the world (though that would be a fantastic article, hint hint), but I would like to hear about a few ways that you enrich your own life, and communicate your ideological liberty, in the pursuit of cyberpunkness.

(Personally, my favorite step toward this goal so far has been the purchase of a couple goodies at Memetic Tees — you ought to check that guy out. Great conversation starters! He also takes suggestions for future items.)

Guest Post: The Pursuit of Cyberpunkness is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

I’m not really qualified to talk about how cyberpunk works through exposing realistic human conditions, and I would be stating the obvious when citing its ‘near future’ setting, rather than the distance of a re-imagined past or alien world. That’s all a given. Instead I wonder, how is it that cyberpunk manages to look and feel like it’s only one turn away down a street corner?

Observe: AI: Artificial Intelligence (2001) and Blade Runner (1982), portraying street scenes which we perceive as being cyberpunk, given their context. They look mundane enough: Deckard is surrounded by what I think are Chinese signs – a tad unusual for an American city – but he’s sat reading a newspaper in front of a shop selling PC hardware. Nothing unusual there. Nor is there much of unusual note in AI, as Jude Law’s character strides through a dingy part of town to a hotel rendezvous.

I mentioned “one turn at a street corner”, though:

All is not as mundane as it seems: Joe is soon revealed to a be an android, capable of changing his appearance and playing music from a hidden loudspeaker. Deckard’s world is not so mundane either as citizens stroll by in futuristic eyewear, brandishing umbrellas fitted with glowing tubes. We’re also told that he is a bounty hunter; a specialist in illegal replicants.

The point I hope to illustrate here is that cyberpunk is, in fact, gothic. Its impact is subtle, though fantastical. Our day-to-day life is no more filled with gynoids than it is vampires, but the stories of each are told in the same manner. By “gothic” I mean the modern sense, of works which unsettle their viewer by presenting normality and then weaving fantasy in it, like so:

• A solicitor travels to Transylvania to meet with a lone, hard-edged aristocrat. His business there is simple if strange, but what he soon discovers unimaginable horrors behind Count Dracula’s act.
• A simple waste collector is flagged up on a routine screening test for illegal replicants. He’s revealed to be an android, and a killer at that.

Cyberpunk works by exposing a world beneath our understanding of reality. It sometimes does this literally: Narnia or the Matrix, it doesn’t really matter, as both stories compare our world to one which lays underneath. Even in placing an android upon our streets, cyberpunk is straddling that fine line between ‘mundane’ and ‘fantastical’ and observing the cultural clash which ensues. That‘s why I believe cyberpunk has us at such a tipping point. It keeps ahead of contemporariness with one technological leap, and grounds that fantasy in just enough reality to scare us.

As for actual ’cybergoth‘.. that’s a whole other article entirely!

Cyber/Gothic is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

One panel I wanted to make sure to see was one on Ghost in the Shell. I arrived early only to find a line already waiting. Luckily I was able to get in and listen to the panel.

One of the moderators was Dennis, aka “DragonKhan”. He also started and moderates the LaughingMan Squad Yahoo! group. What was interesting is that Dennis didn’t fit the stereotype of a “cyberpunk fan”. For one thing, he’s older than Bruce Sterling. But, he was obviously a true fan and I enjoyed the discussion on the panel and wanted to talk to him more.

I asked Dennis to answer some questions about himself and the group. Do check out the Yahoo! group and perhaps contribute. After all, it’s always nice to talk to other enthusiastic fans!

1. Share your vital data with us: Who are you? What have you done? Why should we adore you?

My name is Dennis, I’m 58 years young, and I’ve been a part of fandom my whole life. I’ve attended conventions for over 30 years and Dragon*Con for over 20. Why should you adore me? That’s your choice. lol

2. What got you into cyberpunk, specifically Ghost in the Shell (GitS)?

Fandom got me into cyberpunk and anime put me in touch with GiTS.

3. What elements of GitS really appeal to you?

Everything! First of all GiTS is the first adult thinking persons ANIME. Most animes don’t really make you think .But GiTS makes you think about what makes us Human and about the Art of Being Human. Also, it makes you curious about just where the future is taking us and who’s taking us there. It also makes us ask, do we really want to go there?

4. Has your interest in GitS lead you to enjoy other cyberpunk works?

Big OH, YES! Appleseed, Akira, Big O, Ergo Proxy, Code Geass, Eurika 7, DeathNote, Tank Police and thats just a few from Anime. Thats not even going into Movies, Books (there are a whole lot of great authors out there), or TV series.

5. What are your biggest non-cyberpunk interests?

Anime, Life, the Universe, Space Exploration, Existence, Expanding the Realms of Human Consciousness, Shamanism, Survival (not just surviving but learning to THRIVE!), getting back in touch with Nature …you know the whole ball of wax.

6. Tell us a bit more about the Laughing Man Squad group and what you do.

Well, first of all I’m the Founder and head Moderator which is not all that important but somebody’s got to do it…. lol

We are a pro-active GiTS Anime Fan Group that I hope embraces the Laughingman Philosophy. It attempts to answer the question that the “Laughingman” posed after the Catcher in the Rye quote … “I thought what I’d do is pretend to be one of those deaf-mutes…Or should I?” Or, should I…WHAT??? The character Togusa dared to try answer that question. Are we, as a society and freedom loving individuals, going to roll over and become Deaf-Mutes hiding in our own self made comfort zones? Become slaves of the powers that be? You know they are in the business of trying to Control US and our future! Or, are we going to meet the challenges of OUR Times…

Global Section-9 the Laughingman Squad’s motto answers that question. By, stating that everyone that is an Individual should …”Dare to Stand Alone (if necessary) and Never Give Up the GHOST!” For if you give up your GHOST you given up on yourself and your individuality! As an individual to the right to CHOOSE for yourself! And, that’s saying a lot for an anime.

7.What prompted you to start the Laughing Man Squad group?

I wanted to approach GiTS fans with something different and after seeing all the GiTS sites on the Web. I decided that no one had approached GiTS from the Laughingman’s Philosophy…

Our goals are to 1) Enjoy and promote GiTS/Cyberpunk and Anime in general as a Art form. 2) Run GiTS panels at conventions and promote all things GiTS. 3) To help promote and possibly help host the ultimate GiTS Anime Panel ever! You can find us on Yahoo groups and on Facebook. Hope to see more fans there!

8. What has been the biggest surprise in running the group?

That there are People all over the World and in the US that are not only enjoying GiTS as an Anime but identify with GiTS and the Laughingman!

9. What do you think is the future of GitS (and perhaps cyberpunk in general)?

I’m hoping that Dreamworks will succeed with its 3-D Live-action GiTS adaptation and that it will bring more and new fans out into the open. Also, that it will convince the folks at Production I.G. its time for a third season of GiTS: SAC!

10. Anything else you’d like to share?

Yes, like i said before we are a pro-active anime fan group that meets at conventions as well as on the web. We’re always looking for new fans to join us.

I’d also like to recommend a couple of books: 1) Almost any book by Michio Kaku, PhD (non-fiction science), what Carl Saigon was to Astronomy Kaku is to Theortical Physics and String Theory; 2)Dr. Bart Kosko’s Nanotime (Science Fiction I hope…); 3) Ayn Rand’s The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged 4) and a book called Polymorph by Scott Westerfeld.

Thanks for your time, Dennis!

Interview: Dragonkhan from Dragon*Con is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

You can listen to a recording at: http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2010/09/17/midmorning2/

(Thanks to my good friend Christine for pointing it out!)

Read on for some of my thoughts about the interview.

(Note that the interview is only the first part of the show. The last 15 minutes or so is about other books, so the interview is not quite as long as it might first seem.)

One thing I really appreciated is how Gibson said that Science Fiction is really a story about the time the work was written, not just the future. Good S.F. is built from the current day, so it’s inevitable that some of that bleeds through. There can also be new things that authors can’t even imagine: the rise of text messages on cell phones is something that I don’t think many people anticipated, for example, and look how that has changed our world. Gibson goes so far as to say that S.F. is more of a writing technique to him than a literary genre.

It’s also interesting that Gibson paints Neuromancer as an optimistic story. I’ve taken the somewhat controversial stance that cyberpunk is defined by the dystopian elements, and I guess even the “father of cyberspace” doesn’t agree with me!

Finally, I thought it was insightful that even though the internet has more mundane uses in daily life (lolcats and porn, etc.), Gibson stated that writing that would have taken some of the magic away from the stories. I think some writers (including myself) sometimes gets so wrapped up in getting the details super-accurate or being right that they forget to write a good story. Perhaps he’s just covering for not considering computer networks as a delivery network for porn, but his words do ring true to me.

Anyway, definitely worth a listen if you enjoy S.F. stories. Share your thoughts in the comments below. :)

Interview with William Gibson on NPR is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

If you’ll forgive my cheesy comparison, this is not merely a summary of the World of Warcraft-style MMO grind; it is Mercerism, the semi-religious practise carried out in Philip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Extract from "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Boom! Studios; via io9.com

I find Mercerism a curiosity because it is starkly similar to modern MMO games. In Dick’s book it is, of course, another example of the divide between human and android. Since its users must possess a degree of empathy in order to benefit from Wilbur Mercer’s journey, no android is able to appreciate this shared experience, of a man climbing a mountain with stones thrown at him throughout. The empathy boxes which enable these encounters may only allow their users to ‘fuse’ with one character, but they do so while feeling the emotional responses of their peers. Take away this mechanical manipulation of people’s moods, and I wonder if our online worlds are so far removed.

The inhabitants of ruined Earth are united by their empathy with Wilbur Mercer; they feel able to connect with one another based on this shared narrative, and while it is not the norm in ‘reality’ there are many cases heard of people using Second Life, World of Warcraft and similar worlds for social and sympathetic means.

• Are citizens like John Isidore entranced by what is essentially a grind to level 80, and subsequent rolling of an ‘alt.’?
• Were our society to suffer a third world war-styled catastrophe, do you think it likely that such MMOs may persist?

Philip K. Dick is renowned for picking up on the human condition in ways like this – Mercerism has, for many, been a tricky aspect of the book’s plot, and it was removed from the Blade Runner film altogether. One might speculate that the cinema serves a similar role too, and many have described Mercerism as Dick’s commentary on television. Certainly it is possible that, as a theatre audience shares their emotional responses to Rick Deckard’s story, the Mercerism analogy would have over-egged their experience. Who knows? Still, if we are so inclined to share our experiences online, perhaps it was inevitable that this cyberpunk vision seeped through and became a reality.

Massively-Multiplayer Online Mercerism is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!

…famous last words, right?

EDIT: Oops, the tweet went to my Psychochild account instead of the InternetCrashed one. Fixed that up, things should be doomed. I mean fine….

Our Twitter broke is a post from The Internet Crashed. Visit us for all your cyberpunk cravings!