12th design: Ready Design One


As short foreword and review to the book Ready Player One, I can say that it is one of the most entertaining books I have ever read in my entire life. It grips you from the start with clear objectives and a (somewhat) relatable character trying to make sense and be victorious in the world the only way he knows how.  It offers every paragraph to computer and videogame enthusiasts, while also showing the essence of what it means to be a geek: a person that is passionate about something and just won’t shut up about it. In general, one of my top 5 books ever.

It proposes an interesting view on dystopias, by making everyone just forget that they are bringing the world farther and farther into decadence by pure negligence and lack of hope. Pretty much all of the characters know the world is in a very bad state and it is not going to get better any time soon and yet they prefer to get the egg and gain control of the OASIS. It is implied that Wade and his friends will use the money for a good cause and feed a lot of people, but I don’t feel the author really expands upon that idea. 

There are several good and cool things about the giant simulation. Such things are the accessibility for children all around the world to experience education in a way never seen before and all the tools provided to the players for creating and recreating buildings and worlds. Other aspects are similar to the things we get now through the internet, such as meeting and connecting with people throughout the world, but in a much more interactive way. The similarities are there if one looks for them, For example, the personal channel that everyone gets halfway through the book is similar to the Twitch gaming platform and Youtube, where anyone can stream almost anything for his or her viewers. There is also the use of the players’ HUD serving as a web browser, smartphone and even game consoles with simple motions. 

Just as the technology today affects our views of the world and our beliefs, a real life OASIS would certainly take it to an extreme. There are already people who spend most of their free time in front of a computer (I know I do). It’s easy to see that happening a lot more frequently if we were given the tools to basically rewrite our whole lives and have any kind of experience we want regardless of socioeconomic status, just like Wade Watts. 

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