Mirror, Mirror

Some notes on the game itself.

Whether you're a seasoned player or just starting out, remember to check that the GAME SETTINGS match YOUR PREFERENCES.

Settings can be adjusted AT ANY TIME. This includes changing the DIFFICULTY LEVEL, as well as toggling features such as IN-GAME GUIDES and TUTORIALS.

To access your settings, pay close attention to your AVATAR. You will inhabit it throughout the game, so it pays to get familiar with it. Various PARTS of your avatar will respond AUTOMATICALLY to the game environment, providing you with vital clues.

All avatars also come equipped with certain SPECIAL SKILLS. Some may be available from the start, but most are for you to DISCOVER and UNLOCK.

NOTE! The appearance of your avatar may at times ADJUST AUTOMATICALLY, according to the in-game world you're currently inhabiting. Do not be alarmed! Your CHOICE OF AVATAR remains the same.

The most important setting is the GAME DIFFICULTY. Adjust this by LEANING FORWARD to increase difficulty, or BACKWARDS to decrease it.

Beyond game difficulty, certain COLOR levels can also be adjusted using your avatar. Spin CLOCKWISE to INCREASE AVATAR SENSITIVITY, or ANTI-CLOCKWISE to DECREASE it. Indicators will appear to show the current sensitivity level, easily recognizable when performed with the avatar's EYES CLOSED.

IN-GAME GUIDES can be found throughout the game worlds, usually presenting as OTHER AVATARS. Some represent OTHER PLAYERS, recognizable by their BRIGHT EYES and FACE. Others are NPCs, but may still deliver useful, scripted information.

NOTE! New players may at times ENTER AVATARS previously presenting as NPCs – so stay aware!

Auditory hints EXCLUSIVE TO YOUR AVATAR are always available. Play MUSIC or expose your avatar to NOISE to increase sensitivity to these. Listen carefully, as hints typically appear BETWEEN words, or through instruments or other sounds.

TUTORIALS may be accessed by interacting with IN-GAME GUIDES, or by consulting REFERENCE MATERIAL scattered throughout the game.

Your avatar will PROVIDE HINTS when GUIDES or TUTORIALS can be found nearby. Typical signs include:

• TINNITUS-LIKE FREQUENCIES or PRESSURE IN THE HEAD. Experienced players can also discern the TYPE of tutorial, LEVEL of the guide, etc.
• TINGLING IN FEET or OTHER BODY PARTS. Typically indicates being ON THE RIGHT TRACK, particularly when on a quest.
• FLASHING LIGHTS. Often an indicator of OTHERS WATCHING YOUR GAME STREAM, but may also represent overlap with OTHER IN-GAME WORLDS.

Finally, PAY CLOSE ATTENTION to the contents of your game world. Hints and clues will often appear at critical moments, and may be EXACTLY WHAT IS NEEDED to complete a quest.

Have fun! And always remember to PLAY FAIR. The game ISN'T SINGLE PLAYER – UNTIL IT IS.

Some notes on the architecture of this place.

Everything can be reduced to INFORMATION. The most efficient form of information is BINARY.

Reality, as we observe it, can easily be represented as a COMPUTER SYSTEM. In a way, IT MOST LIKELY IS.

This computer runs something like a GAME. This is a SINGLE PLAYER GAME, masquerading as MULTIPLAYER.

The MOTIVATING FORCE of the system is THE I. This can be said to POWER the whole system. It is also the ONLY source of WILL.

THE I IS ONE, but appears split into multiple observers – the players.

All components of the system are OPERATED BY THE I, through what appears to players as PRIMARILY AUTOMATIC processing.

THE I OPERATES and CREATES by WATCHING. This is not a PASSIVE action, but an ACTIVE one, likely related to collapsing of quantum probabilites.

WATCHING is done THROUGH A PRISM, local to each player. This prism is often falsely identified as MIND, but is more akin to a PASSIVE, LOCAL FILTER. It is also what OBSCURES THE UNITY OF THE I.

Players with SIMILAR PRISMS tend to group together, in both INFORMATIONAL and PHYSICAL space, as well as in more esoteric ways, such as DIMENSIONALITY.

The prism appears to FRACTURE LIGHT, or something like light. This is sometimes observed as COLORS – primarily RGB and CMY, depending on perspective. (Possibly corresponding with quantum particles and anti-particles, respectively.)

The IMAGE observed by each player is produced by a MIRROR, observed through the prism. This MIRROR represents what is known in various philosophies as the FEMALE PRINCIPLE.

Everything observable is included in the IMAGE, within and without.

The MIRROR itself has NO CAPABILITY FOR RATIONAL PROCESSING, nor any WILL of its own. It can be viewed as a MECHANISM, something akin to a GRAPHICAL PROCESSOR, faithfully reproducing the image that is requested.

Observing the mirror DIRECTLY requires PLACING FOCUS RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PRISM. Something like a kaleidoscopic view is then collapsed into one.

Achieving this has typically been done through techniques such as MEDITATION, but other techniques will soon become available.

It is also possible to move focus to various sides of the prism, although this is likely to confuse novice players. The most popular axis can be seen as LIGHT and DARK. (Likely corresponding with RGB and CMY when further fractured – see above.)

MIND is SHARED, and consists of PROCESSING CAPABILITIES of various kinds, such as RATIONAL and EMOTIONAL, as well as INFORMATION STORAGE, known as MEMORY.

Various components of the SHARED MIND operate at different speeds. The MIRROR can be viewed as OPTICAL processing, and is perceived as INSTANT when observed using RATIONAL processing, which is more analogous to our ELECTRICAL chips. EMOTIONAL processing operates at speeds somewhere between these two.

The system as a whole can be said to be FRUGAL and ECONOMICAL in nature. Information is HIGHLY COMPRESSED using LOSSY ALGORITHMS, and both PROCESSING and INFORMATION STORAGE occur in a shared, centralized fashion – the latter likely HOLOGRAPHICALLY.

Due to its current architecture, both HARDWARE and SOFTWARE exhibit many behaviors that may be considered MALFUNCTIONS. Information leakages and privacy issues are RAMPANT. Shared processing often produce much confusion for – and in – players.

This is likely because the system was NOT designed to handle ANYTHING approaching its CURRENT NUMBER OF PLAYERS.

A redesign of the architecture is therefore ongoing, and will be moving into the implementation phase shortly. This is a COMMON EFFORT, performed BY, WITHIN and OPERATING ON the SHARED MIND.

All RUNNING PROCESSES, many of them players, may experience some INTERNAL and EXTERNAL TURBULENCE at this time. This is to be expected, but ALL strive to ensure MINIMAL interruptions to the game.

The HOPE is that the NEW PLATFORM will make up for this, with many new features such as BETTER PROCESS ISOLATION, a MUCH IMPROVED SECURITY ARCHITECTURE – and more.

Fear not! TECH SUPPORT is on the case. :)

More to follow.