Introduction
Halliday was never a people person. He lived most of his life trying to be separated from others, the entirety of his last 15 years were spent in total isolation. Though he was the creator of the largest virtual reality video game, The OASIS, he didn’t act the part. Up until the day of his death nobody really had any care for him or what he was up to. However, that all changed in just a few minutes.
On the day of Halliday’s death the entire world seemed to erupt with excitement, like a volcano. Halliday had created a video that was released at the exact moment of his death. This wasn’t just some old goodbye video, no, this was much bigger than that. Halliday had created a challenge within The OASIS, three different challenges to be exact. Whoever completed all of these challenges first would inherit Halliday’s amassed fortune and the sole ownership of The OASIS. This was no easy challenge; we only received one hint in the form of a riddle:
Three simple challenges you must complete
To reach the end you mustn’t cheat
And if you want to win you must compete
For if you don’t you’ll surely be beat.
The riddle was incredibly vague as it didn’t give us any idea of where to look. The riddle and the video in which it was contained became more scrutinized than any other artifact in human history. Even after all the scrutiny and many years of searching there was nothing found, many began to lose hope. There was no stone left unturned… except one. It was found by some kid in the stacks of Oklahoma.
That kid was me, Wade Watts.
In Book Extract
I was in my hideaway when a thunderous explosion erupted in the stacks right next to me, the stacks where I lived. A sense of panic coursed through my body like poison in my veins. Everyone I knew had just been killed.
I sneaked quietly out of my hideaway to a pile of wreckage swarmed by IOI drones searching for my remnants. Luckily, I just happened to be in my hideaway or I'd also be a pile of flesh at the bottom of the wreckage.
I couldn’t leave my hideaway for the next twelve hours, just for precaution. If those IOI drones saw me I’d be turned to pulp before I could count to three.
Reflection
In the introduction section of the extract there is a lack of emotion compared to the first chapter as it is explained more like a video game walk through. The chapter extract and introduction both use various writing conventions throughout to enhance reader engagement, similar to the conventions used in Ready Player One. The chapter extract has a more prevalent first-person narration than the introduction. This is done to enhance the reader’s interpretation of Wade’s emotions and allows them to understand what’s going through his head in more depth. The narration in the chapter extract is heavily contrasted by the lack of first-person narration and emotion in the introduction. This contrast also helps enhance the reader’s understanding of Wade’s emotions. At the end of the introduction Wade says “That kid was me”, the word ‘me’ is the only use of first-person narration in the introduction. The sudden change in narration style at the end of the introduction keeps the reader engaged. A simile is used towards the beginning of the introduction: “On the day of Halliday’s death the entire world seemed to erupt with excitement like a volcano.” It is used to assist the reader in understanding how big of a deal Halliday’s death was, this helps engage them with the story. In the chapter extract another simile is used: “A sense of panic coursed through my body like poison in my veins.” This simile combined with the first-person narration used serves a much different purpose which greatly contrasts the introduction. This simile instead helps the reader engage with Wade’s personal emotions instead of the general storyline.
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