Chapter 2: Chapter 2 – Mini Worlds Gaming Console (2)


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Dragon Boat Trantion <i></i><strong>Editor: </strong>Dragon Boat Trantion


    Sliding his fingers across the piece of art that was the Hell4PRO gaming console, Ren Suo put it before his eyes together with that unknown circr gaming system, his eyes darting back and forth between them incessantly.


    The Hell4PRO console was square in shape, with the logo of Hell Co. embossed on its top. It looked like fouryers of square boxes stacked together with a slight incline.


    The Hell4 console looked like a threeyered box while the Hell4PRO console looked like a fouryered box. That was why this generation of console earned the nickname ‘real gaming console from hell’ online – a metaphor for the third and fourth levels of hell. Someone with too much time on his hands even made an image of Hell18 console on Photoshop. That’s right – it was eighteenyers stacked together.


    The Hell4PRO console came with aplete set of equipment – HDMI cable, original power cable, original USB cable, a Hell Co. exclusive wireless Bluetooth controller, originalbat headphones and an official manual.


    Now that was the gaming console set that Ren Suo was familiar with.


    But the circr gaming console – or perhaps it could be described as a ck circr object –pletely eluded Ren Suo’s imagination.


    He had not the faintest idea how this thing worked and what it did.


    If Hell4PRO was four boxes stacked together, then the circr gaming console was at least made of more than a hundred discs stacked together.


    There was no logo, no cables, no controller. Nothing.


    Compared with the Hell4PRO, the circr gaming console was as understated as a super millionaire who loved to eat at the roadside grill stand. Even with his boyish sense of aesthetics, Ren Suo thought that the circr gaming console looked way cooler than the Hell4PRO.


    Its glossy ck exterior, like a shell of crystal, attracted his eyes. Even if Ren Suo decided that this thing was useless, he would put it at home as a disy piece. At least it looked cool.


    He fussed over it for a few minutes, but still did not find the start button on the circr gaming console. Disappointed, he put it aside and turned his attention to the Hell4PRO.


    When Ren Suo took the controller out of the box, he saw the blue light on the wireless Bluetooth controller light up.


    At the same time, a blue glow emitted from the core of that circr gaming console. The machine started humming faintly. Just then, the wall-mounted TV in the living room turned on by itself.


    Ren Suo stared dumbfounded at the myriad of colours exploding from the TV, which finally merged into a blue sphere. A crisp and chirpy voice eximed,


    “Mini worlds of endless fun!”


    Ren Suo looked down at the Hell Co. controller on his hands, then at the cable-less circr gamign console, then back at the DaMi LED TV which had turned on by itself.


    “Who can tell me how this Hell Co. controller connected itself to this gaming console, and how this console connected itself to the TV?”


    Just then, the screen turned ck and new information appeared on it:


    [Wireless Bluetooth ‘Hell4PRO Game Controller’ detected. Automatic connectionpleted.]


    [4K disy equipment ‘DaMi L55M5-AB’ detected. Automatic connectionpleted.]


    [Dear gamer, wee to the Mini Worlds Gaming Console. Mini worlds of endless fun await.]


    [First-time user detected. Please register a World ount.]


    Then a rectangr box appeared. Ren Suo’s interest was piqued. This Mini World Gaming Console was pretty impressive – it could connect itself to Hell Co.’s controller and the DaMi TV wirelessly. It looked like future tech. But how could a hardcore gamer like himself not have heard of this gaming console before?


    This name. It sounded like it was developed by a local gaming manufacturer. But most of the consoles produced domestically were junk…


    Could this be a sampler for a new model? Why would it be delivered here then?


    Ren Suo examined the delivery box of the Mini Worlds Gaming Console. The recipient was him, Ren Suo, indeed; even the address was perfectly correct. The only anomaly was that the name of the sender was one that he had never before seen – Neisser Co.


    Ren Suo searched it up online, only to find that no information on thispany existed. But he wasn’t hung up on this. He turned around to look at the TV again. The screen was still showing the prompt for him to register a World ount.


    “Name? Hmm? Can I use Xuanese pinyin?” Ren Suo was rather surprised. He recalled that only English could be used for personal ounts on the Hell4PRO. Now it seemed that this gaming console was most likely domestically-produced. It used Xuanesepletely – an advantage for those Xuan Nation yers tortured by English and Japanese.


    Picking a name was easy for Ren Suo.


    He was quite skilled at creating a name. In order to identify how his information was leaked from his junk messages and junk mail, he would always choose to use the name of thepany directly as his own name.


    For example, when creating an ount for Penguin Telmunications, his ount was Penguin_Ren. His gaming ount for Nine Cities Games was Nine Cities_Ren. Simple and vulgar.


    He had in fact decided on the name Hell-Ren for his gaming ount. If he couldn’t use Xuanese, he would use English.


    But now this gaming console was not from Hell Co.. It was called ‘Mini Worlds Gaming Console’.


    He couldn’t call himself World_Ren, could he?


    Ren Suo thought of the sender of the gaming console – Naisser Co. That Naisser Co. must have at least been the distributor of this gamign console, right? Should be right to look for them?


    Hence, Ren Suo picked the name “Naisser_Ren”.


    A red glow suddenly burst out from the Mini Worlds Gaming Console and scanned Ren Suo from head to toe, frightening him. The screen read:


    [Soul and physical data recorded. Apart from Naisser_Ren, no other information-bearing entity may use this product.]


    [Naisser_Ren, Level 1 gamer. Wee to Mini Worlds. Mini worlds of endless fun await!]


    Immediately, the main menu appeared. Ren Suo did not see a single game on the screen. The background was Earth, nestled among a patch of stars. He could even tell all the stars apart in the Sr System depicted in the background. A leisurely music yed in the background and Ren Suo soon rxed himself.


    “Nice screen, eh? But what games are there? Where can I top-up credit to buy games?”


    Tworge square options appeared on the screen: [World Store] [What should you best do now?]


    Ren Suo picked [What should you best do now?], and a hint popped out:


    [Your best option now is to ess the free game of the week in the World Store.]


    “Oh, there’s even a free game?” Ren Suo was surpised. He recalled that all Hell Games members enjoyed a free game each month as well. But he had to purchase membership.


    As for this Mini Worlds Gaming Console, all he had done was to register an ount. He had not topped up any credit. Was there a free game already?


    “Maybe it’s just an ordinary mini-game. Like those arcade games…”


    Ren Suo entered the World Store only to find it empty. There were only two options: [Free Game of the Month] and [Search]. When he clicked on [Search], a message popped out:


    [Each search costs 10 merit points. You can’t afford it, pauper.]


    Ren Suo stared dumbly at the screen. Only then did he notice his merit points on the top right corner of the screen: 0.”The currency on this console is merit points? But you’ve got to tell me where I can top up credit! And this message is way too colloquial, isnt’ it?” Ren Suoined.


    Then, he picked [Free Game of the Month]. After three seconds of loading, an insanely cool game appeared on the screen –


    “Hitman”.