Batdad's Book Club:Level One of Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Ready Player One: Level One 

Two weeks ago I laid out the first assignment for Batdad's Book Club. I decided to read Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. It is a Sci_Fi novel set in both a dystopian future and a virtual utopia. The book follows Wade Watts as he hunts for the ultimate video game Easter Egg.

Our Story So Far

The first Assignment was to read Level One (chapters 0000-0016). After reading the Chapters I noticed a natural story break at the end of chapter 0008. So I will separate this section into two parts (Level 1-1 and Level 1-2. I tried to stay light on spoilers. So, hopefully you read the book.

Prologue Level 1-0 (0000)

In the prologue the narrator recaps the entirety of the will of James Halliday, the inventor of the OASIS and avid 80's pop culture enthusiast. He tells everyone he has hidden an easter egg inside the OASIS. and that the winner of the hunt will receive his fortune and his company.There is a brief history of the hunt's immediate popularity and the waning popularity over 5 years until only a dedicated group of Egg Hunters (Gunters) remain. The last thing we find out is that the narrator found the first gate and this is his story.

Level 1-1 (0001-0008)

In this part of the story there is a ton of world/character building. The first chapter introduces us to a world where trailer homes are stacked in makeshift high rises and the world is very bleak. We also learn a little bit about the history of Wade Watts in this less than hospitable world. 

The second chapter introduces us to Parzival, Wade's avatar, and the world of the OASIS. We learn about the sinister IOI Sixers (see what I did there?),corporate sponsored gunters looking to gain the prize for their employers. Wade also mentions a blogger he reads religiously and seems to have developed a crush on named Art3mis.

Chapter 0003 takes us to The Basement, a chat room created by Parzival's only friend, Aech. There is an awesome interaction between the two of them that made me think of all the nerduments I have gotten in with friends in the past.

In Chapter 0004 we learn about the parameters and scope of the OASIS. It is shaped like a Rubik's cube with 27 sectors each containing hundreds of planets. Each sector cube is exactly 10 light hours across so teleportation is the best means of travel available, but also costly.

Chapter 0005 provides us with a history of the creation of the OASIS including a little background on James Halliday. It explains the rise of the virtual world to the point where most of the human race now spent all their free time inside.

Chapter 0006 sees Wade giving us a run down of Annorak's Almanac. The references in this small chapter are staggering. It is basically a list of everything James Halliday likes that Wade has watched, studied, listened to,played, etc... to prepare him for any contingency in the Hunt.. The riddle from the will is also repeated in the almanac. Wade also found a limerick hidden in the text with notched letters. It spoke of finding a copper key in a tomb filled with horrors and taking a place among the high scorers.

Chapter 0007 has us in Wades Latin class and a translation of discere sets the wheels in motion for Wade to discover the first gate in the hunt. He finds a picture perfect recreation of the Tomb of Horrors D&D module on the planet where he goes to school. He gets a pass to attend a sporting event the school is participating in near the entrance and gets a voucher to teleport there. He straps his shield on and enters the Tomb.

Chapter 0008 reads like a guy running through a module he already has read. Wade sidesteps traps and collects gear. But, his worry is facing the Lich at the end of the adventure. His avatar is only 3rd level. It turns out not to be the case. He defeats the lich in a very different challenge and obtains the copper key and the next riddle. As he is running to the door footsteps approach.

Level 1-2 (0009-0016)

The other avatar is that of Art3mis. Wade recognizes her right away.There is some banter and discussion about the hunt. The two exchange info while Parzival tries to keep the secret of defeating the lich. As he is about to leave she yells at him and he checks the high score board, and there his name sits atop it. Art3mis casts a barrier spell so he cant leave and the two of them talk about what this means. Parzival gives her a tip for the challenge and he watches until the barrier dissipates and runs out the door.

Next the hunt takes us to one of the hometowns Halliday created in the OASIS. 1 of 256 copies of it to be exact. He finds Halliday's child hood home.  When he gets there Art3mis' name pops up on the high score list with 1000 less points than him. He plays a video game on James Halliday's old TRS-80 computer to reveal the first gate.

Parzival completes the challenge waiting for him inside the gate and a new riddle appears.By this time Wade realizes he has been awake for hours. He logs off and falls asleep in his hideout. He dreams of people charging toward him and tearing him to shreds to get to the egg. A bit of foreshadowing maybe.

Wade wakes up and logs back in and watches an interview with Ogden Morrow, the co creator of the OASIS, and Halliday's oldest friend. There is a brief history of his place in the world and how he had a falling out with Halliday. Aech calls Wade and informs him he figured out where the first key is. Wade wishes him luck and then reads an email from Artemis who had also finished the first gate while Wade slept. He responds and then begins studying the second riddle. But, his mind drifts back to Art3mis.

Aech made it through the first gate now. Soon after  another gunter tried to blackmail wade and Aech. He let the cat out of the bag on where they both went to school and shortly after the names Daito and Shoto appeared on the scoreboard. Endorsement offers come rolling in for Wade's avatar offering payment in OASIS credits.IOI also contacted him every minute since his name went up on the board. We are given a brief introduction to Nolan Sorrento, Head of Operations at IOI. They are trying to recruit Parzival. He agrees to the interview so he can tell them where to stick it.

Parzival arrives at the virtual offices of IOI and is immediately met by Sorrento. He gives him a sales pitch about joining IOI. Parzival denies 3 separate offers and then Sorrento drops a bombshell on him literally and figuratively. His home is destroyed. An explosion collapses his stack. Wade logs back in to warn Aech.

When he gets a hold of Aech, the Sixers are swarming Ludus, Parzival's school planet ,looking for the 1st key.They decide it is a goods idea to get Art3mis, Shoto and Daito together to warn them. We also find out that people are calling them the High Five. They watch as the sixers set up camp around the first keys tomb and discuss the threat on all their lives and decide to part ways with mutual respect but not working together.

The scoreboard began to fill up with Sixer ID  numbers. The gunter clans begin to assault the sixer encampment.Wade sets out on the road. He gets a bus ticket and creates a new identity.When he arrives in Columbus, headquarters of GSS, the company that runs the OASIS, and also real life HQ for IOI, he catches a cab to his new apartment. He makes a vow to not go outside until he finds the egg.

Discussion Questions

• sixers have experts that they can swap out for different challenges allowing them to farm copies of the key and pass through the gates with ease. What makes wade so special that he did it on his own?
• Daito mentions that any one of them ( High Five) could be a sixer spy....any guesses if that is true or who it is?
• Did Wade make the right decision in calling Sorrento's "bluff"?
•  Wade says he designed his avatar’s face and body to look more or less like his own. Then he lists a string of things that are different.  Has the OASIS warped his self perception?
• Anonymity is a big part of the OASIS.Now the internet seems to be a place where we flaunt our true identities. It wasn’t always that way. Do you think we’ll revert to more anonymity one day?
• The world setting is very bleak outside of the OASIS. Is this a future you see happening? If so will it happen by 2044?
• The OASIS becomes a part of daily life for users around the globe. What virtual realms (Google,Facebook, flickr) do you depend on? Is it dangerous to mix profit and dependence on technology?
• How does public school in the OASIS compare to your experience in school? Has author Ernest Cline created a solution to classroom overcrowding, student apathy, and school violence?

and 3 questions that will be asked throughout the book club...

• Is Wade a strong main character? Did you like him? Find him believable? Interesting?
• Were there any passages or scenes that you remember well or particularly liked? Were you surprised?
   
• Do you Have any Questions?

 

Bonus Level

The film rights were purchased by Warner Bros. the same day Cline finalized his publishing deal with Random House, one year prior to the novel's publication. Steven Spielberg signed on to direct in March 2015.

Hope to see everyone again in 2 weeks for the end of level two.

Batdad's Book Club:Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

So a few weeks ago I posted my Loot crate unboxing. One of the things I got was a book titled Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I mentioned that I intended on reading it and then discussing it in my blog. I do, and I will. But, I wanna try something. In celebration of having 150 people follow me on Facebook I am going to start a book club.

The First Rule of Book Club

Everyone should talk about Book Club. I have one comment among my 16 blog posts.  That sucks. I want to interact with all of you. Even if you don't read the book and want to read the blog articles for synopsis. Then weigh in on the subject matter. I am totally cool with that. Discussion will improve all of us. That is the main point of my blog after all.

If you do read the book tell me what you think. No spoilers though until the appropriate time. The book is split into 3 parts. So, I will do a 3 part blog on it. If you finish the book in one night don't tell me or anyone else what happens.

Choosing Books to Read

This particular book was something I mentioned reading and that is why I chose it for our first book club book. But, going along with the feedback from my reader friends from rule number one, I would love some input on this. I am unsure how to put polls in here. I might have to put one on my facebook page or something. But, if you have any suggestions for future books you would like to read and maybe others would like to read, please tell me in comments or on my Facebook page or somewhere.

I will accept suggestions from any genre. I love to read. Sci fi, fantasy, thrillers, fiction, non-fiction, gaming supplements, short stories, graphic novels, mystery, self help, whatever.put it in the comments here. I will figure out a way to have a poll in place.Then we will decide as a group what to read.

How do I plan on meeting up with all of you for  a book club?

When I started this blog I didn't exactly make an editing calendar or anything. So, this will be my first regular piece (hopefully). Tuesday seems like a perfect day for book club. Every 2 weeks to finish a third of a book seems like enough time. So, I will be back in 2 weeks with my review of Part One of Ready Player One. Hopefully I will have some blog viewers ready to discuss the book with me.

365 daysof Gaming Part 1

 The History

 On my Facebook page I shared a news video which I can't seem to embed here. So follow the link if ya wanna watch it. But, it basically tells a small story of the board game renaissance that is taking place. 

Board games are a great way to unplug from our technology soaked lives. They are a great way to socialize and connect with one another. They can be used as learning tools for children and adults. Besides, they are fun.

As I go through my history I will list some games I enjoyed and provide Wikipedia links where I can.

I have been an avid Gamer since I was a child. My uncle taught my brother and I Monopoly, which despite being a kind of deterrent to some people is still one of my favorite games. Nostalgia, and all that. I played Scattergories, Scrabble, Chess, Yahtzee, Life, Operation, Guess Who, Battleship and many other favorites. 

Then I started playing more obscure games that we found at garage sales like Stop Thief! and Payday. 

When I was a teenager, I would go to a local game store after school with my friends.We played some role-playing games ( Vampire: the Masquerade, Werewolf: the Apocalypse, and Legend of the Five Rings to name a few). We also leaned about Live Action Role Playing through some of the same games with live action rules. 

We also learned some new board games from Europe ( Euro Games) like Settlers of Catan and Formula De. 

I also played my first Collectible Card Games around this time. My biggest collection was Legend of the Five Rings (yep, same setting as the RPG). but, I dabbled in Pokemon, Rage, Doomtown, Magi Nation, Illuminati, Vampire: the eternal struggle, 7th Sea, Legend of the Burning Sands and MLB Showdown. 

I didn't really play much Magic:the Gathering. But, it deserves mention as it was the game that started them all. As you can see if you read the articles many of these games were byproducts of RPG settings.

As I got older and I had other responsibilities I didn't play as many games as I liked. I did attend some Live Action Roleplaying games because they were free to go to and I had the books and wanted to socialize. Over the next few years I did that mainly. But, as I got older other people stopped going and I didnt recognize anyone.  Larping turned into more of a chore than a fun time with friends. So I quit going all the time and I lost interest.

For a brief period I played Warhammer 40K. But, this was an expensive hobby I couldn't afford to keep myself in.

After this period I didnt do much board gaming. I played Video Games. The RPG's were my favorite. But, I also enjoyed Madden,and some first person type games. This wasn't nearly as satisfying to me.  Maybe it is because I never really got into the headset talking  back and forth gaming. I even did some MMORPG's for a while. Every single time I lost interest when I had to start milling XP. I am a social gamer and this wasn't cutting it.

About 3-4 years ago my brother and I bought a new style of card game called an LCG or Living Card Game. This appealed to me for multiple reasons. I liked the card games I played when I was younger. I however did not like spending tons of money to find the cards I needed in a treasure hunt. So, the idea of having every card in the set and still being able to customize decks intrigued me. 

My first investment was the Game of Thrones LCG. It was a significant amount of money to get started here. But, it was worth every penny. There was a league at my local gaming store. So my brother and I joined. My brother gave it up soon after. But, I met the most amazing group of people. We met for game nights outside of the league, where I learned a ton of new board games.(Bohnanza, King of Tokyo, Escape from Atlantis, Love Letter, Blood Bowl: Team Manager, Avalon, and Cash & Guns to name a few).

I became good friends with the main core group of people.We explored other LCG's together as they came out ( Star Wars, Netrunner, and now Warhammer : Conquest) always returning to Thrones. We attended Gaming conventions together. We have had gaming birthdays together.   We play racquetball together. But, at our core we play games and that is what binds us.We have played a new Star Wars RPG and I have a group playing RISK:Legacy. I have a lot of good things happening in my life right now. But, I am very thankful for the people I have met while playing games.

The Challenge

 
Originally this was a New Year's Resolution. Now it is a challenge. I challenged myself to play at least one game a day for the year. 365 days of gaming. We are halfway through march and I haven't missed a day yet. I have had some close calls and a slight rule change I will discuss later. I wanted to spend more time socializing with people and this is my favorite way to do that. That is the main reason for the challenge. 

The Rules

• No Video Games. More precisely Video games don't count. They taren't that social...even with a headset.
• No solitary games. Be social.
• The game has to start before midnight....but doesn't have to finish before midnight.(No, that doesn't count as 2 days of games.)
• racquetball and other small team/1on1 games count because there is talking and socializing involved. ( this was a change I made after a racquetball session with my friends where we were too tired to play a traditional board game)

Progress

We are halfway through March and I haven't missed a day. Wonder Wife has been a superstar as has my friend Golden State Lantern. They have both played late night games with me to keep the streak alive. 

I am keeping a spreadsheet with a journal and people I have played against/with. So far I have played 129 games over roughly 95 hours. 

This has provided me with extra time with my family I wouldn't normally have.

 If I haven't gotten a game in before I get home from work at night , I wake my wife up and we play a short 5-10 minute game. Usually ( Nuts, Fluxx, or Love Letters). Then, we get a chance to talk about the day before bed. Without this gaming challenge we probably would be doing this through texts as we remembered things that happened.

On weekends when my oldest son, Nightwing is with us we try to play at least one game of Pathfinder Adventure Card Game. When Wonder Wife works Saturdays, Nightwing and I try to get a game in while Robin naps.

This has also produced some impromptu games. When I went to the Stadium Series NHL game in San Jose we played a couple games of Fluxx at the transit center on a bus bench while waiting for other people to arrive. I also [played Guillotine in the break room at work on my lunch break with a coworker who I had never played games with.

So, if you see me around and we both have some time on our hands let's sit down and socialize over a board game.I am usually carrying or have easy access to a game for the purpose of this challenge. I haven't played Go Fish or War yet if anyone wants to challenge me.

I Challenge You

 I would like to propose a challenge to anyone reading this. You don't have to be as extreme as I was/am. But, I challenge you to play games on a regular basis. Set your challenge for once a week. Or if you already play games once a week challenge yourself to go every day for 3 weeks.Basically step a little outside of your normal game playing habits. Socialize with family and friends. Hell, If ya want, play a game with me, for those of you in Southern California. (unless you want to pay for air fare, food, and other travel expenses) Let me know how ya do in the comments.