AN: This may be edited heavily as I add detail a/o rewrite ideas. l, or I may just add "The World PT. 2" chapters, I'm not sure yet.
-Time: Near Future, where VR has expanded to FIVR capsules and one game is exceedingly popular.
-Mood. Downcast; people kill in real life for the game, and some vice versa.
-Life/Death: The Game* is life, and is the source of income to everybody, people hold the game in a near holistic regard, outliers are regarded as nearly demonic. Death in game is not death IRL. Rather, players incur tax on game earnings.
-Goal Of Populace: Money for nutrient fluids to continue to play in the game longer, and for game furtherment, along with a select amount of people wanting IRL amenities. Similar to real life, people want money for better life, security, and fulfillment. They view the game as a way out of an insecure future or at least view it as a better prospect.
-Overlords: The World Government. The storyline goes that a corporation came out with the FIVR capsules, and the government eventually realized their potential. Wars were fought in the capsules, entire lives lived. Now the world lives under two cooperating entities with equal yet different powers.
-The Corporation: The company that made VitaNova, and the FIVR capsules. They want money and security in the strability of the market.
-The World Government: Under the constant struggle between continues about the capsules and how they affect everyday life, and against the slow creep of the capsules taking over everyday life, the government's allied against the Corp while keeping separate on internal affairs and decided to preemptively control the path and made a program of VitaNova currency being transferable to real world money. The government's made programs and gave many people a way out, all under their control
-Overlord's Conflict: The Corporation wishes to be an entity without influence from the governments, and to be a power with global influence, which they are, but they want superiority in order to protect it's stability and security. The Government wants to control and regulate the FIVR, as they feel the system is too much for any one entity, seeing as how The Government views itself as being an alliance. They both vie for control over the populace for their own somewhat reasonable goals.
-Population's View Of Overlords: Depends on character and position in society. Most lower class people view the Corp as a savior for allowing them a way to make money, whereas they resent the Gov for it's taxes. They can't afford good gear or weapons, so they die a lot, making the tax max out in most cases. The middle class views both as being equally oppressive and beneficial, based on the circumstance, e.g. they dislike taxes (who doesn't), but appreciate their Gov's Benefits that it gives them, whereas they dislike the Corp's omnipresence, yet realize they are the reason for the FIVR capsules. The upper class is heavily involved in the government and therefore dislikes the Corp as they limit their influence, and they feel the Corp should leave the FIVR capsules control to a regulated system, as opposed to the Corp, which behaves as well, a Corp.
-The Game (VitaNova): Is a Fantasy-esque game that doesn't have classes, but rather skills from well, skillful actions. There magic, but it's a unique system that will be covered later. There is a level and character point system, but it is based on another unique system. There is one starting race, human, with other races opening up with quests and such. Players are divided by country and need documentation similar to passports or visas to cross countries in game.
Racism: In game racism towards elves and dwarves and such is only from lower class being jealous and resentful of more successful people, as race changes are a definite status symbol. And it occurs in race changed players (hypocritically) looking down on humans. [Disclaimer: I do not condone any racism, but I feel that it is wrong to ignore it as a fact of life, and seeing as how this is supposed to be somewhat realistic, I am including it.]
-MC:
•Background: Parents were middle tier leaders of a group that evolved from Amish, that strongly opposed FIVR. The main leadership secretly conceded to the Corp and sabotaged the group slowly if the members didn't join them. The MC's parents were told by leadership (betrayal unknown) that their newborn son could be sheltered, so that if a raid happened, he wouldn't be captured or killed by what they view as demonic. They agreed, yet were obviously betrayed. The leadership that betrayed them was then killed Dark Knight Rises Joker style.* During their killing the head of the group escapes with the child, he knows he can't survive and he feels somewhat guilty about this orphan so he places him in a broken capsule, thinking it will hide him. Yet, it still is somewhat functioning and transports him into the world.
*1 The Game: Otherwise referred to as VitaNova, which is Latin for New Life.