Season One: The Beginning of Unity
This is an experience I just can't forget.
From the man who lives 20 years from now.
I'm Benoit Valmonte, a 17-year-old aspiring to become an independent game developer.
No surprises there. I'm a true-blue native of Seattle, considered by many to be the best American city for gamers.
Both huge established game companies and independent game studios are headquartered here, and there's a thriving culture centered around gaming itself – whether it's the abundance of game shops, excellent broadband connections, or lots of career opportunities.
There is also a history behind this prestige – a major aircraft company was creating interactive simulations, and a well-known video game character was named after the real estate developer who lent his piece of land to a Japanese game company aiming to play big in America.
Needless to say, I'm one of many Seattleites who are inspired by gaming itself and are aiming to give back to this multibillion-dollar industry.
November 24, 2022.
I'm paying a monthly visit to one of my favorite video game shops in the city – The Aesthetic Artist Games Shop.
This shop, which specializes in retro gaming (but also stocks newer games as well), is just a fifteen-minute walk away from the condominium unit I currently live in, somewhere in Downtown Seattle.
I live by myself, as my parents are divorced, and I turn to creative writing as my means of earning money for college, in the hopes of making it in the industry as a narrative designer.
Once I enter the shop's hallowed halls, I'm greeted by the shop's owner and proprietor, Theodore Benigno.
"G'day."
"Good day to you, too."
"We have tons of new games in stock! Take a look!"
"Wow. Where'd they come from?"
"Mostly imported from Japan, but there's also a heaping of stuff coming from local trade-ins."
"Cool! I'll go check them out."
"Help yourself, lad."
He points me towards the "new arrivals" section, where I can see a variety of not just games, but also comics, action figures, and art books.
Amidst the sea of cartridges and jewel cases, I can see the metaphorical diamond in the rough.
"Hmm... The Legend of Daig'digaia? Never seen or heard of this before."
The cover is colorful, with lavish anime-styled art everywhere.
And I, an RPG enthusiast who's more on the traditional side of things, am stoked by what this has to offer.
"Classic Turn-based Battles!"
"Awesome Character Designs, Lush Pixel Graphics, and Detailed 2D Backgrounds!"
"Immersive Orchestral Music!"
"Oscar-Worthy Voice Acting!"
And the biggest feature of them all...
"Over 100 Hours of Pure Exploration and Combat, Guaranteed!"
This game, which comes in a Blu-ray disc and is for the DreamStation 4S1, is definitely one of the games I'll get for this month!
After getting all the other stuff I want, I swoop into the counter.
"Alright, I'll be getting these. And... can you please tell me about this game?"
"Oh, The Legend of Daig'digaia? I've never even heard of that before. But I recall stumbling upon it in a stash of unsold games that were just lying around in the dumpster. I personally don't know why those big-box stores have to chuck unsold and unopened items into the trash. It's bad for the environment... and bad for aspiring game collectors, too."
"Yeah, you got a point."
"Well, anyway, based on what I've read on social media as well as online forums frequented by hardcore RPG gamers... this one's a so-called 'hidden gem'. Basically, it's fun to play, but it's overlooked. You know that YouTuber who recommends games in a rocking way, right?"
"Yup! I'm a long-time subscriber of his channel!"
"Good call!"
As he scans the price tags of each item I'll be buying...
I think I'm in for something out-of-this-world.
Not in the literal sense, of course.
"That'll be $191."
I hand him two crisp $100 bills, and he hands me $9 in return.
"Enjoy your games, lad! Come again!"
"I certainly will! Bye!"
Alright. Now to head back to my condo unit.
This month's scores, besides The Legend of Daig'digaia for the DreamStation 4S1, are Skypaths: The Legacy of Eleftheria for the DreamStation 4S1, Successors of Doom for the original DreamStation, Slashing Spife for the Gear Boy Dual, Softwar for the PC, Good Knight for the PC, and a figure of Laika Santiaguel, one of two heroines from the visual novel Purely-Kissed Sabers: The Adventurous Vagrant Gaiden for the PC.
These two PC games, while they are relatively new, come in boxes that are reminiscent of those PC game boxes that were prevalent in the nineties.
A great boon for game collectors like me.
OK, I'll organize my current game collection a bit to accommodate my acquisitions...
...and then play The Legend of Daig'digaia on this idyllic afternoon.
And before one asks, I always take care of my backlogs before I start a brand-new game.
As much as possible, I want to avoid the video game equivalent of tsundoku, or buying books and then letting them pile up without reading them.
I ready my DreamStation 4S1 and my 4K TV.
I place the game disc onto the game console, turn the power on...
...and in seconds, the soothing splash and opening screens are shown.
I select "New Game", and the screen fades to black.
Then something out-of-this-world happens.
I'm being sucked into the high-definition TV screen, never to be seen by anyone.
That circumstance alone makes me concerned about several things.
What will others think of my abrupt disappearance, leaving my TV and console still turned on?
Why is there no arm emerging from the TV that is grabbing me?
What if... I'm being sent to another world, like in those self-same stories?
Roughly a minute later...
I open my eyes...
...and find myself in a vast grassy field, with clear skies displaying their uplifting resplendence.
In my immediate field of view, I can see a forest and a cluster of modern-looking buildings to the right, and a mountain ridge containing a cavern to the left.
From what I can perceive of this strange place – or this strange world – it's realistic-looking.
A far cry from the old-school pixelated look the game purportedly portrays.
But it doesn't matter.
I immediately get up, and I sense myself being a complete and decent-looking human being.
I feel nothing weird with my senses, or anything inside my body.
But what is weird...
...is my outfit.
A red vest, a white shirt, short leather pants, and footwear that look like sneakers but are actually not.
Out of this world in terms of fashion trends on Earth, but seemingly normal in this fantasy world.
And as for the only things I have right now... I have my arnis sticks, which have their sheaths worn on my back, directly over my vest.
Arnis is the quintessential Filipino martial art; and as a Filipino-American, it's mandatory for me to discover some of my cultural roots.
So it's not strange for me if ever my combat proficiency carries over into this world.
"Hello!!! Someone? Anyone? Where are you? Can you hear me?"
I shout on top of my lungs, but all I can hear is the echo of my voice that dissolves in the floating wind.
"Am... I... alone?!"
I would have let out a big "NO" and asked God for help right after this, but I would just provoke nearby monsters.
Yes, I'm aware of typical RPG tropes as a huge fan of these games.
Like the thing where the hero or a band of heroes is thrust right into a new continent, on the world map screen.
Complaining about the situation isn't what the hero or heroes should do; instead, they should go explore the continent and search for a nearby town.
As I am about to head out towards the nearest building, I hear a calming mature male voice from above. It says...
"Ben...o...it..."
I respond, "Are you calling my name?"
The voice replies, "Yes, indeed."
"Where in the world am I? Am I in some little-known continent on Earth? A probable war zone? A very desolate and isolated island?"
"No. You are in a world called Daig'digaia."
"Daig... digaia?"
Now this makes sense.
I was sucked into the world of the game I just bought.
No biggie here, since I love a good adventure – and I know all too well the dangers that come along with it.
"Yes. A world created by a beautiful mind. It is a world where you will be engrossed by what it has to offer."
"Will I be stuck in this world forever?"
"Not always. You must defeat the threat that plagues this world."
Yep, there's always an overarching mission someone must accomplish if they want to get out of any fantasy world. Pretty standard stuff.
"Who?"
"I... must go... Find... forty-nine... youths..."
"Answer the question first!"
"...they... will... help..."
And the voice dissolves into the sky.
Knowing that I cannot escape this fate, I continue my search for the nearest refuge.
And I see a huge building, the nearest in the cluster of modern-looking buildings in this immediate area.
The sign says... "Dillington High School".
What? My high school alma mater? How did it end up in this fantasy world?
Presumably... the creator of this world – this very game I'm in – crafted it from his own experiences.
And this building is just a fragment of the overall product.
After all, game developers derive their inspiration from a plethora of sources – their own experiences so far included.
And so, with a confident march, I enter the building.