Chapter 146-2: The Crack Is the Real Official Version, Pressure and Fun (2) |
“Starnet, I am curious about a question and need your answer.”
“Please go ahead.”
“Why did that mysterious existence reveal himself only to us and tell us the truth about the game, yet not inform the Human Federation leadership? By rights, the humans are that mysterious existence’s primary recruitment target, which leaves me quite puzzled.”
Faced with the question, Starnet was silent for a few seconds, then nodded.
“In fact, this is not hard to understand. That mysterious existence essentially does not care about whether the link is exposed or whether the game is made public. He cares about only one thing, namely the stability of the real world.”
‘The stability of the real world?’ The governor in seat eight furrowed his brow, puzzled.
“Yes, the stability of the real world. Think carefully. When we convened a meeting after discovering the Black Tide rift, what were we preparing to do?”
“Preparing to do what… of course, to prepare for a war against the Black Tide.”
Starnet nodded, then shook his head:
“This would inevitably have plunged Earth into turmoil and might even have triggered local wars.”
“For that higher-dimensional existence who chose Earth as a testing ground, our radical strategy would have disrupted his plan to recruit Earth’s living beings to fight the Black Tide. Severe turmoil in reality would drastically reduce the number of players Earth produces, which is detrimental to the game plan envisioned by the higher-dimensional existence.”
“He chose to descend when we were most desperate and about to launch our war plan, very likely in order to soothe our emotions and also to more smoothly push forward the player plan he envisioned.”
“As for why he did not inform the Human Federation, it is because whether the Human Federation leadership knows or not does not affect changes in Earth’s balance of powers.”
“So the higher-dimensional existence’s contact with us is not as complicated as we imagined. All of the above is my conjecture, and the specific truth is unknowable.”
Having listened to Starnet’s analysis, the Lunar Eclipse race leadership present nodded in sudden understanding.
Starnet’s analysis sounded entirely reasonable.
In summary, the higher-dimensional existence does not care about exposure, but he does care about the stability of Earth’s environment, which benefits the development of the player plan.
As for contacting the Lunar Eclipse race at that time, it was also for the sake of Earth’s order.
It would prevent Earth from falling into turmoil because of their war-preparation plans.
Once the reason is clear, it is not hard to understand why the higher-dimensional existence did not take the initiative to contact the Human Federation leadership, because it was completely unnecessary.
“Starnet, if we cannot snap up game qualifications, what should we do?” asked the governor in seat one.
“We can try to obtain foreign exchange from the various races of the Earth Alliance in advance to prepare for development after entering the game, and when the time comes invest the resources of the whole race to set our development in motion.”
“By the way, Starnet, I have another point I cannot understand. Since this is a war game test conducted by a higher-dimensional existence, why does he not recruit the professional war armies of each race, but instead give priority to recruiting ordinary players?” the governor in seat eight asked again.
In response to the question, Starnet fell silent for a moment, then spoke.
“For this question, I have analyzed three possibilities. They are only possibilities and cannot serve as factual evidence.”
“First possibility, the higher-dimensional existence does not care whether the recruits are a systematized army or ordinary players. To him, it is merely an interesting game, so the recruitment angle cannot be considered with the logic of whether it can provide higher combat power.”
“Second possibility, differences in world levels greatly weaken the importance of the starting point. Put simply, among all life in the Earth Alliance, the concept of strong and weak can be classified as the same starting point in the Monster World. The gap between strong and weak is meaningless in that world. A top warrior of the Lunar Eclipse race and a paralyzed ordinary human have no essential difference.”
“A paralyzed ordinary human can also, in a short time, possess combat power surpassing that of our race’s top warriors. Therefore, it does not matter who receives the qualification. Our starting points are all the same.”
Upon hearing this, the governor in seat eight could not help but speak.
“Starnet, although differences in combat power can be easily smoothed out in a high-dimensional world, combat awareness and even combat technique clearly cannot be compensated for through an increase in strength.”
“Yes, you are very right. But you must understand one thing. Players in the Monster World will inevitably experience long years of war. In this process, everyone is growing. Living beings in the real world become stronger through training, but players in the Monster World cultivate combat awareness and technique every moment. Actual combat will make all players grow rapidly. The gap in this respect is also meaningless.”
“Perhaps not even one year would be needed to cultivate players whose combat awareness and combat technique surpass those of real world soldiers. For that mysterious high-dimensional existence, one year is only the blink of an eye. Extend the timeline, and these two types of players can still be classified as starting from the same point, with no great difference.”
“Secondly, if armies as systematized forces enter the game, another problem arises. In order to monopolize resources, armies of different races would compete and squeeze the living space of ordinary players who have not yet grown, prematurely forming a clear alignment of player camps and creating monopoly forces similar to conglomerates. Prioritizing the recruitment of ordinary players avoids this problem. When army forces later station themselves, in the face of ordinary players who entered first, they would not be able to withstand a single blow. Even if they have numerical advantage, they would pose no threat.”
“So the essence of this issue is actually quite simple. Ordinary players and top players do have differences in initial ability, but these differences will be gradually smoothed out as ordinary players grow. This is also a recruitment mechanism that allows ordinary players to have greater influence in specific situations.”
“Next is the third possibility I have analyzed.”
“Army and other systematized players may be constrained by command and management requirements, which makes them less flexible than ordinary players in some aspects.”
“Secondly, in terms of participation, this may also be why the higher-dimensional existence requires us to keep things confidential. Ordinary players can experience the game more immersively because they do not bear the pressure that army players have from teams or organizations. They can enjoy the game process more freely. This high degree of engagement may allow ordinary players to display unexpected performance at critical moments.”
“Finally, there is balance and diversity. The higher-dimensional existence hopes to maintain balance in the game by elevating the importance of ordinary players. If armies are recruited first and seize advantages early to form resource monopolies, the game mode would become monotonous and dull. By granting ordinary players a certain advantage, more players’ enthusiasm to participate can be stimulated, increasing the fun of the game.”
“My view is not to prove that systematized army players have no meaning, only that they have a different gameplay role from ordinary players.”
“Here I need to bring up a point about pressure and fun, and which environment can better allow players to be creative. This is also the core reason the higher-dimensional existence requires confidentiality.”
“In certain situations, pressure can indeed stimulate players’ creativity.”
“When facing difficulties or challenges, pressure can help players focus more intensely on finding solutions. This focus can sometimes give birth to new ideas and strategies. Through the historical records of various races, it can be seen that moderate social pressure can bring overall progress.”
“But you must understand that the world-ending pressure brought by the terrifying Black Tide is not moderate pressure.”
“This destruction level pressure may produce the exact opposite effect. Long-term excessive pressure can lead to negative emotions such as anxiety, depression, and giving up on oneself. These emotions severely disrupt thinking and creativity. In such a state, players will inevitably find it hard to concentrate and even harder to produce new ideas and solutions.”
“Next, let us discuss the impact of fun on creativity.”
“Fun can be regarded as a positive psychological state that makes players feel happy. More importantly, fun can stimulate players’ intrinsic motivation, which is the most important source of creativity. When players engage in activities they are interested in, they are more likely to generate novel ideas and more willing to try new methods and strategies. This spirit is the core of creativity.”
“In a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere, players also find it easier to break free from the constraints of traditional thinking, thereby discovering new possibilities and even solutions.”
“So, moderate pressure can sometimes stimulate creativity, but excessive pressure will instead suppress creativity. By contrast, fun more readily promotes the exercise of creativity.”
“Comparing the two, creating a relaxed, pleasant, and fun environment is more suitable for development than an environment under destructive pressure.”
“But it is certain that when the Black Tide formally invades Earth, fun will also transform into pressure. Only by then we may already have the combat power to confront and even defeat the Black Tide, so this pressure will no longer be destructive.”
After listening to Starnet’s analysis, the high level members of the Lunar Eclipse race nodded repeatedly.
It was evident that Starnet had long considered various possibilities that they had never envisioned.
Although it is unclear whether the behind-the-scenes higher-dimensional life truly thinks as Starnet described, the line of thought Starnet provided is self consistent in logic and may well be the correct explanation.
“Actually, I also have a question I am very curious about.” Starnet said, then let out a very human sigh.
Under the puzzled gazes of the Lunar Eclipse race’s high level members, a crystalline sheen surfaced in Starnet’s eyes.
“As the Lunar Eclipse race’s supreme AI, I have always been the guide and decision maker for our development. But if in the future our development centers on the game, the help I can provide will grow smaller and may even gradually disappear, because I cannot obtain any intelligence about our people in the game at the first moment and can only have it relayed to me verbally by you.”
“The problem is, if a decision maker makes decisions based on incomplete or delayed information, those decisions are likely to be inaccurate, and inaccurate decisions can lead to wasted resources and inefficiency, and may even negatively affect the development of the Lunar Eclipse race.”
“So my suggestion is that if that day truly comes, I hope you will create a new supreme AI inside the game to replace me in assisting the Lunar Eclipse race’s development.”
Hearing this, the Lunar Eclipse race’s high level members all fell silent.
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