Born in an era where ordinary effort couldn't lead to an ordinary life, in a time of shattered exchange rates, where people readily sow division, heap curses, and are easily swayed by demagogues, he lived 30 years of his life, just scraping by, minding his own business.
As a result, when he looks back at the not-so-distant past, he can now think, "Those were the good days." and "Back in my day..."
He had grown into a typical young, hardworking man, perfectly fitting for 21st-century South Korea.
Nevertheless, he was a decent son who never caused his parents too much trouble, and a good friend and lover.
At the same time, like any other guy his age, he was a light gamer.
The reason for the "light" label was due to the fact that, recently, he had been cutting back on his gaming time.
In fact, not wanting to add more stress to his life from his job by playing games, he had even uninstalled the online co-op multiplayer game he once loved.
Instead, he began focusing on PC or console games that he could enjoy on his own in peace, and recently he started exploring games with solid world-building and storytelling.
The last game he played was about a rookie cop starting their first day in a city overrun by a virus.
It was a satisfying blend of horror and action.
He thought about playing the sequel, but decided against it, as he didn't like to play too many games of the same genre back-to-back.
That's when he found his new game: "Project Neo," a title recommended by a younger acquaintance.
"Hey, hyung, it's seriously fun, you know? Did I ever tell you something that wasn't true?"
"I don't know anything about Cyberpunk."
"Eh, you don't need to. Someone will start it for you anyway."
He couldn't refuse because the nagging was relentless.
At some point, he found himself installing the game.
Estimated time: 51 minutes and 13 seconds.
He took advantage of the free time to browse for more information.
Project Neo.
A Cyberpunk-themed open-world RPG.
The more he searched, he found that the game was not just Cyberpunk but also blended with Arcanepunk and Biopunk—an eclectic world.
To someone unfamiliar like him, it seemed like a dystopian world packed with robots, magic, and zombies—though it had excellent gameplay, so despite its niche appeal, it appeared to have a decent following.
As he browsed the community, he noticed a stream of recommendation and info posts.
He clicked on one of them.
New Player Tips for Project Neo (Last Updated: 24.03.28)
Even when he was a student with far more free time, he enjoyed following pre-tested builds that others had already figured out.
After all, when playing alone, it's best to go with what's easy and convenient.
So he scrolled through the tips, reading carefully as screenshots and text alternated.
The information was more complicated than he expected, and he sighed.
Just then, as the game launched and the screen went dark, he called his younger acquaintance.
"Hyung, what's wrong? Oh, you don't get it? It's okay, don't worry."
The bright voice continued.
"The difficulty is on easy. The game's pretty tough, and if you start thinking it'll be a breeze, you're in for a rough time. You hate that kind of thing, don't you? Anyway, you can adjust the difficulty while playing, so if it gets too easy, you can increase it later."
"As for your life path… Oh, you want to be a vagabond?"
At least he knew what he wanted there.
He had no interest in big corporations or families in such games, as he enjoyed the grind from the bottom up.
"Then I'll give you a build suited for a vagabond. I've put over 1,000 hours into this playthrough. Choose the Irregular trait, and for the first perk, go with Fast Recovery. That's the best combo for a vagabond. Why, you ask..."
Then the younger one started explaining the build in detail, and seeing it was turning into a long conversation, he thanked him and hung up.
He decided he'd ask for more details later or refer to the strategy guides.
Character creation continued.
He wasn't great at customizing, so he kept it simple, making the character look decently handsome.
The fact that he could even adjust the character's private parts was a little surprising, but since he was going for the "good enough" approach, he decided to go all in and maxed it out.
Finally, he entered his character's name, and it was done.
Before pressing the start button, he placed his cup noodles and cola on the desk to enjoy while playing.
There was nothing better than enjoying ramen while taking breaks during a game.
But, he never got to enjoy his snack.
The moment he clicked the start button, filled with anticipation, he opened his eyes in a dim, damp alleyway.
His face pressed against the wet ground.