The promotional video came to an end.
Clara found herself completely captivated by what she'd just witnessed. The peaceful atmosphere radiating from the footage appealed to her deeply, and she could already imagine herself losing hundreds of hours to this world.
Something felt strange about it, though. Nearly everything in the video appeared to be constructed from perfect squares.
The trees stood blocky and geometric, the ground stretched out in cubic tiles, and even the small animals and villagers had been built with square heads that gave them an almost comical appearance.
By this time, countless elves browsing the forums had already discovered the new announcement, and the comment section exploded as per usual.
["Holy crap! Master Alto worked on something new without anyone noticing? His speed is absolutely insane!"]
["Watching from the front row! I just recovered from the emotional damage Ark gave me, and Master Alto is already serving up another course?"]
["Wait, what's with these graphics? Are my eyes broken? Why does this entire world look like it's made of cubes?"]
["You're not alone, person above! The tree trunks are cubes, the ground is cubes, and I just spotted a chicken that's entirely cubic!"]
["Right?! And the villagers inside have these square heads with massive noses! Are those supposed to be humans? They look bizarre."]
["How ignorant. Humans actually do look like that, I've seen them having big noses like that..."]
["Ahem... Stop spouting nonsense, will you? Humans actually resemble us quite closely, they just have those weird short ears."]
["Setting that aside, though, the atmosphere feels incredibly cozy and inviting. It gives off the same healing energy as Stardew Valley."]
["The graphics are stunning beyond words, and that play of light and shadow is genuinely impressive. Beyond the visuals, though, everything seems rather... plain? I'm feeling a bit let down..."]
The footage shown in the video had clearly sparked considerable doubt among the playerbase.
While the graphics themselves looked undeniably beautiful, everything else came across as disappointingly mundane. The scenes appeared to be constructed entirely from individual blocks, and this peculiar world left players struggling to understand what they were looking at.
Alto had built an impressive track record over time. From the soothing farm life of Stardew Valley to the open freedom of Liberty City, and finally to the punishing survival mechanics of Ark, each of his creations had earned the title of masterpiece. By now he'd accumulated tremendous goodwill and trust from his audience along the way.
If some unknown designer had released a game filled with blocky graphics that seemed ordinary at first glance, it probably wouldn't have generated even the smallest hype across the forums. Players might have ridiculed it mercilessly before moving on.
Alto's sterling reputation as a designer bought him considerable leeway, though. Players weren't openly criticizing the reveal; they just seemed puzzled by what they'd seen and curious about where this was heading.
This confusion ran especially deep among players from Solaria, many of whom hadn't familiarized themselves with Alto's previous works yet.
Observing the mixed reactions flooding in, Alto allowed himself a mischievous grin reserved only for himself.
"Minecraft never became a phenomenon because of how it looked."
The players would only grasp the terrifying brilliance of this masterpiece once they experienced the actual gameplay for themselves.
He dismissed the forum chatter from his mind and returned his focus to the final optimization Minecraft still required.
The game launched amid a swirling mixture of curiosity and skepticism from the waiting playerbase.
"It's an Alto production, so even if this turns out to be complete garbage, I'm buying it to see just how bad it tastes! Shopkeeper, hand one over!"
"Only 98 Baileys? That's incredibly cheap! Doesn't even break a hundred. I'll grab a copy just to show my support!"
"You all go ahead and buy it first. I'm sitting this one out until I see some reactions!"
"I actually think this blocky aesthetic looks pretty interesting. Might be worth picking up just to check it out!"
The sales counters remained packed with enthusiastic customers shouting out their intentions.
Every experience store throughout the Imperial Capital began its simultaneous product launches at the same moment.
The instant Lake caught wind of the release, he sprinted the entire distance to the internet cafe's sales counter with barely restrained excitement.
"Minecraft. What a peculiar name. I wonder what kind of game this actually is."
"Excuse me, I'd like to purchase a copy of the latest release."
Money wasn't an issue for him anymore. He'd already invested in a full equipment set without hesitation despite the exorbitant prices in the Imperial Capital. He could cut corners on other luxuries if necessary, but supporting Alto's creations was absolutely non-negotiable.
After securing his copy of Minecraft, he practically ran home, fully eager to dive in.
He went inside the game the moment he arrived.
The opening screen materialized slowly before him, presenting several different modes to select from.
Single Player Mode and Multiplayer Online sat prominently among the options. He chose Single Player Mode, preparing himself for whatever experience awaited.
What appeared next stopped him cold.
[Create New World]
Game Mode: Survival, Creative
More World Options...
"Create New World? What's that supposed to mean?"
Lake's eyes went wide as he stared at the unfamiliar options in growing disbelief. A tentative theory began forming in the back of his mind.
'Could it actually be what I'm thinking?'
He forced down the surge of excitement threatening to overwhelm him and quickly selected the default settings, then pressed [Create New World] with a trembling hand.
The screen flickered once more as new text scrolled across his vision.
[Generating terrain...]
[Generating forests...]
[Generating mountains...]
[Generating biomes...]
[Generating villages...]
Lake's jaw dropped open in pure shock. These loading messages created the unmistakable impression that an entire living world was being constructed from nothing right before his eyes.
When he connected those prompts to the game's title, Minecraft, understanding crashed over him like a tidal wave.
"Does this mean I'm about to build my own world from scratch?"
His entire body trembled with anticipation at the thought.
The wait proved mercifully brief. As the world generation completed its final calculations, his consciousness plunged into the Dreamscape, and he found himself standing inside the game proper.
Everything matched the promotional footage exactly.
A world constructed entirely from blocks stretched out before him in every direction.
The trees rose in geometric patterns, grass carpeted the ground in cubic tiles, and animals wandered the landscape in the distance. Nothing looked different from what the trailer had shown.
Nearby on a patch of grass, a grazing sheep lifted its blocky head and regarded him with what seemed like mild interest.
"Baaa!"
The sheep studied this unfamiliar stranger for several seconds before dismissing him as harmless and returning its attention to the grass beneath its feet.
"The entire world is built from blocks, yet somehow the creatures still feel alive and natural."
Lake murmured the observation to himself.
What am I supposed to do now, though?
He swept his gaze across the surrounding landscape with careful attention. Nothing appeared immediately threatening or dangerous.
He stood motionless for a long moment before his eyes finally settled on the most prominent feature nearby, a towering oak tree standing just a few steps away.
He couldn't explain why, but he suddenly had the urge to punch that tree.
This opening scenario reminded him strongly of Ark's brutal beginning, where players spawned with absolutely nothing. His previous experience with that punishing game helped him adjust to this new situation almost instantly.
Lake raised one hand and gave the tree trunk an experimental tap.
Click.
A soft sound accompanied the appearance of fine cracks spreading across the surface of the wooden block, and simultaneously, he felt clear feedback through his senses, indicating the material could be harvested. Oak log available for collection.
"It actually works!"
His eyes lit up with renewed interest, and he struck the same spot on the trunk again with more confidence.
The cracks deepened and multiplied with each successive hit. The sound of splintering wood filled his ears, and then the entire block suddenly detached from the main trunk with a satisfying pop. It transformed into a palm-sized oak log that drifted toward him through the air.
[You obtained an Oak Log]
The block separated cleanly from the tree, yet the towering structure above showed no signs of collapse whatsoever.
Lake stared at the impossible sight in complete bewilderment.
The oak tree now had a conspicuous gap where the block had been removed, yet the rest of the trunk and canopy simply floated in midair as if nothing had changed. He reached out tentatively and swept his hand through the empty space several times, half expecting to encounter some invisible support, but he found none.
He was absolutely flabbergasted.