Interview Interrupted

The red LED on the camera lit up, signaling that we were live.

"Hello everyone, I hope you're all doing well. As you've probably guessed from the announcements and the stream title, today we welcome Myth, the creator of the Naughty Dog studio," she said, a little sheepishly.

"Hello everyone! Sorry, but I won't be showing my face. So I'll be off camera, but I'll answer all your questions."

[We almost waited!!!] 

[Hylia looks shy] 

[Show us your face, Myth] 

[Why won't you show your face?] 

[Myth is shy :kappa:]

"The messages are scrolling so fast... Hylia, can you turn on slow mode?"

"It's already set to 10 seconds, but with so many people..." she laughed.

"Just to let you know, this interview will be relaxed, not like a TV show. We'll be here for a few hours, so take your time," Hylia added.

[Yeah!!!] 

[Myth, how tall are you?] 

[How do I know it's really him?]

Seeing the last message, I exclaimed, "Exactly, how do they know it's really me?" I said, looking at Hylia.

"It's not like I have much to gain by lying in front of over 650,000 people..." she replied with a smile.

"That's true..." I said, then an idea came to me. "It's quite simple; I'll prove to you that I'm really the one who uses the social network accounts."

I posted a simple message on the Steam page announcing that I was live on Hylia's channel. Seconds later, messages poured in confirming it.

[It's real, I just saw it]. 

[Hello Myth, why don't you show your face?] 

[It's verified, we're in front of the crazy developer!] 

[Can you please dedicate this to my brother?]

I watched the messages scroll by, smiling at the irrelevant questions.

"Okay, everyone," Hylia exclaimed. "Write your questions. We'll sort them into a poll, and you can vote for the ones you want answered."

[Yes!] 

[What color is Myth's hair?] 

[How old is Mythos?] 

[How could you make such a realistic game all by yourself?] 

[Where did you get the ideas?]

Faced with off-topic questions, I spoke up: "For questions about my appearance or clues about my real life, we won't answer them to preserve my anonymity. But for anything related to the game, go ahead, ask all you want."

[Oh, why?] 

[Come on, please?] 

[How long did it take to make the game?] 

[What technology or game engine did you use to make it?] 

[Are there any Easter eggs or secrets we should be looking for?]

As the discussion refocused, we sorted the most frequently asked questions and incorporated them into a survey. Within five minutes, we had a list of 50 questions, and no more new questions were coming in.

"That's it, no need to ask more questions," Hylia declared. "We're going to start a poll now. Take a good look at the questions and vote. We'll answer them from most selected to least selected."

After waiting five minutes for the votes, I began to answer the questions.

"So, the most popular question is: [How did you manage to create such a story and such graphics?] You kind of combined two questions into one, but that's okay," I said, taking a sip of water.

"To begin with, I've always had a passion for the ancient world, which led me to frequent libraries when I was young. It was while reading a book on biology that I discovered a parasitic fungus called Cordyceps that took over insects in the ancient world."

"Don't worry, in our time, it seems to have disappeared, or at least it's classified as such. As for the graphics, that's classified too," I added with a laugh.

After this answer, which I had luckily prepared with Mel, I interacted with the chat, where some biologists confirmed my statements.

"Let's move on to the next question, which is quite special... [What technology or game engine did you use to create this game?] I'm surprised that so many people chose this question," I said, looking at Hylia, who was squinting at the screen.

"Even though it might seem like this question could have been rigged by certain companies, I don't think I'm going to talk about that. And I'll never reveal details about my graphics engines and other technologies," I said, glancing at the chat.

[That's right, who voted for that question? Send a message, guys.] 

[Me, I was curious to see if I could try it.] 

[Me too, because knowing that he made it himself made me want to do the same thing.] 

[Me.]

Although a few people claimed to have voted for it, the number seemed small compared to the total votes. To be sure, I asked:

"And now, those who voted for the first question, please send a message."

At this point, the already hard-to-read chat became a veritable flood of messages, impossible to follow.

"Mmh, that's what I thought. You can stop now; I think the question about the engine was indeed rigged," I said with a sigh.

[Yes!] 

[Rigged, seriously...] 

[Probably companies trying to steal your engine!] 

[They built their own engine, seriously????]

"Let's forget that question," I said with a smile before moving on. "Next up: [How long did it take to develop the game from start to finish?] Make your predictions in years, and I'll give you the answer."

[5] 

[7] 

[15] 

[8] 

[6]

Seeing the flood of responses, I replied, "Well, I think the answer has been found. It's hard to say because I did a lot of research before I started. But if you count from the moment I first conceived the game, it's been about ten years."

[Ten years???] 

[Your voice doesn't sound that old...] 

[Brother, you spent your whole childhood making this game?] 

[Wow, you never gave up in ten years? Impressive.]

I chatted with the chat for a while, and many people congratulated me on my perseverance. 'If they knew the truth, they'd curse me' I thought with a smile.

The interview then continued without a hitch, except for a few unprepared questions from Mel. Still, I managed to handle them well without appearing suspicious. At the end of the stream, as we discussed wrapping up, I decided to make a surprise announcement.

"I hope the stream went well," I said, looking at the chat, which was flooded with farewell emotes. "I may have left out a little announcement to reward those who stayed until the end. Would you like to know?"

[An announcement?] 

[Do you have a release date for 2?] 

[We want to know!] 

[Tell us!]

Seeing the chat getting hysterical again, I started the announcement: "I hope you'll like it. I'm currently working on a multiplayer apocalyptic survival game set in The Last of Us universe. There will be no time limit, only the limit of your imagination to survive for as long as possible."

[Is this true???] 

[Swear???] 

[We want a date!!!]

"You want a date, don't you? If I tell you, it'll be..." I stopped when I heard the sound of an explosion outside. I turned to Hylia and asked, "Did you hear that?"

"Yes," she replied, starting to get up.

A sinking feeling gripped my chest. Instinctively, I grabbed Hylia's hand and pulled her to the ground just as a shockwave shattered the window, sending shards of glass flying in all directions.