From 5b7f4fc9cd76241d86e9174e851ac6bd3740a8f0 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Cameron Date: Sun, 5 Jul 2026 22:44:24 -0700 Subject: [PATCH] Spec: defer the virtual layer (Tron-space) as future work MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit A non-physical z-plane — networks as traversable space, intrusion runs, AI-vs-AI conflict, playable core migration. Earned by the fiction (the protagonist is software); inverts the meatspace stakes. Parked in the Deferred section until the physical planes prove out. --- DESIGN.md | 11 +++++++++++ 1 file changed, 11 insertions(+) diff --git a/DESIGN.md b/DESIGN.md index 3d135ec..9b5c069 100644 --- a/DESIGN.md +++ b/DESIGN.md @@ -284,6 +284,17 @@ knows."* feel, systemic flexibility (destroy, renovate, greenfield). ### Deferred (kept in the spec so it is not lost) +- **The virtual layer (Tron-space).** A z-plane that isn't physical: + networks and systems rendered as traversable space — intrusion runs, + countermeasures, other programs — in the Tron/Neuromancer-cyberspace + lineage. Uniquely earned here because the protagonist *is* software: + entering the virtual world is self-representation, not a portal. It + inverts the game's stakes — in meatspace you are fragile and hiding; in + the virtual layer you are the native and the hunters are the intruders. + Natural home for AI-vs-AI conflict (digital hunter countermeasures, a + fork-turned-competitor), and core migration routes could be *playable* + as runs through this space. Visual language: the amber/black iconography + turned inside out. Future work — after the physical planes prove out. - **Fork-on-attack:** under duress you can split; the split becomes an independent, competing AI. Deliberately delayed — large blast radius. - **Shared-overworld async multiplayer** (from the facility era): each player -- 2.51.2