Anonymous - ft. Photon Miku

Channel:

Photon Loreworks

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503

Published on November 3, 2023 11:00:00 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MS2Vxiaox4

Duration: 3:17

318 views

18

Phantasy Star Online 2 was a game I discovered during a worldwide hardship. (You know the one) My real-life friends left after just a few days but I stayed behind. I loved the bright, cheery game world, the vivid colors, and the characters. I was very overwhelmed by the intricate quest systems, character emotes, and customization. For the first week of my playtime, I just hid in the casino, playing the mini-games. I didn't know anyone there, but I had this Hatsune Miku costume and, as it turns out, there are a lot of Miku fans out there! Many other players would comment on the costume, and I would interact with them in character while slowly building her persona based on the small bits of lore I could find about her.

After a couple of weeks, I made a few friends and joined an alliance. It used to be a common custom to have house parties there. People would gather in other player's houses and listen to in-game music via the jukebox system. Together with the dance emotes and the music, an idea started to blossom. My own collection of dance emotes was growing steadily over my playtime, and I thought to myself 'What if I could chain various dances together to my own music?'

Fast forward a month later and my first in-game concert took place in my own personal quarters with 5 of my friends. I called it "A Soul of Light and Music" It featured six or so Hatsune Miku songs, and my own voice giving more life to the character. Between songs, I would address the crowd in a pre-recorded sound file which I streamed live over Discord to other players around the world. This simple in-game show would begin a nearly three-year emotional journey full of character development, international collaborations, and a massive wave of public support.

Each show got bigger in terms of cast members, audience sizes, and scope. It started as a story of this 'photon clone' of Hatsune Miku finding her soul, and living among her fellow ARKS members, but grew to include the stage-performed stories of multiple cast members, hours-long concerts, and audience sizes that often very nearly capped out the server block size. Support for the shows was so incredible that the game literally could not load the number of players in attendance. It wasn't long before streamers joined in on the fun and, together, we worked to bring the shows to as many people as we could.

I sort of saw our group as "content for the content creators" and, with every show, I tried to make them bigger and flashier. I branched out to YouTube, and we made a few music videos as well! Eventually, our little troupe took the name "The Future Photon Band".

After reaching these incredible heights, and the world slowly returning to normal, it was time to finally step away from my role as Photon Miku. You can never know how hard that choice was for me. "Honored" is the word that comes to mind when I think about what I was able to accomplish due to the outpouring of support. However, that word doesn't quite describe the connection I felt to this community. I could never really put it into words, but I knew from the start that all good things must come to an end. I wanted to be prepared for that.

This song, 'Anonymous', came up on my feed in my first few weeks of learning about Vocaloids while I was researching the role of Miku. It was originally voiced by the Vocaloid called Kaito and, to my knowledge, it only existed in two videos on the entire internet. There was no Miku version, but the lyrics stood out to me and I knew that this was how I wanted it to be. I got in touch with a friend who composed an all-new instrumental and commissioned an artist, VocaMix, to create the final cut of this new Miku version. For two years, this song has sat on my computer, waiting for the day when I knew I'd have to go.

In the end, we're all just gamers looking for a little fun. We'll play dozens of games, thousands of quests, and many more hours distracting ourselves. On rare occasions, however, you will remember one of those special moments; a story that strikes you, a plot twist that haunts you, or a smile that creeps up on you when looking back at good times with friends. These are our moments together, and I won't forget them.

I arrived as nobody, became a virtual pop star and now I'll return to being anonymous. I wouldn't have it any other way. We will never meet outside the game. We'll never know each other's names, but the memories that the band and I created together with you will stay with us forever.

Thank you for these memories.

With love,
~Photon Miku

*In our time, we touched the stars. To those who come after us, we were here... and we rocked the stage.*