He pulled the power cord, the smell of ozone faint in the air. Jax sat in the dark, realizing that some loot drops aren't worth the risk. He’d wanted to be the hero of the story, but he’d ended up just another victim of the dungeon.

The screen went black. When it rebooted, Jax’s wallpaper had been replaced by a simple image of a locked iron gate. He realized then that "multiplayer" didn't mean playing with his buddies—it meant he’d just invited a stranger into his hard drive.

"Finally," Jax whispered, his cursor hovering over the lime-green "Download" button. He’d seen the trailers—the Creeping Winter DLC, the glowing Heart of Ender , and the promise of hacking through mobs with friends. He didn’t have the credits for the official store, but this link promised the full experience, multiplayer and all.

The progress bar crawled across the screen like a silverfish. When it finished, Jax didn’t find a launcher. Instead, his desktop icons began to rearrange themselves into the shape of a Creeper’s face. His cooling fans kicked into overdrive, sounding like a TNT fuse about to blow. Suddenly, a chat window popped up. It wasn't his friends. Nothing in the Dungeons is free, traveler.