Norman was nervous. The delivery of his package was due any moment. He'd taken the day off work in order to be there to sign for it. He didn't want to bother his neighbours, not that he had ever communicated with them beyond tucking his lips in, and lifting his head and eyebrows in unison.

He had followed the progress of the delivery online and according to the courier's website the package was in town. He boiled the kettle and stared out the kitchen window at the steam vent on the building opposite. What he wouldn't give for a view...the buzzer buzzed. Norman jumped and knocked the empty mug into the sink, breaking its handle. He'd forgotten just how loud and jarring the buzzer was.

He spoke over the intercom with the delivery man in short, concise sentences and remotely opened the door to the building. Norman was ringing his hands in nervous anticipation as he curled his toes repeatedly inside his slippers. Moments later there was a knock on the door.

Norman opened the door and the delivery man thrust an electronic device and a stylus towards him. Norman scribbled something approximating his signature with the unresponsive technology as instructed. The delivery man bent down and lifted up the box, and handed it to Norman. The exchange complete, Norman looked at the inconspicuous box as the delivery man's footsteps clicked away down the corridor.

Norman, still looking at the box, turned and closed the door with his foot. He walked into the TV room, not noticing his cat acrobatically leap away from his foot fall. He placed the box in front of the TV and knelt beside it. He carefully cut along the seam of the tape and opened the lid. Inside he saw white Styrofoam, and bubble-wrap; he'd enjoy popping that over breakfast this weekend. Hidden among the static and plastic was the black box he'd been so impatiently waiting for.

He removed his home gaming console and followed the instructions closely, hooking it to the television. Norman had not owned a home console since his Atari 2600. Of course, his peers had all owned SNESs or Megadrives but Norman loved his Atari 2600. He reined supreme in Centipede; largely because his peers were more interested in Sonic, or Mario.

Norman waded through the set-up screens, creating an account he felt he didn't need. After an hour of faffing he loaded the game he had bought the black box for. 'No Man's Sky'. Norman created his character profile and began his journey into a new universe; one where many thousands of others like him would be roaming the great dark in seek of...something.

Weeks passed and Norman had spent an inordinate amount of his spare time immersed in his new universe. His character currently stood on a cliff's edge overlooking a lake, on a barren rocking planet. The atmosphere was toxic with acid rain a regular feature. He had more than enough elements in his slots. He wasn't sure what he should do.

He had initially hoped he would bump into avatars of other users online, and perhaps begin an adventure where they'd travel through space together, fighting pirates, and bonding with each other as their adventure progressed. He knew that this was statistically unlikely to happen but at one point he did have hope. However, it became clear from videos he watched while at work that there were no other real users to encounter. He was alone in the universe.

Norman's avatar stood facing out across the barren world as the acid rain storm raged around him. "Life support critical" the game warned him. Norman sighed.