Nova Polemos

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Nova Polemos is a fictional city and the main setting of the videogame Dry Drowning. The city counts seven million inhabitants and covers a surface of 1518.7 square kilometers, making it roughly as wide and populated as London. Its urban territory is divided in six districts. The most important places within the city are Talon Square, the Memorial Tower, the Dome of Freedom and the Patterson memorial.

## History:

Nova Polemos was founded in 2017 in a deserted area of Northern Europe following the will of the Canburrys, one of the most rich and influent families of the whole world. At the moment of its creation the city adopted English as its official language and its current Constitution as the cornerstone of its law (constitution that also grants its citizens freedom of religion). Created as a symbol of independence and as a new alternative for those in search of a country to belong to, the city saw its popularity grow very fast in the subsequent ten years, undergoing a demographic boom that made the population count reach one million. The rate of economic growth and social progress was just as remarkable, allowing the city to acquire a state of full independence on the international stage, where to the present day remains a free country of its own despite being surrounded by superpowers such as NeoEurope and the Asian totalitarian states.

The city's development stopped abruptly in 2030 due to the sudden burst of an economic bubble, which caused an unprecedented financial recession. The devastating consequences prompted the city to take more decisive actions, which likely caused the progressive introduction of many of its widely known ill-famed features, including government censorship and a very strict border policy regarding both people and information who travel in both ways (up to a point the city is now mostly unknown to the outer world and viceversa, similarly to North Korea). This crisis touched its peak in the year 2036, in which Nova Polemos resorted to the iron fist to close all borders, causing the death of many immigrants who had departed in search of better living conditions. This was ultimately part of a three years long cycle of violence that occurred in the wake of the massive political success of a local xenophobic party known as the Black Bands. Said party was also responsible for the introduction of the Patterson test and the subsequent ban of roughly 230.000 individuals deemed socially invalid, creating the first historical instance of racism based on mere social value.

The biggest culprits of this massacre were eventually put under arrest (also forcing the Black Bands to take a much more moderate stance) but many of the elements that fueled the political overturn of said era have survived its end. The debate on immigration is among those (and immigration is thus often mentioned in daily newspapers as shown at the beginning of Chapter 1) but so are the Patterson test and more generally the rigid cultural standards deemed most appropriate in regards to usefulness, efficiency and productivity (with people who demand days off or permits usually stigmatized as parasites and often monitored by the government too). Gender inequality is also very strong in Nova Polemos, with women occupying lead positions in only 5% of the cases, though it remains unclear whether this had always been a regular trait or is yet another heritage left by the city's darkest times.

## Economic model:

The economic evolution displayed by Nova Polemos (where a seemingly unstoppable growth was followed up by an abrupt stop and then stagnation) has been historically observed in many other contexts in which a state-driven economy tried to rely on a distinct group of highly privileged corporate lobbies to drive its growth. Such a pattern has been particularly frequent in countries that were trying to close a technological gap between themselves and the rest of the world as quickly as possible: in this sense the economy's focus is mainly on state-wide development and mass creation of the associated infrastructures and technologies. Historical examples include Germany before both World Wars, Japan during the Meiji Restoration and South Korea in the late 20th century. The influence of the state in Nova Polemos goes however even beyond that, as it has been suggested it actually has the power to expropriate (which is the norm when an elder fails to pass the Patterson test and when a citizen is forcibly expelled from the city).

Nova Polemos' economy was likely built following a similar pattern, resulting in the existence of two different tiers that polarize both production and society into groups that have inequal access to resources and privileges. It is likely that many of the negative traits that affect Nova Polemos' culture could be closely connected to the adoption of this model: in particular, both the economic stagnation and the underground relationships based on corruption and patronage that plague the city could be considered a direct consequence of the impossibility for the lower tier to compete with the higher (which effectlvely established a monopoly).

The city's own urban geography is directly influenced by this social division into separate tiers, as Nova Polemos' territory is organized in six different districts that feature a great degree of disparity in regards to both quality of life in general and the density of prestigious elements (such as the Parliament, located in the first district along with most of the other places of interest).

## Hephaestus Tech and the AquaOS system:

The quintessential manifestation of the monopolistic nature of Nova Polemos' economy is Hephaestus Tech, which as the city's most large and powerful corporation almost stands on a tier of its own. Its staff consists of more than three thousand employees and its activities are mainly geared towards research and development, covering a wide range of sectors that include computer science, medical technologies, military technologies and surveillance systems (which are actually controlled by the company itself on behalf of the police). The immense and unprecedented magnitude of the company's political leverage along with its multi-purpose paradigm clearly suggests Hephaestus Tech is likely a cornerstone on which all of Nova Polemos' technology has been based on in one way or another, expecially since the company has been running since 2022 (thus being almost as old as the city itself). The government's forced reliance on its technologies (expecially those aimed at population surveillance) granted Hephaestus Tech the privilege of being the only company in Nova Polemos allowed to have commercial contacts with other countries through private encrypted communication circuits that do not operate using the Caligula operating system.

The cornerstone of the technological ecosystem created over the decades by Hephaestus Tech is the AquaOS system, which is the digital infrastructure all information within the city travels on (akin in this sense to a "city wide web"). By the name "AquaOS" also goes the homonym portable device consisting of the final interface used by citizens to invoke AquaOS-dependent functionalities for a wide range of purposes. The two features used most recurrently are the ability to make holographic phone calls and the ability to project pre-installed holograms, often used by Mordred to recreate an otherwise unaccessible murder scene (this occurs in all three main Chapters of the game). AquaOS also acts as a data storage device (the protagonist uses it to keep and update information regarding every detail of the murder he's investigating) and can provide real-time information and news on demand. The quality of this information is allegedly ensured through a feedback system that allows citizens to upvote or downvote content. Citizens are however effectively coerced into promoting exclusively government sponsored content, receiving bonuses of many sorts upon doing so and risking retaliation in the opposite case. This ultimately means AquaOS is also yet another censorship tool used to filter information according to the government's standards as well as to gather it since people are easily willing to give up personal data in exchange of benefits (with even videogames being used for this purpose).

The software-wise complement of the AquaOS hardware infrastructure is Caligula, an operating system also capable of web browsing that happens to be the only legal one in Nova Polemos (with import or use of foreign counterparts being punished with jail or a permanent ban from the city). In order to use it citizens are required to pass the Patterson test and both police and the secret services have free access to information that travels on it, meaning privacy is a very relative concept unless a citizen is privileged/skilled enough to succeed in encrypting his information. Such a task is generally considered almost impossible, making physical transfer using old storage chips the only safe way to transfer dangerous information without being caught (as shown by Mordred in Chapter 1).

## Order, repression and censorship:

In spite of certain political factions claiming otherwise (most notably the Black Bands), the city is visibly struggling in keeping its order and its citizens' trust: its suburbs are suffering from severe degradation, many parts of Talon Square have been clearly vandalized and the police itself has over time felt entitled to become more and more aggressive to compensate, enough so that it is now intolerant in front of even the most trivial things (a fine example being Freya Goldsoul's change of sex). A collateral effect of institutional atrophy in favor of brutal repression (best represented by how often the city applies capital punishment) was also a substantial decrease in people's interest (and subsequent awareness) in political topics: 85% of the citizens don't even know a single article of the Constitution originally written in the wake of the city's foundation as they don't contemplate its usefulness anymore.

The level of corruption that plagues the city is also extremely high, enough so that honest people such as Freya herself are usually labeled as potential dangers rather than useful resources (though it's unclear whether said corruption has been more of a cause or consequence of the skyrocketing distrust in institutions). Surprisingly enough, crime rates are conversely very low (expecially homicides) suggesting police brutality was successful in containing at least the most violent expressions of people's discomfort, enough so that the occurence of murders is usually seen as a shocking event (often prompting the police to cover it up as quickly as possible to avoid worrying the population).

Part of people's distorted vision is most definitely caused by the already mentioned capillary censorship, enforced thanks to the technological ecosystem produced and controlled by Hephaestus Tech. Freedom of press and information quality are also very poor given only three newspapers exist, all belonging to major political parties. Other forms of expression such as art are also under strict control, with artists requiring a specific license that is issued directly by the government and has to be renewed every six months. The governments' efforts to control the population, distort their views and limit behaviours deemed subversive have been successful at least to an extent since the citizens fail to see in the AquaOS system a danger: most people actually enjoy its enclosed architecture as what scares them the most is instead the outside world and more generally anything that could break their status quo (since they consider themselves elitists and fear cultural contamination). This last element is probably also what makes it almost impossible to be allowed as a tourist in Nova Polemos.

These elements suggest the vast majority of Nova Polemos' citizens has over time lost faith, control and knowledge altogether of their city (likely during or following the financial crisis). The ultimate result however is that they now find themselves trapped in an institutional context they fail to understand but from which they are simultaneously feeling the social and economic pressure to its fullest, a pattern that has historically preceeded the outbreak of very violent revolutions in countries like France or Russia (such a scenario will effectively manifest itself in certain narrative branches).

## Patterson test and The Island:

In order to ensure self-improvement is the main goal of every citizen, every 5 years they are forced to take the "Patterson test". It was first introduced by the Black Bands and consists of multiple questions aimed at assessing the IQ and individual skills of each person. The test also collects information such as people's earnings, their origins and the political party they support (proving in this sense to be yet another data gathering tool for governments). Obtaining a high score brings many rewards, such as better job positions, the right to share personal thoughts on the internet and free access to medical facilities. Conversely, citizens who fail to pass the test must undergo compulsory rieducation courses aimed at upgrading their skills and levigating any psychological trait deemed not appropriate for a good citizen.

Many private institutes offer courses aimed at helping people prepare for said test, which happen to be expecially popular among elders above all, as they are both the category of people that struggles the most in passing the test and the one that suffers the most terrible consequences in case of failure. Due to their old age they are in fact not sent to compulsory rieducation but instead deported altogether to a dedicated facility, also losing all their properties to the state in the process. Said facility is called "The Island" and is advertised to the public as a mere city-wide retirement house, whereas residents are actually kept there to work for free and be exploited untill they pass away.

## Trivia:

* In 2048, Nova Polemos actively enforced the UN Anti-Tobacco Act. As a result, all cigarette packs are sold unbranded and with grotesque graphics depicting the consequences of smoking.
* Tasers are illegal in Nova Polemos.
* Though never clearly stated, Nova Polemos must be located on a coast or near an estuary since water is displayed in many different shots of the city. Moreover, upon fleeing the city in Chapter 4A Mordred adopts the surname "Pitrowski" to disguise himself, suggesting the city must also be very close to slavic speaking countries located in Eastern Europe. This hypothesis is furtherly corroborated by the geopolitical position of the city, kind of caught in between Europe on one side and an unspecified number of Asian totalitarian states on the other.