The Anarchy Online story is a different format than any other story ever told.
The stories told by movies and plays, are presented beginning to end in a two to three hour space. Each scene brings the watcher the information.
The stories in a TV series are done episode by episode, some times the current one builds on a previous episode. Each episode is a half hour to an hour. Like the Movie/Play the scene brings the watcher information.
The stories presented in book form go chapter by chapter, each chapter bringing the reader the information.
Every other type of story the information you need to follow and understand the story is brought to you. You have to make no (that’s zero) effort, unless you count staying conscious and paying attention as an effort.
Anarchy Online is different it requires you to do something to find and follow the story. Unless you happen to be in the right place at the right time, information will not be thrown at you. You have to go looking for it. You have to figure out how the information you find fits into the story, or if it even does at all. Information is hidden in the game and in web page articles. It is not given out in one chunk at one time, it is instead given out in small pieces and is spread out over a four year time span.
Think of the story as a mystery soap opera, that you have to search for when and what channel the next episode will be on. That’s about as close an example as I can come up with. This story is that different.
So to those who say “there is no story”, * Bzzzzzzzzzzzt * Wrong! It’s just not what you’re use to.