There are two major changes to the narrative that will likely stand out in a big way, both involving the first two challenges that Wade and his friends must complete to earn Halliday’s Keys and ultimately win the vaunted Easter Egg. In the book, the first challenge (the one for the Copper Key) takes place on the planet Ludus, where all of the various in-OASIS schools are located, and requires players to journey to the middle of nowhere to play a large-scale version of the “Dungeons & Dragons” module “Tomb of Horrors.” Once that part of the challenge is beaten, the player must then defeat a D&D baddie at a game of “Joust.”
Wade is the first person to complete that challenge, though he’s swiftly followed by Art3mis (Olivia Cooke, whom he meets inside the challenge), and the pair rocket to the top of the Scoreboard to become the most famous people inside the OASIS.
Spielberg’s film does away with all that, instead setting up the first challenge as a large-scale vehicular race that requires participating gunters to navigate a wild road race through the heart of OASIS’ version of Manhattan, while also avoiding giant monsters that include King Kong and the T. Rex from Spielberg’s own “Jurassic Park.” When the film opens, the race has never been won — no one has yet managed to push through to the finish line — and it restarts at various times, giving eager players repeated chances to win. It also gives Spielberg the chance to trot out all kinds of references, and even a glimpse at the sea of cars in the race is rife with pop culture gems: Wade and his precious DeLorean, Aech and his Bigfoot monster truck, Christine from Stephen King’s book of the same name, a motorcycle from “Akira,” and even the van from the A-Team.
What does this change do for the story? Why would it not fit the Narrative that the Book is about. Why do you think Halliday put the first key on the education planet? What was unique about that planet that fit into the ideal winner of the hunt for Jame Halliday? What was required to race that was not required to go to school?
