Parzival (Ready Player One)

"Citizens of the OASIS, I am Parzival, first to the key. I'm here talking to all of you now because our future's being threatened by people who will stop at nothing to win this contest. Some of you already know this, and you've lost much more than just your avatars or your weapons. Some have lost their freedom. Some have lost their lives. And now, this. A force field around the third challenge. I only came here to escape the shitty hand that life dealt me. But I stayed, like many of you, because I found something much bigger than just myself. I found a cause. I found my friends. And yes, I know it's kind of a groaner, but... I found love. And I don't wanna lose that to this colossal douchebag, Nolan Sorrento. He thinks that we're all too distracted to even notice. Nolan Sorrento thinks that we won't put up a fight. The only thing Halliday let this guy do... was get him a cup of coffee. And now, we're supposed to hand him the OASIS? He thinks that we won't even put up a fight! Well, I say he's wrong. I say, tell that to the gunter clans in the gold mines of Gygax. Ask yourself, are willing to zero out for the OASIS? Are you willing to fight? I am Parzival of the High Five. In the name of Art3mis, in the name of Aech, in the name of Daito and Sho, we ask you to join us on Planet Doom. In the name of James Halliday himself, help us save the OASIS."

- Wade sending his message to everyone in the OASIS

Wade Owen Watts, under the virtual name Parzival, is the main protagonist of Erenest Cline's novel and Steven Spielberg's movie Ready Player One.

He is portrayed by Tye Sheridan, who also plays a younger Cyclops in the X-Men Series.

Biography
Wade was born to a teenage couple, two refugees who met in the stacks. His father, who goes unnamed, was shot to death when Wade was only a few months of age. He was allegedly shot and killed while looting a grocery store during a power outage.

His mother, Loretta, held two full-time positions within the OASIS. She worked as a telemarketer by day, and as a virtual escort by night. It is explained by Wade, that Loretta used the OASIS to babysit him during these work hours; he would play interactive games and learn fundamental skills within the virtual world, beginning his infatuation with technology at a young age.

When Wade was around 11 years old, Loretta died due to her drug addiction. She "shot a bad batch of something into her arm," and Wade found her, listening to music on a MP3 player. After her death, he is forced to live with his aunt Alice, her often abusive boyfriends, and others who rent rooms in his aunt's double-wide trailer. Wade states that she doesn't actually take care of him; the only reason his aunt agreed to take him in was to receive additional food vouchers. He spends very little time in her trailer; he only sleeps and eats there when he must. Most of Wade's waking hours are spent in his secret hideout.

After Wade completed Halliday's Hunt, he became one of the richest people in the world and also gained abilities of Anorak in OASIS world (that included unlimited hit points and cyberpotence).

The Egg
After the announcement of James Halliday's Easter Egg Hunt, Wade is one of millions of people all over the world who eschew "normal" life to become full-time gunters (short for "Egg Hunters"), OASIS users who are obsessed with learning everything about James Halliday and his history to discover the easter egg and earn his fortune. The Egg Hunt consists of locating three keys placed in different places throughout the many worlds of the OASIS to unlock three matching gates. After locating all three keys and gates, one must be tested for their worthiness of Halliday's fortune. Only then will one reach The End, where their prize awaits.

As indicated by Anorak's Almanac, knowledge of 1980's pop culture was critical to locating the keys scattered throughout the OASIS. Wade, among many others, immersed himself in countless television shows, video games, science fiction novels, comic books, and more. Over the years, Wade amassed a mental and digital collection of thousands of items relevant to the Egg Hunt. This included digital versions of coin operated video games such as Galaga, Defender, Asteroids, Robotron: 2084, sitcoms like Family Ties, comics including complete editions of The Amazing Spider-Man, The X-Men, Green Lantern, and much more.

Over the course of five years, Wade and millions of other OASIS users comb countless worlds of the OASIS simulation for any lead to where the Copper Key might be. Their only leads were the original poem given in the Almanac, and The Limerick discerned from marked entries in the Almanac.

Assassination attempt
During the course of the Halliday's Easter Egg Hunt, IOI attempted a blackmail and assassinate Wade by planting explosives in his aunt's stack in a way that made it appear as if a drug lab had exploded in a huge accident. However, Wade was not killed because he was in his hideout at the time. In an attempt to stay hidden from IOI, Wade Watts assumed the alias of Bryce Lynch, a 22-year old male with an immaculate credit rating and a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science. He was able to do this via connections he made with hackers on the OASIS. He also assumes a position at a tech help desk to help pay the bills and fund his research.

Indentured Servitude
After facing the problem of the Orb of Osuvox near the end of the story, Wade decides to infiltrate IOI as an indentured servant. By modifying his aliases financial status to being indebted to IOI for tens of thousand dollars, Wade successfully manipulates the IOI into abducting and forcing him to work off his debt. He is given a help-desk position much like his old job, but without the freedoms of being able to watch movies or anything else on the job. Using tools he acquired from hackers he had contacted when creating his alias, He was able to hack the IOI database and download nearly ten zettabytes of information relevant to The Hunt onto a flash drive. He also requisitioned a figurative time bomb to be delivered and detonated inside the shield at a later date in order to take it down. Once he had successfully done this, he transferred enough money back into his account to pay off his debt, allowing him to slip passed the security. Once he escaped, he resumed his original identity as Wade Owen Watts and removed all records of existence for Bryce Lynch.

Winning the competition
After Wade completed Halliday's Hunt, he became one of the richest people in the world and also gained the abilities of Anorak in the OASIS world (including unlimited hit points and cyberpotence).

Personality
Wade is quick-witted and passionate, his dedication to being a gunter by finding the egg fuels his desire to win. He is extremely knowledgeable in 1980s video games and spent a lot of time in hiding from his aunt to practice as much video games listed in Anorak's Almanac as possible. His determination is essential for his success in the contest.

Quotes
"Wade Owen Watts: What’s up, Aech? Aech: Hey, What up, Z? Parzival: Next race is in 20 minutes, and I can't do the late one. What the hell are you up to? Aech: Man, gettin' my kills on, bro. Wade Owen Watts: Is that Daito? Aech: Daito and Sho."

- Wade Owen Watts talking to Aech in Planet Doom.

"I was born in 2027. After the Corn Syrup Droughts, after the Bandwidth Riots. After people stopped trying to fix problems and just tried to outlive them. My parents, they didn't make it through those times, so I live here in Columbus, Ohio, with my Aunt Alice. In 2045, Columbus is the fastest-growing city on Earth. It's where Halliday and Morrow started Gregarious Games. These days, reality is a bummer. Everyone is looking for a way to escape, and that's why Halliday... That's why he was such a hero to us. He showed us that we could go somewhere without going anywhere at all. You don't need a destination when you're running on an omnidirectional treadmill with quadraphonic, pressure-sensitive underlay. James Halliday saw the future. And then he built it. He gave us a place to go. A place called the OASIS."

- Wade Owen Watts narrating the Story

"Parzival: FIRST TO THE KEY! All: FIRST TO THE EGG!!!"

- Parzival to the Citizens of the OASIS.