ME-EM concept art
The ME-EM (/miːm/) is an American portable gaming console from the 90s. The one used by Pax has been modified with custom hardware and takes a cartridge that allows her to see and capture Echoes, though it can still be used to play minigames. The console is on v3.7.7 of the ME-EM OS and was originally manufactured by Atlan Tek.
History[]
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Atlan Tek developed the ME-EM as a handheld gaming console in the 1990s, but it never reached financial success. However, Protolanguage scientists from the United States modified the device in order to learn how to control Protolanguage. After the Broadcast in the 2000s, Pax gained possession of the ME-EM machine and was adopted by Annie and Rosa. In Liberty, Oregon, Pax used the ME-EM to hunt down Echoes and prevent them from infecting her peers, but she and Ziggy often fought over the machine. In 2014, Pax was ordered to leave Liberty because people from another commune saw her use Vocals, so she gave the ME-EM to Ziggy as a memento of their friendship.
In 2030, Pax tells Jacob about the ME-EM, and he states that the Weave would compensate her if she brings it to Nova Scotia. Pax returns to Liberty and receives the ME-EM from Ziggy, allowing her to capture the Echoes that resurfaced in the commune. Throughout the trip, Pax uses the ME-EM to capture more Echoes, activate Echo air explosions to uncover items, and craft new Vocals. In Pax's Librarian and Expat Codas, she makes it to Nova Scotia and gives them access to the ME-EM, but in the Ronin Coda, she never gets on the boat and keeps the ME-EM for her own use in her vigilante quest.
ME-EM Face[]
The ME-EM Face program allows to customize the face of the ME-EM displayed in its passive mode. The analog sticks control the direction of the eyes while the face buttons control the expression of the eyes, the eyebrows, and the mouth. The HUD changes based on the input device the player is using, but for supported controllers, the real controller's buttons and analog sticks correspond to the ME-EM's buttons and analog sticks.
Minigames[]
The ME-EM contains basic games that are unrelated to its Protolanguage modifications.
Wave Runner[]
This game consists of a gun moving between three rails. The player must shoot the circular symbols to earn points and avoid letting them reach the left side of the screen or the gun itself, or the player will take damage. The player can collect pulse symbols to gain points, but shooting pulse symbols will lower their score.
Paddlepong[]
This game is a version of Pong with modified rules and balancing. The paddles are longer than the ones in many other Pong implementations, the player needs to score five points to win instead of eleven, and the aspect ratio is closer to 16:9 instead of the traditional 1:1. Although the ME-EM version of Paddlepong is mechanically the same as the arcade versions in Ziggy's cabin and the New Jerusalem mall, it has a smaller viewport, uses different font for the scores, uses different colors, and doesn't make its paddles look three-dimensional.
Protolanguage functions[]
The ME-EM has several functions related to Protolanguage and Vocals, which can only be used by Pax.
Echo recording[]
The ME-EM is capable of recording Echoes in order to contain them, and selecting Echoes in the console's main menu displays the current number of held Echoes as well as the total amount needed to learn a new Vocal. When an Echo is recorded, a sonic explosion is generated around the Echo's location, which can knock over objects and reveal hidden items.
Detection[]
While wearing headphones, Pax enters into a state that she calls the "Stillness," where her vision changes so that most of the world turns dark-blue. Echoes are portrayed as a red-orange glow, Echo-infectees and the Tree of Tongues glow red-orange, and Anomals glow yellow.
Lone Echo[]
In order to record an Echo, Pax must use the ME-EM to pull it into a circle, but it will need to be pulled in the opposite direction that it's trying to escape to. Once the recording percentage reaches 100, the Echo won't be able to escape and the saving process will commence. These mechanics don't apply if the Echo is possessing someone or is held by a squid.
Echo disinfection[]
The ME-EM can remove Echoes from an infectee by pulling the Echo away from the victim.
Squid combat[]
Protolanguage squids roam the American Republic in order to devour Echoes, and they will sometimes do so just when Pax is about to capture one. Pax can reclaim the stolen Echoes by using the ME-EM on a squid and winning a minigame consisting of quick time events.
Word crafting[]
Once Pax collects enough Echoes, she can use the ME-EM to create a new Vocal, which is a process Jacob describes as translating and rewriting Echoes. The first part of this process displays a dotted wave and a solid wave, and Pax must use the analog sticks to adjust the size and position of the solid wave to match the dotted one. Once the two waves are combined, Pax has to press the indicated face buttons as a vertical line travels across the wave, revealing the new Vocal's Protolanguage symbols. Afterwards, the ME-EM emits a light towards Pax in order to grant her the new Vocal.
