For the next two days, Horizon Interactive's official accounts went completely dark.
No announcements. No gameplay reveals. Not even a single piece of concept art. Just... silence. The kind of silence that drives the internet absolutely insane.
The deliberate radio blackout didn't kill Delta Force's momentum. If anything, it threw gasoline on an already raging fire.
Community discussion didn't cool down — it superheated into something approaching collective obsession.
Without official news to chew on, players took matters into their own hands. Countless posts and analysis videos started dissecting the only two available clips frame by frame, squinting at every pixel, attempting to excavate Delta Force's hidden lore from the smallest details.
"Chat, the key is definitely the 'Mandel Brick' from the first trailer!" one content creator declared, jabbing his finger at a freeze-frame on screen. "The squad fought tooth and nail for it. That close-up at the end? That's not an accident. The camera lingers on it."
"This thing is core to the story. I'm betting Delta Force's entire plot revolves around the Mandel Brick!"
"Facts. Absolute facts."
"And look at Saeed's voice lines—"
"You've fallen into a trap!"
"Burn! Despair!"
"Feel my wrath!"
"These are villain lines, people. Our operators are clearly fighting against him."
"Yeah, those don't exactly scream 'noble guardian protecting something legitimate.' That's straight-up bad guy energy."
"I dunno," someone offered a different take, leaning back in their chair with a thoughtful expression. "What if Saeed's actually a victim? Like, driven insane by something? Corrupted?"
"Maybe there's something buried under Zero Dam? Something they don't want getting out?"
"Is the Mandel Brick used to activate something? Or suppress it?"
"The more you think about it, the creepier it gets! 'Zero Class' mode implies higher security clearance. Deeper secrets. Stuff the public isn't supposed to know."
"Standard mode is probably just surface-level conflict. Zero Class is where you find out what's really going on underneath."
"And Saeed's equipment and aimbot reflexes don't look human. Could he be some kind of experiment? Modified soldier? Super-soldier program gone wrong?"
The conspiracy theories multiplied like rabbits. Plot speculation ran wild. Character backstory debates raged across every forum, every comment section, every Discord server. People were drawing connection charts. Making timeline videos. Arguing about lore that didn't even exist yet.
Delta Force hadn't even launched, but the mysterious worldbuilding had already sunk its hooks deep into the entire gaming community — and all anyone had seen was the tip of the iceberg.
The collective puzzle-solving frenzy continued right up until the test qualifications were announced.
On the morning before the test, Horizon Interactive's official account — silent for two agonizing days — finally resurfaced with a single, concise update:
HORIZON INTERACTIVE
Delta Force: Zero Dam — Closed Beta Qualification Announcement
After random selection, the following 100 players have been chosen for the Pioneer Test:
@Vinny @BigFishGaming @JakeYardley @MatchKing_Undefeated @Upvote4Luck @ForumHunterMom @LandLootNap @EasyFragGirl @SleepingEarlyTonight @EsportsPianist
[90 names omitted]
TEST DETAILS:
📍 Location: Crane Interactive Building, 2nd Floor, Bayview 🕒 Time: Tomorrow, 3:00 PM — 6:00 PM 📋 Requirements: Valid ID + signed NDA
We look forward to meeting all pioneers!
— Delta Force Project Team
The moment the list dropped, the internet collectively lost its mind.
"AHHHHHHH I'M IN!!! I'M ACTUALLY IN!!!"
"I'm literally crying... I didn't make it... Wait, hold up — is that EsportsPianist? The guy who spammed 'PICK ME' in every single comment section for two weeks straight??"
"Crane Interactive? Never heard of them. They're not even doing this at a proper gaming venue?"
"Bro is THAT the point right now?? The POINT is THE QUALIFICATIONS"
"@Vinny — Vinny actually got picked!! Okay, tell us the truth! Did you cut a backroom deal with Blake Weiss?! (¬‿¬)"
Almost simultaneously with the announcement, Vinny's stream title changed to:
[Let's talk about that Delta Force test spot I just got — NO backroom deals, I SWEAR]
The moment he went live, viewers flooded in like a dam had burst. They found Vinny sitting at his desk, desperately trying to keep a straight face.
He was failing miserably. The smugness radiated off him like heat from a space heater in winter.
"Ahem!" He cleared his throat with theatrical gravitas, adjusting an imaginary tie. "So, uh, yeah. When luck's on your side, what can you do? Sometimes the universe just... provides."
"I just left a casual comment. System picked randomly. Crazy how that works, hehehe..."
His grin was so wide it threatened to split his face in half.
Chat exploded with accusations:
"SHAMELESS""RIGGED""BACKROOM DEAL CONFIRMED""THE FIX IS IN"
"Backroom deal? Absolutely not!" Vinny slammed his palm on his desk in mock outrage, rattling his microphone. "I, Vinny, am a man of integrity. Pure, unadulterated luck! The RNG gods smiled upon me!"
"Blake Weiss and I just have a... spiritual connection. From Desert Bus. Yeah." He nodded sagely. "Spiritual connection. Fellow travelers on the road of gaming enlightenment."
The more he explained, the harder chat roasted him:
"I don't buy it! Why is it ALWAYS you who gets first dibs on his games??"
"Spill it. What dirt do you have on Blake Weiss? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)"
"Don't stress Vinny, we get it. Backroom deals are a form of skill too"
"Exactly! Shows how well-connected our boy is"
"I'm staking out Crane Interactive's entrance tomorrow to see how 'randomly' you got selected"
Vinny cackled at the chat, throwing his head back. "Oh, you're all just jealous! Blatant, shameless jealousy! The salt is palpable!"
He leaned forward, eyes gleaming with anticipation. "After the test tomorrow, I'll be back here live. First-hand Zero Dam experience, straight from the source. Unfiltered. Raw. The real deal."
"Don't worry — I'll check with the devs about what I can and can't say. Not trying to get sued for NDA breach. I enjoy having money."
"We'll see if this game lives up to the hype when I actually get my hands on it."
"But for now..." He leaned into the camera until his face filled the frame, voice dropping to a dramatic whisper. "I'm making a promise right here, right now. Witness me, chat."
"I'm going to solo Saeed tomorrow."
Chat went absolutely feral. A wall of emotes and screaming text scrolled so fast it became unreadable.
The entire gaming world's attention converged on Bayview.
On those 100 lucky players, suddenly the most envied people in the community.
On the mysterious Crane Interactive, a company nobody had heard of until a week ago.
On Delta Force — and the secrets waiting inside Zero Dam.
Meanwhile, on Blake's end:
[Text Messages]
Blake: Hey Ivy, quick question — can we handle crowd control tomorrow? 100 people is a lot.
Ivy: Crane Interactive might not be huge, but keeping 100 players in line is easy. We've handled worse.
Blake: Cool, good to know. Hey — want to try the game tomorrow? Delta's designed for three-person squads, but two works fine.
Ivy: Hmm, let me check my schedule...
Ivy: Actually I'm free. Sure, I'll come.
Blake: 👍
Blake set down his phone and rubbed his eyes, a slow smile spreading across his face.
Tomorrow. He'd finally get to play the real Delta Force. With actual people. Real chaos. Real competition. Real extraction runs where anything could happen.
Sure, he could play right now — the System gave him full access. But solo testing was boring. Clinical. The magic of extraction shooters was in the chaos of other players. The unpredictability. The betrayals and alliances and desperate last-second escapes.
Besides, if he enabled developer mode...
Tsk tsk tsk.
Heart of Africa dropping every other kill. Resuscitation kits spawning like candy. Infinite ammo. God mode. He could walk through Zero Dam like an invincible demigod, hoovering up loot without a care in the world.
Tempting? Absolutely. His finger had hovered over that option more than once during the past two days.
But it would also ruin everything Delta Force was about. The thrill of extraction shooters was the uncertainty. The gambling. The sweaty palms when you're loaded with loot and the extraction point is just across that open field. Not knowing if the next crate held treasure or trash. Not knowing if the footsteps around the corner belonged to a friend or an enemy.
If you rigged the drops, you killed the soul of the game. Turned it from an experience into a spreadsheet.
Better to experience it legit. Feel what the players would feel.
Blake leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling with anticipation buzzing through his veins.
Tomorrow was going to be fun.
PLZ THROW POWERSTONES.