Alexander Besher: RIM [1998] paperback

It’s 2027. Tokyo has survived the Mega-Quake of the Millennium and Satori Corporation, the owner of a virtual reality entertainment empire, is embroiled in cut-throat corporate warfare to preserve its market share and, incidentally, save the lives of thousands of users trapped inside its virtual worlds. All of this seems far away to Professor Frank Gobi as he strolls across the placid Berkley, California, campus – until he gets home to find his perpetually on-line ten-year-old son stuck inside Satori’s virtual Gametime and literally fighting for his life.