"Too easy," Leo muttered, his mouse hovering over the download button. His gut told him it was a virus, but the desire to see those hyper-realistic chickens in VR was stronger than his common sense. He clicked.

The chickens began to close in, their black, bead-like eyes reflecting a version of Leo that looked much smaller and much more delicious.

Leo strapped on his headset. The world went black. Usually, there was a loading screen, a logo, or at least a health warning. Instead, a line of white text appeared in the void: FEED THE FLOCK.

While this story is a thrill, remember that in the real world, "Free Downloads" for paid VR games are almost always:

"Where’s the exit?" Leo shouted, his voice echoing weirdly in his headphones.

The neon light of Leo’s monitor was the only thing illuminating his cramped apartment. It was 3:00 AM, the hour of poor decisions and deep-web digging. He’d been hunting for a cracked version of " Chicks and Tricks VR "—a high-octane, physics-based party game that was currently trending but cost more than his remaining grocery budget.