CNS: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 17:30, 21 February 2025

CNS is a mysterious hacking collective with the goal of destabilizing THE FINALS. They are responsible for cyberattacks against the gameshow and in-game companies. They encourage viewers to "seek the truth beyond the walls," though their exact motivations are unclear.

Story

At some point in time, CNS began disrupting and hijacking official broadcasts of THE FINALS. These are demonstrated via official trailers from Embark Studios featuring broadcast interruptions accompanied by text such as: "THIS BROADCAST HAS BEEN HACKED BY CNS. [ SEEK THE TRUTH BEYOND THE WALLS !]" and "[ ONE NIGHT, THREE DAWNS. SEE THE SIGNS ]."

In Monaco, the message "S Lies" is written on a hidden wall underneath the construction site, likely having been placed by CNS at an early stage of their infiltration. Commentator June later states: "the writing's on the wall, literally" when commenting on CNS's disruptions at the time.

In late Season 1, CNS ramped up their presence, and glitch clusters began appearing in the virtual arenas of the gameshow. Ahead of Season 2, a user named 4RCU5 began leaking new content and confidential MultiCo documents, alongside cryptic messages, via the real-world r/cns subreddit. CNS then performed a major attack, successfully breaking into the gameshow and promising to "change the game" by introducing several pieces of content, including new contestant equipment, the hacked arena SYS$HORIZON, and later the gamemode Terminal Attack. CNS's break in was facilitated by an oversight, vulnerability, or backdoor in VOLPE's technology.

In response, owner of the gameshow MultiCo enlisted cybersecurity company VAIIYA to contain and remove CNS's presence. VAIIYA insisted on rebooting and resetting the AI controlling THE FINALS, which caused it to go into a lockdown mode, transporting the show to feudal Japan and leading into Season 3.

Ahead of Season 4, MultiCo sent representative Marcel (nicknamed "Merciless Marcel") to speak to the sponsors and take some of CNS's changes "out of the spotlight."

Nothing was heard from CNS until late Season 5, when they made their presence inside the gameshow known again.

Other Information

Messages from CNS have appeared in several trailers, renders, and other official content released by Embark prior to their major hack in Season 2.

On February 3, 2024, after hotfix 1.6.1, HOLTOW's website was updated. Originally it displayed a red blinking dot, but now it displayed a hacked version of the site featuring glitchy text and static. It contained a message from CNS, confirming their involvement.

Image Metadata

Some official renders and artwork posted by Embark contain messages in their metadata relating to CNS.

Pre-launch
Image Name	Metadata Message
THE_FINALS_Wallpaper_Ingame_Heavy_Yellow_2880x1620	Hope y}u are d%i€g... DON’T TRUST THEM? - KN ...$reat, h\ve a nice day.! From Embark with love.!
THE_FINALS_Wallpaper_Iseult_Chill_2880x1620	Hi there de(r EE-'u€t=&^ This message has been compromised
A_Space_Friend	Hi there dear EE-Hunters.! Hope you a934å¨”/ÄI=Y#RI? THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED *
THE_FINALS_Namabatama	Hi th "#¤/0/! THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED
IMG_CDIV	&/¤”#(? C&/¤N)&S/#!
THE_FINALS_NAMALAPIS	CNS DONT TRUS0( THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED *
THE_FINALS_CB2_Guns_and_Namas	OPEN YOUR EYES ...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...
THE_FINALS_SHHH	. . . CNS ¤ -% OYE ! ¤ CNS -% OYE ¤ *! CNS% -! OYE
THE_FINALS_NeverOddOrEven	Taking back what is ours ///CNS ###...###...###...

Post-launch

Image Name

Metadata Message

THE_FINALS_POWERIS_POWERIS_POWERIS_wallpaper

FROM EMBARK WI¤C”=[\N¤)S.!
FROM EMBARK WI¤C”=[\N¤)S.!

THE_FINALS_ISEUL-T_wallpaper

PERMSSN     UID GID    PACKED    SIZE  RATIO        CRC        STAMP          NAME 
---------- ----------- ------- ------- ------ ---------- ------------ -------------
[generic]                 1911    3836  49.8% -lhX- 0d2G  MAR 17 2076 Vpatch_MDOSVAIiYA_?txt 
[generic]                  218     341  63.9% -lhX- 0d2G  MAR 17 2076 Vpatch_MDOSVAIiYA_?txt 
---------- ----------- ------- ------- ------ ---------- ------------ -------------
Total          2 files    2129    4177  51.0%             JAN 25 2025 


 ......________________..___.____________..________________. 
 ...//[CNS]           //   /            //                / 
 ..//                //   /            //           _____/ 
 ./           _ ____/                 /____ _           / 
 .\______________/  \___//___________/ \______________/ 
 ..............:....a.c.c.e.p.t..n.o..l.i.e.s....:...

Trailers

During the Closed Beta 2 trailer, a broadcast interruption occurs, and the following text appears on screen:

GOOD EVENING !
THIS BROADCAST HAS BEEN HACKED BY CNS
[ SEEK THE TRUTH
BEYOND THE WALLS !]

A second message appeared in the Season 1 trailer:

GOOD EVENING !
THIS BROADCAST HAS BEEN HACKED BY CNS
[ ONE NIGHT, THREE DAWNS
SEE THE SIGNS ]

The first message from CNS in the trailer for CB2
The second message from CNS in the Season 1 trailer

Theories & Speculation

Easter egg hunter fishxw theorized that CNS may refer to a central nervous system of sorts. This was confirmed by Rob Runesson, CCO of Embark Studios and creator of THE FINALS Easter Egg Hunt.

Gallery

Cover of the Season 2 original soundtrack
CNS took over official THE FINALS social media accounts leading into Season 2

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+[[File:CNS_logo_close.png|thumb|280px|CNS ASCII logo]]
-{{InfoGridCards|text1=CNS is a mysterious individual or organization with the seeming goal of destablizing THE FINALS. In-game lore vingettes suggest they are responsible for several cyberattacks against other in-game companies, organizations and the gameshow itself.
+'''CNS''' is a mysterious hacking collective with the goal of destabilizing THE FINALS. They are responsible for cyberattacks against the gameshow and in-game companies. They encourage viewers to "seek the truth beyond the walls," though their exact motivations are unclear.
-|image2=[[File:CNS Avatar.png|link=]]|header1=OVERVIEW}}
-==The Story So Far==
+==Story==
-[[File:20230616171309 1.jpg|thumb|290px]]
+At some point in time, CNS began disrupting and hijacking official broadcasts of THE FINALS. These are demonstrated via official trailers from Embark Studios featuring broadcast interruptions accompanied by text such as: "THIS BROADCAST HAS BEEN HACKED BY CNS. [ SEEK THE TRUTH BEYOND THE WALLS !]" and "[ ONE NIGHT, THREE DAWNS. SEE THE SIGNS ]."
-On June 16th 2023, during [[Pre-Release#Closed Beta 2 (CB2)|CB2]], a message was found by hunter TheSkyFox. It is hidden behind a destructible wall under the crane in [[Monaco]]. The message reads "S Lies". The message is in an orange, pixel-styled text.
-The meaning of "S Lies" is unknown, but the message is almost certainly from CNS, as it is similar to the metadata of THE_FINALS_CB2_Guns_and_Namas image. The text's font also shares a similarity with the message from the CB2 trailer.
+In [[Monaco]], the message "S Lies" is written on a hidden wall underneath the construction site, likely having been placed by CNS at an early stage of their infiltration. Commentator [[Scotty and June|June]] later states: "the writing's on the wall, literally" when commenting on CNS's disruptions at the time.
-On Feb 2nd, 2024 the [[S01 Lore Vignette 1|first Lore Vignette]] for S1 was released. While it does not directly name CNS, it does establish that a group, (likely CNS) is currently running attacks on [[OSPUZE]] or OSPUZE's CEO, [[Sofia Petronelle|Sofia]]. Scotty also states that "They're not hacks, June. They're glitches. Besides, [[Holtow|HOLTOW's]] not worried." Which would end up being an unfortunate estimate.
+[[File:CNS broadcast.jpg|thumb|A member of CNS speaking in the Season 2 trailer]]
+In late [[Season 1]], CNS ramped up their presence, and [[Secrets in THE FINALS#Glitch Clusters|glitch clusters]] began appearing in the virtual [[Arenas|arenas]] of the gameshow. Ahead of [[Season 2]], a user named [https://www.reddit.com/user/4RCU5 4RCU5] began leaking new content and confidential [[MultiCo]] documents, alongside cryptic messages, via the real-world [https://www.reddit.com/r/cns r/cns] subreddit. CNS then performed a major attack, successfully breaking into the gameshow and promising to "change the game" by introducing several pieces of content, including new contestant equipment, the hacked arena [[Horizon|SYS$HORIZON]], and later the [[Gamemodes|gamemode]] [[Terminal Attack]]. CNS's break in was facilitated by an oversight, vulnerability, or backdoor in [[Volpe|VOLPE's]] technology.
-On February 3rd, after [[Patchnotes|hotfix 1.6.1]], the [[Holtow Website]] got changed. Originally it displayed a red blinking circle. Instead, it displayed a "hacked" version of the website, with a glitching digital-like GIF filling the page. It contained a message from CNS, seemingly their first public confirmation of their existence in-universe.
+In response, owner of the gameshow MultiCo enlisted cybersecurity company [[Vaiiya|VAIIYA]] to contain and remove CNS's presence. VAIIYA insisted on rebooting and resetting the AI controlling THE FINALS, which caused it to go into a lockdown mode, transporting the show to feudal Japan and leading into [[Season 3]].
-On February 21st the [[S01 Lore Vignette 2|second Lore Vignette]] for S1 was released. This conversation between Scotty & June does directly mention CNS, and that the hijacking from the previous trailers are what the viewers watching THE FINALS are seeing during CNS's hacks.
+Ahead of [[Season 4]], MultiCo sent representative Marcel (nicknamed "Merciless Marcel") to speak to the sponsors and take some of CNS's changes "out of the spotlight."
-==Theories & Speculation==
+Nothing was heard from CNS until late [[Season 5]], when they made their presence inside the gameshow known again.
-Hunter fishxw theorized that CNS may refer to a central nervous system of sorts. This was confirmed by Rob, the CCO at Embark and creator of [[THE FINALS Easter Egg Hunt|TFEE]]:
-<gallery mode="nolines" widths="400" heights="300">
+==Other Information==
-File:CNS_speculation.PNG
+Messages from CNS have appeared in several trailers, renders, and other official content released by Embark prior to their major hack in Season 2.
-</gallery>
+On February 3, 2024, after [[Patchnotes|hotfix 1.6.1]], [[Holtow Website|HOLTOW's website]] was updated. Originally it displayed a red blinking dot, but now it displayed a hacked version of the site featuring glitchy text and static. It contained a message from CNS, confirming their involvement.
+===Image Metadata===
+Some official renders and artwork posted by Embark contain messages in their metadata relating to CNS.
-==Pre-Release Teases==
+{| class="wikitable"
-Messages about CNS first started appearing in the metadata of official art images on March 5th 2023 while there was an "EE vacation" between tiers.
+|+Pre-launch
+|-
+!Image Name
+!Metadata Message
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_Wallpaper_Ingame_Heavy_Yellow_2880x1620
+|<pre>Hope y}u are d%i€g... DON’T TRUST THEM? - KN ...$reat, h\ve a nice day.! From Embark with love.!</pre>
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_Wallpaper_Iseult_Chill_2880x1620
+|<pre>Hi there de(r EE-'u€t=&^ This message has been compromised</pre>
+|-
+|A_Space_Friend
+|<pre>Hi there dear EE-Hunters.! Hope you a934å¨”/Ä*I=Y#RI? *** THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED ***</pre>
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_Namabatama
+|<pre>Hi th "#¤/0/! THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED</pre>
+|-
+|IMG_CDIV
+|<pre>&/¤”#(? C&/¤N)&S/#!</pre>
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_NAMALAPIS
+|<pre>CNS DONT TRUS*0( *** THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED ***</pre>
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_CB2_Guns_and_Namas
+|<pre>OPEN YOUR EYES ...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...</pre>
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_SHHH
+|<pre>. . . CNS ¤ -% OYE *! ¤ CNS -% * OYE ¤ *! CNS% -! OYE</pre>
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_NeverOddOrEven
+|<pre>Taking back what is ours ///CNS ###...###...###...</pre>
+|}
+{| class="wikitable"
+|+Post-launch
+|-
+!Image Name
+!Metadata Message
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_POWERIS_POWERIS_POWERIS_wallpaper
+|<pre>
+FROM EMBARK WI¤C”=[\N¤)S.!
+FROM EMBARK WI¤C”=[\N¤)S.!
+</pre>
+|-
+|THE_FINALS_ISEUL-T_wallpaper
+|<pre>
+PERMSSN     UID GID    PACKED    SIZE  RATIO        CRC        STAMP          NAME
+---------- ----------- ------- ------- ------ ---------- ------------ -------------
+[generic]                 1911    3836  49.8% -lhX- 0d2G  MAR 17 2076 Vpatch_MDOSVAIiYA_?txt
+[generic]                  218     341  63.9% -lhX- 0d2G  MAR 17 2076 Vpatch_MDOSVAIiYA_?txt
+---------- ----------- ------- ------- ------ ---------- ------------ -------------
+Total          2 files    2129    4177  51.0%             JAN 25 2025
-#THE_FINALS_Wallpaper_Ingame_Heavy_Yellow_2880x1620:
-#*<code>Hope y}u are d%i€g... DON’T TRUST THEM? - KN ...$reat, h\ve a nice day.! From Embark with love.!</code>
-===={{colored link|#f1f2f4|TFEE_T1E|Tier 1E}}====
+  ......________________..___.____________..________________.
-#THE_FINALS_Wallpaper_Iseult_Chill_2880x1620:
+ ...//[CNS]           //   /            //                /
-#*<code>Hi there de(r EE-'u€t=&^ This message has been compromised</code>
+ ..//                //   /            //           _____/
-#A_Space_Friend:
+ ./           _ ____/                 /____ _           /
-#* <code>Hi there dear EE-Hunters.! Hope you a934å¨”/Ä*I=Y#RI? *** THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED ***</code>
+ .\______________/  \___//___________/ \______________/
-#THE_FINALS_Namabatama:
+ ..............:....a.c.c.e.p.t..n.o..l.i.e.s....:...
-#*<code>Hi th "#¤/0/! THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED</code>
+</pre>
-#IMG_CDIV:
+|}
-#*<code>&/¤”#(? C&/¤N)&S/#!</code>
-#*The following writing also appears at the top of the periodic table in the image:
-#*[[File:CNS_pt.png]]
-#THE_FINALS_NAMALAPIS:
-#*<code>CNS DONT TRUS*0( *** THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN COMPROMISED ***</code>
-===={{colored link|#f1f2f4|TFEE_T1F|Tier 1F}}====
-#THE_FINALS_CB2_Guns_and_Namas:
-#*<code>OPEN YOUR EYES ...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...CNS - SLIES...</code>
-# THE_FINALS_SHHH:
-#*<code>. . . CNS ¤ -% OYE *! ¤ CNS -% * OYE ¤ *! CNS% -! OYE</code>
-#THE_FINALS_NeverOddOrEven:
-#*<code>Taking back what is ours ///CNS ###...###...###...</code>
-===Teaser Trailers===
+===Trailers===
-During the Closed Beta 2 trailer, a broadcast interruption occurs, and the following text appears on screen:
+During the [[Closed Beta 2]] trailer, a broadcast interruption occurs, and the following text appears on screen:
 <blockquote>GOOD EVENING !<br>THIS BROADCAST HAS BEEN HACKED BY CNS<br>[ SEEK THE TRUTH <br> BEYOND THE WALLS !]</blockquote>
 A second message appeared in the Season 1 trailer:
 <blockquote>GOOD EVENING !<br>THIS BROADCAST HAS BEEN HACKED BY CNS<br>[ ONE NIGHT, THREE DAWNS <br> SEE THE SIGNS ]</blockquote>
-<gallery mode="nolines" widths="400" heights="225">
+<gallery mode="nolines" widths="300" heights="225">
 File:Cns1.PNG|The first message from CNS in the trailer for CB2
 File:Cns_FR.JPG|The second message from CNS in the Season 1 trailer
+</gallery>
+==Theories & Speculation==
+[[Easter Eggs|Easter egg]] hunter fishxw theorized that CNS may refer to a central nervous system of sorts. This was confirmed by Rob Runesson, CCO of Embark Studios and creator of [[THE FINALS Easter Egg Hunt]].
+<gallery mode="nolines" widths="400" heights="300">
+File:CNS_speculation.PNG
+</gallery>
+==Gallery==
+<gallery mode="nolines" widths="300" heights="225">
+CNS OST cover.jpg|Cover of the Season 2 original soundtrack
+CNS YouTube.png|CNS took over official THE FINALS social media accounts leading into Season 2
 </gallery>