Almighty Video Game Designer #Chapter 11 - Read Almighty Video Game Designer Chapter 11 Online - All Page - Novel Next
Chapter 11: Chapter 10 – Decisive Victory!
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
Shi Huazhe remained silent. Although Qiu Hengyang was his junior, they were both B-grade video game designers. Moreover, Qiu Hengyang remained active in the cutting edge of research. It wouldn't look good if they were at each other's throats.
Furthermore, Shi Huazhe felt that he had no chance of winning an argument against Qiu Hengyang. Therefore, he chose to swallow his pride and keep his mouth shut.
The emcee could also feel that the atmosphere surrounding the judges wasn't quite right, and quickly diverted attention away from them. "Alright, thanks for the insightful reviews by the three judges. Personally, I don't think there is a game that pleases everybody. It's quite normal to have people who dislike your game. There isn't an objective of good or bad. In the end, the decision still lies in the hands of the audience. Up next is the second recommendation round!"
Shi Huazhe had calmed down a bit after the mediation by the emcee.
The audience was once again given the chance to recommend a game in the next round. However, it was obvious that the focus was on FlappyBird and Hunter Island.
It was impossible for the other games to overtake FlappyBird. The key factor became how many recommendations Hunter Island was able to achieve in this last round!
The audience was also hesitant.
"Which one are you voting for?"
"I think Mr. Shi made sense, isn't FlappyBird too simple? Does it deserve to be crowned champion?"
"So you're voting for Hunter Island?"
"Umm, I can't say for sure. Although it felt like more effort was poured into Hunter Island, it wasn't as fun as FlappyBird."
"Then why are you still hesitating? Qiu Hengyang also made sense. I'm voting for FlappyBird no matter what."
"Then I'll also vote for FlappyBird."
"Let's get it over and done with, I can't be the only one to have endured the torture."
Soon thereafter, the updated statistics were shown.
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FlappyBird had one thousand and thirty-seven recommends!
Hunter island had five hundred and thirty-seven recommends!
Hunter Island needed to get a hundred and twenty eight votes more to take first place; it was obviously hopeless at this point.
Moreover, FlappyBird received nearly five hundred votes in the second round; you could say it was a crushing defeat!
The emcee said, "Alright, the final results are out! According to the rules, FlappyBird has proven itself to be the favorite by playtime and number of recommendations. However, we still need the approval of the three judges. If they reach a unanimous decision that the game isn't worthy, unfortunately it will have to be disqualified.
"The three judges, what are your thoughts?"
The emcee looked in the direction of the three judges.
Shi Huazhe and Lin Hai were silent.
It required a unanimous decision for the game to not be recognized. Qiu Hengyang's stance was obvious. Even if Shi Huazhe and Lin Hai asserted that they were against it, it would end up fruitless. Therefore both of them kept quiet.
Qiu Hengyang took control of the mic. "I approve of this game. I think it fully deserved to take first place in this competition."
The emcee nodded in agreement. "Alright! That means the champion of the video game design competition has been decided: FlappyBird of designer number Seven!
"May designer number Seven make their way up the stage to receive their prizes. They have received three hundred thousand RMB in research funds, qualifications to be a D-grade video game designer, and their very own video game experience store! Congratulations!"
Chen Mo got up from his seat and walked towards the stage.
The audience and the competitors wondered what kind of person had made such a sadistic game.
Perhaps half of the audience wanted to take a peek inside his mind. Are you antisocial? Why would you make a self-torturing game like this? Why?
Of course, it was just in their minds.
Surprisingly, Chen Mo had a disinterested expression, without a hint of celebration, as though he had known that this would happen from the start.
To him, going up stage to collect his prize was just a necessary part of the unnecessary ritual.
"Congratulations!" The emcee shook hands with Chen Mo, then handed over the trophy to him.
"After you get off stage the staff will contact you in order to transfer the money into your account. As for the experience store, discuss it further with the staff involved."
Chen Mo nodded in reply.
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The emcee said loudly, "Well, let's give another round of applause to designer number seven, Chen Mo!"
Thundering applause came from the audience, flashes came from the surrounding journalists. Chen Mo was being quite cooperative and made a suitable pose while holding the trophy.
At this moment, someone spoke up. "Um, emcee, can I have a word?"
The emcee was shocked to see Shi Huazhe when he turned around.
-What's the meaning of this?-
The emcee thought for a moment. According to the event structure, the competition had ended, the reviews were given, what else was there to say?
However, since Shi Huazhe had presented himself, it wouldn't make sense to cut him off. Therefore the emcee replied with a nod, "Of course, go ahead."
The applause from the audience slowly died down, wondering what Shi Huazhe had to say.
Shi Huazhe cleared his throat and said, "First, congratulations on winning."
Chen Mo replied with a nod, "Thank you."
Shi Huazhe continued, "As someone from the past, I'd like to share some of my experience from the past. Would you like to listen?"
Chen Mo nodded with a smile. "Of course."
Shi Huazhe said, "I think, young man, that your views are indeed unique. The thought process for designing the game was also very different, I'm thoroughly impressed. However, you can't get by making games just by having great ideas. It may come back to bite you when your ideas are too great.
"When making games, it's best that you stick to the norm without being too fancy. It's impossible to keep finding opportunities like this. You might be able to do it once, but you can't keep this up forever.
"Let's use your game for example. I still stand by my words, you haven't moved the audience or brought them happiness. You triggered their negative emotions in order to keep them playing. It's something I strongly disapprove of.
"Hopefully you can leave the path you've strayed onto. Please do not continue on that path just because you've won this time. It'll only do you bad, understood?"
After the words had left Shi Huazhe's mouth, the atmosphere became odd.
Although in essence it was congratulatory, what was implied was plenty obvious: Chen Mo had achieved this result through a loophole, fooling around, and pure luck. Making another game like this would only lead to a dead end.
Obivously Shi Huazhe hadn't swallowed the insult from Qiu Hengyang. He couldn't say that to Qiu Hengyang himself, and obviously accepting that he was wrong was off the table. That's why he chose to 'advise' Chen Mo.
Shi Hua Zhe knew that confronting Qiu Hengyang had its risks. If Qiu Hengyang got angry and the two of them started quarrelling, there would be no benefit to anyone. However, confronting Chen Mo was risk free. As a video game designer that had just entered the industry, all he could do was nod in agreement, "Thanks for the guidance!". Any opinions would be kept to themselves.
How could Qiu Hengyang have not understood the intent of Shi Huazhe? However, as Shi Huazhe wasn't targeting Qiu Hengyang himself, he couldn't retaliate. All he could do was to watch Chen Mo swallow the insult!
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Chapter 12: Chapter 11- Most Important Quality of a Video Game Designer
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
The emcee also noticed the intent behind the words. Being afraid of confrontation, the emcee quickly said, "Alright, thank you, Mr. Shi for your recommendations. I'm sure competitor Chen Mo will take the important lesson passed down by his predecessor. Up next..."
Before the emcee could finish, Chen Mo was speaking into the mic, "I disagree."
The emcee was shocked, while Shi Huazhe was stunned!
Qiu Hengyang and Lin Hai were also surprised.
What's going on? Was a competitor going to confront one of the judges?
The emcee panicked slightly, but it was too late to stop Chen Mo from speaking. The emcee could only allow Chen Mo to have his way and continue.
"Mind your words, this is being live-streamed!" the emcee whispered to Chen Mo, reminding him of the circumstances.
Ignoring the emcee, Chen Mo continued while holding the mic, "Everyone, when you guys were playing FlappyBird, did you guys have fun when you beat your high score? Raise your hand if you had fun."
After a few moments, a majority of the audience put up their hands.
"When you climbed up the leaderboards, did you have fun? Raise your hand if you had fun."
Again, a majority of them raised their hands, albeit less than before, but still quite similar.
"When you beat your friend's high score when playing together, did you have fun? Raise your hand if you had fun."
There were even more who had their hands up, this time a large majority of them agreed.
"After failing, did you guys choose to give up or try again? If you gave up, please put up your hand."
Hardly anyone raised their hands.
"After trying so many times, raise your hand if you think that was meaningless."
A few of the audience members put up their hands. However, after noticing nobody doing the same, they put them back down.
Chen Mo continued, "Obviously, the audience thinks that my game has brought them happiness.
"The purpose of the game is to control the player's emotions. Sometimes the negative emotions may deceive you, but think about it. If a game only gave you negative emotions, would you continue playing it?"
Many of the audience members shook their heads.
Chen Mo continued, "As long as a game keeps you playing, it brings you happiness... unless you are just a plain masochist."
The audience laughed in agreement.
Chen Mo looked at Shi Huazhe. "Just because you don't enjoy a game, doesn't mean there's nothing to enjoy. It's quite the opposite! My players think it's a good game, it doesn't abuse negative emotions by trapping players."
The corners of Shi Huazhe's mouth were twitching.
Chen Mo continued, "I think the most important trait to have as a video game designer is objectivity. Being able to look at games objectively, regardless of liking the game or not... that's a trait that qualified video game designers should have.
"A food reviewer who doesn't like spicy food. Every time he has Szechuanese food, he gives them the lowest rating. Would that make him a qualified food reviewer?
"Similarly, if you don't like a game, you think it's garbo. What's the difference between you and the food reviewer?
"That's all I have to say, thank you."
Chen Mo shoved the mic into the hands of the emcee, and turned around to get off the stage.
He didn't want to put in the time and effort to get into a full blown debate with Shi Huazhe.
"You..." Shi Huazhe's eyes were filled with rage, so angry he almost stood up and slammed the table.
Lin Hai, who was sitting next to him, quickly tried to calm the situation. "What would a kid like him know? Don't bother with him."
Shu Huazhe was pent up with rage, but remained in control. It was not that he didn't want to let his anger out, but he couldn't think of anything to say in retaliation.
Getting the audience to raise their hands and a food reviewer metaphor, all without stuttering. There wasn't much he could do other than make up some nonsense.
Qiu He couldn't help but laugh. He didn't think he could silence Shi Huazhe as thoroughly without any hesitation
Chen Mo's performance on stage just now wasn't typical of an entry-level video game designer. Straightforward, good delivery, clear speech. It was better than some seniors who had been to many press conferences!
Moreover, Shi Huazhe had also noticed Chen Mo's eyes. It might be too much to describe it as "looking at an idiot", but it was basically like an adult looking at a rowdy, troublesome child.
This was shocking to Qiu Hengyang. He came to realize that this guy might be more of a thinker than he had imagined.
Qiu Hengyang stood up and followed Chen Mo down the stage.
——
Chen Mo left the mess for the emcee to clean up. All that mattered was that he got first place, and got what he wanted.
As he got off the stage, Qiu Hengyang came up to him.
Qiu Hengyang stepped in front of him. "Mr Chen Mo!"
Chen Mo was a bit surprised. "Hi, is there something you need?"
Qiu Hengyang said, "I really admire your work. I was just wondering if you were interested in joining and becoming my assistant. The pay will be as generous as can be.
Chen Mo shook his head, "I appreciate the gesture, but I have my own plans."
Qiu Hengyang nodded, understanding the meaning behind it. Obviously he didn't want to work for someone; he must be looking to start his own company, and make his own games!
"Alright, I wish you good luck and I hope that we will have opportunities to work together in the future," said Qiu Hengyang.
Chen Mo nodded, "Alright, I hope we meet again in the future."
The two of them shook hands. Qiu Hengyang didn't want to speak too much, leaving after exchanging contacts.
To others it might seem like an irresistible temptation, but it was completely unattractive in Chen Mo's eyes.
Even if the CEO of a big company, such as Emperor Dynasty Entertainment, invited him personally to be their main designer, it would be a no deal. There would always be constraints when working for someone, and Chen Mo didn't like being constrained during the design process.
—
Soon thereafter, Chen Mo found the staffers he was looking for.
The man said, " We have your bank account information, and the three hundred thousand RMB will be transferred to your account within two or three business days. Please look for it.
"Also, here's the keys to the experience store; write down this address. When the time comes, there will be professionals coming to help you decorate. If you have any problems, please call me. You can decorate however you want, but there is a budget. We can discuss that in detail near the end of the fulfilment period.
Chem Mo nodded, " Alright, thanks."
—
Everything after that went according to the formalities. After the hand-over was complete, Chen Mo left the site of the competition by taxi.
It was quite warm and Chen Mo still had a suit on. Just the thought of being crammed into public transport made him shudder. Moreover, he just won three hundred thousand RMB, may as well treat himself!
—
As there wasn't much traffic on the roads, Chen Mo arrived at his hotel after half an hour.
Back in his room, Chen Mo changed out of his suit into shorts and a T-shirt, then packed his luggage.
Chen Mo lived on the outskirts of the Imperial Capital some distance away, requiring nearly an hour by train. Not much could be done, as the rent was quite high closer to the Imperial Capital. He couldn't afford to rent houses in the third ring.
However, after winning the experience store, Chen Mo could cancel the lease on his previous rental home!
There wasn't much to pack. Everything could fit in one luggage bag, including his laptop. Chen Mo checked out with his luggage in hand, taking a taxi to the experience store right away to check out the state of the store.
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Chapter 13: Chapter 12 – Experience Store
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
The experience store was located northeast of the Imperial Capital around the fourth ring. It was within a middle-upper class area. It was slightly off the beaten track, but this also meant that it would be quiet.
Chen Mo stepped out of the taxi and walked in front of the experience store with his luggage trailing behind him.
The experience store was a two-story building. The store wasn't big, there were no signs outside, and the door was locked. Chen Mo unlocked the door and carried his luggage inside.
—
From the inside, it seemed very spacious. Every floor had about two hundred square meters and a few pieces of furniture, such as a sofa.
"It's quite spacious." Chen Mo was quite surprised. He thought that an experience store with a hundred square meters would be impressive; he wasn't expecting it to be so big.
Two hundred square meters. If it was decorated like a normal (non-VR) internet cafe, it could probably fit thirty to forty computers. The extra space could be used for sofas, plants and a drink dispenser.
Basically, the first floor was decorated in the style of an internet cafe, to allow players to try out games, whereas the second floor was used as an office space and a resting area.
The first floor was still mostly empty to cater to the different plans a designer might have for this space. Video game designers that focused on VR games would obviously have VR gear set up on the first floor, therefore the organizers could only start renovations after confirming things with the designer.
Chen Mo was quite satisfied by the interior and the cleanliness of the building.
—
All of the second floor was the designer's own personal space.
The designer's office had standard VR gear, a high end computer, and many different brands of mobile phones. There was also a professional grade computer for designing games with the video game engine preinstalled.
Video game designers drew inspiration from playing large numbers of games. Therefore an office space equipped with all three main modes of video games — VR, PC and mobile — was included with the experience store.
The resting area contained a desk, a bookshelf, and a large bed for a minimalistic look. There were also some basic home appliances, so living here long-term wasn't a problem. At least the living area was much better than his rental house!
Many video game designers in this world were workaholics, therefore a resting area next to the office space was a must.
The decor in the entire experience store was customizable. The staff members from the competition might help with small tasks. Large tasks required money out of his own pocket and required the approval of the staff from the competition.
Chen Mo only had the right to use the experience store,he didn't own it. After all, it was a massive property in a place like the Imperial Capital, where land was expensive. Buying the property would easily surpass eight digits, with another million for the procedures required. It was highly unlikely that the organizers would give the rights to the property away, even if they felt extremely generous.
Of course, just the right to use it was saving Chen Mo a huge sum of money at the end of the month, so Chen Mo wasn't ungrateful.
——
After checking out the building, Chen Mo gave the staffer from before a call to ask him about the decorations.
After half an hour, the staffer arrived.
"Two-thirds of the main hall will be for computers, the rest of it will contain massage chairs and equipment for mobile games. There will be a bar installed over here. As for the drinks, we'll use a vending machine for now.
"A fridge over here, and a snack bar here.
"And put a bookshelf over here. I plan to buy some gaming-related books and magazines.
"Build a divider around the sofa and put a small meeting desk and a projector there.
"Could I get some plants on the second floor balcony?
"And over here..."
The staffer was jotting down notes as Chen Mo threw out his requests.
The first floor was basically an internet cafe, although the computers weren't as tightly packed. According to Chen Mo's requests, there would be eighteen computers and ten massage chairs on the first floor.
The massage chairs were there for mobile gamers. Every massage chair was equipped with a high specced phone and a tablet.
The second floor was decorated to Chen Mo's liking. Chen Mo didn't have many requests, as he could always add to in the future, changing it to his heart's content.
After all the plans have been made, the staffer nodded: "Alright, I'll arrange for some people to come over, It should be done by this afternoon, the evening at the latest."
Chen Mo replied, "Alright, I'll leave it to you. I'll need to go back to pack my stuff tonight anyways, so I'll be back here tomorrow."
The staffer nodded. "Leave it to me. There aren't any big changes and the orders are pretty simple, just moving stuff around. It's guaranteed to be done by tomorrow morning.
"Also, I have sent the license agreement to you. Just look over the main points, we can discuss the details some other time."
Chen Mo nodded. "Alright, I'll look through it in detail."
Chen Mo trusted the staffer, leaving them in the experience store while he took the train back to his house he had rented.
—
While on the train, Chen Mo read through the license agreement several times.
Basically, Chen Mo only had the right to use the experience store, with no right to own it. The store was fully owned by the organizers. Of course, Chen Mo could buy it, but it was basically based on market price with barely any discount.
It was impossible for Chen Mo to bring out such a huge sum of money right now.
Everything in the store, such as the computers and VR setups, did not belong to Chen Mo, he only had the right to use them. These things were spelled out in the contract. Anything that was lost or damaged had to be paid back.
Chen Mo didn't need to pay rent or any other fees for using it, and didn't have to worry about the utility bills, either; everything was covered by the organisers.
However, this didn't mean Chen Mo could stay there indefinitely, there was a quota!
The games that Chen Mo released must hit a certain threshold, otherwise the rights to the experience store would be revoked.
Moreover, the profit target wasn't a constant amount, but increased over time.
The experience store was basically an investment by the organizers. If the champion designer was able to keep a high standard on a game, the organizers would continue allowing them to use the experience store, just giving and taking. If the video game designer wasn't able to maintain their standards, the experience store would be repossessed.
Chen Mo thought that wasn't bad. At least they weren't after cash. In addition, Chen Mo didn't even entertain the thought of not being able to hit the target.
In this world, in terms of profitability of the game, if Chen Mo claimed himself to be number two, nobody was willing to claim first place!
——
After leaving the train station, Chen Mo headed back to his old house.
After working for the whole afternoon, it was dark. Chen Mo went to a nearby restaurant to grab some food, and went back home to pack afterwards.
As he didn't own any big pieces of furniture and didn't own much in general, everything he owned fit in four large cardboard boxes. After booking a van online, Chen Mo laid down to get some rest.
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Chapter 14: Chapter 13 – Company Name Confirmed!
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
At dawn the next day, Chen Mo started moving his stuff into the experience store after getting out of the van and paying the driver.
From today on, Chen Mo would be living in the experience store.
The experience store was fully decorated to Chen Mo's specifications. The first floor was basically a more spacious internet cafe equipped with a computer, massage chairs, sofa, snacks, drinks dispenser, and so on.
After moving his stuff upstairs and unpacking, Chen Mo went online to order more basic necessities.
—
After settling down, Chen Mo walked around to check out the place, which felt pretty good. From today on this experience store belonged to him. Although it was just the usage rights, it was much better than his previous house!
When noon came around, Chen Mo received a message from the staffer from the competition.
"Hi, Mr. Chen Mo! The decorations for the experience store were completed last night, could you confirm that everything's in place? Be assured that daily maintenance and cleaning will be periodically done by professionals. Please contact me again after you confirm the name of your company, we will make the appropriate signage for the store. Moreover, the three hundred thousand RMB has been transferred, could you confirm that, too?
Chen Mo looked at the texts on his phone; the three hundred thousand was now in his bank account. The organizers were indeed quite professional, there wasn't much to nitpick.
—
After replying to the message, Chen Mo tried out the equipment on the first floor.
Chen Mo randomly tried out a few of the computers, massage chairs, and tablets, none of which had problems. All of them were new and were quite highly specced, and could easily run the vast majority of games on the market.
This setup was more than enough for Chen Mo. Limited by his abilities, there was no way he could produce games that required high specced machines to run.
Chen Mo locked the door and retreated upstairs to his office.
The first floor was under surveillance, so Chen Mo could monitor the situation from the second floor. However, his experience store wasn't officially open. There weren't any games for gamers to play, even if they were to come over. Therefore before Chen Mo developed a game, the experience store would remain closed.
——
Chen Mo turned on the work computer inside his office and launched the game engine.
This work computer was more highly specced than the laptop he had. In theory he could produce a high end VR game, but as before, he couldn't fully utilize the power of the machines.
Following the production of FlappyBird, his designer stats were changed.
[Chen Mo: Video game designer (D-grade)]
[Creativity: 16]
[System: 8]
[Coding:8]
[Level Design: 5]
[Story: 10]
[Original art: 9]
[3D art: 1]
[Monthly quota: 300MB/800MB]
Chen Mo had been automatically promoted to a D-grade video game designer. Several of his stats had also been increased.
The stats shown in the game engine weren't Chen Mo's actual abilities, but were representative of his skills based on the games he had produced.
Following the release of Flappybird, Chen Mi's creativity had dramatically increased to 16. System, coding, and level design also increased slightly. Even original art was increased because of the bird in FlappyBird.
Chen Mo's actual skill level couldn't be shown by the video game engine. The scoring was based on the games that had already been produced, not straight from the brain of the designer.
If given the opportunity to estimate his own stats, creativity was probably a hundred based on his experience with classics in his previous world. Recreating any one of them would make waves in this world.
Systems would probably be seventy, storyboarding sixty, level design thirty, coding twenty. This was all experience Chen Mo had gathered in his previous life. However, the video game engine wasn't able to produce the numbers he had in mind.
Fortunately, after becoming a D-grade video game designer his monthly resources quota had been increased from 300MB to 800MB. That was good news to him!
He could also consider starting his own company after becoming a D-grade video game designer. Of course, video game companies weren't exactly the same compared to his previous world.
Video game companies were quite different than other companies. There wasn't a need for deposits, or even an office space, and there certainly wasn't a need for a string of complicated procedures.
The video game companies in this world could be seen as an extension of the identity of a videogame designer. The only thing required to start a video game company was the title of a D-grade video game designer.
Then what was the point of starting a company? In theory, any game that was produced by a designer was required to be released by a company. A company logo was required during loading, or else it wouldn't be accepted into the market.
If a video game designer didn't have their own company, they would need to release it under another company! The income generated by the game would go through the company's account, therefore a cut would be taken.
If the designer had a dispute with other companies because of infringement, it would also go through the account of the company.
Therefore, video game companies could be described as tiny, easy to register using the identity of the video game designer as security, and the first step for a D-grade video game designer into the video game market.
Chen Mo found the registration for a company within Illusion Game Engine.
Registration was simple, After filling in information regarding his identity and the company, and deciding on a name and company logo, it was ready to be reviewed.
After giving it some thought, Chen Mo typed in the company name: Thunderbolt Entertainment!
It passed through the checks; there weren't any other companies using the same name.
The reason for the name was simple, in his eyes the games he released needed to shock the video game industry, surprising designers and gamers.
Moreover, Chen Mo thought that the games should also move like lightning; video game companies that had low impact, worried too much about the future, and were unable to make decisive decisions were unable to survive in such a competitive industry.
After deciding on the company name, Chen Mo started to hand-draw his logo.
The work computer also had a drawing tablet, along with a lot of software used in a professional environment, all easily accessible to him.
Chen Mo's original art was rated at nine. Although low, it shouldn't be a problem when it came to designing a simple logo. Moreover, Chen Mo had seen many logos in his previous life, including video game companies and professional gaming teams, all of which could be taken as inspiration.
In the end, Chen Mo's company logo had a unique art of a lightning bolt, with Thunderbolt Games written on it in word art.
After confirming the information provided, Chen Mo submitted the form for review, which should be done in two to five working days.
After deciding on the company name and logo, Chen Mo could now contact the staffer to make the signs for the experience store. However, Chen Mo wasn't in a hurry to do that, as his eyes were set on considering what type of game to produce next.
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Chapter 15: Chapter 14 – Aren't you Gonna Eat Something
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
At that moment, Chen Mo's phone rang. The caller was a buddy from uni, Zhao Zihao.
"Hello?"
Zhao Zihao replied in a casual tone, "Chen Mo, you're pretty good! First place in a video game designing competition? How could you leave your brothers so out of the loop?"
Chen Mo laughed, "I just settled down, there's been too much doing on recently. How did you know?"
Zhao Zihao said, "You're asking me how I know? You're going viral! The negative comments towards the judge during the competition are all over the internet!"
Chen Mo was speechless. "Huh?"
Zhao Zihao said, "You can check it out yourself. Also, are you free tonight? Us three haven't really met up since we graduated. Coincidentally, you just got your identity as a videogame designer, and earned yourself an experience store. You better be buying us dinner!"
Chen Mo laughed, "Sure, I'll buy us dinner. Could you get Lin Mao too?"
Zhao Zhao replied, "Sure, it's decided then! How about this: I'll pick up Lin Mao, then we'll head right over to your experience store, then grab some food. Let's do 4pm. We'll see you there."
Chen Mo said, "Alright, I'll see you then."
In his memory in this parallel world, Chen Mo had two close buddies from university. Although the three of them were studying different areas, somehow they all entered the video game industry.
Zhao Zihao had rich parents, his family was probably involved in traditional businesses. Chen Mo wasn't too sure about the details, all that mattered was that Zhao Zihao didn't lack money.
However, Zhao Zihao wasn't a video game designer. He acquired a studio for a video game guild, providing services such as boosting, gold grinding, promoting video games, and so forth.
The company wasn't big, but the pay wasn't low, either. Every single hire were elite gamers, they had a no pay policy if they didn't do a good job.
These workers could also be viewed as people who were hired to play games with Zhao Zihao, the other tasks can be viewed as extra work. Nobody cared if the company was losing money, as in the end it was something Zhao Zihao had started for fun.
Chen Mo had previously heard that Zhao Zihao was considering starting a clubbing business. However, as it was a considerable investment, he had yet to decide.
Zhao Zihao didn't give off the usual vibes of someone born with a silver spoon, as he wasn't arrogant, spending most of his time playing video games. He would often join Chen Mo and the others at the internet cafe, and was commonly referred to as having the body of a noble, the heart of a peasant by Lin Mao, another one of Chen Mo's buddies.
As for the other buddy, Lin Mao, he was also a video game designer like Chen Mo. He got his D-grade video game designer as soon as he graduated and was now focusing full time on designing his own games.
Among the three of them, Chen Mo studied languages, Zhao Zihao studied finances, and Lin Mao was the only one who actually graduated studying video game design.
The three of them met in the video game society in their first year and had been friends ever since. This gang was the few in this world whom Chen Mo viewed as close friends.
——
When the afternoon came, Chen Mo went out to familiarize himself with the environment around the experience store. After finding a restaurant, he went inside to grab a meal.
Casually taking out his phone, he checked the news.
Indeed, many news outlets had written about what had happened at the video game design competition in their gaming section. Furthermore, there were many who participated in the discussion.
"Video game design competition concluded, the three hundred thousand prize money experience store belongs to?"
"A mysterious bird takes the crown at a video game designing competition!"
"Live audience: This is the most torturous game in history!"
"Seven hundred people three hundred and fifty hours playtime, this game is infectious!"
"Judge criticizes: Is this even a game?!"
"Flappybird designer: Judge incapable of objectivity."
"Founder of strongly promotes this game."
Chen Mo looked through the news articles, basically recounting the scene at the competition, putting emphasis on the confrontation between Shi Huazhe and Chen Mo. Obviously the journalists were trying to clickbait the article in an attempt to make it a hot topic.
There was also a video of when it happened. Shi Huazhe's review and Chen Mo's final remarks were being played again and again, becoming quite the hot topic.
Chen Mo didn't mind; to him, any publicity was good publicity. More gamers will now recognize him, cutting down the cost per user of his future games, and saving on advertising, too!
In this day and age, the attention economy was hugely prevalent, which was also applicable to the video game industry.
As information increased, the attention of the user base became more valuable. If there were two similar games, one with no attention and one with plenty before the game was released, even if the latter wasn't as good as the former, the profits of the latter would be much higher than the former.
If you had a fanbase of five thousand people and everyone of them listened to everything you say, you could reliably depend on your livelihood on the fans, be it through an online store, promoting games, or any other form of monetization.
At this point, Chen Mo noticed a video game media company released an interview with Shi Huazhe.
On the video Shi Huazhe was visibly upset, looking into the cameras and said, "What I said to contestant Chen Mo was advice based on my past. But he took it as an insult, it's really quite saddening.
"I still maintain my stance, the video game industry is a profession that requires sincerity and richness. Contestant Chen Mo isn't going to make it far. I think his next game isn't going to make it pass a hundred thousand sales in the first month."
Chen Mo laughed. Shi Huazhe was as stubborn as a mule, unwilling to surrender after so many attacks.
Chen Mo quietly opened Weibo.
His Weibo was now verified, updating his information after becoming a D-grade video game designer and the champion of the video game design competition.
Chen Mo reposted the interview, adding, "Aren't you gonna eat something?" after tagging the pages of several video game media.
-You wanna mess with me? Sure, I'll be here till the end!-
After a short while, Chen Mo's Weibo exploded!
The video game medias reposted after noticing that Chen Mo replied and sensed the opportunity of some breaking news.
Video Game Info Network, , Wechat gaming channel... even a higher-up of Emperor Dynasty Entertainment reposted!
After creating such a scene, a large number of gamers now had their attention on Chen Mo's Weibo!
"Chen Mo? Is this the video game design champion?"
"Is this account real?"
"Must be, it's verified."
"Wow, really? Did you have to create such a scene? Why didn't you just give in?"
"This kid has personality, I like this guy!"
"What did you mean by your last reply? What do you want Shi Huazhe to eat?"
"Previous comment, did your village just receive internet access?"
The gamers were having a heated discussion right on Chen Mo's Weibo.
Chen Mo's "Aren't you hungry?" was meant to be a joke. There are many who try to make predictions on the internet, and they always end it with," If I'm wrong, I'll eat my own sock" or "If I'm wrong, I'll eat my mouse", eating all sorts of weird things. Therefore next time someone encounters a prediction, many would reply with, "Aren't you gonna eat something?"
The meaning behind Chen Mo's reply was clear: Shi Huazhe, you said I'm not going to sell more than a hundred thousand copies in the first month for my next game. What if I do? Aren't you gonna eat something?
Soon, the replies and reposts under this post started to explode, a hundred, three hundred, five hundred!
Moreover, the friendly internet users were helping by tagging Shi Huazhe, probably just joining in the crowds, not considering the consequences.
Chen Mo was much calmer than Shi Huazhe, matters like this weren't a concern for him. Moreover, Chen Mo didn't feel bad about this publicity stunt. If it brought more attention to his next game, why not?
Soon thereafter, Shi Huazhe replied, "Get a life!"
Chen Mo was happy, seeing Shi Huazhe didn't dare take the bet.
The discussions under the post were full of disappointment. There were still people trying to start something, encouraging Shi Huazhe to take the bet and eat a keyboard or mouse.
Shi Huazhe decided to not reply, as if pretending he died.
After laughing, Chen Mo put his phone away. This was no more than a small interlude, no need to take it to heart.
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Chapter 16: Chapter 15 – Lacking a Focal Point
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
At 4pm, a red Ferrari stopped in front of the experience store.
Zhao Zihao stepped out from the car and took a good look at the experience store, "Wow! This experience store is quite big! Looks like Chen Mo got a good catch!"
Lin Mao rolled his eyes. "Doesn't your family own several stores like this?"
Zhao Zihao replied, "Hey, those belong to my parents, it's none of my business. This one was obtained by Chen Mo using his own hands, so it's different. Let's go in and take a look."
They dialed Chen Mo, waiting for him to let them in.
Zhao Zihao wore a plain white tee and jeans, along with some sneakers. If it weren't for the fact that he stepped out of a Ferrari, you wouldn't know he came from a rich family.
In reality everything he wore was expensive, but for some reason when it was on him it seemed no different from the stuff you got from the market.
Lin Mao was dressed more officially, in a short-sleeved shirt, and casual pants. Moreover, he was usually more calm, making him seem more reliable.
The door opened. "Come in!" Chen Mo welcomed his two guests inside.
—
Zhao Zihao walked around on the first floor, checking out the decor. "Not bad, Chen Mo. This store's pretty good! I'll be addressing you as Mister Chen Mo the internet cafe owner!"
Chen Mo replied, "Stop messing around, this is a serious experience store."
Lin Mao looked around in admiration, "Everything in here was provided by the organizers? Not bad. I don't even have my own experience store yet!"
Chen Mo replied, "You should join a competition too!"
Lin Mao laughed, "Hey, it's not like I've never tried. Getting first place is too difficult, predominantly because the tastes of the audience are a bit weird. The last time I joined one, I entered with a game of decent quality. In the end the audience didn't want to pay up, only getting second place. Not much I could do!"
——
After catching up for a bit, they went to a nearby restaurant for food.
Since it was only the three of them, they couldn't order too many dishes. Although Zhao Zihao was rich, he wasn't too picky about what he ate. They ordered five dishes and two bottles of beer, chatting as they ate.
"Zhao Zihao, how's your office going?" asked Chen Mo.
Zhao Zihao grabbed some food using his chopsticks. "Same old. It never was expected to make money as long as they played games with me. If there was someone I couldn't beat in game, I'd just ask them to beat the crap out of them for me."
Lin Mao said, "Look at your success."
Zhao Zihao said bitterly, "What's the point of me hiring them other than as my champions?"
Chen Mo said, "Then stop insisting on having it your way in games!"
Zhao Zihao shook his head, "Now that you mention it the past two days have been infuriating."
Chen Mo asked, "What happened? Bullied in game?"
Zhao Zihao said, "I've been playing this new VR game from overseas that was released recently called Earth Online. This game has been infuriating!"
Chen Mo asked, "What's up?"
Zhao Zihao said, "Stop mentioning it. The designer of the game clearly has problems! Anyone who joins the game is born on the streets with five hundred RMB on them, meaning everyone needs to work in game to earn money, like in real life!
"Tell me, is the point of me playing the game to experience the life of a wage slave? There wasn't even an option to top-up when I looked for it!
"The most infuriating part is when idiots come over to annoy you looking for trouble. If you try and beat them up, the cops will come after you. Every time I get into a fight I wanna get my brothers over, it turns out they were born in a different city and need to catch a train!"
Chen Mo replied, "Isn't that a bit too real?"
Lin Mao was impressed, "This overseas designer is pretty good, being able to make a game like that."
Zhao Zihao was still not convinced. "Sure he's good. But I still think the designer has problems, what's the point of disgusting players like they are? Why not have the ability to beat people up?"
Chen Mo replied, "Sure, it's a bit ridiculous. We've already experienced many different things in real life, what's the point of doing it again in game?"
Zhao Zihao continued, "Moreover, the currency in this game is useless. Can't even buy it using real money, I need to work for it! They were also super punishing on players who make deals outside of the game. Once they find out about it, you're banned immediately. That makes me wanna quit!"
Chen Mo laughed, "Calm down, I'll make a game that allows you to pay money to get stronger. You'll be able to enjoy yourself however you want."
Zhao Zihao was quite happy, "Really, Chen Mo? Then I'll be waiting for your pay to win game! When the time comes I'll top-up a thousand RMB immediately!"
Chen Mo laughed, "A thousand? With a thousand RMB I can guarantee you will die in-game with slightly more dignity."
"Huh?" Zhao Zihao was stunned. "Isn't a thousand RMB enough? The Earth Online closed beta costs at least five hundred RMB!"
Chen Mo just took a sip of tea. "Alright, you'll know when the time comes."
Lin Mao said, "You're getting ahead of yourself. Zhao Zihao, what services does your studio provide? How many players are there?"
Zhao Zihao gave it a thought. "Players? Our company provides the office space, we don't have a say in the guild. It's the chairmen in the guild that have control over the players. There's a clear line in the sand between us and them."
Lin Mao asked, "Then how often do you interact with the chairmen? When my game comes out, could you help me out and pull some players over?"
Zhao Zihao replied, "It depends on how many you want. I know about ten chairmen. Including the players, it should add up to several thousand. I think it might be difficult for you if you want to solely depend on your income from these guys, but it should be fine to just show you some support."
Lin Mao sighed, "The indie games I make are difficult to promote in the first place, in addition to the small target audience. The channels of promotion aren't looking too good, either, and the resources I get are also super limited."
Zhao Zihao asked, "Can't you just release it right to the market?"
Lin Mao shook his head. "Releasing it right into the market gathers no attention, none of the users are going to notice it."
Zhao Zihao gave it some thought and replied, "Alright, I'll ask about it when the time comes. I'll try and think of something to hype up your game. Not doing anything just isn't right, the least I can do is to make your numbers look good. Also, what's your opinion on this, Chen Mo?"
Chen Mo said, "I haven't even seen your game!"
Lin Mao handed over his phone to Chen Mo, "Take a look at this, it's about eighty percent complete."
Chen Mo grabbed the phone and launched the indie game currently in production by Lin Mao.
—
He made up his mind after playing for five minutes.
It was a side scroller using a Middle Ages theme. It was about a knight saving a princess, including a boss fight against a dragon. All things considered, it was alright for a D-grade video game designer. However, there were still some pitfalls.
Although it was fine in all aspects, there wasn't much that prompted a player to pull out their money. Even if the game was sold at ten RMB, the players would have to consider why they would make the purchase.
Story? Playstyle? Art? They were all alright, but there wasn't anything eye-catching.
After thinking for a bit, Chen Mo said, "I think that you are logically misunderstanding this."
Lin Mao asked, "What misunderstanding?"
Chen Mo said, "I think there's a problem with your positioning. You're making an indie game. Sure the audience is smaller, but I don't think you need to position yourself to focus on a small audience."
Zhao Zihao scratched his head. "What are you talking about? That's too convoluted. Could you simplify it a bit?"
Chen Mo said, "I can tell that you have given it your all in all aspects of the game. However, you made it according to the tastes of a small audience, meaning you're only targeting a small audience who likes themes like this. The number of players isn't able to support the sales of your game."
Lin Mao didn't quite understand. "Aren't you supposed to target the player's desires when making a game?"
Chen Mo explained, "What I mean is that you should widen your target audience. Basically, you need more players to play your game."
Lin Mao was doubtful. "I know that. It sounds simple, but how can you attract more players to your game?"
Chen Mo said, "It's simple, just find a focal point."
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Chapter 17: Chapter 16-A Little bit of Creativity
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
Chen Mo continued, "I think many video game designers have this problem. They are unable to compete with B-grade and A-grade video game designers due to their limited ability, and yet they don't try to figure something else out, insisting on going head to head against them. That's just stupid."
After giving it some thought, Lin Mao replied, "I still don't quite understand."
Chen Mo explained, "Since we are close, I'll just give it to you straight. If you were a gamer, what type of games would you buy?"
Lin Mao was shocked. In his view this was a question with an obvious answer, so simple that he had never given it any thought.
After thinking it over, he replied, "Umm... quality? Sincerity?"
Chen Mo replied, "Sincerity is very intangible. If a video game designer uses feelings to promote their game it can only mean one of two things: they're past their prime time, or they are desperate.
"As for quality, you're a D-grade video game designer. Can your quality compare to a B-grade video game designer?"
Lin Mao's mouth was open, though nothing was coming out of it.
Chen Mo continued, "I'm asking why gamers would want to buy it, but really I'm asking if the game has any gimmicks. Does it have anything special to make it stand out?
"I think you haven't fully opened your mind. I'll use your game as an example, and give you a few perspectives for you to consider.
"One is from the coding perspective. You could spend another two months of time improving your combat system. Say you add another eight to fifteen weapons and over twenty different mobs."
Lin Mao asked, "But isn't that too complicated for a mobile game?"
Chen Mo shook his head, "It isn't. Do all mobile games need to be casual games? I don't think so. You should know that the simpler it is, the harder it gets. At this stage, I'd rather go overboard than stop now.
"Improving the combat system would be very complicated, but at least when it comes to advertising your game you could say 'A choice from twenty different weapons', 'Mind boggling combat, can you pick the right weapon every time?', etc."
Lin Mao looked like he was deep in thought.
Chen Mo continued, "A second scenario, in terms of difficulty. Make the game very difficult and add in unexpected traps."
Lin Mao asked, "Unexpected meaning?"
Chen Mo pointed at the game and said, "For example, it looks like a hill here, but once you step on it spikes will come out to kill the player. Or here, a seemingly unassuming NPC, but as you walk past them, they stab you in the back, killing you. Jumping behind him and talking to him from behind will also kill you. The only way to get through this would be to step on his head."
Lin Mao's mouth was slightly ajar, with a dazed expression saying 'Wow, mechanics like that?'
Chen Mo continued, "If you use the second method, you could say that the game is the most surprising game in history. You could even call it "Knight's bizarre adventure" or something like that.
"There's also a third way of thinking, from the perspective of the story! For example, you could let players pick a different story path at each point or react to situations differently. For example, before meeting an heavily injured opponent, you could choose to save or not to save. This would allow for many different paths to different endings."
"You could set up five to eight different endings, some succeeding, some failing, some totally unexpected.
"If you chose this path, you could advertise it as 'Eight different endings, dozens of options', or 'Can you see through the lies and discover the truth' or something along those lines."
Lin Mao scratched his chin. Chen Mo had dropped a knowledge bomb, which required some deep thought.
Chen Mo wasn't in a hurry, either. After eating another mouthful, he waited for Lin Mao to fully absorb the three scenarios he had just pitched.
What did designers in this world lack the most?
Open minds!
Chen Mo wasn't born with the openness, but had acquired it through his experiences in another world, during the birth of video games and their continued growth. From large titles, to browser games, to mobile games and indie games, he had witnessed all of it blossom.
Many video game designers were digging their brains, trying to get other gamers to notice their games and hand over the money in their pockets without resistance.
As for video games, creativity would always take the cake. Without a doubt, the top percent must have open minds. It was impossible for a videogame designer who lacked creativity to invent an immersive game.
Of course, creativity isn't all that tangible. Many ignoramuses referred to themselves as full of creativity and the ability to save the industry. However, their creativity was just hypotheticals. Before being realized, nobody could judge if their ideas would be able to succeed.
The three hypotheticals that Chen Mo put out might seem like it came from genius full of inspiration, but in his previous life, these were rules that video game designers knew deep down. They had been tested by the industry countless times, with many success stories.
Chen Mo knew that Lin Mao was an honest person and was the one he was closest to among his buddies, so he chose to nudge him in the right direction.
However, Chen Mo wasn't going to reveal any specifics. Up till now the end product was entirely dependent on how well Lin Mao understood that.
Lin Mao gave it a long and hard thought and said, "Right, I understand it, more or less. I think what you said made sense. Outside of my intended audience, it does lack something that will attract the attention of the other users.
Chen Mo nodded, "Yep!"
Lin Mao said, "I understand now, Chen Mo. Your three suggestions have widened my views. I think I have more ideas now. Thanks!"
Chen Mo waved his hand. "Don't mention it, it was nothing. All I did was point you in a direction. How you get there depends on you."
Lin Mao nodded, "Yep, I now know which direction I'm heading down. I thought the game was almost done, now it seems like completion is quite a ways away. I'll rethink the game when I get back."
Lin Mao relaxed his bunched eyebrows. He always felt that his game was lacking, but he didn't know what... and now he knew. What he lacked was a focal point, one that a gamer could see at first glance.
With a focal point, his game would now be able to differentiate itself from countless other games!
Zhao Zihao was shocked, and asked, "Chen Mo, you're pretty good! I didn't think you had so many ideas. Did you uncover your full potential recently?"
Chen Mo said seriously, "Not uncovered potential, but I was enlightened. The video game gods guided me in my dreams the night before the video game competition and sent me a video game designing handbook."
Zhao Zihao laughed, "Yeah, right!"
——
The three of them chatted as they ate, up until 10pm, ordering another four bottles of beer along the way. They were chatting happily, in the end all three of them getting tipsy.
Chen Mo wasn't much of a drinker himself, as drinking often isn't good for the brain, as it affects memory and thinking. Therefore a drinking habit wasn't desirable in a video game designer.
Zhao Zihao called a staffer from his company to drive him. Lin Mao, on the other hand, was focused on how to restructure and change the game he was currently working on.
After finding a designated driver, Chen Mo was at ease, sending them off after a few words of caution.
After returning to the experience store and cleaning up after himself, he went to sleep after receiving messages from Zhao Zihao and Lin Mao confirming their safety.
Chen Mo still needed to think about his next game. It was best that he got some sleep tonight to ensure a good mental status tomorrow...
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Chapter 18: Chapter 17: Ten Consecutive Draws
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
Chen Mo woke up the next day at nine o'clock. After grabbing a shower, he went out to buy breakfast.
Chen Mo woke up late because he liked sleeping, only feeling a hundred percent when he got enough sleep, due to habits from his previous life.
In his previous life working in the video game industry, he would often need to work through the night and his start time at work was later than normal. His sleep schedule wasn't adjusted to what would be considered normal.
—
After having breakfast, Chen Mo returned to his office to brainstorm his first game.
Chen Mo had numerous games in mind, but he still had to give some thought to which one he was basing it off.
In this world the cost of starting the development of a game was quite low. There was no need to rent an office or hire a programmer, saving any starting capital required to start game development, though it didn't mean there weren't any associated costs or limits with game development.
One of the bigger limiting factors was art resources.
Video game background music could be solved using money by hiring someone. As long as the quality wasn't too bad, gamers usually wouldn't nitpick too much.
However, the visuals of the game were different. If Chen Mo wanted to develop a larger game, the characters, models, and scenes all might need to be done from scratch, and the free resources from the game engine might not be suitable.
Moreover, those cost quite a bit!
Using a simple example: graphics for playing cards for a mobile game. The lower end would be eight to nine hundred RMB, at the other end of the spectrum it might cost seven to eight hundred. Higher standards were available for a higher price. Just the cost for the art would be a huge sum of money.
Moreover, there were the models, animations, special effects, and so on. These wouldn't be any cheaper than the art, and were quite troublesome to make.
The game engine did have large amounts of free resources, but the majority of them were just free resources of average quality.
Flappybird was able to use publicly available art because it had a simple art style. After hand drawing the bird, everything else could be found and used without much, if any, modifications.
However, if Chen Mo wanted to fully recreate a large game from his previous life, the art would need to look the same as the original. That would be troublesome!
As for why the art needed to be the same, it was because games were quite delicate, like an intricate pocket watch. If any one of the parts were swapped out, it was not guaranteed to run smoothly.
Of course, that ignored the crude knockoffs, games never meant to take off.
The games that did take off always had their playstyle, art style, music, etc. in perfect harmony. They were the ones picked out among dozens of ideas by a designer.
Any changes Chen Mo wanted to make had to be thoroughly thought out. Otherwise, like changing a poem, changing a word might make it seem like the work of an ameteur.
Therefore, Chen Mo would try to the best of his abilities to preserve every single detail of the classics, including identical art styles.
The second biggest barrier was Chen Mo's own abilities.
Although Chen Mo was the producer, he had his own specializations, so he wasn't good at everything.
Coding and level design had their own more specialized engineers. Although Chen Mo knew some of it, he wasn't super well-versed in it.
Some games might seem simple, but in reality the requirements were quite high. For example, Anipop! Although the rules were quite simple and seemed quite simple in design, it actually had very high requirements for their level design. Every level was more difficult than the last, while keeping up the tempo. This was not doable with his current abilities!
Some of the Chinese pay-to-win games might seem like they had low development requirements, but more than half of the skill requirements were on the coding side of things.
For example, how do you differentiate between different levels of VIP? What's the difference in abilities between different VIP players? How much do you gain from topping up? How far can a player get in the game within a certain amount of days? How do you control the tempo of the game?
All these were coding problems. Although Chen Mo knew this, he couldn't solve them with a hundred percent certainty.
In the end, Flappybird was still an extremely simple game with no requirements for coding and level design. The explosive growth of games like those could not be replicated. Looking farther ahead, Chen Mo had to eventually be able to cover all of that. He must raise all coding related stats to above eighty to be able to recreate a classic from his previous life.
How could these problems be solved?
Pay to win! Were there any other choices? Paying to win changed lives!
"If you encounter a difficult situation, it can only mean that you haven't paid enough money." Chen Mo said, laughing at himself as he turned on the virtual display on his bracelet.
Chen Mo had received three hundred thousand RMB in development funds, and planned to take out two hundred thousand of that to draw some prizes. The remaining hundred thousand would be saved for emergencies.
The thing that troubled Chen Mo the most was that Flappybird had to be free to play for players to try out for three months after winning the video game designing competition. It would not be gaining any profit during the three months.
Chen Mo knew this at the start of the competition, but Chen Mo didn't know how this world would react to Flappybird or how popular it could get. Moreover he really did want the experience store, and with the resource constraints, Flappybird was his only choice.
Therefore, although he knew there would be some losses involved, Chen Mo chose to enter using Flappybird.
However, it hurt whenever Chen Mo thought about how Flappybird brought its maker nearly three hundred thousand RMB every day, feeling as if he had missed out on hundreds of millions.
During the next three months, Chen Mo wouldn't be expecting Flappybird to bring him any money. The best move would be to make his next game.
After navigating to the top-up screen. Chen Mo transferred two hundred thousand RMB into the bracelet. The bracelet credits now displayed two million ninety seven thousand three hundred and forty. After giving it some thought, Chen Mo topped up some more, to make it a round 2.1 million credits.
After dumping in two hundred thousand RMB, the three hundred RMB wasn't much. It was better to make it a round number and calm his mild OCD.
Two million one hundred thousand credits, a hundred thousand credits per spin; enough for twenty-one spins!
At this point Chen Mo noticed the virtual display now had a new "Draw ten" button.
"... How nice! The reason the button wasn't here before was because I didn't have enough credits to draw ten times, huh?" Chen Mo complained to nobody.
The draw ten button also fine print: Guaranteed rare items.
This was comparable to a strong point of pay to win games in his previous life, in order to encourage players to top-up by any means.
Chen Mo knew in ninety-nine percent of the games, ten draws were a better deal than one. It was in his best interest to do ten draws.
Chen Mo walked around in his office, then washed his hands and face.
Preparations must be made before drawing ten!
—
After calming down, Chen Mo decided to draw one to test out his luck.
Clack clack clack...
The wheel started spinning, ending with a clack on the blue area: Rare Skill Book.
"Hmm? Not bad." Chen Mo was awake all of a sudden. This was the first time he had drawn a blue skill book; maybe the effects of washing his hands and face?
Chen Mo clicked on the blue skill book, and noticed the description on it: Special Skill Book: 10 to music and audio effects.
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Chapter 19: Chapter 18: The Next Game
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
Chen Mo was quite satisfied. He was worried about the audio side of things of the game, so the skill book was a godsend.
Chen Mo always hired people to do BGM and sound effects for his game, as he did not have any musical bones in him.
For some of the classic games, it will be impossible to recreate them perfectly just from dictation. Therefore it would be better if he took matters into his own hands.
Chen Mo tapped and activated it immediately. The blue skill book turned into rays of light and entered his fingertips.
Chen Mo took out the keyboard from his office that had been provided by the competition officials. Thinking he wouldn't be able to use it, he had put it away, as it was just gathering dust.
After trying out a couple scales, he connected it to the computer and produced a simple ten second long BGM. Chen Mo felt that it sounded alright, and he was able to handle the audio part himself for simpler games.
"Not bad, off to a good start. Now all that's left is to see the results for the two ten spins."
Chen Mo took a deep breath and tapped the ten spins button.
Clack, clack, clack...
The wheel spun up and slowed down constantly, finishing ten spins within thirty seconds. The ten draws showed on the screen in the order they were drawn.
Designer Skill Books: three Coding books, four Level Design books.
Special Skill Books: one 10 Original Art
Special Effects Book: one 10 Animation Skills
Special Equipment: Memory Playback Potion
This caught Chen Mo's attention. Pretty good, ten draws did make a difference! It felt like the chances of drawing blue and purple rares were much higher than single draws!
Chen Mo hurriedly checked out the effects of the special equipment.
Memory Playback Potion: After consuming, freely remember any forgotten or murky memories, lasts for four hours.
That was pretty good! Chen Mo badly needed that item.
There were many games that Chen Mo had played before that he could barely remember now. Although there was a faint impression, it wasn't enough to reproduce all the details.
With the Memory Playback Potion, Chen Mo would be able to dive into his past memories. As long as he has played it or done a deep dive into it, he'd be able to recall the experience.
Chen Mo consumed the skill books without giving them much thought.
Coding skills 3, Level Design 4. Chen Mo estimated that his true coding ability was about 27, and his true Level Design ability was about 35. Combined with the Memory Playback Potion, recreating some more complicated minigames wasn't a problem.
There were two other Special Skill Books: one for Original Art, another for Animation.
It was obvious that the drawing mechanism was programmed to separate skills, such as art and music, that weren't related to video game engineering, to be part of the Special Skill Books.
Original Art 10, Chen Mo's Original Art skills had been raised to 19, and were now able to deal with games with simpler art styles.
From barely anything to now something, Animation skills were now decent with the 10 skill book. Chen Mo could now do some simple 2D animations, which was key.
-Draw again!-
With another ten draws in him, Chen Mo tapped on the screen once again.
Clack, clack, clack...
The wheel started spinning once again, and another ten items followed it.
Designer Skill Books: seven Storyboarding skill books, two Coding skill books.
Special Equipment: Lucky Capsule.
Chen Mo almost fainted; the difference was way too big!
-You have to be kidding!-
Not only wasn't there a single blue skill book, the green skill books that were drawn were in the most unnecessary aspects, coding and storyboarding!
Chen Mo was hurting after that. Every ten draws cost a hundred thousand RMB!
However, Chen Mo felt better when he saw the special equipment.
Lucky Capsule: After consumption substantially increases luck, lasts for ten minutes.
-What does this do? Am I gonna pick up five million bucks when I go outside?-
-Effect lasts for ten minutes... obviously it was meant to be used alongside drawing ten! Next time I'll find ten million credits and spin for ten ten times!-
"Whatever, I'll save it for next time..."
Chen Mo was now in a sticky situation. With his credits depleted and a hundred thousand RMB in the bank, it would be too risky to dump the rest of it into credits. The safer bet would be to come back after earning some money by producing his first game.
Chen Mo consumed the Storyboarding and Coding books. Although these were Chen Mo's strengths, they were still far from perfect, and in the end they were still useful.
——
Cehn Mo turned off the virtual display in an attempt to calm down.
Two hundred thousand RMB spent on top-ups, skill books were drawn, special equipment was drawn, all that's left was for Chen Mo to make his first real game.
Chen Mo was still hesitant on which game to make.
From a pure money-making perspective, a Chinese pay-to-win mobile game from his previous life would be the best choice.
These games weren't super high quality, purely attracting players using the coding side of things. You shouldn't make such a game too much about monetization.
However, Chen Mo was worried about two things.
First was his coding abilities.
The reason Chinese pay-to-win games are able to keep their players paying was by stimulating them using well made code. Just because you improve your strength in game using money doesn't mean the game would be profitable.
Therefore software engineers within the Chinese video game industry had very high statuses, only second to the producer as software engineers control the tempo of the game.
Making the code well would mean giving the game a proper foundation. The game can be saved even if the graphics looked bad or if the playstyle was repetitive. But if the coding weren't done well, the game would be dead on arrival with no breathing room.
As Chen Mo didn't even have thirty points in his coding abilities there were some risks to making a game like this, even with the help of the Memory Playback Potion.
The code for these games were always semi-hidden including combat calculations, attribute growth, effectiveness relationship, economy algorithms etc. Every one of these have their own proprietary configurations, and maintained by professionals, essentially a trade secret where the average joe has no access to it.
Because the code is such a big part of these games, as soon as the code is leaked, other companies will be able to use that as a framework and produce a knockoff.
Chen Mo would have to write all the code by hand if he made a game like this. However, he didn't have confidence manipulating the code based on his current abilities.
There was another problem: player acceptance!
The main method of profit in this world still depended on sales per game.
Top-up services, especially pay-to-win, were not mainstream. Furthermore, there hadn't been anyone fully committed to pay-to-win.
If he produced an average pay-to-win game and the gamers discovered it was pay-to-win, would they accept it?
Would they be strongly against it, negatively affecting him and the company's image? Maybe there would be some players who would just boycott his next games?
It was hard to say. Just because there was a low chance of it happening didn't mean it wouldn't happen. As this was Chen Mo's first game, he didn't want to take the risk.
The tastes of gamers and the place for pay-to-win games in this world were unknown, and the grounds needed to be tested, step by step. One misstep might be devastating.
Therefore, Chen Mo chose to make a safer choice, and make a stand-alone game and an honest living out of it.
Stabilizing himself using this game, at least putting the name of Thunderbolt Gaming out there, and then slowly testing the limits of the players was what Chen Mo had in mind!
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Chapter 20: Chapter 19: New Game Finalized
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Translated by Coldtaco
Edited by Aelryinth
Chen Mo was mainly considering downloaded games and mobile games, ignoring browser games.
Browser games did have their time in the spotlight and seemed like the next best thing. But browser games were special circumstances and were popular in specific groups. Moreover, the timeframe of their success was usually quite short ,and browser games were difficult to replicate.
In Chen Mo's previous life, browser games only lasted for three to five years and were left behind soon after, with mobile games taking their place. On the other hand, mobile games also went from crude to highly refined within a few years, and their speed was continually increasing.
Browser games did have a high monetization value, and anything would be garbage without players.
-What are the gamers like in this world?-
There were many full-fledged VR games, and the quality of those virtual reality games were much higher than AAA titles in Chen Mo's previous world. Serving up browser games to these people?
–Are we gonna pull a Click Now and receive a legendary sword?
-That'll probably fail miserably...-
In Chen Mo's view, mobile games evolved from browser games, putting pressure on browser games in all aspects.
In terms of ease of use, you still needed to take care when playing browser games at work. You could play mobile games anytime; just leave the phone face down on the table when the manager came by.
In terms of graphics, browser games were limited by the ways they were produced, requiring constant resource downloads. More often than not, the graphics wouldn't be fully downloaded, affecting the gaming experience.
In terms of playstyle, the playstyle of classic browser games was improved upon by mobile games. Furthermore, mobile games developed new playstyles during their development.
Therefore, browser games had been completely replaced by mobile games. If Chen Mo developed a browser game, it was probably due to brain damage.
Chen Mo gave it some thought, his first actual game must be a classic casual game from his previous life: Plants vs Zombies!
It wasn't the most profitable choice, but a stable and sustainable one!
What did Chen Mo need the most now?
Money? He needed it, but it wasn't what he needed the most!
What he needed now was fame!
There were three main reasons Chen Mo picked Plants vs Zombies.
First, the resources required for this game weren't high. The installer might be around 100 MB. The other resources could be kept within 300 MB. Video game installers were compressed, which were not representative of their actual resource usage.
Moreover, the code for this game was quite accessible, and the level designs were also quite clear. It could be handled easily with Chen Mo's current coding and level design abilities.
The more difficult parts would be music and art. But Chen Mo was basically copying, so it wasn't a big problem.
Therefore, this was a game that Chen Mo could easily handle!
Second, Chen Mo needed fame and acknowledgement. Making pay-to-win games did rake in a lot of money, but it was very difficult to make them popular, and there was a high chance of receiving negative comments.
Chen Mo wanted to make his first game accessible to everyone, showing more players the logo of Thunderbolt Gaming and its designer, Chen Mo!
Having everyone recognize him was a long-term goal, but it had to be planned from the first game.
Third, Plants vs Zombies might seem simple, but it was an all-around game. In particular was the strategy side of the game, making it a long-lasting game that allowed its player to play for a long time.
If a game required three months in development, Chen Mo wanted the game to be playable for a month. According to this metric, Plants vs Zombies steamrolled a bunch of casual games.
Moreover, the game could be released on PC game mobile at the same time; adding cross-platform wasn't a problem!
In the end, Chen Mo made the decision: the first game released by Thunderbolt Entertainment would be Plants vs Zombies!
——
Chen Mo stood up and walked around the experience store, taking a ten-minute break before starting the development process.
Chen Mo wasn't in a hurry to use the Memory Playback Potion, as the potion only lasted for four hours. He should use his current memory of the game, build the main framework of the game, then use the Potion for the details that he couldn't remember.
He had to first write the design documents, followed by entering the basics of the game into the video game engine.
Chen Mo excelled at writing design documents in his previous life, essentially up to twice as fast as normal designers. A system design draw including concepts, original art, logic checks, until completed within five to seven days.
This included time for thinking over and changing things!
Of course, depending on the fundamentals of the game, the design document would differ. Even an average mobile game would normally require twenty to thirty design documents of varying sizes, which would include different areas.
The demands for time and resource allocation would be even greater than that, and a large majority of them would not make it into the final game.
The main time sink in writing a design document would be brainstorming, choosing between different design directions. However, Plants vs Zombies was quite well-rounded. Chen Mo didn't want to make any modifications, making the writing process go by pretty quickly.
Interface, combat system, level design, plants, zombies, mechanics... in no time at all, the design document was filled with the basic ideas of each of the items.
Afterwards, Chen Mo started looking around in the game engine for free resources and downloaded them using his allocated quota.
As for the art, in order to best preserve the integrity of the original game, Chen Mo decided to hand-draw to his standards.
The free resources were only used as placeholders to make sure the development went smoothly. The placeholders would be replaced only when the game was almost finished.
Resources for the lawns, plants, and zombies were plentiful, but a small portion of them were barely passable, as they were presented in weird themes. As they were only used as placeholders, he'll just have to deal with it.
——
Chen Mo spent three days writing the fundamentals into the design document and finding material for the graphics.
During that time, the company passed its review. Thunderbolt Entertainment was now proper. Chen Mo now had the title "Founder of Thunderbolt Entertainment" on his Weibo and the game engine.
Of course, the title didn't mean anything, as the company hadn't achieved anything yet.
According to Chen Mo's plans, Thunderbolt Entertainment might have a few subsidiaries, such as Thunderbolt Gaming, Thunderbolt Literature, Thunderbolt Animations, Thunderbolt Movies, and so forth...
However, that was just some strategic planning if the opportunity came, otherwise Chen Mo wasn't going to worry about it. Chen Mo planned to go deep into video gaming territory. Although literature and animations would be beneficial to video games, it wasn't his main plan of attack.
——
After the company name and logo had been confirmed, Chen Mo rang up the competition staffers to ask them about the signage for the experience store.
Very efficiently, the sign arrived in two days, along with professionals who came along to install them.
The sign had Thunderbolt Gaming Experience Store in wordart, along with the Thunderbolt Entertainment logo. Chen Mo was quite happy with how it came out.
——
After finishing with the distractions, Chen Mo went back into his office space to clean up the framework of the design document and the placeholding artwork.
With another day behind him, the main framework of the design document was now finished, and sixty to seventy percent of the artwork had also been found.
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