diskusbooks #314 - The industry admires Mr. Lu, the global console war is warming up, Pei Shengnan is defeated b
#314 - The industry admires Mr. Lu, the global console war is warming up, Pei Shengnan is defeated b
The director seemed to know his stuff. His face turned green when he heard Hua Wu's words, and he quickly signaled the host to drop the topic.
In the subsequent segment, the host chatted with Hua Wu about the daily routine of game development and where the inspiration for the game came from.
Regarding the daily routine of work, Hua Wu's answer was still off the rails:
"Every morning, I first go to the company's convenience store to buy breakfast, then go to the gym to exercise, organize what I need to do today, and it's already 10 o'clock.
Then I play with the cats for an hour, work for a while, and then go to the restaurant downstairs for lunch.
After lunch, I take a hot spring bath and take a nap, and it's already two o'clock.
After waking up, I attend the development meeting, and by 3 o'clock, it's the Sugar Five Sisters' encouragement time. After watching the performance, I go to the toy area on the fifth floor to draw a gashapon and play board games.
Around 4:30, the employees of the company's administrative department start to patrol the entire company to check the implementation of the 'efficiency reduction and cost increase' system.
Once they find employees working hard near the end of the workday, they will react as if facing a formidable enemy, intervene in a timely manner, and reduce the employee's subsequent workload.
After getting off work at 5 o'clock, I continue to go to the restaurant for dinner, and then go to the bookstore on the second floor to read books and buy games. Some employees also go to the multimedia room on the fifth floor to watch movies, and then everyone goes home."
The host was dumbfounded. She asked about the daily routine of game development, but this sounded like a vacation in a villa.
Hua Wu continued:
"As for game inspiration, I also learned it from the company's daily system.
For example, many of the gameplay elements in the game that involve winning over girls are actually based on my company's 'Easygoing Daily Life King' and 'Werewolf Killing' system..."
Listening to Hua Wu's introduction, the live broadcast chat filled with comments:
"WTF, is this real? Is the company's work environment really this good? Real name envy!"
"After listening, I feel that this President Lu is running the company as a charity, encouraging everyone to slack off during work hours."
"How can they achieve hundreds of millions in revenue with this kind of management? Are the employees deliberately saying this to trick people into applying?"
"I'm a little curious about that werewolf training camp. What exactly is inside? Hehe..."
The host also looked embarrassed. She thought that if this program continued, it might turn into a live broadcast accident.
At this time, the director backstage was also hinting to her, reminding her to end it quickly.
She was about to think of some closing remarks when she suddenly yawned for no reason.
Strange, she didn't feel this tired when doing programs before?
The chat was also complaining:
"Damn, looking at Miss Hua Wu's expression, I can't stop yawning."
Soon, the audience at the scene also started yawning.
As more and more people yawned, the program was about to have everyone falling asleep. The director quickly ended the program ahead of schedule and started inserting commercials.
...
Although there was a small episode at the end of the program, the ratings for this episode still climbed to a new high!
Because the program was explosive, many live broadcast websites were spreading replays of this episode.
The comment section below was also hotly discussing:
"What happened at the end? Why did everyone fall asleep?"
"Speaking of which, the style of Peach Garden Village employees is quite different from what I imagined. I thought they were all elite types."
"However, I really envy their company's work atmosphere and benefits. Should I try submitting a resume next time?"
"Save it. Look at the complaints about this company from those workplace elites on Maimai. The interview questions are bizarre, as if they are selecting lunatics."
"In any case, I feel that President Lu in the employees' mouths is awesome. When I watched President Lu's interview clips before, I always felt that he was a person with a very indifferent attitude, taking everything very lightly."
"Hehe, if you believe his surface performance, you've lost. The real big shots like President Lu are all low-key."
As the program became popular, more people continued to have their expectations subverted.
The first to have their expectations subverted were Mao Wuyong's peers in the smart wearable startup field.
Before, whenever their own products were not going well, they would take No Use Tech's continuous failures as psychological comfort.
They would mutter in their hearts, "At least there are still fools like Mao Wuyong in this world who talk about idealism. What are our little setbacks?"
But now, they realized that No Use Tech was actually enduring hardship and accumulating strength!
Those seemingly useless technical reserves were all used in Peach Garden Wandering!
Over the years, they were the clowns themselves!
Many peers who used to make sarcastic remarks about Mao Wuyong had their spirits completely deflated and fell into decadence and despair.
Within a week of the program's broadcast, the number of smart wearable startups that voluntarily deregistered or went into bankruptcy liquidation soared by 1200!
...
It wasn't just the hardware industry that had their expectations subverted.
Many people in the game industry also watched this episode, including game companies under Longteng Group and Liu Group, as well as software manufacturers such as Tenghui, Beautiful World, and Nanshanju.
Many of their newly launched VR games looked dazzling, but they were basically just participating and not succeeding.
According to Game Tower, an authoritative game sales statistics media,
As of April 30, 2013,
The domestic VR game console sales ranking was:
Peach Garden Wandering: 16 million units (produced by: Peach Garden Village)
Longteng Fantasy: 13.8 million units (produced by: Longteng Group)
Youyi Paradise: 10.2 million units (produced by: Liu Group)
Storm Base: 2.7 million units (produced by: Storm Technology)
Shengju VR Box: 1.8 million units (produced by: Shengju Game)
Apart from the top five giants in the industry, the sales of other participating small and medium-sized manufacturers generally did not exceed 1 million.
In the comment section of this leaderboard, there were small accounts disguised as passers-by stirring up trouble:
"Heh, what's so great about Peach Garden Village? Longteng Fantasy, ranked second, sells for 9999, while Peach Garden Village only sells for 3999. They're just losing money to gain popularity. They won't be able to hold on."
"That's right. Whether it's the chip or the hardware, Longteng Fantasy's performance is far superior to Peach Garden Wandering."
Other passers-by couldn't stand it and replied:
"Is it possible that Peach Garden Village is winning by taking a different approach to gameplay?"
"If you have the ability, Longteng Group, lower your price and sell one to see if you can outsell Peach Garden Village?"
There were also some people watching the two sides argue who interjected:
"You guys just keep arguing. Mainland game consoles are only jumping around for a little while now.
Have you seen the technology news? HTC is also going to launch its own smart VR game console, VIVE.
America's Fakebook is also going to launch its own VR device, Oculus.
And Samsung, Google, and Apple are also going to enter the market!"
There were also game enthusiasts in the comment section who replied:
"All of you are useless. The entry of the three old game factories is the most anticipated.
At this year's CES, Sony is going to announce PlayStationVR.
At that time, first-party studios like Naughty Dog and Santa Monica will definitely dominate the scene. Can domestic small fries, including Peach Garden Village, withstand their attacks?"
Someone replied downstairs:
"Shut up, Sony fanboy. My Microsoft's XBOX-VR is about to be announced too.
Won't our first-party 343 Industries and Mojang Studios blow you up?
Are there any players in the world who haven't played 'Halo' and 'Minecraft'?
Not to mention, Microsoft also intends to acquire Bethesda and Activision Blizzard!"
Someone replied downstairs again:
"You can all forget it. I, a Nintendo fan, have something to say. Nintendo is also going to announce a VR game console at this year's Tokyo Game Show.
Won't Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Pokémon, Kirby, and Animal Crossing all kill you?"
Finally, someone summarized:
"Damn, after you guys said that, I'm a little excited about the future global VR console battle!"
"It's getting exciting, haha! I'm optimistic about President Lu and Peach Garden Village!"
"Come on, domestic game consoles. I hope that in my lifetime, I can see our Chinese game industry leave its name in the history of world video games!"
...
The success of Peach Garden Wandering injected a boost of confidence into game players. While various game forums were discussing it extensively, the [Game Gossip Events] section of NGA had a different atmosphere.
The number of replies to a post skyrocketed:
[Exclusive Revelation from Tenghui Photon Employee: VR masterpiece 'Air Combat Heroes: Burning Medal' Reworked]
"Alas, Peach Garden Village's three consecutive VR new games have directly made our Photon unable to lift its head."
"The top 10 on the domestic VR new game sales chart include Odd Country Simulator, A Security Guard's Night, and Wife is the Savior."
"And our highly anticipated multi-platform masterpiece 'Air Combat Heroes' has only sold 1.1 million copies, and can't even make it onto the list. Even with a huge discount, it can't be sold. The project decided to rework it today."
A player replied downstairs:
"Don't mention Peach Garden Village yet. You can't even outsell 'Gunfight Girl 2', which has been criticized recently."
"There's no way. After all, no one has made VR before. I'm afraid of comparing prices."
3rd floor reply:
"I heard that Dimei's 'Mystery Island', Beautiful World's 'Magic Tower', and Lingniu Interactive Entertainment's 'VR Romance of the Three Kingdoms' are also not selling well.
And Tenghui's 'VR Martial Arts: Jin Yong World' and Youyi's 'Code: Infinity' and 'Night Parade of One Hundred Demons' were reworked halfway through development."
4th floor reply:
"Laughing to death, Peach Garden Village and Longteng Group are fighting, eliminating all other games?"
The poster posted a reply full of emotion:
"To be honest, as a game developer, I am now in deep self-doubt.
In order to successfully make new games, we have been working overtime like crazy since we returned to work after the New Year!
In order to seize the market opportunity, the Photon studio group adopted a three-shift system.
Developers work 16 hours of high-intensity overtime every day. The office area is full of tents and floor mats, and everything is done here.
From morning to night, the ground is full of people lying down, filled with the smell of sweat and snoring.
It can be said that 'women are used as men, and men are used as livestock'!
However, after seeing this interview with Mao Wuyong and Hua Wu, my worldview collapsed.
Could it be that whether or not you can make a good game really has nothing to do with crazy overtime? And it has nothing to do with the producer's background?
I can't help but start thinking, why did I join the game industry in the first place? What is the meaning of this involution?
Therefore, I admire President Lu even more!
I decided to resign and submit my resume to Peach Garden Village. If I can't join Peach Garden Village, I will completely leave the game industry!"
The downstairs encouraged:
"Brother, you're thinking clearly. Whoever wants to be involved can be involved. Taking care of your body and spending time with your family is the most important thing."
"Although I'm not in the game industry, I always feel that the 'anti-involution' thinking brought about by Peach Garden Village's various products has begun to subtly affect me. I am increasingly tired of meaningless overtime and high-intensity PUA."
"Brother upstairs, you are not alone!"
...
After Peach Garden Wandering's sales topped the charts and the interview program aired, major domestic business weeklies began to publish articles:
[IT Pioneer Daily]
"Brief Review of Peach Garden Village's President Lu: Running a game is like running a life, taking it lightly and creating miracles!"
[Fortune Think Tank Magazine]
"Young 80s Entrepreneur Leads Peach Garden Village to Become a New Trendsetter in the VR Industry!"
[Entrepreneur Management Weekly]
"Analysis of President Lu's Humanized Management: Do High Welfare and High Freedom Hinder the Birth of Blockbusters?"
[Business Star Weekly]
"Peach Garden Village's President Lu: The Emerging Business Genius of the New Century"
[Investor Era]
"Exclusive Interview with General Manager Cao of Brilliant Fund - Peach Garden Village's President Lu in My Eyes: Strategizing, Step by Step, Calculating, Winning Thousands of Miles Away!"
On D station, game industry UP master Pineapple Ice OL also launched a new video:
"History of Chinese Online Games Extra: Remember Peach Garden Village's President Lu? He taught us another lesson in the VR industry!"
Soon, the 24-hour playback volume of this video exceeded 3 million and was included in [Weekly Must-See].
...
As the public opinion reversed, a large number of players began to flock to the comment area of the homepage of 'Daji', the middle editor of the 'Central Plains Five Editors'.
Previously, among all the game media, Daji was the most ruthless in criticizing Peach Garden Village, so players directly started a group building carnival in the comment area:
The newest novel is first published on 69shu.com!
"Hahaha, I'm here to pay homage to the ancient battlefield ruins in the era of Peach Garden Wandering's sales topping the charts."
"Although the anchor's breasts are big, I think you are wrong on this matter."
"Peach Garden Village focuses on making good games, and you Central Plains Five Editors focus on catching boomerangs. You all have a bright future."
"It's fine if you criticize Peach Garden Village, but I didn't expect you to use that green hat game made by Huang Zhong to criticize it. I identify it as garbage."
"Longteng Group's technical power is so awesome, how come I, as the commander, can't even touch a tactical doll? Oh, they already have owners, never mind."
"You even use production capacity to criticize it. It's killing me. Peach Garden Village at least gave a complete story. Why is the script for your touted Gunfight Girl 2 all delayed? Why?"
...
Shenzhen City, the apartment of Thomas, the Southern Editor of the Central Plains Five Editors.
Thomas looked at Daji's comment area being group-built by all kinds of fun-seekers, his eyes bloodshot:
"Big... Sister... Head..."
She thought that with the leader of the Central Plains Five Editors personally stepping in, combined with her decade-plus experience in the gaming circle of using comparison and belittlement tactics, victory should have been assured.
Never did she expect that even the big sister would lose so thoroughly!
Thomas hesitated for a moment, then dialed Daji's number.
Daji's voice came from the other end, punctuated by soft sobs.
Thomas sighed. "I'm sorry, Boss. This was originally a private matter between me and Peach Blossom Village. I didn't expect to drag you into it."
Daji sniffled, her delicate voice revealing a hint of manipulative charm:
"The Central Plains Five Editors, the Mount Hua Alliance, we rise and fall together!
Now, Peach Blossom Village has offended all of us. This matter won't be easily forgotten.
The console wars and game wars of the VR era have only just begun. The ultimate winner is yet to be determined!
Next time, the five of us will use our individual strengths and attack together. We will surely defeat Peach Blossom Village!"
She paused, then suddenly shouted in a coquettish voice:
"We! Must! Unite!"
Thomas was fired up by Daji's words and echoed loudly:
"We! Must! Unite!"
......
Jianghai City, Jiangdong District, Longteng Group branch office building, Pei Shengnan's office.
At this moment, Pei Shengnan, with a livid face, was watching the latest video released by a D-station UP master called "STN Studio".
At the beginning of the video, the following subtitles appeared:
"The Fake Post-Apocalyptic Game"
A fat man playing a player appeared on the stage: "In this harsh post-apocalyptic world, how can I survive?"
Suddenly, a bunch of NPCs appeared and stuffed things into the player's hands.
The player exclaimed:
"Wow, all these gacha resources are free for me?"
"Wow, stamina packs are free?"
A blonde-haired beauty appeared: "Master, I love you ~"
Player: "There are beautiful girls who love me? Haha, this post-apocalyptic game is so much fun!"
Immediately afterwards, the screen went black and transitioned.
"The Real Post-Apocalyptic Game"
The player appeared dashingly, reached out to the NPC and said, "Straight to the point or follow the process, where are the resources?"
The NPC was arrogant and dismissive: "None!"
Player: "Then there must be beautiful girls, right?"
A man passed by with a beautiful woman on his arm.
The NPC spread his hands: "Look, they have their own lives."
Player: "Then, then you have to give me some benefits, right?"
The NPC sneered, took out a piece of moldy cake from his pocket.
"Do you want this potato flower cake?"
The player lost his composure: "Aminoas!"
Seeing this, the barrage went crazy, densely packed with comments:
"Hahaha, STN has cut ties with that game with righteousness!"
"Accepting commercial orders ≠ I won't satirize you."
"Holy cut! Rave reviews!"
......
The reason why Pei Shengnan's face was so ugly was because this UP master was hired at a high price to help promote "Gunfight Girls 2."
The purpose of doing this commercial order was to reverse the cuckold image of Burst Network in the minds of players.
After that commercial order was broadcast, it slightly reversed the reputation of Burst Network.
Unexpectedly, after Huang Zhong launched the game, he was still doing big things!
Now all the players on the Internet are playing the "limping", "potato flower pendant", and "ring" memes.
This time Pei Shengnan was completely defeated. He stared at Huang Zhong, who was standing in front of him trembling, and said in a deep voice:
"Mr. Huang Zhong, do you, do you have some serious illness?"
He turned the laptop screen towards Huang Zhong and poked the screen hard with his hand:
"Look at how much the game's sales have fallen after your Daiyan event went live?! If you include player refunds, the recent new sales have dropped into negative numbers!
I don't understand why you would rather turn that damn Raymond into a woman than delete it?
And that damn lightning pendant and that damn ring, if you have special hobbies, you can enjoy them privately. Why do you have to feed users shit?"
Pei Shengnan's anger was naturally justified.
"Gunfight Girls 2" is Longteng Fantasy's flagship title, and it is also a flagship that the group has invested a lot of resources in.
The bad reputation of this game will directly affect the subsequent brand image of Longteng Fantasy.
It can be said that Huang Zhong's nonsense directly disrupted his business layout!
Huang Zhong drooped his head.
After all, he was the investor and the financial backer. Even if he was scolded, he had to endure it.
Seeing that Pei Shengnan had calmed down a little, Huang Zhong said:
"President Pei, the reason for these problems is actually that our writing team has insufficient capacity and can't completely replace everything in time."
Pei Shengnan was stunned: "This game has been in development for seven years. Don't you even have any content reserves?"
Huang Zhong's voice became smaller and smaller: "After the Daiyan event exploded, I conducted an emergency review of the game's writing and found that the stories of many tactical humanoids also have... similar problems, some even more serious.
So we can only delete the problematic parts and slowly fill them in, which has caused many places to still have remnants of the old writing."
Pei Shengnan was shocked: "That is to say, even if this matter hadn't exploded, you would have had more and bigger bombs to explode later?"
He pondered for a long time, his face cold: "Longteng Group's investment in Burst Network ends today."
Huang Zhong still wanted to struggle: "President Pei, please give me another chance. We have prepared a new version trial event..."
Pei Shengnan: "Secretary, see him out!"
......
Although Longteng Group withdrew its investment, Huang Zhong was not willing to admit failure.
The series' most classic UMP45, G36, and HK416 tactical humanoids have not yet been released to cheat players out of their money!
Burst Network quickly released news that it would hold a spring new version trial event for "Gunfight Girls 2" in a hot spring villa near Jianghai City.
To Huang Zhong's surprise, after the news of the trial event was released, many players signed up.
Huang Zhong was secretly pleased: Great, it seems that players still can't give up these paper wife.
However, on the day of the event, when Huang Zhong stood at the entrance of the villa to welcome the registered players, he found something was wrong——
Why are these players walking over with bandages tied to their legs, crutches, and limping?