Chapter 99: Want to Learn? I'll Teach You
Chen Mo returned to the experience store.
Su Jinyu said, "Store manager, you're back."
Chen Mo nodded. "Yeah, I went to an internet cafe to do some research, looking for inspiration for a new game."
Su Jinyu exclaimed in surprise, "Wow, starting development on a new game again? Store manager really is as prolific as a sow."
Chen Mo: "...What the hell? Can't you use a better metaphor?"
Chen Mo grabbed a can of drink from nearby. "Goldfish, how's the mobile game market been lately? Have you been keeping an eye on it?"
Su Jinyu said, "Oh, 'Lifeline' has been selling pretty well recently."
Chen Mo was speechless. "Who asked you about that! You're always focused on your own game. I'm asking about other games."
Su Jinyu said, "Uh, other games? Well, there are more and more games copying 'I Am MT'... and a lot of card and board games have started copying 'Thunder Chess' too..."
Zheng Hongxi, who had been silent, added, "In short, almost half of the mobile game circle is copying you."
Chen Mo said, "Oh, that's good."
Su Jinyu was dumbfounded. "Huh? So many people copying you, and that's a good thing?"
Chen Mo said, "What do you know? If they're all copying me, it means they've lost the ability to think independently, so they won't develop games that can surpass mine."
Su Jinyu: "Wow, store manager, I think you're being way too optimistic... 'Demon Slayer Calamity's' profitability is already closing in on 'I Am MT's.'"
Chen Mo said, "Just closing in, hasn't surpassed it yet. What's the rush? By the way, how much do you two know about real-time strategy games?"
Su Jinyu said, "Uh... not much. I'm just an intern."
Zheng Hongxi said, "I'm just a writer."
Chen Mo was speechless. "Wow, you two really set the bar low for yourselves. You're both supposed to become independent designers someday, you know? I'll give you three days to familiarize yourselves with all the RTS games on the market and write me a research report."
Su Jinyu was startled. "Huh? Store manager, I can't play games like that..."
Chen Mo said, "It's not like I'm asking you to become a pro player. It's fine if you can't play well, just get a general understanding. Anyway, I want to see the report in three days. You two need to write something distinct; I don't want to see two identical reports."
With that, Chen Mo went upstairs.
Su Jinyu held her forehead. Oh god, what the hell is a research report? I've never written one before!
...
Back on the second floor, Chen Mo started thinking about the new game.
If the next game was going to be a tower defense, it would be a direct upgrade from "Plants vs. Zombies." But if he just made a few minor tweaks and called it a sequel, it would be too boring. He had to come up with something new.
But what to do?
Chen Mo opened the "Plants vs. Zombies" modding community. Since the game had been released for a while, the modding community was already thriving. Many players had created various mods, some of which were quite interesting.
"PvZ: All Plants and Zombies Enhanced Edition"
"PvZ: 8 New Plants and 5 New Zombies"
The titles were ridiculously long, but this particular post was very popular. It had been posted two weeks ago and now had over 100 pages of replies.
Chen Mo was a bit curious. He opened "Plants vs. Zombies" and found that the most popular mod at the moment was exactly this one created by a player.
Chen Mo tried it out and found that the main change in this mod was the addition of 8 new plants and 5 new zombies. But unlike other mods, the author had rebalanced the stats of the plants and zombies, keeping the difficulty within a reasonable range.
This mod might not have been the most creative, but it was the most polished and balanced, which was why players loved it.
"Hmm, this creator is pretty good. Let's see if I can recruit him."
Chen Mo looked up the creator's phone number through the Thunder Game Pass.
"Hello?" It was a guy's voice again.
Wait, why did I say "again"?
Chen Mo said, "Hello, I'm Chen Mo, the creator of 'Plants vs. Zombies.'"
The other person said, "Oh, hello."
Chen Mo: "Uh, aren't you suspicious of my identity at all? Not afraid I'm an impostor?"
The other person laughed. "Who would dare impersonate you now? They'd get beaten to death by angry players in no time."
Chen Mo: "..."
The other person said, "Just a little joke, don't mind me. My name is Qian Kun. Oh, not that 'Qian Kun' (Heaven and Earth), it's the 'Kun' from 'Kun Peng' (a mythical giant bird)."
Chen Mo said, "Oh, so it's the 'Kun' from 'fish, sun, and comparison,' right? I know."
Qian Kun: "...Ahem, well, actually, I kind of admire you."
Chen Mo was pleased. "Oh, really?"
Qian Kun said, "Yeah, before you made 'I Am MT.'"
Chen Mo: "..."
Qian Kun said, "But after you made 'I Am MT,' I admire you even more. I think it's amazing how you used numerical incentives to make a game so profitable!"
Chen Mo was speechless. This kid, why does he pause like that when he talks?
"Want to learn?" Chen Mo asked.
Qian Kun said, "Yeah, of course I do!"
Chen Mo said, "Come to the capital. I'll teach you."