Chapter 140: Zen Interactive's Immortal Hero Game
Zheng Hongxi stretched his back. "Ah, I've finished writing two more character backgrounds and one side quest. Man, I'm exhausted."
Jia Peng said, "Come on, didn't you even write the entire plot for Warcraft?"
Zheng Hongxi shook his head. "That's different. Sure, Warcraft's story is impressive, but it's just one main storyline—you can basically just keep writing straight through. This game is nothing like that. There are way too many side quests, and they all affect each other. It's infinitely more complex than Lifeline. My head is spinning from this."
Qian Kun, while filling in a table, said, "Hurry it up. I've still got a ton of martial arts and item descriptions waiting for you to write."
Zheng Hongxi pressed his forehead. "Oh my god!"
Wen Lingwei said, "Hey, let me take a look at the script you've written. I'll give you some feedback."
Zheng Hongxi shook his head vigorously. "No way, that would be like spoiling everything. Besides, I don't need your feedback—the boss has already seen it."
Wen Lingwei was speechless. "Stingy. You're all infected with the same stinginess as the boss."
Zheng Hongxi said, "This isn't stinginess, it's professional integrity, okay?"
Wen Lingwei rolled her eyes, with an expression that said, "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say."
Qian Kun added, "By the way, make sure you plan out special quests for a few unique martial arts and items. For something like the Six Meridian Divine Sword, the boss specifically said it must be obtained through a special quest in that Carefree Cave. Remember to write that into the story."
Zheng Hongxi nodded. "I've got it. I'm planning to write a really long side quest for it."
Jia Peng sighed. "It sounds like, even though this theme is a martial arts game, the boss has created a ton of original martial arts. The names sound pretty cool too—like the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, the Six Meridian Divine Sword, the Northern Dark Divine Art, and the Lone Nine Swords. They feel really awesome."
Wen Lingwei said, "Of course. Do you even need to doubt the stories the stingy boss comes up with? He's got way too many clever ideas."
Jia Peng said, "But I'm honestly surprised. I thought the boss would stick with Western fantasy all the way, since Warcraft is so popular. It feels like he could just release a sequel and rake in money without even trying. Why did he suddenly decide to make a Chinese-style game?"
Su Jinyu said, "You didn't know? Because the Game Committee—oh, the department in charge of games—issued a notice asking designers to develop a Chinese-style game, and they're even going to hold a competition."
Jia Peng was taken aback. "Really? I thought the boss wouldn't care about something like that."
Su Jinyu said, "Actually, the boss was already planning to make a Chinese-style game anyway. It just happened to coincide with this."
Jia Peng asked, "So, can the boss win first prize?"
Wen Lingwei said, "When has the stingy boss ever lost?"
Su Jinyu quickly stopped her. "Don't get too cocky, don't get too cocky. Actually, it's hard to say this time. Because Zen Interactive is also developing an immortal hero-themed single-player game, and they started over a month before us. Their progress is probably pretty fast now, so it's still uncertain."
Jia Peng asked, "Huh? Zen Interactive is participating too?"
Su Jinyu nodded. "Of course. Both Zen Interactive and Imperial Dynasty Interactive are joining. There are way more games participating in this competition than you think. That's why I said it's not a sure thing."
Jia Peng thought for a moment. "That makes sense. If it's a competition, Imperial Dynasty Interactive basically has no chance. But Zen Interactive's strength lies in immortal hero games. Sword Legend is a very successful RPG, and they have a deep foundation."
Zheng Hongxi said, "Actually, that's not necessarily true. Zen Interactive's advantage isn't that big."
"I looked up a lot of past award-winning games online and kind of figured out the preferences of those Game Committee judges. Simply put, they don't really like online games. Even though online games are more profitable, their storytelling ability is weak."
"These judges place a lot of importance on a game's story and innovation in gameplay. In other words, the best entries are single-player games—the more polished the production, the better, and the richer the story, the better."
Su Jinyu said, "But even so, Zen Interactive still has a big advantage. Sword Legend has a lot of quest lines, and Zen Interactive has experience in that area. If they really turn it into a single-player game, it shouldn't be bad."
Zheng Hongxi said, "They might not be bad, but our story is better."
Everyone: "Oh, so you're just subtly bragging about yourself!"
Zheng Hongxi nodded. "Yep."
Everyone: "..."
Qian Kun waved his hand. "Alright, enough chit-chat. Let's get back to development. We still have a lot of work to do, and time is tight. Everyone, step it up."
...
Meanwhile, at one of Zen Interactive's experience stores, an A-level designer was also hard at work.
Yao Yu, an A-level designer and one of the main creators of Sword Legend, was responsible for its story structure. He was also a well-known story designer and immortal hero novel author in the country.
"The character concept art from this morning—a few pieces don't meet the standards. Send them back for rework."
"I've made some minor adjustments to the story for the Netherworld Underground Palace. Make sure to update it in the game, along with the dialogue and corresponding CG. Those need minor tweaks too."
"Step up the work on the combat system. If this part isn't done well, it'll seriously affect the progress later."
"Adjust the difficulty of the levels again. Don't make it too hard, but don't make it too easy either. We have to consider how the judges will feel."
"Everyone, remember one thing: this game isn't being made for players—it's being made for the judges. We must always make the judges feel that this is a very orthodox immortal hero-themed game. Let them sense the nostalgia and sincerity, understand?"
"Yeah, we can lean toward the style of Sword Legend, but it can't be too similar. If it's too similar, the judges will think we lack innovation."
Yao Yu was also directing his four assistants, all of them working intensely on this immortal hero-themed single-player game.
To be honest, for Yao Yu, an A-level designer working on this game was a bit of overkill.
S-level designers could fully oversee a VR game project, while A-level designers could handle large-scale PC online games or take on important roles in VR game projects.
Making a single-player game was, relatively speaking, like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
But Yao Yu understood that the higher-ups at Zen Interactive had given him this task because they valued his development experience on Sword Legend and his outstanding storytelling ability.
In other words, this was a political mission. Achieving a good ranking in this competition would help elevate Zen Interactive's status in the domestic gaming circle, and it would also boost his own reputation.
So, Yao Yu didn't dare to be careless. He racked his brains, determined to create a high-quality single-player immortal hero game and win first place this time!