Chapter 389: The Current State of the Mobile Game Market
In the break room, Chen Mo was jotting down some detailed settings for "Rate of the Land."
Although this was a mobile game, the rules for state wars were still quite complex, because dozens or even hundreds of players might act simultaneously in a single battle. The rules had to be crystal clear to avoid any issues.
Moreover, the combat system of "Rate of the Land" was also very intricate, with over four hundred tactics (skills). Just the entire tactics system alone could take new players months to fully grasp, so developing it required a considerable amount of work.
As he was pondering this, Zheng Hongxi knocked and entered.
"Store manager, I heard the Game Committee is soliciting Three Kingdoms games? I know everything about the Three Kingdoms. Just tell me what type of Three Kingdoms game to make, and I'll handle the storyline. It'll be solid, guaranteed." Zheng Hongxi was a bit excited.
Chen Mo looked at him. "You're an expert on the Three Kingdoms? What books have you read?"
Zheng Hongxi said, "'Records of the Three Kingdoms,' 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms'! I've read both!"
"Oh." Chen Mo asked, "Then, have you read Pei Songzhi's 'Annotations on Records of the Three Kingdoms,' as well as 'Records of Shu,' 'Book of Jin,' 'Book of Wei,' 'Brief History of Wei,' 'Historical Records of the Three Kingdoms,' 'Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Government,' 'Collected Explanations of the Records of the Three Kingdoms,' 'Spring and Autumn of Han and Jin'... have you read all of those?"
Zheng Hongxi was dumbfounded. "...Uh, no, I haven't. Have you read them all, store manager?"
Chen Mo shook his head. "I haven't read them either."
Zheng Hongxi: "..."
What the heck, if you haven't read them, why are you listing them!
Chen Mo chuckled. "It's fine. This game doesn't need a storyline, so I won't need you to write one."
"Huh?" Zheng Hongxi was taken aback. "No storyline? How are we supposed to promote Three Kingdoms culture? Even if it's an RPG, it should at least have a main quest line, right?"
Chen Mo shook his head. "No storyline. This game is a mobile game with a unique gameplay style. Don't worry about it."
"Alright." Zheng Hongxi looked very disappointed. "Well, store manager, good luck. If you need any help, feel free to find me anytime."
"Okay." Chen Mo nodded.
Zheng Hongxi thought for a moment and then said, "Store manager, you're not thinking of making a pay-to-win mobile game with a Three Kingdoms theme, are you?"
Chen Mo said, "You could call it a pay-to-win mobile game."
Zheng Hongxi cautioned, "Uh, store manager, I'll just say this. There are plenty of pay-to-win mobile games on the market right now. If it's just another card game like 'Onmyoji,' it probably won't be very competitive..."
Chen Mo nodded. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
"Alright, then, store manager, good luck." Zheng Hongxi said. "I'll just be cheering you on from the sidelines."
...
As for the current state of the mobile game market, it's fair to say that pay-to-win games are dominant.
"Onmyoji" had been running for over two years, and Chen Mo had made some version updates. Although it was still in the top ten of the mobile game bestseller charts, it had already shown signs of decline.
After all, card games have a limited lifespan, especially one as grind-heavy as "Onmyoji." The fact that it could still stay in the top ten was only because there weren't many strong competitors in this parallel world.
Currently, the domestic mobile game market was in a relatively chaotic state.
When "Onmyoji" first appeared, it did sweep through the mobile game market, but card games aren't a genre that can dominate forever. The gameplay is relatively monotonous, and most players would get bored after a few months at most.
However, a game capable of replacing "Onmyoji" had yet to emerge.
Still, the appearance of "Onmyoji" had given some mobile game designers inspiration: the mobile game market had huge potential, and players could accept heavy, hardcore games.
The mobile game market was currently in a state of free-for-all. RPGs, card games, and casual puzzle games were all doing well, and there were a few RPGs that had topped the bestseller charts.
But a phenomenon-level game like "Onmyoji" that caused a huge sensation had yet to appear.
Many designers had taken the easy way out, with PAD leading the way, while VSG was still slightly stronger.
What was surprising was Group D. Originally, MG was stronger than the Korean team E-Motus, but in the second round of the group stage, E-Motus suddenly showed significant improvement. They unveiled two new strategies in a row, finished the second round with a 3-0 record, jumped to second place in the group, and knocked MG out.
As a result, the top eight consisted of two domestic teams, three Korean teams, two European teams, and one North American team.
For the subsequent quarterfinal draw, the rule of avoiding teams from the same group was followed, meaning teams that had played each other in the group stage wouldn't be paired together in the quarterfinals.
The final grouping result was SOT.
This grouping didn't make much difference for the teams, as both had advanced as group leaders. Both were championship contenders in this finals, and having the two Chinese teams placed in the upper and lower halves of the bracket so they wouldn't meet early was already a favorable arrangement.
However, one thing puzzled the domestic teams: why had the Korean team E-Motus suddenly become so strong? If beating MG was just luck, then going 3-0 in the second round of the group stage couldn't be explained away by luck alone.
After analyzing E-Motus's match recordings, the domestic teams discovered that the team's discipline and teamfight coordination seemed to have improved significantly, and their vision control was noticeably better than in the first round.
Later, through some clues, the domestic teams finally figured it out: the Korean teams had been secretly training together after the first round of the group stage, and all the teams were participating in this joint training.
This training wasn't just about scheduling practice matches. The two strong teams had generously shared all their hidden strategies and experiences with the other two Korean teams, especially E-Motus, which benefited greatly!