Chapter 487: Interested in Giving a Lecture?
Chen Mo was considering his plans after the New Year when suddenly his phone rang.
He picked it up and saw that it was actually Qiao Hua calling.
"Oh? What does the Game Committee want with me during the New Year?" Chen Mo was a bit puzzled.
The Spring Festival holiday wasn't over yet, so the Game Committee probably hadn't started work either, right? Calling at this hour... could it be... to wish me a happy New Year?
...That didn't make sense either. Everyone at the Game Committee was a leader; why would they wish him a happy New Year...
Chen Mo answered the call: "Hello? Happy New Year, Minister Qiao."
On the other end of the line, Qiao Hua chuckled. "Happy New Year. I heard you didn't take it easy during the holiday and even made two new games?"
Chen Mo smiled. "I had nothing to do at home, so I figured I might as well keep busy. What, does the Game Committee oversee that too?"
Qiao Hua laughed. "Why would the Game Committee oversee that! Alright, enough small talk. Let's get down to business. I was planning to wait until after the Spring Festival holiday to bring this up, but time is tight, so I wanted to ask your thoughts early. Here's the thing: would you be interested in becoming a lecturer?"
Chen Mo was taken aback. "A lecturer?"
Where did that come from?
Qiao Hua smiled. "I'd like to invite you to teach an elective course at World Number One University. The previous elective course teacher fell seriously ill and can no longer teach, so we need someone to fill in for the second half of the year. After thinking it over, I felt that since you just won Game of the Year, you'd be the most suitable person to teach this elective. Are you interested?"
Chen Mo thought for a moment. "What specific elective is it? If it's about certain types of games, I might not have enough experience yet and could end up misleading the students."
Qiao Hua explained, "The course is called 'Game Industry Prospects and Outlook.' Hmm, it's basically a mix of history and foresight. In the first half of the year, the previous teacher already covered the history of game development in detail. The latter part is mainly about predictions—imagining what future games will look like and how the entire game industry will develop."
Qiao Hua continued, "Don't worry about teaching poorly or lacking expertise. On one hand, this course is about popularizing knowledge, helping students understand the basics of game design and giving them a fundamental grasp of the game industry. On the other hand, it's about looking ahead, which is just one perspective. It's an elective, not a required course, so you can teach with a bit more freedom."
Chen Mo nodded. "Alright, I understand. Let me think it over."
Qiao Hua said kindly, "Take your time. There's no rush. Just give me your answer within a few days."
Chen Mo asked again, "Why World Number One University and not another school?"
Qiao Hua chuckled. "Because this happened rather suddenly. On one hand, the original teacher fell ill, and we need you to step in. On the other hand, we hope to fill a gap in World Number One University's game-related programs."
"Although World Number One University's overall academic level is good, its expertise in game design has always been lacking. Inviting you to teach is also meant to give the faculty there some new inspiration. After all, you're a professional designer on the front lines of game design, while those teachers have been away from the front lines for a long time. Many of their concepts have long fallen behind the times."
Chen Mo nodded. "Alright, I'll think it over carefully. Is this an officially assigned task from the Game Committee?"
Qiao Hua laughed. "Of course not. This is entirely voluntary. It would be great if you want to go, but if you don't, no one will force you. We can find someone else."
After hanging up, Chen Mo roughly looked up some relevant information.
World Number One University was actually a nickname for a prestigious university in Qilu.
In terms of distance, it wasn't far from the Imperial Capital to Qilu—only two hours by high-speed rail.
For Chen Mo, the time commitment was fairly relaxed. The elective course was held once every two weeks, with each session lasting two hours. That meant he only needed to make the trip once every two weeks.
After all, it was just an elective.
For students, required courses had to be fully mastered since they covered foundational classic knowledge. Electives, on the other hand, were more about cultivating interest and providing a basic understanding and awareness of the game industry.
Chen Mo was quite interested in this opportunity because he had never been a university lecturer before.
Moreover, he felt that being a lecturer was an honorable thing. As the saying goes, a teacher is one who transmits wisdom, imparts knowledge, and resolves doubts.
If he could, through his lectures, get more students interested in game design and help cultivate more talent for the domestic game industry, that would be something he'd be happy to see.
After all, he no longer lacked money. He didn't need to treat profit as a primary goal like before.
Now, his goals were diversified. On one hand, he wanted to help the game industry develop better and prevent channels from holding research and development hostage. On the other hand, he wanted to create more fun games for players. And finally, he wanted to bring more talent into the industry.
Given the current course structure, it was just an elective, so he didn't have to worry about being constrained or sticking rigidly to a textbook. He could simply share his own insights and experiences, which gave him a lot of freedom.
Teaching wouldn't interfere with his current work either, since he only needed to go to World Number One University once every two weeks.
After thinking it through, Chen Mo agreed to Qiao Hua's proposal.
Qiao Hua gave a few more reminders, telling Chen Mo not to be bound by conventional thinking. He could even teach without PowerPoint slides and just speak freely, as long as he covered the class hours.
As for the students' exams and grades, Chen Mo could decide on those himself. The university's administration wouldn't impose any requirements or interference.
So, what exactly should he teach? Chen Mo was also thinking about it.
Since it was his first time lecturing on a university campus, he definitely wanted to talk about things no one else had covered before.
He already had some ideas in mind, but he still needed to carefully consider which specific content to include.
...
After the Spring Festival holiday ended, Chen Mo returned to the Imperial Capital.
The post-holiday work plans were mostly finalized, and there were no immediate plans for new game development.
For now, Chen Mo's two main works, "League of Legends" and "Overwatch," were still in their development stages. In the new year, he would need to continuously release new versions and content.
Especially for "League of Legends," major clubs had already formed teams, and preparations for the LPL Spring Split were in full swing. The league events were about to get on track.
For "Overwatch," there were also follow-up version development plans.
Other game companies, after seeing "Overwatch" win Game of the Year, were also considering developing similar products. Many had already initiated projects and started development after the holiday.
Chen Mo had no comment on this. You do your thing, I'll do mine.