Chapter 528: A Not-So-Appropriate Chapter Title
Chen Mo was casually chatting with Li Jingsi.
"You should be graduating this year, right?" Chen Mo asked.
Li Jingsi nodded. "Yes, very soon."
"What are your plans after graduation?" Chen Mo continued. "Graduate school or work? Or you could go pro? With your skill level and looks, you'd probably reach the peak of your career in no time."
Li Jingsi smiled lightly. "Not really interested in any of that. Playing games all day is the best. But I don't want to go pro either—that would turn gaming into a job, and it'd get boring fast."
Chen Mo teased, "Your life goal is just to play games? That's a pretty unique ambition."
Li Jingsi replied, "This ambition isn't easy to achieve, you know? Games are getting more and more expensive, and you're the one who started it. Now designers are all about 'creating happiness with money.' To enjoy games peacefully, you need to have money too."
Chen Mo chuckled. "Then be my girlfriend, and you can achieve your life goal instantly."
Li Jingsi smiled sweetly. "Sure."
Chen Mo: "???"
Wait, this wasn't going according to the script?
Luckily, the experience store's lobby was mostly empty, or Chen Mo would definitely have been mocked by a group.
He tried to flirt, but ended up being flirted with instead? How embarrassing. You should just quit the group! Go back to making games seriously, you loser!
Just then, a news report on the TV cut in at the perfect moment, interrupting their conversation.
"Recently, the famous game giant GA has revealed more information about their new game."
"It is reported that this new game is called 'Knight's Glory,' set in medieval Europe. Players will take on the role of an expeditionary knight, facing powerful enemies one after another."
"This time, GA has also disclosed more details. The most eye-catching is that the game's physics engine will be fully controlled by the artificial intelligence Origin, the well-known AI."
"Speaking of Origin, I believe the audience is no stranger to it. It represents the current highest level of artificial intelligence. According to relevant staff, the physics engine built by Origin has reached astonishing levels in all aspects, and 'Knight's Glory' can be seen as a game entirely serving the Origin engine."
"In the game, the way knights fought in the Middle Ages will be fully replicated. The Origin engine can even perfectly recreate some details of knight combat. From the prototype video released, this footage looks more like a movie or CG cutscene."
"According to GA's official statement, the game is expected to be released within this year, and it will be a single-player game. However, GA has not yet announced the specific price."
Chen Mo watched the news with great interest.
GA was actually making a medieval knight game?
And they were using Origin to build the physics engine?
Chen Mo was a bit surprised. He had thought GA would focus on the "Origin" AI for a while, but he didn't expect them to announce a new game so quickly.
But thinking about it, it made sense. GA had been preparing for a long time, and now that Origin was mature, they naturally had to release a game to showcase their AI's capabilities.
And this game was a single-player game?
Chen Mo was a bit puzzled. GA had always been a company focused on online games, and their single-player games had never been particularly outstanding. Now they were suddenly making a single-player game?
But then again, with Origin's capabilities, making a single-player game was probably the best way to showcase the AI's strengths. After all, AI-driven NPCs and physics engines were more suited to single-player experiences.
"Knight's Glory..." Chen Mo muttered the name.
He had to admit, this game sounded quite interesting. A medieval knight game with a top-tier AI physics engine—it might actually be something special.
But Chen Mo wasn't too worried. He had his own plans.
"Alright, let's get back to work," Chen Mo said, standing up. "I need to check on the progress of the new game."
Li Jingsi nodded. "Go ahead. I'll hang around here for a bit."
Chen Mo walked toward the development area, his mind already shifting gears.
GA's new game was a threat, but it was also an opportunity. If he could release a game that could compete with "Knight's Glory," it would be a huge boost for his reputation.
But he needed to be careful. GA had Origin, which was a massive advantage. He would need to rely on his own strengths—innovative game design and compelling storytelling.
As he entered the development area, he saw Qian Kun staring at a screen, looking troubled.
"What's wrong?" Chen Mo asked.
Qian Kun turned around, his face pale. "Boss, this game... it's too hard."
Chen Mo raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
Qian Kun pointed at the screen. "I just finished the demo for the new game. The difficulty is insane. I got killed by the first boss over and over again."
Chen Mo walked over and looked at the screen. It was a dark, atmospheric scene—the Firelink Shrine from "Dark Souls."
"Oh, you're testing the 'Dark Souls' demo?" Chen Mo asked.
Qian Kun nodded. "Yeah. I wanted to see how the combat system felt. But this boss, the Iudex Gundyr... he's brutal."
Chen Mo smirked. "Let me try."
He sat down in the game pod and loaded the demo. The demo was simple—just the Firelink Shrine area, with Iudex Gundyr as the main boss, along with a few special enemies like the Sword Master and the Crystal Lizard.
The Firelink Shrine only had the Fire Keeper as an NPC; no other NPCs were included.
Chen Mo had created this demo mainly to test the combat system and basic mechanics. But after Qian Kun tried it, he was completely overwhelmed.
For a full ten minutes, he got wrecked by Gundyr.
Qian Kun had already suspected the game was too hard. As a numbers designer, he knew that even elite enemies had stats far exceeding the player's, let alone the boss, which was a complete crushing.
He had thought it made sense—after all, the boss was supposed to be tough, with more health and damage. But when he actually fought it, he was stunned.
One mistake, and he was dead in an instant!
"Obviously, you're just too bad at the game," Chen Mo said, getting ready to enter the pod. "Watch me."
Qian Kun quickly stopped him. "Boss, don't mess around. Everyone knows you're a gaming god. You know all the boss's moves, so you'll have no trouble beating it. But you can't represent the average player's skill level."
Chen Mo was speechless.
It felt like he was charging up a skill [Show Off], only to have Qian Kun interrupt him mid-cast...
Chen Mo retorted, "You know all the boss's moves too, so why can't you beat it?"
Qian Kun was exasperated. "Damn it, I'm a game designer, not a pro player!"
Chen Mo said, "Alright, it seems even if I beat Gundyr, you won't be convinced."
Li Jingsi spoke up. "Let me try."
With that, she entered the game pod.
Qian Kun knew Li Jingsi was skilled, but only in games like "Warcraft" and "League of Legends." For "Dark Souls," she didn't know the boss's moves or the game mechanics. Even if she was better than him, she couldn't be that much better, right?
Qian Kun said, "Boss, watch. If even Jingsi gets stuck on Gundyr for a long time, that should prove the boss's difficulty is too high, right?"
"Heh." Chen Mo smiled but said nothing.