Chapter 725: Fall in Love with This Game in Three Minutes
On July 14th, "Uncharted" landed in the experience store, officially launching its trial play!
This time, Chen Mo didn't hold a press conference but instead adopted other promotional methods.
The experience store remained the same as before, offering a full playthrough of the entire game flow.
At the same time, all VR gaming pods could download the trial chapter of "Uncharted" for free via the Thunder Game Platform, which was the initial tutorial storyline.
This part of the story included the high-speed boat chase at sea and young Nathan's time at the orphanage, ending at the prison chapter.
The reason for adopting this promotional approach was mainly because "Uncharted"'s strongest point lay in its visuals.
However, through videos, it was actually very difficult to showcase the power of "Uncharted"'s graphics.
Even with the highest definition quality, players were still appreciating it on their computers or TVs. The display screen was only so big; no matter how high the definition, it couldn't get much better.
It was hard to show a clear difference from other VR games.
To demonstrate "Uncharted"'s incredible visuals and immersive experience, the best way was to let everyone try it out themselves.
What's more, this trial portion of the story was less than one-tenth of the entire game content. Players would probably feel like "just as I started getting into it, the payment screen popped up." This kind of promotional effect, compared to a simple press conference plus trailer plus trial video format, could penetrate deeper into every player's heart.
The taglines were already thought up: "In just three minutes, you too will fall in love with this game, just like me."
"Try it for three minutes; if it's not fun, it's free."
"I am Nathan, and I'm waiting for you in 'Uncharted.'"
Ahem, anyway, it was roughly the same idea.
In terms of promotional resources, there was no problem at all. The Thunder Game Platform was Chen Mo's own channel, so it would definitely get the most prominent recommendation spots. On the official app store side, there was no need to even notify the Game Committee; given Chen Mo's status as an S-class designer, the staff had already reserved the recommendation slots.
Moreover, after so many days of promotion and hype, players who were even slightly interested in similar themes already knew about "Uncharted." Plus, with the game being free to download, they would definitely download it to give it a try.
Everything was ready, and players couldn't wait to experience Chen Mo's new game.
Could the Thunder Film Studio continue to maintain its usual standard?
With the claim of "the strongest visuals," just how good could "Uncharted"'s graphics really be?
On the day the trial opened, not only was there a long line at the experience store entrance, but many players were also waiting early in their own VR gaming pods, ready to download the trial chapter of "Uncharted."
...
A movie enthusiast group chat.
"Hey everyone, today 'Uncharted' opens its trial chapter for download. Has everyone downloaded it?"
"'Uncharted'? What's that? Oh, I remember, it's that treasure-hunting game similar to 'Lost Treasure'?"
"A poor person who can't afford a VR gaming pod silently watches you guys show off."
"Damn, it's today? I'm going to download it right now!"
"Oh my god, I'm still outside. Are you all shut-ins? It's the weekend, and you don't even go out!"
"Why go out? What's more fun than playing games? I'm already downloading it!"
"How much does the game cost?"
"It hasn't been released yet; it comes out next week. But the trial chapter is available for download now, and it's free."
"Free? Damn, I'm heading home right now!"
Obviously, the free strategy worked everywhere.
Many players weren't particularly interested in "Uncharted" at first, because treasure hunting and adventure games weren't exactly a mainstream genre, far behind themes like guns, cars, balls, or cold weapon combat.
But as soon as they heard the trial chapter was free to download, why hesitate? Just download it first!
"Is Old Song here? I strongly recommend 'Uncharted' to you again. Since you have a VR gaming pod, just download it and check it out. This game was made by Chen Mo."
After a while, Old Song replied in the chat: "I'm not watching. I don't know who Chen Mo is. Besides, these movies and games are all just money grabs, way too different from the original novels!"
Someone replied: "Old Song, you were just as dismissive when 'Lost Treasure' first came out, but in the end, you still went to see it..."
Old Song: "...You talk too much! I mainly went to review, critique, and judge it with a professional eye, to find flaws in the movie. Not like you guys."
The other person replied with a stifled laugh emoji: "Perfect then! This domestic game is also waiting for you to critique it! And the trial chapter really is free, no lie."
Old Song: "Fine, since you're all insisting so much, I'll reluctantly give it a try. Ah, speaking of which, I haven't used my gaming pod in over a month..."
...
Ignoring the chat discussion, Old Song stood up from his computer chair, stretched his limbs, and prepared to crawl into his VR gaming pod.
Old Song wasn't actually old, just in his early thirties. In the eyes of others, he was a business elite and a successful man. His only flaw was that he was a bit too pretentious.
Simply put, he liked to find faults to prove his sophistication and uniqueness.
For example, when a classic novel was adapted into a movie.
An ordinary young person would watch the movie, enjoy it happily, and then forget about it.
A literary young person would watch the movie, write a review, and if particularly interested, would find the original novel to read.
A foolish young person would go on a wild praise spree for the movie, trash all similar movies, and then start flame wars on forums and message boards, arguing endlessly with fans of other films.
But Old Song was neither literary nor foolish, because he always found unique angles to highlight his distinctiveness.
He had to have read the original novel first, to show that "before the movie was even made, before any of you had seen it, I had already thoroughly read the original," emphasizing his foresight.
And when the movie was released, he would definitely find all the differences between the movie and the original, criticize them harshly, and then lament how the director had ruined the original by making things up.
Furthermore, he would subtly promote the original to others: "Ah, the movie wasn't good. I recommend you read the original; that's the classic."
All to showcase his taste.
As for his VR gaming pod, he had actually played very few games on it.
Because he wasn't really a hardcore game enthusiast. He bought the VR gaming pod just because he felt that as a successful person, not having this new-age IT product at home would be embarrassing.
As a domestic player not knowing who Chen Mo was, it was enough to show how out of touch he was...
And this time, he was also approaching "Uncharted" with a mindset of "critiquing it."