Chapter 753: Keywords
Just as he saw off Old Man Zhang, Zou Zhuo popped up out of nowhere.
"Boss, you said earlier there's a new game—is that for real or what?" The chubby kid looked totally curious.
Chen Mo rolled his eyes. "You've got sharp ears, don't you? Why aren't you off livestreaming? Have you hit your streaming quota for this month?"
Zou Zhuo coughed twice. "Ahem, boss, don't bring up what's better left unsaid. I'm the guy who's known for streaming two days and skipping three—it's no big deal if my streaming hours fall short sometimes, right?"
"Besides, how could my stream be more important than your new game? Countless players are waiting for me to pry the info out of you. Boss, just tell me—are you really making a new game or not?"
Chen Mo plopped down on the sofa. "What the new game is—you'll find out when it comes out. What's the rush?"
Zou Zhuo sat across from Chen Mo. "Whoa, boss, that's a pretty loaded statement. Leaking a little info ahead of time helps build hype for the new game."
Chen Mo chuckled. "Sorry, but my games don't need hype anymore. As long as I make them, players will buy, buy, buy."
Zou Zhuo looked dumbfounded. "Boss... you've gotten arrogant!"
Chen Mo laughed. "Alright, alright, since you're asking so sincerely, I'll give you a few keywords for the new game."
Zou Zhuo perked up instantly. "Great, great, great! Boss, go ahead—I'll write them down word for word."
Chen Mo said each word slowly: "Apocalypse, zombies, survival, story-driven. Got it?"
"Oh, apocalypse, zombies, survival, story-driven... Got it." Zou Zhuo muttered, then suddenly felt something was off. "Hey? Boss, haven't I heard these keywords somewhere before?"
Chen Mo chuckled. "Heard them? Definitely not. Must be your imagination. Don't go around saying things you shouldn't, alright?"
With that, Chen Mo went upstairs to handle his own business, leaving Zou Zhuo sitting on the sofa, utterly confused.
"Isn't that basically the keywords for Josh Wilson's Z Project?! He just summarized Josh Wilson's new game trailer!"
"Wait, does that mean..."
Zou Zhuo was initially puzzled—wasn't Chen Mo's answer a bit off-topic? But after thinking it over, something was up!
Could it be that because Josh Wilson mocked Chen Mo's *Uncharted*, Chen Mo decided to make a new game to slap him in the face?
Yeah, knowing Chen Mo's personality, that was pretty likely...
Or rather, if Chen Mo didn't stir up some trouble, he wouldn't be Chen Mo...
"Holy crap, holy crap, big news! Big news!" Zou Zhuo muttered as he ran to his gaming pod to start his stream.
...
As soon as Zou Zhuo started his stream, hundreds of thousands of people flooded in.
"You chubby punk still have the nerve to stream! How many times have you flaked this month? Say it yourself!"
"Unfollow! Unfollow! Unfollow!"
"Stream all night tonight and we'll forgive you!"
"This lazy streamer is a disgrace to the streaming world—let's all boycott him!"
Facing the barrage of accusations from the audience, Zou Zhuo felt a bit embarrassed.
But he knew that in a minute, these viewers would completely forget about his flaking and even start sending gifts to cheer him up.
"Ahem, dear viewers, hear me out. The reason my streaming schedule has been unstable lately is that I have my reasons. I've been busy with something very important."
"Don't believe me? Fine, I guess I have to drop some real content. Listen up—I went and found out about Chen Mo's new game!"
Zou Zhuo paused deliberately, saying nothing as he watched the chat reactions.
Sure enough, two seconds later, the entire screen of comments had changed.
"Holy crap? Chen Mo's new game?"
"Chen Mo's releasing a new game? Isn't *Uncharted* still not finished?!"
"Keep going! What's Chen Mo's new game?!"
"Damn it, chubby, don't leave us hanging! I swear, if you're lying, I'll grab a knife and come find you in the capital!"
The chat topic shifted instantly. The viewers who had been grilling him about his flaking forgot all about it, and everyone's attention was drawn to Chen Mo's new game.
And lots of people were sending gifts!
Still, everyone was skeptical.
On one hand, Chen Mo himself hadn't mentioned it, and the follow-up content for *Uncharted* was still in development, so a new game probably wasn't coming that fast. On the other hand, everyone knew Zou Zhuo spent all his time at Chen Mo's experience store, so if anyone had insider info, it was pretty credible.
Zou Zhuo was very satisfied with the reaction and mimicked Chen Mo's tone: "The boss said: 'Since you're asking so sincerely, I'll tell you a few keywords for this game: apocalypse, zombies, survival, story-driven.'"
"Anything else? Nope, that's all the boss said."
"Oh, come on, you people are never satisfied! The game's barely been greenlit, and you're asking me for detailed info? You're thinking too much!"
"The key is what these keywords reveal—figure it out yourselves. Hey, I can't say too much. Alright, let's start today's stream."
The players' reactions were basically the same as Zou Zhuo's. At first, they were confused, but then it clicked—this was a direct challenge to Josh Wilson!
Hadn't Josh Wilson said *Uncharted* lacked depth in its story?
Chen Mo was basically saying: Alright, I hear you're good at storytelling. Let's go, then. We'll make the same genre—zombie-themed, apocalypse survival, story-driven games—and see who handles the narrative better?
The spectators got hyped instantly. Great games to play, and great drama to watch!
"Is this for real? Chubby, don't spread rumors—you'll lose your credibility! Don't mess around with this stuff!"
"Whoa, I feel like this is pretty likely. I was wondering why Chen Mo hadn't responded for so long—he was just waiting for this!"
"So, since they're both designers, they'll settle it like designers? Compete on who makes the better game?"
"This is going to be a show! *Uncharted*'s genre is different, so it can't compare to Z Project, but if Chen Mo makes a zombie game too, that's easy to compare!"
"Nice, I love Chen Mo's fiery temper!"
Soon, the rumor that "Chen Mo's new game is zombie-themed" spread across all the major forums and websites in the country.
If this news came from anyone else, it would lack credibility, but coming from Zou Zhuo, it carried a lot of weight.
Many players were skeptical, thinking it was too rash. Was Chen Mo really making a new game just out of spite for Josh Wilson?
But more players hoped it was true. They were dying to see what kind of story-driven game Chen Mo could deliver.