Chapter 764: Sweeping the Gaming Industry with Perfect Scores
October 5th.
In two days, the trial play for *End of Days Survival* would officially begin.
Meanwhile, the trial play for *The Last of Us* had already been running for five days.
More and more reviews of *The Last of Us* were appearing online, as the number of players trying it at experience stores grew steadily. But these players seemed to have made an unspoken pact: when asked what *The Last of Us* was really like, they only used words like "masterpiece," "must-buy," or "incredibly awesome," without revealing any details about the game itself.
This contrast sparked intense curiosity among many players, but it also left a lot of them baffled.
Seriously? The trial is already out, and you're still keeping secrets?
Fine, keep your secrets. I just won't buy it. When the sales are abysmal, we'll see where you go to cry.
Admittedly, quite a few players shared this mindset, and many vented their frustrations in online posts. After all, in this day and age, hunger marketing was no longer as effective. Many players understood that just because a product used hunger marketing or deliberately created suspense didn't mean it was actually good.
For these players, those who had already played *The Last of Us* didn't say much, only replying: "Bro, not spoiling it is to protect your gaming experience. Trust me, if this game gets spoiled, it's a terrible loss for the player. Just buy it when it releases—you won't regret it."
The overwhelming wave of positive reviews online left many players puzzled. What was Chen Mo up to this time?
*End of Days Survival* was about to launch its trial, and you're releasing at the same time? Are you really that confident you can coast to victory?
...
But then, on October 5th, an unexpected turn of events occurred.
Suddenly, like a geyser, a flood of game reviews for *The Last of Us* erupted online.
First, domestic gaming media outlets almost unanimously gave it perfect scores. In terms of story, music, visuals, and character development, they spared no praise, practically singing its praises to the heavens.
Many outlets used words like "unbelievable."
It was only then that many players realized Chen Mo had specially sent review copies to these gaming media outlets.
The domestic media reviews reignited confidence in *The Last of Us* for many players, but others remained skeptical. After all, domestic gaming media had always favored Chen Mo's games—he was the most prestigious designer in the country. How much of these perfect scores was genuine, and how much was fluff, was anyone's guess.
Moreover, some domestic game review outlets were known to take bribes for high scores. Conspiracy-minded players even suspected these perfect scores might have been bought.
The two camps of players argued endlessly, but the backlash came faster than expected...
Within hours of the domestic gaming media releasing their scores, international gaming media followed suit with their own ratings.
And this time, every player felt like they might be seeing things.
Because the international media scores were also a clean sweep of perfect 10s!
This included major authoritative outlets like TGN, all giving perfect 10 ratings!
Of course, a few outlets gave scores like 9.2 or 9.5, but not a single one went below 9.
If you looked only at the authoritative outlets, the ratings were even more breathtaking—they all gave perfect scores.
TGN's review wasn't long, just a single paragraph, but its praise for *The Last of Us* left every player stunned.
"*The Last of Us* is a stunning masterpiece, one of the best VR games available today, and an undeniable must-play classic."
"Pros:"
"An incredibly compelling story."
"An immersive, detail-rich game environment."
"Countless highlights in voice acting and sound design."
"Stunning visual quality inherited from *Uncharted*."
"Unparalleled gameplay design."
"Full interactivity and a constant sense of unease and the unknown."
"Cons:"
"None."
The other authoritative gaming review outlets gave similar evaluations.
Those who thought the domestic media were overhyping the game were immediately slapped in the face—the international media were even more effusive in their praise!
The players who unconditionally trusted Chen Mo and *The Last of Us* were celebrating wildly. Many stayed up all night waiting for more international reviews.
Every time a new perfect score came out, these players eagerly shared it on forums, discussion boards, and Weibo.
"Another 'shady outlet' got paid off!"
"Wow, even TGN gave it a perfect score this time. Where are the people saying Chen Mo bribed them? Come out and call TGN a shady outlet!"
"Nonsense! In their eyes, any outlet giving a perfect score is shady. I bet someone will soon say TGN has lost its integrity! /manual sarcasm"
"Is this game really a masterpiece? Chen Mo sure knows how to hold back. The game is clearly good, but he doesn't promote it? Refuses to spoil anything? Isn't he afraid of poor sales?"
"Chen Mo is clever. Look—he started the trial early and submitted the game to major outlets for review ahead of time, just waiting for this wave of ratings to drop!"
"Even though the wait was frustrating, I'm thrilled to see the haters get shut down!"
"Now that the scores are out, buy, buy, buy—no explanation needed!"
Earlier, many players had been mocking the domestic gaming media as "shady outlets" that took money for perfect scores. But after these international reviews, especially from authoritative outlets like TGN, those players were left speechless.
No matter how capable Chen Mo was, there was no way he could bribe every gaming review outlet in the world, right?
This dazzling array of perfect scores was enough to prove one thing: *The Last of Us* was indeed a masterpiece, without a doubt.
All previous doubts vanished like smoke, because every player who had actually played *The Last of Us* praised it endlessly. Even the harshest gaming review outlets struggled to find faults.
Of course, some tried to nitpick, but the only result was a loss of credibility for their own reviews.
The reversal happened so fast that many players couldn't keep up.
From the moment the project was announced, Chen Mo had shown very little enthusiasm for *The Last of Us*, almost no promotion at all. Many had even mistaken it for a half-abandoned project. The secrecy after the trial further frustrated players, who accused Chen Mo of hunger marketing.
But with this batch of reviews, the gaming world's verdict on *The Last of Us* was sealed.
Perfect-score masterpiece, no explanation needed!
Many players only then realized that the gaming media's collective explosion on the sensitive dates of October 5th and 6th was likely a long-planned move by Chen Mo.
This directly put *End of Days Survival*, which was only starting its trial on the 7th, in an extremely awkward position. Before it even launched, its competitor had already secured perfect scores from nearly every major gaming review outlet in the world...
Genius remembers this site address in one second: