This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 102: A Wave of Newbies is Approaching!

Chapter 102: Chapter 102: A Wave of Newbies is Approaching!

Official Forum:

"Big news! Shelter No. 404 Manager ’Dawn’ is flirting with a female mercenary from Red River Town!"

"Shocking! The Manager slept with the female mercenary!"

"Pass it on, they slept together for five days and nights!"

"The kid is 5 months old already!"

"We’re all adults here who can play the Game seven days a week, so please speak more maturely! Don’t be so childish! So where’s the process animation? The storyline CG? Just skipped it? Thumbs down!"

"Hahaha, are you bullying the NPCs because they can’t go online and their affection won’t drop? Hahaha."

It wasn’t just the players who were jeering; the Backseat Drivers joined in the fun too.

Just then, the Forum heavy-hitter ’Escaped Vole in the Canyon’ jumped out and started a separate post.

"Sketches are here! (image) (image) (image)"

Crow: "!!!"

Teng Teng: "Is this something we can see without paying? (nosebleed)"

Night Ten: "Mole Old Brother yyds!"

Fang Chang: "Niubi!!!"

Escaped Vole in the Canyon: "Hehehe, bros, don’t panic, it’s just a sketch, ha. Wait till I color it!"

[’Escaped Vole in the Canyon’ has been banned by the moderator for 12 hours]

Old White: "?!"

Elena: "Dangerous! (funny face)"

Light: "Don’t post strange pictures, from now on, no nudity allowed. Although our servers are in compliance with local laws and regulations, we are a serious Company, and the Game is serious as well. Please exercise restraint, no risqué pictures, ha."

Even though the Game was only released to adults, anyone could access the official website, and people of all ages are around. It was still not appropriate to see images of violence and bloodshed.

’Wasteland OL’ is a game that focuses on ’easy entertainment, casual development’ as a selling point; it does not have bloodshed or violence. The game does not promote grinding or spending extravagantly, and definitely doesn’t endorse racy content.

Once someone posted risqué content, they received a mute warning the first time, had their account at risk the second time, and the third strike led to an IP and machine code lock.

Since Chu Guang discovered that Xiao Qi could operate the Computer in his stead, Chu Guang simply tossed the Forum moderation responsibilities to Xiao Qi as well.

After all, with thousands of posts coming in daily, there was no way he could personally keep up with moderation.

Besides, Chu Guang also let Xiao Qi feature some interesting strategy posts on his behalf, which he’d check out when he had the time.

It’s still worth taking a look at selected memorials.

What if there are good ideas?

The Alpha 0.6 version came from that, didn’t it?

Night Ten: "Damn, the racy pictures blew the planner up!"

Debt Giant Eye: "Pass it on, the planner comes out when he sees racy pictures!"

All the good names are taken by dogs: "Pass it on, the planner looks at racy pictures during work hours!"

Chu Guang: "..."

Tsk.

This bunch of Sand Sculptures!

Fang Chang: "Ah! I feel sorry for Mole Old Brother, he only drew a sketch and got penalized immediately, tragic, tragic, tragic!"

Teng Teng: "Since we can’t draw Manager and the female mercenary’s doujin, maybe... Mole Brother could consider tweaking the mercenary into a young man who returns the favor? (oﾟ▽ﾟ)o "

Night Ten: "I suggest drawing Teng Teng and Crow!"

Wild Wind: "Supported!!!"

Elena: "Withered vines old trees evening crows? (funny face)"

WC always has Mosquitoes: "!! Goblin Industry sponsors a Silver Coin!"

Crow: "What the hell?? (.Д.;)"

Teng Teng: "(❀‵□′)✄╰☋╯"

...

As the deal with Horseshoe Iron Business Group concluded, time quickly moved on to October.

Just as most experienced survivors predicted, this year’s winter arrived earlier than usual.

It was just the beginning of October and the daily average surface temperature dropped to below zero, the howling cold wind and falling snow swept across the Earth. Just one night was enough to pile snow from the soles of the feet up to the shins, and even the knees.

Thankfully, the snow had not continued.

On this rare sunny day, a group of energetic and enthusiastic new players arrived in the vast expanse of the Wasteland.

They awoke from the comfort of their cultivation chambers.

Looking at their incredibly realistic torsos and the environment around them, they were shocked, bewildered, and even ecstatic to the point of breathlessness.

Chu Guang locked the permission to open the door, giving them ten minutes to get dressed and adjust their emotions, to avoid dying of embarrassment in public.

Then he used the broadcast to remind them to gather in the central hall on B2.

"Wuwuwu, damn, damn! It’s really virtual reality technology!"

"It’s so shocking; am I dreaming?"

"Pinch me... Huh? Why doesn’t it hurt at all?"

"Dumb! Have you been squatting on the official website for half a month for nothing? They’ve said it’s pain suppression, pain suppression, get it?"

"Hehehe, can I turn it off? I want to try turning it off..."

"...???"

For the old players, these wide-eyed newcomers were no longer surprising, as they had been through it themselves in the beginning.

Moreover, since the Game releases accounts in batches, watching the new players collectively embarrass themselves had become one of the traditions or perhaps one of the pleasures of the Game.

"Tsk, that young guy is not bad; he’s not even that surprised. He looks like a pro player."

"Hey, how do you know he’s not just scared stiff? Look at his pupils, they’re dilated."

"Ah, the quality of this batch of newbies is so-so, their psychological tolerance isn’t too strong, their reactions to surprise are too exaggerated, some are over the top."

"Oh, come on! You’re one to talk! I clearly remember it was you who tried to strip down when you first came in, and you were stopped by the people around you."

"Alright, alright, you can shut up now."

Chu Guang was also watching from the side.

He was waiting for everyone to arrive.

At that moment, a few shrieks of "ya" suddenly came from behind the crowd.

Chu Guang looked up and saw a dog bear with white fur, about two and a half meters long, timidly holding onto the door frame and poking its sheepish face through the north gate of the plaza.

"Me, me, me, why am I all furry?"

Many of the nearby newbies were startled and instinctively dodged to the side.

"I giao! There’s a bear!"

"Breasts?! Where?"

"Damn!"

The veteran players, however, were relatively calm.

After all, there were even Lizard men, so why not a dog bear?

Occasionally, the Game would produce a few Exalted players, either with special talents or even a gene sequence that was different from normal players.

As for Chu Guang?

He was even more composed.

After each player completed their login, their gene sequence would update to the System’s "Player List." And he was the first to see their attribute panels.

[

ID: Meat mountain big steamed bun

Gene sequence: Different Species·Bear

Level: LV.0

——Basic Attributes——

Strength: 9

Agility: 6

Constitution: 7

Perception: 7

Intelligence: 3

]

[

Talent:

Cold resistance (extremely high resistance to severe cold, not good in hot environments, and receives extra burn damage.)

Polydactyl (greater stamina, difficulty manipulating complex machinery)

Physical regeneration (enhanced recovery, difficult to increase gene sequence level)

]

Agility, Constitution, and Perception are 1 point lower than Garbage King, Strength is 1 point higher, and Intelligence is higher by 1 point.

Of course, that was at LV.0, but now Garbage King is LV.2.

Although the initial attributes of the "Different Species" sequence are generally stronger than the five mainstream sequences, the growth weakening debuff that comes with the Different Species sequence is a severe defect.

Take Garbage King, for example.

Despite being one of the first batch of veteran players to enter the Game, his level has always been pressed at Echelon No.2, only managing to reach LV.2 after almost half a month, which is somewhat embarrassing.

Moreover, the trait of "Polydactyl" makes them more inclined towards engaging in primitive activities and makes it difficult for them to operate machinery as conveniently as normal humans.

Still taking Garbage King as an example, even with modifications made to the trigger and grip, he finds it challenging to shoot with light weapons.

In any case, Chu Guang’s feeling is that this guy has given up on using guns and has completely opted for physical evolution. If he can get in close for melee combat, he will; if he can’t, he throws javelins.

Most players are very happy to team up with him.

After all, who doesn’t love a tank?

If he can’t break through, he’s a target, but once he’s through, it’s a massacre!

When they first saw the bear, the novices were quite panicked, but after seeing how cowardly it was, they became curious and drew closer.

At this time, a short-haired female player named Tail circled behind and curiously tugged at Meat Meat’s tail, startling the bear into darting forward.

"What, what, what are you doing?!"

Tail chuckled mischievously.

"Bro, that’s awesome! How much did you pay for this account?"

"I, I, I just got it through normal draws, it took a long time to draw it. Besides, how do you even spend money in this Game, there’s no option to recharge."

Another long-haired female player named Si Si came over, curious to pull the furry tail, scaring the bear until it backed up against the wall.

"Speaking of which, why did you choose such a strange name, Big Steamed Bun?"

"I, I, I originally wanted to call it Meat Mountain Demon King, but I entered the wrong character. Ugh, and you can’t change names in this Game, it’s so annoying."

Si Si suddenly smirked evilly.

"Got it, I’ll go to the Forum and register a sub-account called Meat Mountain Demon King."

"Don’t, I’m going to cry."

Tail stroked her chin for a moment, then suddenly smacked her right fist into her palm.

"Decided, from now on, you’ll be called Meat Meat! You’ll be my mount. Wait, let me check something first, do you have that?"

Meat Meat was about to cry.

"Dirt! I’m a girl!"

Tail laughed even more cheerfully.

"No problem, so am I! Come on, let me check!"

Si Si: "Ew! Are you being indecent?"

"Don’t be annoying!"

After some commotion, Tail finally let go of the bear with disappointment, clicking her tongue.

"Tsk, nothing at all."

It must be said that such fluffy animals are quite attractive to female players.

Of course, mainly because this one is too embarrassing, not domineering at all. If it were those Mutant Brown Bears from the Wasteland, the tougher ones could smash a Crawler with a single slap.

But then again, Different Species sequence players don’t have those organs, so what exactly is Meat Meat? A male or female bear?

Emmm...

Forget it.

This question is too difficult for him.

Guess he’ll just go with the player’s gender.

When even the slowest player had taken their place on the square, looking at these frolicking players, Chu Guang coughed loudly, signaling them to be quiet.

Following that, Chu Guang said in a solemn voice,

"The war has ended."

"However, the bad news is that our world has changed beyond recognition."

"Now, two hundred years after the apocalypse, it is fortunate that we have survived the toughest years. You who stand here are luckier than 12 billion people, and now I need you to quickly come to terms with our current situation, and then fulfill your pledge under the banner of the United Human—to rebuild our homeland!"

"This assistant next to me is called Xiao Qi. If you have any questions about the Shelter or anything you don’t understand, you can ask it."

As he had done many times before,

As the Manager of the Shelter, Chu Guang announced the rules and regulations of the Shelter to these one hundred newly emerged players from the cultivation chambers.

And those lines that he had thought up with great effort.

The "cutscene" for new players entering the Game was more or less the same every time, but with the "Alpha 0.5 version," Chu Guang had added a special task for veteran players who had reached Citizen level.

That is, to take new players to level up.

All players who had reached Citizen level and obtained the VM device could receive the "Pass the Torch" task from the task system.

The content of the task was simple.

Players who took the task could choose up to three newbies to become their "Novice Instructor," and as long as they were able to bring them from LV.0 to LV.1 within a week, they would receive a reward of 100 Contribution Points and 10 Silver Coins.

Contribution Points wasn’t very attractive for players who had reached Citizen level, but the reward of 10 Silver Coins was quite tempting.

For Strength Types, all one needed to do was to keep chopping trees until utterly exhausted—around two days of constant chopping should be enough to reach LV.1.

Other types of leveling required some tricks. But basically, except for Intelligence System types, it wasn’t too difficult to level up from LV.0 to LV.1—it would take about three days of dedicated effort.

While leveling people up, you could also do other tasks to make money, and you could bring along three underlings at once. The Silver Coins were practically free money, why not take advantage of it?

Moreover, newbies at gene sequence level LV.0 could also pick up the associated task, "Pass the Torch," from the notice board in the hall.

Choose an "Old Soldier" from the Shelter with VM equipment to become their own "Novice Instructor."

As long as they level up to LV.1, they would receive a reward of 80 Contribution Points and 8 Silver Coins, which was basically equivalent to the income of a newbie player grinding for 12 hours.

This numerical design was very reasonable.

The "Pass the Torch" task was launched for two reasons, one was to help newbies quickly acclimate so they weren’t like headless flies bumping around, and the other was to integrate them into the large community of Shelter No. 404.

Especially the latter.

Even in a class of a hundred people, just changing seats could alter the classroom’s atmosphere, let alone suddenly doubling the number of people.

Chu Guang was very clear that the biggest challenge that the Alpha 0.5 version update had brought was not the server’s CPU but the impact of new players on the Wasteland OL server environment.

After all, a game with a threshold that has a hardcore bent and touts "Virtual Community" as its selling point decided from the get-go that the server’s environment was of paramount importance.

It was like an ordinarily normal online game where everyone was playing nicely, and then suddenly, there’s a weekend when it’s free for a limited time and a few flies slip in, making it unplayable instantly.

Like a certain squad.

A newbie could become the nightmare of an entire small team, especially when they grab the only "sniper" rifle or a heavy barrel, or even worse, infiltrate into a vehicle team and become the driver—that would be the start of a nightmare.

Could you blame them?

Not really.

Everyone has been a newbie before, except for those who take joy in ruining others’ gaming experience, the vast majority are still open to communication.

If someone is willing to teach, they are often eager to learn, and naturally, the server environment will improve.

Actually, from a money-making perspective, the normal logic would definitely be to drive away the paid old players, let those few flies run wild in the server, which could nurture the metagame and stimulate consumption. When the flies are having fun and the server bans them, they might, in a fit of anger, open several accounts to blow up the server, leading to skyrocketing sales.

Like a certain blue hole.

But is Chu Guang that kind of person?

What is money?

Just crumbs!

Wasteland OL would rather operate at a loss to provide players the highest quality of gaming experience, maintaining the server environment to the end!

"With VM in place, the friend and team systems can be arranged as soon as possible; these features are divine artifacts for maintaining the social ecology of an MMORPG."

"Once the number of players increases, and the gaps in levels, wealth, and combat power widen, we can gradually develop the Guild System."

"Powerful guilds could then upgrade to armies, striking out to explore new lands or get into fights."

"Ah, the content about guilds and armies could be combined with the identity level system; only players who have made enough contributions to the Shelter can become the lords of pioneering lands, leaders of guilds, or even Legion Leaders."

"I’m simply a genius!"

Looking at those players who were already in the square shouting for team-ups, Chu Guang’s expressionless face couldn’t help but reveal a hint of satisfaction.

Very good.

The tender shoots of new players were growing up strong.