Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 248 - 247: Where did it all go wrong?

Chapter 248: Chapter 247: Where did it all go wrong?

Back home, after parking the car in the underground garage, Ge Peng looked at the emblem on the rear of the car and found it more and more pleasing to the eye.

Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in his head.

"Eh, so that’s why?

"I know why they made this emblem so cheap!"

Rushing home, Ge Peng tidied up his personal appearance a bit and then immediately recorded a short video.

By now, the previous video of President Gu personally applying the emblem had broken a hundred thousand likes, and it was still increasing!

Such a highly popular video also brought a huge number of followers to his account, and the platform would significantly increase the recommendation weight for new videos. So if Ge Peng published a related video at this time, the chances of it being seen were very high.

Originally, he had no idea what to shoot for this video, but now, with a flash of inspiration, he had an idea!

"First batch of ’Road Rage Simulator’ achievement emblem owners take to the road, the one episode sufferers of social anxiety fear the most! I finally understand why they made this emblem so cheap!"

The title was a bit long, almost reaching the maximum number of characters allowed for titles on short video platforms, but there was no helping it—the content of videos was getting shorter and shorter, but the titles were getting longer, which was a trend on the internet nowadays.

"Guys, the follow-up to the ’Road Rage Simulator’ achievement emblem event is here!

"Today, I drove home from Nitiandang’s experience store, and unexpectedly, I became the center of attention the whole way! A lot of people were following behind my car to take pictures of the emblem, even coming up to strike up a conversation!"

Ge Peng first gave a brief recount of his experiences on the road, adding some videos as well.

He drove a new energy SUV, equipped with a Sentry Mode, meaning the car had surround cameras covering all angles, which allowed for direct video retrieval.

On Ge Peng’s drive home, the car had collected a lot of footage for him, which could now be perfectly edited into the video.

Although the footage shot by the car’s cameras wasn’t as clear as that from professional equipment, it was enough to prove that Ge Peng’s claims were true.

Moreover, these camera angles seemed even more genuine and definitely couldn’t be accused of being staged.

"Guys, I’ve had an epiphany!

"So Nitiandang had a deeper meaning all along for making this emblem!

"When I first received this emblem, I was puzzled too. This crappy thing would probably cost just a few dozen yuan at a small commodities market. Was it really appropriate to use as a reward for an extremely difficult achievement?

"Compared to a golden trophy, this crappy emblem seemed utterly useless!

"But think about it, when has Nitiandang ever been stingy? They dared to offer half the game’s price as a rebate before, and gave away golden trophies. Written all over their face were three words: not short on cash! So why suddenly become stingy this time?

"When something is out of the ordinary, there must be a demon at work. Now I understand, Nitiandang’s making of this emblem wasn’t being stingy, but rather had a deeper significance!

"Because this emblem wasn’t meant to be collected at all, it was meant to be stuck on the car!

"Think about it. If this emblem were made of pure gold or were extremely valuable, wouldn’t that just be waiting to be stolen? If you really stuck it on the car, it would vanish into thin air in no time.

"Then the car owners would be afraid of losing it and dare not stick it on, and the meaning of this gift would be lost!

"As for why this emblem must be displayed?

"Simple, because only by displaying it can you gain the most emotional value!

"The design of the QR code is sheer brilliance.

"If it were just an ordinary emblem or certificate, it would be very easy to fake. If passersby cannot distinguish whether it’s genuine or counterfeit, even if they see it, they wouldn’t recognize it.

"The QR code design, it’s fair to say, kills two birds with one stone!

"The first function is to authenticate. With just a scan, you can tell whether the emblem is real or fake. After all, the car plate number in the video has to match the real car plate number to have any show-off effect.

"The second function is even more interesting—enticing people to scan the code!

"Most people, out of curiosity, would want to verify whether the emblem is real or fake. And once they scan it, they’re presented with a highlight reel of your driving moments.

"You can even see just how many times this code has been scanned and how many times the highlight reel has been played.

"I can only say, although it’s just a crappy emblem that costs no more than a few dozen yuan, the spiritual enjoyment it brings me is no less than that of a million-dollar luxury car! Just the emotional value it provides is enough to make up for the suffering I endured completing the achievement!"

...

That evening.

Gu Fan, yawning, returned to his villa.

As Ge Peng’s video went viral, the number of visitors to the experience store had noticeably increased during the afternoon and evening.

But obviously, this was just the beginning.

The popularity of the experience store was bound to continue to grow, possibly even to the point of being overcrowded.

As for Gu Fan, his tasks for this stage were largely completed, and he could finally take a good rest.

However, just then, he heard a familiar shout.

"Gu Fan!!!"

Gu Fan was startled, knowing without guesswork that Lilith must be throwing a tantrum again.

"What’s wrong, President Li? It’s so late at night..."

As Gu Fan entered the living room, he saw Lilith with a dark expression, staring at her phone.

"Dammit, I was going to discuss with you how to deal with Hell Frontline’s new game, but I accidentally caught a glimpse of the negative emotions for ’Road Rage Simulator’...

"That darn sign, how could it deduct so many points from me!!!"

Frustration had rendered Lilith somewhat incoherent.

If it were anyone else, hearing her, they might be utterly baffled, not understanding a thing she was saying.

But Gu Fan, as her old partner, instantly grasped what Lilith was trying to convey.

"President Li, don’t panic, take a sip of coke first, and explain slowly.

"I think I got the gist of it.

"Firstly, Hell Frontline has released a new game, so you urgently need me to step in.

"Secondly, that sign from ’Road Rage Simulator’... has it created a lot of positive emotions in players? And so we are at a loss?"

Lilith took a sip of coke and nodded vigorously: "Yes, that’s what I mean!

"Only Gu Fan truly understands me; partnering with you really sets my mind at ease!

"Let’s talk about Hell Frontline’s new game later; first explain to me why this damn sign could generate so much positive emotion!

"Did you do this on purpose!"

Lilith angrily threw the phone in front of Gu Fan, and Ge Peng’s latest video was playing on the screen.

Clearly, Lilith could distinctly see the source of various negative emotions. And the negative emotions produced by this sign should have been a negative number.

Perhaps Ge Peng felt some negative emotions when he first received the sign, but today, after being watched by countless people, the positive emotions he generated from the sign had far exceeded the negative ones.

Other car owners who received the sign were probably in the same boat.

This meant that this sign had turned into a completely loss-making business!

Gu Fan looked baffled: "President Li, what does this have to do with me?"

Lilith was so angry she was grinding her teeth: "Wasn’t it you who customized this sign! Why did you add a QR code? Why does scanning it play a video!"

Gu Fan fell silent for a moment: "President Li, when you told me to make this thing, you just said to keep the cost low, within a few dozen dollars, with no other requirements!"

Lilith was going crazy: "I really had no other requirements; I only told you to consider why the cost had to be low and then to gather more negative emotions!

"But I didn’t say to include a QR code and video!"

Gu Fan nodded, "President Li, I did consider it!

"According to your words, the reason for the low cost is to generate more negative emotions from the players, right?

"Since achieving this accomplishment is difficult, the worse the prize, the more negative emotions the players will have! That should be the very intention of this idea, no issue there, right?"

Lilith nodded: "Right! But what does this have to do with a video?"

Gu Fan boldly stated: "President Li, if you could check the records of negative emotion collection, you’ll see whether, when the players just received the sign or just scanned the code to watch the records, did they have more negative or positive emotions?"

Lilith fell silent, seemingly flipping through the records of negative emotion collection from that time.

After a moment, she weakly said: "It seems... there were indeed more negative emotions at first..."

Gu Fan nodded: "So there you have it! My approach was correct!"

Lilith felt like her brain was overheating.

In reality, most of the players who got the sign for the first time scanned the QR code out of curiosity right away.

Of course, there were some who didn’t, like those who might not have realized the design was a QR code that could be scanned, or those too angry to bother with scanning.

However, those non-scanners were in the minority.

But those who did scan ended up feeling even more negative emotions, got even angrier.

Why?

Because scanning at that time was like repeatedly reminding oneself of the suffering endured to achieve that accomplishment!

They were already pissed off at the sight of that lousy sign, but after scanning and seeing their own spectacular plays, recalling their own painful efforts for the accomplishment, and then looking at that lousy sign again, rage would well up uncontrollably!

So, in the beginning, when they first got their hands on the sign, those who watched the video after scanning did indeed contribute more negative emotions!

In this regard, Gu Fan’s method was indeed not problematic.

But... where did things start to go wrong?