Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 311 - 320: Demon Era

Chapter 311: Chapter 320: Demon Era

"Brothers! Guess where we are, brothers?

"Nitiandang’s booth! Here comes Little Ding!"

Everywhere at the gaming convention, you could see people holding smartphones and selfie sticks, most of them being major broadcasters of all sizes.

Instructor Ding, being a major broadcaster himself, naturally wouldn’t miss out on this valuable opportunity.

"Eh? I just realized that seems to be the Shengjing Group’s booth right across from ours?

"Heh, sorry, not really familiar with Shengjing Group!

"Ever since they nerfed Starlight Healer, we’re irreconcilable!

"Ahem, of course, if one day Shengjing Group wants to give me a bite to eat, I can let bygones be bygones.

"Looks like I’ll be at the front of the queue in another ten minutes. Then, I’ll give you guys a taste of Shadow World’s version 70 to see if it’s any fun or not!"

As Instructor Ding chatted with his live streaming audience, he slowly inched forward with the queue of players.

He arrived quite early and made a beeline for the Nitiandang booth, but even so, he had about a half-hour wait in line.

With just ten minutes left to reach the front, Instructor Ding made it near the head of the line, only then noticing that just across the walkway was the Shengjing Group’s platform, where various promotional materials for "World of Star Spirits" were clearly visible.

There was no need to queue there, but Instructor Ding had absolutely no interest.

Mainly because the gaming experience delivered by the two games was worlds apart!

When Instructor Ding played Shadow World, even though he struggled at first, playing it later became increasingly exhilarating. Especially after the community developed the Forest Gale Suit’s Natural Storm No Cooldown Effect, it took the game’s thrill to a new level.

As for "World of Star Spirits"? After the best part, the Starlight Healer, got nerfed into oblivion, Instructor Ding lost all interest.

Of course, Instructor Ding wasn’t like Gan Di; Gan Di had spent more time playing "World of Star Spirits," and Starlight Healer was a build he developed himself. He had an emotional attachment to it. Instructor Ding, however, treated "World of Star Spirits" more like a casual plaything, whether it was Starlight Healer or Dark Chain, his builds were basically copied from others.

But when it came to the nerfing of Starlight Healer, Instructor Ding was just as indignant as Gan Di.

Of course, as a livestreamer who must make a living, Instructor Ding could possibly praise "World of Star Spirits" again if Shengjing Group’s sponsorship was right. Sadly, it seemed like Shengjing Group had no plans to offer him that meal so far.

Soon, Instructor Ding reached the tryout area, and guided by the staff, he sat down in front of one of the available computers.

Since there were so many participants in the event, everyone could only play for about half an hour. Even a major broadcaster like Instructor Ding was no exception.

This time was indeed a bit rushed, so Instructor Ding quickly sat down to start the experience.

The tryout area was divided into three sections, and to be honest, Instructor Ding was also quite interested in Nitiandang’s new game, though the name of this game was slightly off-putting.

Legend of Infinity Fantasy?

It had a strangely familiar feel to it, like a blatant knock-off.

There were promotional posters for the game on-site. With a quick glance, Instructor Ding saw it seemed to be in a Western Fantasy style, only it wasn’t the traditional realistic kind, but more of a cartoony style.

How to put it...

It doesn’t seem like there’s a big problem, but players familiar with Nitiandang all know that this clearly isn’t the style Nitiandang is best at.

So, by comparison, people are looking forward to the 70th version of Shadow World a bit more, especially since the game’s popularity is currently quite high.

Traditionally, new version updates for other MMORPG game manufacturers would start at two to three years, and it was normal for a major version to be played for two years. But in fact, this timeframe is obviously too long, as most players actively raid for only about three to five months before they have the full set of raid gear. After that, at most they’d play with an alt or go for a full achievement run.

But now the speed of game development is much faster. Shadow World can release a new version in just over half a year or less than one, which can perfectly continue the heat from before.

"Hmm? Is this the new map for the 70th version?

"Oh, the theme of this version is ’Demon Era!’

"Expedition into the Demon Realm? Exciting!"

Instructor Ding’s computer had official test accounts set up by the developers, and from the loading screen, you could see the version’s subtitle: Demon Era.

Additionally, on the loading screen, you could see some of the top bosses of this version, as well as the general monster and scene style.

For example, the previous 60th version was subtitled "Dragon Era," so the players were fighting various giant dragons.

In the 70th version, players form an Expedition Army and successfully invade the Demon Realm, and on the loading screen, you see several huge, differently shaped demons with long hooves, horns, wings, some humanoid, and some not humanoid at all.

Although the 60th version also had demons, even a special Demon Race, there clearly wasn’t as much variety.

In the entire 70th version, the Demon Realm is a large map divided into six or seven sections, each corresponding to a different level area.

And in the demo playthrough, only a small part of the Demon Realm map is opened, approximately the area where players level up from 60 to 62.

Behind is a huge portal piercing the clouds, connecting the Human World and the Demon World. Looking into the distance, you can see Hellfire falling from the sky and a continuous stream of the Demonic Legion coming in while the players’ Expedition Army is making an effort to maintain the defensive line.

The overall color tone of this map is dark, with a wild and rugged beauty.

"Eh, the officials really know their stuff, they’ve put trainers for each class here.

"It saves the trouble of running everywhere to learn skills.

"But I still want to ask, why not just create a skill learning panel?

"Hopefully, the officials will take a page out of someone’s book, it’s one of the few features in ’World of Star Spirits’ worth learning..."

In the Expedition Army’s camp, there are trainers for each profession, so Instructor Ding went directly to each one in turn, learning all the necessary skills for the popular builds he remembered.

For Shadow World players, they had nearly memorized all the skills needed for each build, which was a basic quality.

Mainly because up to now, Shadow World hasn’t introduced a dedicated skill learning panel. Players have made many suggestions, but Nitiandang has always given no feedback and it’s unknown whether they have taken any suggestions into account.

Instructor Ding thought this was unlikely, but a line of text on the computer screen kindled a faint hope within him again.

"The current game is an internal test version demo, and the gameplay and graphics do not represent the final quality of the official game!"