Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 502 - 485 Demo Play

Chapter 502: Chapter 485 Demo Play

Zhou Yang also went through some mental struggles, "How about calling it ’Ice and Fire Star’?

"After all, our game highlights the extreme environments of bitter cold and scorching heat."

Lilith’s lips twitched slightly, "Next."

Clearly, she was not satisfied with the name.

Su Tong thought for a moment, "President Li, I’m also bad at naming...

"I think, how about ’Star Plan’? Although it doesn’t directly reflect the game’s features and gameplay, our game itself encompasses a vast array of elements.

"’Star’ symbolizes the sea of stars, and ’Plan’ refers to the grand scheme of escaping the comet and entering the universe.

"After all, the ultimate goal of the game is to leave this planet and find a new home in the sea of stars."

Lilith nodded slightly, "Hmm... that sounds good, too.

"What do you think, President Gu?"

Gu Fan pondered seriously, "I think all three names are okay.

"However, I’m leaning towards ’Star Plan.’

"Because... it’s more misleading."

Lilith thought for a moment, "Hmm? That makes sense!"

Clearly, ’Star Plan’ didn’t really match the actual circumstances of the game.

At first glance, Star Plan sounds very bright and grand, leading players to first think of development, construction of automated production lines, and ultimately conquering the universe.

Does the game contain these elements? Of course, it does.

But that’s only half of the content.

The other half involves extreme natural environments, internal political strife, and potential disasters that could strike at any moment.

These elements, likely to elicit a lot of negative emotions from players, are not readily apparent from the name.

Lilith did not plan to make a big deal out of it in promotions but instead wanted to surprise the players.

For instance, by initially telling players it is a cooperative game for two, where the Emperor and the Governor must handle different tasks.

But not telling them that these two roles would actually interfere with each other, even engage in cunning plots and backstabbing.

Bitter cold, scorching heat, and being caught by a massive planet are scary, but what’s scarier are incompetent teammates.

So ’Star Plan’ is actually a misleading name, which, if combined with promotional strategies, may achieve the goal of eliciting more negative emotions.

The game’s name doesn’t have to be particularly accurate, does it?

Thinking this, Lilith immediately made a decision, "Alright, then let’s settle on this name!

"Everyone get busy now, take up your respective roles, and rush out a playable demo.

"This development’s pace must be faster than ’Blood of Lies!’"

Similar strategy simulation games usually don’t have a large scale, and the difficulty level of development isn’t very high.

Many similar games are produced by small independent teams.

Now with Nitiandang well-staffed and the outsourcing team having been thoroughly sifted through during the process of developing ’Blood of Lies,’ making this type of game is naturally as easy as pie.

Start with a playable demo, release a promotional video, and stir up the excitement.

Wait until the official launch to give players a big surprise.

...

...

One month later, in Magic Capital, Chuangda Technology.

"Is the new game’s demo already completed? That was quick."

Wei Chengjie received the demo file, making him look forward to the new game even more.

He had been busy during this month.

After a successful collaboration on ’Blood of Lies,’ Chuangda Technology had tasted success.

Thus, they formally signed a contract with Nitiandang to become Nitiandang’s designated outsourcing studio.

This was a win-win situation for both parties.

Chuangda Technology could not only obtain a higher price than outsourcing other projects but also work more steadily without worrying about not having enough projects or too many projects to handle.

And Heavenly Games could expand its scale and further accelerate the development of its games.

Of course, this cooperation model presupposed that Nitiandang’s games must continuously make a profit, or at least not incur huge losses.

However, after the success of ’Blood of Lies,’ both parties were confident about this cooperation model.

Wei Chengjie briefly reviewed the game demo.

The scope of ’Star Plan’ wasn’t very large; nearly all of the game’s content took place on a comet.

Although in the later stages of the game, players could also send an interstellar fleet to nearby planets to mine resources or even colonize, that was ultimately a much later stage in the game.

Before facing various natural disasters, it remained to be seen whether players could last that long.

Therefore, the vast majority of the game’s content was set on the surface of this comet.

This demo only sets up the broad framework of the game, whether it is the tech tree or political system, only the most basic layer is built.

For example, the tech tree includes only coal, copper and iron ores, basic conveyor belts, basic storage facilities, and the lowest level R&D centers, and so forth.

Likewise, the political system only covers the most basic autocracy, where the relationship between the head of state and the chief officers can be roughly understood like that between the Emperor and his prime ministers or top advisors in a Feudal Dynasty.

In the original design, two players were supposed to be able to adjust the political system through their strategic interactions, but the demo version had not yet included these aspects.

Wei Chengjie entered the meeting room, ready to introduce this brand new game to Qiu Qinghong and other developers.

Qiu Qinghong was already there, waiting with a keyboard and mouse.

"Blood of Lies", as an action game, bestows the optimal gaming experience when played with a controller.

"Star Plan", however, is different; this type of game clearly provides the best experience when using a keyboard and mouse.

Although Nitiandang had plans to develop controller support later on, clearly, setting up production lines with a controller would inevitably require more system-assisted tools and might not allow for some high-precision actions, which could somewhat impact the player’s gaming experience.

One could say, adapting to a controller is just a provisional measure, offering another option for those who genuinely dislike using a keyboard and mouse.

Qiu Qinghong was fully aware of these details, which is why he decided to use a keyboard and mouse from the start.

He had, however, overlooked one detail due to his unfamiliarity with the specific details of the game.

That is, the game actually involves two players playing together, but only one person needs to set up the production lines.

The other player’s actions are very straightforward and don’t require a keyboard and mouse; a controller would be perfectly adequate.

"President Wei, I had heard that Nitiandang develops games with boundless creativity, never repeating the same genre from one game to the next, and now seeing it firsthand, I am truly amazed."

For Qiu Qinghong, who specializes in outsourcing services for games, "changing genres with each game" seemed almost like a fantasy.

Outsourcing teams, although they take on projects from various other game companies which have no connection to each other, often receive homogenous development tasks.

Because the domestic gaming market itself is severely homogeneous.

But Nitiandang, being a single company, creates completely different games each time, which to some extent is indeed considered a marvel within the industry.

"Let’s start with a demo play to get a feel.

"However, this time we need two players. Is there anyone else signed up?

"How about Mr. Shen, would you like to experience it too?"

Wei Chengjie looked around the large conference room and naturally handed the other set of keyboard and mouse to Mr. Shen in the main seat.

Shen Guang is the real boss of Chuangda Technology, whereas Qiu Qinghong is just the deputy.

Typically, it was Qiu Qinghong, as deputy, who handled the company’s specific affairs; Shen Guang rarely appeared in such situations.

Today, however, was special since he was attending due to a deep cooperation plan signed with Nitiandang.

As the boss, he of course had to experience it.

"I’m not very good at these kinds of games, President Wei," Shen Guang declined initially.

Wei Chengjie reassured him, "No worries, Mr. Shen, it’s just a demo, and the mechanics are not complex.

"Besides, the game itself is of a type that’s easy to pick up. It would be good if Mr. Shen could provide some guidance after trying it out."

Shen Guang then nodded, "Alright, I’ll give it a try."

Soon, the two of them each used a laptop and a set of keyboard and mouse to enter the demo of "Star Plan" and successfully connected online.

In the meeting room, a third computer was set up to observe from a god’s-eye view, and the OB image was broadcast in real-time on a large screen.

"It’s my first time playing a two-player strategy game.

"I’ve only played single-player and multiplayer before," said Qiu Qinghong.

There is a significant difference between two-player games and multiplayer games; the underlying game mechanisms are not the same.

Shen Guang looked at the initial options on the screen: "There are still two different roles, one as head of state, the other as the chief officer.

"There are also role introductions.

"The head of state is mainly responsible for setting policies and has the highest authority, whereas the chief officer is responsible for the execution including specific setup of production lines and reports to the head."

Qiu Qinghong proposed, "Mr. Shen, you choose the head of state, and I’ll be the chief officer."

This fit generally aligned with their roles in the company.

However, Shen Guang shook his head, "That’s too boring, we’re playing a game after all, let’s switch it up.

"I’ll be the chief officer; you can be the head."

Qiu Qinghong was taken aback, "Is that appropriate?"

Shen Guang waved his hand dismissively, "What’s inappropriate about it? It’s just a game, look, I’ve already chosen."

Seeing Shen Guang had made his choice, Qiu Qinghong also moved his mouse to the head of state option and clicked confirm.

After both players chose their roles, they entered the formal game screen.

Since this was a demo, there were no introductory cutscenes or complex sequences, it went directly into the main topic.

As for the background of the game, of course, it was Wei Chengjie’s responsibility to introduce it.

"Mr. Shen, President Qiu, as you can see, this game takes place on a comet, where players control the life forms on the comet.

"They live in extremely harsh natural environments, and a slight misstep could lead to disaster.

"Thus, players must develop technology within a limited time to combat natural disasters and eventually escape the comet to find a new home."

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