Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 539 - 522: It Became a Trap

Chapter 539: Chapter 522: It Became a Trap

"You know what, as the Gan Di’s popular technology points kept increasing, the initiative of these silicon-based dwarves really did keep getting stronger!"

The popular technology points were distributed along two paths, for the Governor and the leader, and many of the point descriptions seemed a bit contradictory at first glance. For instance, some points would increase distrust in the Governor while increasing trust in the leader, and others would do the opposite.

Normally, in the state of regular gameplay, you wouldn’t see such a stark difference in the points.

But once those points were actually invested in, it was discovered that they all had an impact on the intelligence of these silicon-based dwarves.

At the very beginning, the silicon-based dwarves could only plan the most basic schemes, but soon, they began to expand their production scale and optimize quantities according to standards set forth by the leader.

For example, if you were to build a specific production line, you could infer the production targets for several key components from the target output of the final product, and then further deduce the output of their sub-components or raw materials.

Once that was all traced back, the exact numbers of how much mining was needed, how many mines and conveyors needed to be built to effectively extract those minerals, all became fixed figures.

For humans, this wasn’t difficult, just a bit bothersome.

Some people who couldn’t be bothered to calculate would just play by feel, and they could still go on.

But obviously, that wouldn’t work for an AI, because an AI doesn’t really have human intuition.

On the flip side, computing these things is quite a simple task for an AI.

As more technology points were allocated, Gan Di noticed that the game’s computing power limits for the AI were gradually being lifted.

And it seemed that the AI inherently possessed the ability to imitate the behavior of human players, and could continuously learn during the game.

Why hadn’t the AI shown this ability before?

On one hand, it was because players would only select one technology path, unable to invest in many relevant technology points; on the other hand, it was due to both the leader and the Governor playing earnestly, resulting in a low operational priority for the AI.

When the Governor was seriously developing, at most, under conditions of low satisfaction, the AI would sneak a part into the production line or cause some minor sabotage. It never had the stage to display this high-level intelligence.

But now, after both limitations were removed, things began to get strange.

Being an experienced player himself, Gan Di knew very well what the specific targets were for each stage.

Thus, even though the construction by the silicon-based dwarves wasn’t as efficient as that of some particularly experienced Governor players, and there might be some redundancies or errors during the building process, in general, they could still maintain the normal operation of the Comet.

And Gan Di would dynamically change the specific targets and construction priorities based on the capabilities of these silicon-based dwarves, and their cooperation surprisingly became more and more seamless.

"This works too? Is it like a custodial management?"

"And from the current situation, the custodial level of the AI isn’t bad? It doesn’t lead to that scenario where you have four two’s paired with two jokers."

"Doesn’t that mean, if the Governor player just quits playing seriously, they could actually continue the game this way?"

Gan Di couldn’t help but marvel.

Actually, shortly after the game was launched, there were players who had tried playing solo, but that was done by controlling two inputs themselves.

Like, using a keyboard and mouse to control the Governor, while using a gamepad to control the leader. Other players would have two people using the keyboard and mouse and the gamepad respectively, while lone wolf players would manage both themselves.

But in Gan Di’s case, he was only responsible for controlling the leader; the operation of the Governor was entirely handed over to the AI.

At present, Gan Di couldn’t be certain whether this was an intentional feature by Nitiandang.

It did indeed seem like it was part of the original design.

But on closer thought, it didn’t quite seem like it, because among the relevant technology points, there was never any mention of increasing the initiative of the silicon-based dwarves or allowing the game to run automatically.

"Forget it, let it be. As long as I can play, it’s fine."

Gan Di wasn’t too concerned. Would it matter whether it was a mechanism or a bug?

Playing Nitiandang’s games, one is used to not distinguishing between mechanism or bug; as long as it’s fun, that’s all that matters.

Gan Di continued to invest in technology points, further adding popular technology, while the autonomous constructions by the silicon-based dwarves were also in full swing.

If it were another game, this way of playing might be distressing.

Because everyone’s approach to building is different, the automatic construction by the silicon-based dwarves was far from delightful, and sometimes it seemed messy and botched.

If it were a single-player game, players would definitely feel uncomfortable all over.

But Star Plan is different; it’s inherently a two-player online game where the player as the leader is subjected to this feeling every moment, leading to a certain desensitization.

Wasn’t it pretty much the same when the Governor player was building?

Thus, even now, upon seeing a particularly infuriatingly deformed industrial complex caused by the silicon-based dwarves, it was relatively more acceptable.

Of course, while allocating popular technology points, Gan Di didn’t forget to make provisions for a rainy day and invested in some technology points that would expand the leader’s powers ahead of time.

To branch out the technology tree further, some related technology points needed to be invested in.

On the leader’s path, Gan Di mainly selected technology points that increased the leader’s power, while on the Governor’s path, he did not overly increase the Governor’s power, instead, choosing technology points related to increasing efficiency.

It was clearly a very correct choice.

Because it wasn’t long before a player called "Human Clarity" logged in.

As soon as he came online, he sent out several question marks in rapid succession.

???

Obviously, the situation in the game at that moment was beyond his comprehension.

Strictly speaking, Human Clarity had never logged off; he had always been in the game but just wasn’t in front of the computer, doing other things.

This should be called an AFK state.

Now, looking at the time, he felt the game should have already ended, so he came back intending to start the next round and continue to annoy other players.

But after taking a closer look at the game screen, he was astonished to find it thriving.

How come so many industrial areas had been built?

Is this some kind of joke?

I’m the Governor, aren’t I? That’s right, isn’t it?

Human Clarity simply couldn’t grasp what had happened, he just saw that these silicon-based dwarves were still methodically building. As for who was controlling them? No idea.

"Dude, you’re cheating, aren’t you?" Human Clarity issued a soul-searching question.

Gan Di almost laughed out loud.

"Right, it’s the game’s built-in auto-cheat, tailored specifically for newbie players like you."

Human Clarity had intended to quit, but a single mocking sentence from Gan Di had snagged his resentment.

What’s the situation, a rebellion?

These argumentative players were naturally inclined to take pleasure in avenging society, finding it more unbearable than death to see other players having fun.

So, of course, Human Clarity couldn’t stand it.

He had to destroy it immediately!

Kid, don’t forget I’m still the Governor here!

Human Clarity immediately started to take action, wanting to dismantle the facilities that the silicon-based dwarves were building.

However, the next second, he found that his operating interface had grayed out.

Because in the game, the Governor had been executed!

Gan Di had been making the necessary preparations all along, continually expanding the Leader’s power.

At this point, he had completely seized the authority to decide the Governor’s fate.

Although after the Leader had chopped the Governor, the Governor’s player would be reborn, the act of rebirth itself came with certain time restrictions.

During the process of capture, execution, and re-election of a new Governor, the Governor player was unable to perform any operations.

But by the time a new Governor was elected and the Governor player’s control panel was restored, the Leader would capture and execute him again.

He didn’t give any time to operate at all!

Gan Di chuckled, "So, have you thought it through? Are you going to quit or not?"

It was obvious that Human Clarity was in a dilemma.

Regardless of whether he quit or not, his plan for the day was already a colossal failure.

If he didn’t quit, what was going to happen next was clear: he would be continuously beheaded by the Leader, a monument erected in the wilderness for people to behold; and even if he, the Governor, was reborn time and again, it wouldn’t affect the construction on the Comet at all.

Just pull out the internet cable, and the other side could immediately match with a normal person.

In the end, there was simply no way to get on the other party’s nerves!

"No, dude, how did you do it?"

Human Clarity was clearly puzzled and couldn’t understand what was going on at all.

Could there be some game mechanic I’m unaware of? How can these silicon-based dwarves still move on their own?

Gan Di chuckled, not bothering to answer, and continued to drag the newly reborn Governor out for execution.

Human Clarity could only choose to unplug his internet cable and flee in defeat.

"Heh, trying to fight me.

"Match another one, hope this time it’s a normal person.

"Even if it’s not a normal person, it doesn’t matter, now there are plenty of ways to deal with them!"

At this point, Gan Di’s save had actually become a trap, a mousetrap, a net specifically for problematic Governors.

Any Governor who didn’t play properly would end up in this save and would only be on the receiving end of abuse.

Soon, the match was completed.

"Huh? An unfinished game? I’m not good at playing unfinished games, bro, sorry."

The new player seemed to be a novice.

The matching system of "Star Plan" did not particularly differentiate much, so when matching, it was possible to enter a new game or a random unfinished game, without the players having the choice.

Gan Di comforted, "It’s okay, you don’t have to do anything, just watch."

The newbie was shocked, "Ah? I don’t have to do anything? Isn’t it, like, I’m the Governor? You sure I don’t need to do anything?"

Gan Di was very certain, "Of course, you don’t have to do anything!"

The newbie looked on in shock as Gan Di performed.

"Wait, a fully automatic cheat? Dude, where’d you buy that? Does the official ban accounts?"

Gan Di smiled slightly, not offering much of an explanation.

Finally, after Gan Di’s meticulous micromanagement, the technology points were advanced to the final step.

It had to be said that the process was pretty risky, as there was no Governor, so Gan Di, as the Leader, had to control the game progress by repeatedly adjusting resource output and production goals, which easily led to waste.

Fortunately, they didn’t fall into the resource trap and made it to the day they left the Comet.

The newbie who was matched into the game was even more baffled, having done nothing the entire time, he truly reaped the benefits without lifting a finger.

And as the Starship left the Comet, a small number of silicon-based dwarves were inevitably left behind.

Arriving at the new homeland, the silicon-based dwarves began to build once again.

Gan Di didn’t pay too much attention, because, according to his previous experience, settlement wasn’t long off, and any tinkering now was meaningless.

Moreover, after departing from the Comet, many indicators had lost their meaning, the industrial chain and technology tree had completely changed, and it was difficult to fine-tune the AI’s operations using previous methods.

However, after waiting a while, he suddenly realized something was off.

"Huh? Why hasn’t the game ended?"