Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 611 - 594: This Game is Too Complicated

Chapter 611: Chapter 594: This Game is Too Complicated

Lilith widened her eyes in surprise, not understanding why the conversation had suddenly shifted to the topic of account trading.

What the hell is this?

For her, this was an entirely foreign field of knowledge, as she had never interacted with it or attempted to understand it before.

Moreover, what does account trading have to do with game companies?

How does it reflect the ideas of "giving players benefits" or "long-term operation"?

Lilith was utterly puzzled.

As for this content, Zhuge Jun’s video only touched upon it and did not provide a particularly detailed explanation or education.

After all, most players have more knowledge about this topic than Lilith, they don’t need the same education and have their own opinions on this issue.

Lilith scrolled down to the comments section of the video, and sure enough, many players were discussing the issue of account trading.

After reading several highly upvoted comments, she finally began to understand the logic behind it.

Overall, game account trading, just like the trade of second-hand game discs, has been around for a long time.

However, different companies have very different attitudes toward this matter.

Take the trade of second-hand game discs as an example; it undoubtedly benefits the players and disadvantages the companies.

Players who buy a game disc can sell it second-hand to other players after completing or growing tired of the game, reducing the cost of playing; and those who buy second-hand can experience the game at a lower price.

Regardless of which player ends up with the disc, everyone in the chain gets to play the game at a more affordable price.

But for the company, this is definitely a loss.

Because for every second-hand disc that passes through many hands, the company only gets paid once, with no commission, to say nothing of the full price.

Thus, many console manufacturers have tried to prohibit the trade of second-hand game discs, only to be met with attacks from angry players, ending with no resolution.

The same logic applies to trading game accounts.

Account trading between players allows those selling accounts to recoup some money and enables buyers to purchase high-value accounts at a lower price. Because it benefits both parties, the trade can be completed.

For the companies, however, player-to-player account trading can lead to reduced game recharges and hence, loss of profit.

Compared to tangible items like a physical disc, accounts are virtual and thus easier to restrict.

Game companies generally take one of two totally different attitudes:

The first is official support and encouragement; since account trading cannot be stopped, they might as well provide an official platform for it and take a cut, maintaining as much stability in the account trading market as possible.

This is the approach taken by the official game platforms.

The other is the strict prohibition of any form of account trading, employing every means to create obstacles for the transactions.

For instance, accounts cannot change binding from real-name authentication, and the original owner can recover their account at any time with proper identification, greatly increasing the risk of account trading, and thereby indirectly striking at the account trading market.

Of course, where there are policies from above, there are ways around them from below. Some account trading platforms offer "compensation for account recovery" services, which is a topic for another time.

So, which approach will companies take, and why do they choose these attitudes?

It’s quite complex.

It may depend on the type of game: wargames or collector’s games are suitable for account trading, while story-driven games are not;

It may depend on the company’s revenue pressure and operational strategies: those wishing to operate in the long term with less revenue pressure are more likely to be permissive towards account trading;

Or it might simply depend on the personal preferences of the company’s main leaders.

One cannot just attack companies for greed and disrespecting players with a simple ban on account trading. There needs to be specific analysis for specific situations.

But in any case, a regulated and stable account trading market is definitely beneficial for players, as the demand objectively exists.

So why do "Endless Fantasy Legend 2" accounts retain their value so well?

It’s still due to the reason for character enhancements.

If characters do not become stronger, then players buying accounts will only look at the number of top-tier characters currently on the account. For instance, if it lacks the two top-tier Cs, then no matter how much in-game currency the account has, its value will be greatly discounted; if it has both, and they are of high star level, then even if other characters are lacking, the account can still sell well.

However, as time goes by, due to new characters always being stronger, old accounts will inevitably rapidly depreciate and soon no one will be interested.

"Endless Fantasy Legend 2" is different, even in the case of alts like Heilong’s, madly leveling Gerlin, they still have huge potential for appreciation.

These accounts are like countless stocks, fluctuating randomly, occasionally having one or two exceptional stocks that become the biggest beneficiaries of the version, making the entire account trading market vibrant and dynamic.

And players, while playing the game, will value their accounts more, not abandoning them because they’ve skewed too much, because they feel that there will always come a day when their fortune turns.

It’s not that their luck in gacha will change, but waiting for the characters they’ve skewed much on to get greatly enhanced, which is another form of waiting for fortune to turn, and it’s more hopeful than changing fortunes.

All characters benefit from the numerical inflation, so naturally, the account value retention rate is quite stable.

In Zhuge Jun’s view, Nitiandang’s mechanism is actually encouraging account trading in disguise.

And encouraging account trading is because Nitiandang has confidence in "Endless Fantasy Legend 2," they believe it will be a long-term operation game that will continue to undergo balancing adjustments to let all players share the benefits of numerical inflation, rather than letting those who don’t draw new characters fall completely behind.

And this, in turn, enhances the players’ confidence in the game, making them more likely to recognize the value of the game accounts.

Under this mechanism, high-star accounts are no longer the privilege of top-paying players; ordinary players can enjoy them too.

The difference only lies in time.

Whales can enjoy their privileges by spending big money, but the experience of free-to-play gamers won’t be completely deprived.

In a word, Nitiandang is a conscientious developer!

...

Lilith’s eyes widened as she finally grasped the entire logical relationship, her expression stiff.

All she wants to do now is to clarify.

Absolutely not true!

It’s a huge misunderstanding; Nitiandang was never, is not, and will never be conscientious! "Chilled conscience" is more like it!

Regarding this issue of account trading, neither Lilith nor any other Nitiandang employees had ever considered it when designing the game.

That’s to say, Zhuge Jun was totally bluffing.

But the problem is, other players actually believed it!

After all, the outrageous 20% value retention rate on the account trading platform is right there for all to see, even higher than national war-themed games, which is simply preposterous.

Lilith realizes that a very serious problem has arisen:

In "Endless Fantasy Legend 2", the majority of the pitfalls she painstakingly laid out, all detonated one after another!

Like the Nitiandang pool, character strength, plotlines...

And what’s worse, so far, none of the blow-ups were caused by bugs.

So what’s the reason?

Lilith very reluctantly acknowledges a fact: It’s because of the design!

Yes, there’s an inherent problem with the design.

And this is what Lilith has repeatedly realized before, the problem of not thinking things through.

Because "Endless Fantasy Legend 2" is too vast and complicated, with over a hundred characters, nine different elemental reactions, and loads of puzzle gameplay and map mechanics, not to mention game plots spanning several game backgrounds and text amounting to millions of words...

All of these sewn together have turned this game into a massive black box.

Tug at one thing and the whole body reacts, each little change seems to encourage the collection of negative emotions, yet it can trigger a chain reaction, making it possible for players to find exhilaration elsewhere.

So who should be held accountable for the problems so far?

After much thought, it seems that no one should be held responsible.

Without any bugs, the primary person responsible is the designer of all these gameplay elements.

And that can only be Lilith herself, since these ideas were either her own or she was the one who approved them after considering other people’s suggestions.

She looks at Gu Fan with subconscious anger.

However, Lilith also has to admit, Gu Fan really did nothing wrong this time.

Although he did provide a few ideas, so did many others. Those ideas didn’t seem problematic on their own, and the final decisions were still made by Lilith.

During the development, Gu Fan didn’t intervene but worked diligently to create the physical "Fantasy Book," which complemented the collection of negative emotions very well.

"Could it be...

"In a situation with no bugs, are we really going to be defeated..."

Lilith looks up at the sky, speechless.

Previously, each failure was due to bugs, which frustrated and angered her, always feeling they were the root of all her troubles, and without them, she would have succeeded long ago.

But now, with no bugs, she doesn’t know whom to blame.

It can’t be that there’s a fundamental problem with her design ability, right?

That’s unacceptable!

At this moment, Lilith even wishes that there could be a minor bug in the game.

That way, at least she could get some psychological comfort.

"Gu Fan."

"Hm?"

"Do you think I’m a failure as a game designer?" Lilith asks, somewhat dejected.

Gu Fan pauses for a moment: "President Li, that depends on the perspective you choose."

Lilith perks up a little: "Oh? So from a certain perspective, I’m actually a successful designer?"

Gu Fan nods: "Of course, from the perspective of human players, you are 100% successful as a designer, without any controversy."

Lilith’s slightly perked twin ponytails droop again.

"Gu Fan."

"Hm?"

"I don’t want to talk to you for a week."

"Got it, President Li, take care."

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