Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 617 - 600: An Examination for the Players

Chapter 617: Chapter 600: An Examination for the Players

"I’ve already completed this storyline, does that mean my Hero can never unlock this special ability again?

"That’s not okay!

"I’ve spent so much on this account, and I’ve grown attached to it. I can’t just sell it and buy a new one, right? Although the game’s account retention value is not bad...

"Oh, right, there are also story restoration and story replay features.

"Quick, I hope story replay can save me! It must come up, otherwise, I’ll have to play through the entire storyline again!"

Many players are in the same situation as Instructor Ding.

According to Zhuge Jun’s video, currently, the only way for the Hero to carry over the special ability from the previous generation is this one. Once the storyline is completed and the ability is taken back, it can never be brought out again.

Though it’s possible to sell one’s own account and buy a new one, most people don’t really want to sell their accounts due to the attachment they’ve formed.

However, at this point, story restoration and story replay come to the rescue.

Without this system, the players would have no other way except buying a new account or training from scratch.

But now, there’s a chance that story replay will randomly bring up this segment of the story.

If it does come up, everybody will be overjoyed. If you’re unlucky and it doesn’t come up, you can choose story restoration and play through the entire storyline again.

Anyway, even if you miss it, there’s still a chance to remedy the loss, which provides quite a bit of reassurance for Instructor Ding.

And if all else fails, you can always find someone else to grind for you! As long as it’s not an irreparable situation, it’s all good.

And Zhuge Jun’s video isn’t even over yet.

In the first half, he goes into detail about how to trigger this bug, or rather this special mechanism, and in the second half, he returns to his expertise, providing an in-depth analysis of the mechanism and related storyline.

This seems to be a kind of prediction as well.

Because while the specific mechanisms were being discussed in the first half, many viewers in the barrage had doubts.

"How can there be such an overpowered mechanism?"

"This is obviously a bug. Did the programmer Gu just slap this together? We know we shouldn’t choose the burning rock, but the non-burning one is fine?"

"This is crazy, why not just give the Hero’s ability directly to the player? Why go through the trouble?"

"....Now I have to rerun the storyline again, this is ridiculous!"

While some players are excited to find that they can carry the Hero’s special skill out, many are a bit annoyed because replaying the storyline is such a hassle.

And it seems that Zhuge Jun has already anticipated these reactions in the barrage, and proceeds to offer adequate explanations in the later part of the video.

"Obviously, this is a mechanism deliberately designed by Nitiandang, and it closely matches the game’s storyline!

"So, how should we explain these doubts? Let’s look at them one by one.

"Firstly, why can’t you grab the molten rock when it’s on fire, but once it’s extinguished, you can?

"I think this makes perfect sense. Because when the molten rock is on fire, it’s covered by the Deep Flame Demon’s Strong Fire Element Power, which is more intense than the Ice Element or Water Element that the Hero can use, so it can’t be extinguished or controlled.

"However, the Emperor’s Ice Element Power is also Strong Ice, so it can extinguish the Strong Fire on the molten rock.

"When the Strong Fire is out, the rocks turn into ordinary ones, and the Hero can naturally grab them and use the Water Element Power to bond them.

"And when the Deep Flame Demon makes another appearance, it will reactivate the Strong Fire Element Power in these rocks, so when they hit the Emperor, the Strong Fire will react with the Strong Ice, causing extremely high base value damage and multiplier damage.

"If the Hero accidentally touches them on the field, they will suffer extreme damage, so it’s entirely logical that these objects deal even more damage to the boss.

"Next, why did the official design such a mechanism on purpose, to determine whether the player can carry the special ability from the first generation out of the storyline mode?

"Many players think that the officials are deliberately annoying, but I don’t think so.

"Because it’s clearly a test for the players, not only testing their understanding of the Hero’s special techniques and elemental reaction mechanisms but also their comprehension of the storyline.

"More accurately, this should be considered an easter egg; even if not triggered, it won’t prevent the game from being played, it’s more about emotional satisfaction."

Listening to Zhuge Jun’s explanation, Instructor Ding’s frown gradually relaxed.

Really, the more you listen, the more it seems to make sense!

First off, let’s make one thing clear: will the perman DIFFICULTIES - Slashdotent activation of these special abilities fundamentally enhance or change the player’s gaming experience?

Actually, no.

Although the Hero can continue using moves like Justice from the Sky in the larger world, as previously mentioned, the damage from this move isn’t actually very high.

In the larger world, at most, it exists as a form of entertainment.

For ordinary players, even if they activate this mode, they might only be excited for two or three days, or even just a few hours, and will quickly return to their regular gameplay.

So, just like Zhuge Jun said, this gameplay is more like an easter egg, rather than an advanced gameplay with tremendous power.

Then why is such a strict requirement necessary to activate this easter egg?

Because this is an exam for players, a test of understanding of elemental reactions.

In the storyline, players are cast as the heroes of this generation, and the heroes of this generation can initially control only a single Elemental Power, traveling across nine states and activating all Elemental Powers before they successfully obtain the same abilities as the previous heroes.

Suppose in the final battle, the player does not realize that Molten Rock can be used for a targeted attack against the Emperor, it indicates the player’s shallow understanding of the mechanics, the Hero has Elemental Power but not the matching intelligence.

In such cases, one would have to expend a lot of additional Elemental Power to defeat the enemy.

But if one consciously "uses the enemy’s spear to attack the enemy’s shield", noticing that one can use the special mechanism of the Deep Flame Demon’s Molten Rock to attack the Emperor, it would show that the player’s Hero not only has the Elemental Power like the predecessors but also the same battle wisdom.

This enables one to take down the final boss at a low-cost and preserve this special elemental power mechanism.

So, is it reasonable to instantly defeat the Emperor with Molten Rock, bypassing the boss’s second and third phases?

At first glance, it seems unreasonable, but from the perspective of the story, it oddly makes sense.

Because during the final battle, the Emperor and the Deep Flame Demon have become deeply intertwined, those two bosses share a Blood Bar.

The Blood Bar shown in the game does not represent the entirety of the boss’s health.

When fighting the conventional way, once the displayed Blood Bar is depleted, the boss will enter the second phase.

But because the special elemental reaction effect of the Molten Rock does such high damage, it drains the entire Blood Bar of the boss instantly, so both bosses are killed before they even have a chance to enter the second phase.

Naturally, this means the third phase’s settlement mechanism won’t be triggered—the Hero’s special status won’t be revoked either.

Moreover, the officials intentionally kept this mechanic hidden, for example, making Molten Rock in a burning state untargetable, or deliberately designating a very short window of opportunity for the entire operation, only a few seconds.

But this can also be interpreted as a test for the Hero:

Do you merely possess Elemental Power, or do you also have a keen sense of battle and a full understanding of the elemental power mechanics?

This will determine whether you have truly reached the status of your predecessors.

If you can surpass yourself, then your journey through the nine states, mastering all Elemental Powers, proves that you have reached the legendary level of the previous Heroes; if you cannot, then it only shows that you’re indeed fit to be a camera, and you might as well continue to be one!

...

After watching the video, Instructor Ding’s furrowed brows gradually unfurled.

"...It really does make sense.

"Alright, I need to reflect; I am indeed not an excellent Hero...

"Let’s see if this iteration of the storyline recap will just happen to include this main story plot, and if not, then I’ll have to go back and relive the Hero’s mental journey."

Often, when the game mechanics don’t change and remain as troublesome as ever but are explained with a story that makes sense, players find them more acceptable.

Indeed, I did feel that something was lacking in this main storyline’s big battle.

Although the scale was massive, the special effects full-on, and the boss mechanics complex, the Hero could only forsake their special abilities and consume a lot of Elemental Power to solve the problem, which somewhat displeased the players.

Now, however, the players seem to have discovered another outcome, and it mysteriously corresponds with the previous storyline!

Though still a bit of a hassle, it feels much better inexplicably.

Let’s consider it a challenging achievement or Easter egg, which, once completed, also brings a great sense of accomplishment.

As to whether this is a mechanic or a bug?

Isn’t that obvious, it’s definitely a mechanic!

Those who think it’s still a bug, all just coincidences, are definitely a bit slow on the uptake.

On this point, the online "bug faction" and "Mechanism faction" have unusually reached a consensus; even the most stubborn bug advocates find it hard to insist.

...

At night.

Lilith’s face was darkened, her twin ponytails looked as if they were about to shoot up into the sky in anger.

"Gu Fan!!

"Don’t tell me this is a bug again!

"Anyone who thinks this is still a bug, that it’s all just coincidental, definitely has an intelligence issue!

"Do I look like I have an intelligence problem? Huh!"

From Lilith’s expression, one could tell she was very angry, extremely angry.

This is not surprising, after all, this bug did seem a bit too forced, and no matter how eloquently Gu Fan might argue, no matter how he analyzes from the underlying principles of the code, it was hard to explain away.

But Gu Fan was not panicked; though his face was serious, his heart was actually quite relaxed.

It’s not his work anyway, why should he be panicked?

Even if there was blame to take, it would be Gan Di’s.

"President Li, don’t be so anxious, let me analyze it first. After that, we’ll go find Gan Di and demand an explanation!"