Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 73: The Ideal Answer and the Real Answer

Chapter 73: Chapter 73: The Ideal Answer and the Real Answer

Zhang Qifeng hurriedly wrote at breakneck speed, jotting down notes.

What he was tasked with this time was a written interview. While video interviews might be more effective in the new media era, written interviews had their advantages, as they were more likely to be officially adopted.

The official platform also had its own news station, and the main form of articles was still text-based. This time, Zhang Qifeng had received some internal information from Play Less Games Network that suggested the official platform might consider selecting an outstanding news article about Nitian Paradise Company’s games from various gaming media outlets to be published on the official news website.

Though such articles didn’t yield much tangible profit, they represented a prime opportunity for major gaming media to expand their influence. Editors like Zhang Qifeng, who aspired for internal promotions, often had corresponding performance targets to meet.

So, he regarded this interview with utmost importance.

After quickly taking notes, Zhang Qifeng asked again, "And what about the realistic answer?"

Gu Fan let out a gentle sigh, "The reality, however, is that no matter how outrageous or anti-human our company’s designs have been, we always seem to have the devil’s own luck, turning bad situations into good ones. It’s truly astonishing!"

Zhang Qifeng, "Ah?"

This was indeed an unexpected response. Was President Gu admitting that Nitian Paradise Company had made many outrageous, anti-human designs? And their success was all down to luck?

Zhang Qifeng felt his brain was smoking. He quickly asked, "That’s exactly what I wanted to ask. Many players are very curious; every game released by Nitian Paradise Company has a very distinctive feature, which is a kind of core gameplay that can turn the tide.

"For instance, players have summarized them as ’Bullet Bending’, ’Dragon Flap Wings’, ’Rotating Elimination’, ’Strategic Dragon Synergy’, and so on.

"So, the question is...

"Are these actually game mechanics, or are they BUGs?"

Gu Fan silently took a sip of coffee, "The same question again, do you want to hear the idealized answer, or the realistic one?"

Zhang Qifeng paused for a moment, Not this again?

"The idealized answer?" he had no choice but to play along.

Gu Fan spoke earnestly, "Nowadays, many gaming companies like to serve up half-baked games under the guise of ’early access,’ and there’s no shortage of those who bail halfway through, which is obviously problematic!

"However, we at Nitian Paradise Company consistently strive to produce top-quality games. We’re dedicated to adhering strictly to ’not a word changed in the design draft’, ’not a line altered in the game code.’ Once a game is released, we do not perform any subsequent updates.

"I think this represents a kind of confidence."

Zhang Qifeng blinked, his expression somewhat bewildered.

It seemed like President Gu was hinting at something, yet also not really.

Zhang Qifeng tried to discern the underlying message, "President Gu, are you implying that Nitian Paradise Company’s design and game development standards are very high? That once the game design is finalized, not a single line of it is altered? And you are also confident that there are no BUGs in the games, hence there’s no need for any updates?

"Does that mean those features are indeed core mechanics that were deliberately designed?"

Gu Fan revealed a meaningful smile, "How about we listen to the realistic answer instead?"

Zhang Qifeng nodded, "Sure."

Gu Fan let out a light sigh, "Those are indeed BUGs!"

Zhang Qifeng, "Ah??"

Now he was truly stumped.

In fact, Zhang Qifeng had previously asked Zhao Haiquan the same question. Were those game mechanics or BUGs?

And Zhao Haiquan’s answer was, "I don’t know."

Truthfully, Zhao Haiquan wanted to say that in his view, any mechanics not outlined in the design draft were BUGs, but after all, he was just a back-end programmer and had not participated in the core programming of the games. As he wasn’t familiar with the details of "Strategic Dragon Synergy" code, he didn’t dare make a conclusive judgment.

That’s why Zhang Qifeng wanted to ask President Gu during the interview.

As the boss of Nitian Paradise Company’s games, President Gu’s response should be decisive, right?

But when President Gu seriously declared "It is a BUG", it only deepened his confusion.

Seeming to anticipate Zhang Qifeng’s disbelief, Gu Fan continued to explain.

"Yes, since our company’s first game, ’Infernal Trajectory’, we have always been plagued by all sorts of inexplicable BUGs.

"Although we formed a very strong testing team and worked hard to test every line of code in the game, identifying 99.99% of the bugs, inevitably there is always a slip somewhere."

"However, it might be due to luck that these bugs were not exactly malignant; they did not create a fatal impression on the game."

"So, we did not fix them."

Zhang Qifeng was dumbfounded and scratched his head, "Hold on a moment, President Gu, let me sort this out.

"If all these are bugs...

"Then I want to ask, when you were designing ’Infernal Trajectory’, how did you plan for players to complete the game? Without Rotating Elimination, there’s no point in reducing the probability of the long piece appearing in ’Against Heaven Blocks’. And if you can’t use Observing Stars on other NPCs in ’Destiny of the Sleeping Dragon’, is the game still playable?"

Currently, regarding this issue, players are divided into the "Bug Faction" and the "Gameplay Faction", and these problems are exactly what the Bug Faction cannot explain.

If these are all bugs, then it means that the initial design did not consider solutions to these problems at all; wouldn’t that make these games total trash!

Gu Fan spread his hands with a sense of innocence: "Back then, we felt that the handsome players possessed enough intelligence and wisdom to figure out a way to crack it.

"We chose to believe in the players!

"It’s just that we didn’t anticipate that the method players would find was through the use of bugs."

Zhang Qifeng scratched his head, "So, are you saying that, so far, all of Nitian Paradise Company’s gaming successes are built on bugs?

"Or to put it another way, it’s entirely reliant on the players’ ingenuity and impromptu skills, and has nothing to do with your design?"

Gu Fan nodded assertively: "Yes, you can understand it that way.

"But to say the game’s success has nothing to do with our design isn’t completely fair.

"The success of the game is indeed closely related to our design; the specific connection is... we stress-tested the players, bringing out their potential, leading them to find bugs in the game."

"Pfft!" Zhang Qifeng almost spat out blood, "Isn’t that just purely a side effect!"

Gu Fan nodded: "If you must understand it that way, that’s not incorrect."

...

Zhang Qifeng felt he couldn’t carry on the interview anymore.

He had actually prepared many questions, but they all assumed one thing: "The bugs in Nitian Paradise Company games are not bugs, but rather meticulously designed core mechanics!"

They had to be intentional designs for there to be a need to ask more questions, right?

But now, Gu Fan had said they were all bugs, so how could he continue to ask?

He surely couldn’t ask, "What were you thinking when you designed such a bug?" That would be preposterous!

Zhang Qifeng had never thought he would one day be at a complete loss for words.

After wracking his brain, he finally came up with one last question.

"So... President Gu, may I ask a question that is not quite relevant to the interview content?"

Gu Fan nodded: "Of course, feel free to ask."

Zhang Qifeng asked curiously: "If you were interviewed by other media, would you respond like this too?"

Gu Fan nodded: "Of course, no matter who asks, my answer is always the same. And I hope your report will be truthful."

Zhang Qifeng nodded silently: "Alright, I understand!"

Afterward, Zhang Qifeng asked several more questions, trying to salvage the situation, but no matter what he asked, Gu Fan stuck to his guns, insisting they were bugs!

In the end, Zhang Qifeng could only look at the content in his shorthand notebook and say with some embarrassment, "Well then, that concludes today’s interview. Thank you, President Gu, for participating in this interview, and I hope the Nitian Paradise games continue to improve!"

Gu Fan stood up with a smile and shook his hand: "I’ll take your good words."

But as soon as Zhang Qifeng stepped out of the café, he started to worry.

How on earth was he supposed to write this interview article!

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