"What should I say, then? I'm prepared to give it one star."
"I think it's alright. Two monsters at the beginning deal higher damage. Just dodge them and kill them-it's quite simple. You're giving the game one star because of that? Why aren't you reflecting on your own lousy skills?"
?
"What the h*ll are you sending me a question mark for? We have principles as fake reviewers. We should do a good job if we are getting paid. How can you be so irresponsible after taking the boss's money?" "F*ck, if you're so righteous, why are you working as a fake reviewer? You're just a beggar; stop acting like you're an official in the emperor's palace."
"Are you not a f*cking beggar, too?"
"If you're so awesome, why are you working as a fake reviewer? Why don't you fight for justice like other keyboard warriors?"
"What's wrong with me working and earning some pocket money? How do you know I'm not a keyboard warrior in my spare time?"
Hu Xiao realized that these two were going to engage in a full-on debate and quickly stopped them. "Alright, stop arguing! Both of you are banned from speaking for an hour! We are professionals; you have to learn how to control your anger, understand?
"Don't bring your emotions to work. Be as calm as me. Get it?"
Hu Xiao was speechless.
In fact, this was normal. Although the fake reviewers were all in a single group, they were all being paid to work. There were hundreds of people in that one group; how could he expect all of them to see eye to eye?
What's more, people who worked as fake reviewers were genuinely short of money. They probably had unhappy lives and enjoyed picking on fellow netizens with a keyboard in hand. Naturally, these people were 'good with words' and would resort to 'asking about others' family and friends' once a hint of a disagreement took place.
Hu Xiao could not write this argument off as an accident.
He was just realizing that Hardcore Reviews' UP Master's requests had not been that simple after all.
There's a scam in all of this!
If the boss had given the fake reviewers a clear direction-such as to mindlessly praise or criticize the game, the fake reviewers would have been able to get the job done without much objection.
Nobody would stand up to fight the instructions. After all, every fake reviewer was professional.
Yet, the boss did not give them clear instructions on what to comment.
That was why people were discussing the game in the group. They had differing opinions, which resulted in internal conflict.
The administrator had to step up and ban those people from speaking. What's more, he had to threaten to kick people out and forbid them from ever working as a fake reviewer again if they started picking fights. It was only then that they regained control over the situation.
Hu Xiao read everyone's comments and realized that most people were criticizing the game. Many people had low-quality hardware that caused the game to lag horribly. Naturally, their first impression of the game would suffer if their gaming experience was lousy. Others were similar to Hu Xiao; there was no problem with their hardware, but they had been tortured by beasts shortly after entering the game. Of course, they began to dislike the game as well.
0
However, a minority in the group thought the game was alright.
The graphics weren't bad, and the movements were smooth. They also felt good when they managed to attack. Although the monsters at the beginning could kill them, they only had to be more careful to avoid being killed. Ultimately, they could still defeat those monsters.
That minority had quite a good first impression of the game. That was why they had very different comments compared to the majority
That was expected. After all, there was bound to be a couple of players in any group who enjoyed a good challenge.
Among the group of fake reviewers, there were a few youths who were addicted to the internet and used to playing at internet cafes. They had vast gaming experience. Their first reaction when they met with such a game was not to smash their computers in anger but to rise up to the challenge.
Although these were the minority, they represented a different voice.
Hu Xiao pondered for a moment and realized that it was impossible for everyone to come to the same conclusion. However, there was no need for them to do so.
The boss asked for everyone to comment on the game based on their first impression. He had not specified whether he wanted positive or negative comments.
Since that was the case, Hu Xiao decided to allow everyone to comment whatever they wanted!
Hu Xiao typed, "Alright, stop arguing. Get to work. If you want to give it one star, then do so. If you want to give it five stars, then do so.
"We're all professionals here. If you have personal feuds, use your keyboards to resolve them on the forums. Don't argue in this group. You're being paid to type in the forums, but if you argue here, you'll be banned from speaking."
Everyone in the group thought about it and realized that Hu Xiao was right.
What was the point of arguing in the group? It was time to get to work!
Fake reviewers who had a bad impression of the game immediately gave it one star. They expressed disappointment in it and did not recommend it to others. Then, they refunded and uninstalled it.
Those who felt more interested in the game gave it five stars and left good comments. Then, they came up with a list of good things to say about it.
After all, they were all professionals in mindlessly praising and criticizing.
They were naturally good with words. In fact, they would find it more difficult to write ordinary and boring comments.
What's more, their jobs did not consist purely of writing comments.
Each person was being paid three or four hundred yuan. Of course, they could not earn that amount by writing one comment.
Everyone had been assigned a task: they were to write reviews, posts, and comments on the official platform, Weibo, forums, and the like. They were also to comment on other popular posts, and like and share one another's comments and posts.
The boss had paid them a huge sum after all. They had to employ every method in the book.
Thus, fake reviewers who had already written their posts and comments began to share the respective links to the chat group. "Please like this comment for me, brothers."
"You can copy and paste this comment. Brothers who need it can use it as reference."
"Brothers, this is my Weibo post. Please share it."
"I think a gamer on Aili Island published a video to diss the game. To the brothers who want to diss the game, like and share that video as much as possible. Fight to push it onto the homepage."
'There is a post praising the game here. To the brothers who want to support it, go and give the post a boost."
The fake reviewers went full steam ahead with their tasks. They kept sharing posts about Repent and be Saved on various platforms. One group kept posting negative comments while another group kept giving the game five stars on every review site.
They moved the catfight from the group to various other websites and forums, making sure to amp up their resilience and determination. The fight was so intense that neither side seemed to be winning.
As he observed these developments, Hu Xiao could not help but bury his head in his hands. For some reason, he felt like something was amiss.
"This is my first time encountering a situation like that. It's like two parties on opposite sides had hired the same group of fake reviewers…
"But it doesn't matter. In any case, I've already done what I could according to the boss' request.
"Yet, the comments on the game seem to be in a mess. They're basically on two extremes."
Out of curiosity, Hu Xiao checked online for other comments about Repent and be Saved.
They were indeed extremely divided. There were many five-star and one-star ratings!
Of course, this was partly because the fake reviewers had been adding fuel to the fire. However, even after discounting the fake reviewers' influence, Hu Xiao could tell that gamers were divided about the game.
Those who were cursing the game developers to no end were doing so for the same two reasons: the game had high hardware requirements and was way too difficult!
Many gamers complained of dying more than ten times while fighting the little monsters at the beginning of the game. They insisted that something had gone wrong with the system design!
Some cursed the operations staff and others cursed the planners. All in all, most people thought that the systems designer had added an extra zero in one of the figures.
"I can't take it anymore. This game is way too difficult. I can't even play it! Can someone tell me if the system will be adjusted to ordinary levels in the future? If they are going to adjust it, I'm not going to refund the game."
Many comments were expressing similar thoughts.
Although they were not all on the same page, the gamers did not seem too upset. Perhaps this was because they could refund the game within five hours.
The game had only just been released; it would be a long time before their five hours would be up. After trying the game out, many people realized that its quality was quite good. In terms of graphics, movements, impact, art resources, and the like; the game was outstanding.
They could figure out a way to meet the hardware requirements.
However, it seemed unusually difficult. They could only hope that the developers would make the necessary adjustments. Many people thought that there was a malignant bug in the game. For that reason, they did not rush to refund it. Instead, they waited for an announcement from the official platform.
If the officials agreed to repair the bug which allowed little monsters to kill the players, they could continue playing the game.
However, a while later, a post was published on the game's official Weibo page.
"Dear players, officials have vetted the game before releasing it, and it is already at optimum difficulty. There are no malignant bugs. No more adjustments will be made to the difficulty. This is to ensure that every gamer can enjoy the full game experience." Within a few minutes, the Weibo post was shared in various forums and gaming chat groups. More and more comments began to appear underneath the Weibo post.
11?"
"I'm slowly typing a question mark."
"What are the officials up to? How can this be the 'optimum difficulty' after vetting?"
"Ensuring every gamer can enjoy the full game experience… (yeah, right)." "I thought the officials made an accidental mistake. They did it on purpose?!" "What? Can someone explain what the meaning of the epitaph is?"
"No more adjustments will be made? Are you sure? Hehe, once the sales volume drops, I wonder if you will still be so stubborn. I'll wait for you to slap your own face."
"I'm laughing as I read these complaints from lousy players. 'It's the officials' fault that I can't beat the little monsters. They made the game too difficult! It's not because of my sh*tty skills!'"
"You wonder why people say local gamers are only fit to play mindless web-based games that solely require them to click the 'enter' button. The moment the officials make a game slightly more difficult, they cry and insist that the officials reduce the game's difficulty. Why don't you just ask them to let you deal 999 damage with just one blow?"
"How the h*ll is this just 'slightly more difficult'?!"
"Why are you playing this game if you're retarded? Save the time and get yourself treated."
"I @#*%*…"
Soon, a battle ensued in the comments section of the Weibo post.
Hu Xiao thought he saw hints of his fake reviewers in the comments section, but he could not be certain.
Nevertheless, Hu Xiao knew very well that his fake reviewers had joined in the argument. In fact, the comments with the most likes could have been written by his own friends.
Yet, he could not tell who exactly they were!
This was because other people's comments looked like they could have been posted by his fake reviewers as well.
Chapter 276 Who are You Despising? I'm Happy!
This was the first time Hu Xiao had ever seen fake reviewers blend into ordinary comment sections this way-it was seamless.
Hu Xiao had wanted to refund the game at first, but the intense argument online was confusing him once again. He was starting to get curious.
The officials had obviously made the game so difficult on purpose.
The tone of this Weibo post was clear; they were establishing the upper hand against players. Apart from sounding more tactful, the message was no different from the six-syllable mantra.
But why?
Were they offending players on purpose?
That did not make sense!
Why would a game merchant offend players on purpose? Wouldn't they be more interested in earning money?
More and more questions filled Hu Xiao's head. He planned to research more on the game's strategy. For all he knew, he would be able to find some clues.
He accessed the game's forum and browsed it quickly.
The posts on the forum were similar to the comments section on the Weibo post and the game's page-everyone seemed to be arguing.
The fake reviewers had also added fuel to this fire, but Hu Xiao still could not tell fake reviewers from genuinely angry gamers.
In the midst of these angry posts, Hu Xiao found a few posts about others' experiences in the game.
One of the more popular posts was titled 'An Elite Action-Based Gamer Updates His Progress in the Game in Real-Time'.
"In the beginning, I was miserably tortured by the game as well. However, after some observation, I realized that the game is not as difficult as people say it is. People have demonized its difficulty.
"The monsters can kill people with only two blows, but you can easily get rid of those monsters with four or five attacks. You just have to be careful not to make any errors, and you would be able to progress in the game.
"This game reminds me of extremely difficult platform games that I used to play when I was younger. For some reason, it ignites anger inside me, hahaha.
"I want to curse and swear as well. Each time I die, the monsters would revive. I feel freaking helpless."
"…I've made it past a small setting."
"The elite monsters here have already killed me five or six times. I'm fighting to pass through them."
Many netizens commented on these posts.
"Holy sh*t, brother! You're an expert in action-based games!"
"…I'm still fighting with the little beasts at the entrance, and yet you've progressed so
far?"
"Boss, you must remember to record your progress. Upload it on Aili Island, and we'll all watch it!"
"Can you live-stream on ZZ? I want to learn from you!"
At that time, livestreams were still on the rise. Although there were livestream platforms and people were getting the hang of live-streaming techniques, investors had not yet caught on to the investment opportunity. Thus, most people instinctively recorded themselves playing games. Only a small portion of gamers would mention livestreaming
The original poster obviously had not thought about livestreaming as well. He only uploaded two screenshots every now and then, with short captions to explain his own view and understanding of the game.
Soon, people began uploading simple videos on Aili Island as well.
Some were tortured by the monsters for a long time, and others defeated them on their first try. There were all sorts of videos of various styles being uploaded.
Hu Xiao could not help but feel moved. This 'monkey see, monkey do' method is really unique.
Hu Xiao watched several videos in which gamers displayed their skills. The monsters could not even touch them. Instead, they attacked the monsters' back and dealt with them deftly.
After watching these videos, Hu Xiao began questioning himself.
Could I have been playing the game wrongly?
Why don't other players experience the same problems as I do?
It looks like as long as I can grasp the technique, it wouldn't be that difficult!
With renewed confidence, Hu Xiao returned to the game. There was still a long time before the five hours would be up and he would not be able to refund the game. Hu Xiao felt safe.
"Hehe."
"Hehe."
"Hehe."
An hour later, Hu Xiao fell silent in front of his computer once more.
Indeed, it was an illusion.
This game is not for humans to play!
Hu Xiao was speechless. This time, he decided not to hesitate any further. He would refund the game and uninstall it!
This wretched game was being sold for 128 yuan. It was ridiculous!
I don't want this game to remain on my computer for another minute! I'm going to spam the comments section with criticism!
Hu Xiao was infuriated. He had been wrong from the beginning.
Why did he have to test the game out? He had been torturing himself!
Hu Xiao found it hard to calm himself down. He glanced at the time and realized that there was still a couple of hours before his five hours would be up. Unable to wait any longer, he rushed to the comments section to post his complaints and look for like-minded friends.
The enraged Hu Xiao wrote a post of his own. "This game is rubbish! The officials mindlessly increased the monsters' attack power. They're grossing us out on purpose!
"Refund the game as soon as you can. If you haven't bought it, don't bother. It's a waste of your life. You would be spending money to be tortured!"
Less than two minutes later, Hu Xiao refreshed his post and saw a new comment.
"Hehe, another piece of trash who could not defeat the monsters."
"This game is really not for lousy players. The officials extended the refund allowance period to take care of old people like you.
"You're quitting after meeting such minor setbacks? You're probably the kind of person who would have sold our country out during wars, right? Hehe."
After reading this, Hu Xiao felt even more furious!
With a short temper like mine, how could I take this lying down?!
Hu Xiao was used to battling with others online. How could he suffer in silence? He sucked in a deep breath and immediately began typing away on his keyboard, cursing and swearing
In the end, the other party refused to give way as well. A heated argument ensued.
They began talking about each other's bodies and health and then moved the argument to each other's loved ones. At last, they focused on each other's lives and the source of humanity.
As he argued, Hu Xiao suddenly realized that something was amiss.
Why did this feel so familiar?
Hu Xiao rarely met a worthy opponent. After all, most people had real jobs to do. Few people had as much time on their hands as Hu Xiao did and were able to spend that much time on a forum.
Not only did this opponent have a wide vocabulary, but he was also very mystifying. Within a short time, he managed to type long, good-quality replies. Confused, Hu Xiao copied the link to his own post and pasted it into the group chat.
"Are any of you looking at this post?"
Soon, someone replied.
Jaiedg_0 said, "Don't worry, Brother Hu. I'm talking to this retarded poster. I can finish my assignment and disgust this lousy newbie. Hehe."
Hu Xiao was so angry that his hands were trembling. F*ck, it was my own brother!
No wonder I found his typing so familiar.
However, precisely because the man was a brother from his own chat, Hu Xiao could not do anything. After all, it was a misunderstanding. If he kicked the man out of the group, he might turn others away from him.
He could only ban the man for 24 hours and deal with the hatred in his heart.
Muddle-headed, he had argued with his own brother for so long. Hu Xiao looked at the time and recalled that he had not exited the game. That meant he only had two hours left before he had to refund it.
"Forget it, forget it. I'll refund the game."
Hu Xiao looked at the 'refund' button and fell silent once again.
Should I really refund it?
Am I really going to give up just like that? Am I admitting that I'm a lousy gamer?
No, I must try again!
Hu Xiao felt indignant. If he gave up now, wouldn't he be admitting that he was an incompetent, raging lunatic?
He had to at least deal with the little monsters at the mass grave, right?
Once again, Hu Xiao entered the game.
After dying so many times before, Hu Xiao finally learned a few lessons. He had to lure the monsters away one by one. He had to attack them blow by blow. Once the monster raised its hand, he had to dodge and look for another opportunity to attack.
All in all, he could not be greedy!
Hu Xiao kept in mind the lessons he learned from the gaming god's videos. Slowly and steadily, he defeated several little monsters in the mass grave, despite being attacked once. 'Hehe' did not appear on his screen.
"I'm awesome!"
After killing those little monsters, Hu Xiao felt his heart pound with excitement. His hands were shaking non-stop.
So nervous! So exciting!
Was this what an adrenaline rush felt like?
The game was not as difficult as he had imagined. Hu Xiao was filled with renewed motivation as he steered his character forward.
Three minutes later, a butcher with a large chopper appeared in front of Hu Xiao. This was the first elite monster in the game.
"Hehe."
"Hehe."
"Hehe."
A long time later…
Hu Xiao let go of his mouse and lit up a cigarette.
Ah… What have I been doing today…? I've wasted so much time in a game like that.
Hu Xiao began to doubt his own existence.
He had died so many times that he had become numb to it. Now, he had no idea how much time had passed since he first started the game.
He only had one feeling: emptiness.
Vast, limitless emptiness!
"Forget it, I'll refund the game. There's no need to waste so much time playing this."
Hu Xiao looked at the time. The refund allowance period was almost up. If he waited any longer, he would not be able to get his money back. He could only say that time flew by once he really focused on the game.
Hu Xiao was just about to refund the game when a line of words appeared on his screen.
"Refund it. Given your standard, you will never be able to complete the game. There's no need to hang on for that long. There are many other things worth doing in life. Why waste your precious time and money on a game like that?"
Hu Xiao, "???"
Who the h*ll are you despising?
Hu Xiao wanted to refund the game, but he changed his mind!
The message on the screen sounded quite sincere, and it was true as well.
Even after five hours, he still had not left the village he was placed in at the beginning. At this rate, the chances of him completing the game were negligible. Also, there were indeed many other things worth doing in life. There was no point in getting so angry and wasting so much money on a game that tortured him.
To Pei Qian, these were wise words. Any gamer with a hint of intelligence would probably heed his advice.
What's more, he had kind intentions. He wanted to remind players that the refund allowance period was almost up, and they should refund the game as soon as possible.
However, Hu Xiao understood the message very differently.
'You will never be able to complete the game?' I'll do it just to show you!
'Why waste your precious time and money on a game like that?' I have plenty of time and money! Can you stop me from wasting it?
I won't refund the game!
Hu Xiao's temper was rising once again; not even nine bulls could hold him back. He would push through the game today!
With rage, Hu Xiao resumed playing the game. "Wait. How much did the game cost?
"Oh, 128.
"So be it. I don't care."
Chapter 277 An Industry that would Force Lin Wan Out!
October 3rd…
Three days had passed. Pei Qian had been observing Repent and be Saved's situation very closely. After all, he had high hopes for the game. He could not afford any more losses.
He looked at the netizens' comments first. All in all, they had gone just as Pei Qian had expected.
The game was being criticized through and through!
Players were saying all sorts of things, especially in the comments section of the official Weibo post. Many players on the official platform also gave the game a one-star rating and left negative comments.
There were heated arguments in the forums, and gamers seemed to be extremely polarized.
At the moment, there were many comments about the game on TPDb's website, including comments from paying customers and netizens in general.
Repent and be Saved had an overall rating of 7.2 on TPDb. Paying customers and netizens had obviously pulled its ratings down.
Only a short period had passed. Most games media would not have completed the game. Thus, the media's comments and ratings were not available yet. There was no way Pei Qian could analyze the game's overall reception.
Pei Qian did not feel particularly confident about this. After all, games media would not be too concerned about the game's difficulty. Instead, it would rate the game more holistically, based on the game's quality, content, design, and the like.
These games media might give the game quite a high rating for its quality alone. Then, its ratings on TPDb would increase.
Still, no matter what, the game's reputation was showing signs of tanking among ordinary players. One could say this was well within Pei Qian's expectations.
It did not matter whether TPDb gave the game high ratings. What mattered was that the game did not generate profits.
Pei Qian looked at the number of players who refunded the game—not even 30% did. He was quite disappointed.
What is the meaning of this? I clearly told you to refund it, and yet less than 30% of you did?
You could resist the combined impact of the little monsters in the mass grave, the elite monster with the chopper, the epitaph that appears every time you die, and the reminder at the last minute?
That's illogical!
In addition, this 30% included those who only tried the game due to advertising and marketing effects.
Many people tried Repent and be Saved on account of Tengda's golden reputation. Even gamers who hated being tortured mistakenly tried the game as well. Once they realized they were being tortured in the game, those gamers' first reaction would definitely have been to refund it.
Yet, even so, less than 30% of all players refunded the game. Pei Qian was extremely dissatisfied with this figure.
Of course, Pei Qian knew no good way to resolve the problem.
He had been as cruel as he could be. Those who chose not to refund the game probably really did not want to do so. Pei Qian could not possibly have pointed a gun to their heads, forcing them to refund it. He could only continue observing the situation.
Although Pei Qian had expected more people to refund the game, an almost-30% refund rate was considered quite high compared to other games. In addition, countless people were criticizing Repent and Be Saved. The situation looked quite promising.
Pei Qian turned to browse Aili Island.
Some people had already published videos of Repent and be Saved on the video website. However, no complete walkthroughs had been uploaded so far. At the moment, most people were recording the game as they progressed. That was why there weren't many videos, and those that had been published were not popular.
Pei Qian had also expected this outcome.
As long as Teacher Qiao did not release a walkthrough yet, he could remain hopeful!
These newbies would probably need a week before they start to figure Repent and be Saved out. Teacher Qiao would only upload a video after a week.
By then, Pei Qian guessed that only hardcore, loyal fans would still be playing the game. It would not hurt to give them a walkthrough. The players who had already given up would probably not return.
"Hmm, this looks like a good start. May it continue this way!"
Pei Qian switched his computer off and left.
It was a Sunday. He had plans to bring Lin Chang to Ming Yun Private Kitchen for a meal.
Lin Yu was busy with work and had already left Jingzhou. Lin Chang had much more free time on his hands. What's more, both of them were in charge of different companies. Of course, they had different workloads as well.
At Ming Yun Private Kitchen…
Pei Qian happily chewed on the leg of a crab. He was in an extraordinary mood. Lin Chang was also enjoying his food and praising it non-stop.
As they ate, they began to talk about Lin Wan.
"Boss Pei, have you thought about what we mentioned the last time?
"You don't need to have a perfect plan. Just tell me what you have thought about so far; we can work on a plan together."
Lin Chang was giving this issue quite a lot of attention. It was obvious that his father was giving him considerable pressure. He had to get Lin Wan back as soon as possible-only then would he be able to relax.
Pei Qian pondered for a while and said, "I'm thinking of transferring her somewhere else in the name of expanding the business."
Lin Chang paused. "You're not allowing her to continue in the game industry?"
Pei Qian nodded. "Yes, I won't let her work on games anymore. The risks would be too high if I allow her to continue!
"She has just led the employees of Shang Yang Games to produce such a successful game. The employees' enthusiasm and performance, as well as outsiders' view of Shang Yang Games, are all at their peak. If I let her work on another game, the next game has a high chance of succeeding as well.
"If she produces another successful game, it might be hard to turn the situation around."
Lin Chang deeply agreed with this. "Yes, that sounds logical!" Lin Wan had only produced one game so far, and yet she was already showing off to her family. If she managed to create another successful game, wouldn't she feel free to soar the skies?
They could not afford for this to happen!
"However, there seems to be a problem, Boss Pei." Lin Chang looked hesitant. "It has always been Ah Wan's dream to produce games. If you transfer her somewhere else in the name of expanding the business, would she be happy?"
Pei Qian looked confident as he answered, "Of course, we cannot make things too obvious. Also, Lin Wan would not agree to stop working on games.
"Since that's the case, I will put her in charge of another business while she remains in charge of Shang Yang Games. Wouldn't that resolve the problem?
"There would be a lot of work on both ends, and she would be distracted. This would increase the chances of her failing." Lin Chang's eyes lit up. "Hmm, that's a good idea!
"But what business are you looking at? What kind of reason would you give her? I think we should sort out the details. Ah Wan is very intelligent. We cannot allow her to become suspicious."
Pei Qian nodded. "That's right. I have a few considerations, but I've not made up my mind."
Lin Chang seemed very interested. "Let me hear them."
Pei Qian picked up a piece of sushi and said, "This is what I'm thinking. First, we have to allow Lin Wan to remain as the director of Shang Yang Games. She has to be put in charge of another game, at least in name.
"If we don't allow her to take responsibility for anything game-related, it would be too obvious. She would become suspicious and feel conflicted.
"With that foundation, I'll assign her another task.
"This new task has to be related to games as well. Then, I can directly explain to her my plans for business expansion. We can say that we intend to expand into so-and-so territory because this territory is good for our development of games."
"The territories that I'm thinking of venturing into are livestreaming and cell phone manufacturing."
Lin Chang could not help but sigh. "Amazing." Pei Qian had a clear plan: he was going to tell Lin Wan that venturing into livestreaming or cell phone manufacturing would help them better advertise their games. He would then put her in charge of these ventures.
This way, Lin Wan would be responsible for two businesses. She would not have enough energy to tend to either the livestreaming or the game. That would greatly increase the chances of failure.
Lin Chang also knew that Lin Wan was a very proud person. If Boss Pei gave her a task, she would take it even if she thought it would be difficult to achieve anything. She would not turn these additional responsibilities down.
Wouldn't that guarantee success?
Lin Chang was elated. "Boss Pei, which business do you find more suitable, then? Livestream or cell phone manufacturing?"
Pei Qian pondered for a moment. "Cell phone manufacturing might be better."
Pei Qian had not thought about other businesses.
Take car-sharing for example—it was sure to incur losses.
However, he could not put Lin Wan in charge of such a business because it was completely unrelated to games. Pei Qian would not be able to come up with a suitable excuse.
On the other hand, he could say he was expanding the pie by venturing into cell phone manufacturing and livestreaming.
Both of these industries also had relatively high barriers to entry.
The bandwidth for livestreams needed to be able to accommodate about two million people at any one time. That meant he would have to spend up to forty million yuan a month on bandwidth alone.
After all, livestreaming was different from games. One could not spend that much money on bandwidth for web-based games because they did not require transmission of huge amounts of data. Naturally, the two belonged to completely different tiers.
Major livestream platforms would later accommodate anywhere from six million to tens of millions of people at any one time. They easily paid hundreds of millions of yuan for bandwidth alone.
Of course, Pei Qian could employ a cheaper method and spend less money on bandwidth. However, no matter how much he tried to cut costs, he would need to prepare at least thirty to forty million for the initial investment.
If he prepared any less than that, he might fail to produce anything and even delay settlement. That would be a major loss.
As for cell phone manufacturing, he could invest ten to twenty million yuan. Cell phone brands like Xiaomi only cost about ten million yuan to set up as well.
What's more, livestream had not become popular in the current market—it was considered a sunrise industry. The cell phone market was also developing much faster than before; it was considered a sunset industry.
Shenhua, Pineapple, MSC, and other huge manufacturers were beginning to push competitors out of the market. The next few years will become more and more difficult for small cell phone manufacturers. Failure was almost certain.
Also, Lin Yu was in charge of Shenhua's cell phone business. For every new phone that Lin Wan produced, Shenhua could produce an even better one.
A beautiful war would ensue, wouldn't it?
Lin Chang understood this as well. He happily clapped and said, "Boss Pei, your plan is perfect and seamless! Once again, I owe you a huge favor. "Don't worry, Boss Pei. If you meet with any difficulties along the way, we will do our best to cooperate!
"That's right, I noticed that your new game's reputation isn't ideal. How's the situation? Have you thought about how to control the comments? It seems to be a hot topic on Weibo as well. Do you want me to help you?"
"Don't worry, I'm very familiar with the staff there. Just say the word, and I'll be able to get something in order."
Lin Chang was in charge of Shenhua's entertainment business. Naturally, this was familiar territory for him.
Perhaps he wanted to make it up to Pei Qian for all the help that the latter had provided.
However, Pei Qian immediately raised his hand. "No, don't do anything! This is all part of the plan."
A realization dawned on Lin Chang. "Oh, I understand. I won't get involved, then. If Boss Pei needs anything in the future, please let me know. Your problems are my problems. I will not hesitate to help!"
Chapter 278 Teacher Qiao Painfully Holds Back
October 4th…
After having a meal with Lin Chang the day before, Pei Qian carefully considered his new business.
Live-streaming and cell phone manufacturing would both require huge initial investments and potentially incur major losses. Even if he wanted to venture into these new territories, he had to wait for the next settlement cycle.
Of course, while huge initial investments were required, there was an expensive and a cheap method of going about things.
Take cell phone manufacturing for example. Even if Pei Qian wanted to start such a business, he did not need to have hundreds of thousands of cell phones in his inventory. It was impractical and unnecessary.
Huge manufacturers needed a lot of inventory for two reasons. First, they needed to reap the economies of scale. Second, they were afraid of being reprimanded by customers should their cell phones sell out.
However, Pei Qian did not have to think about these things.
It did not matter if he could not reap the economies of scale. In fact, he would be able to incur more losses. If he ran out of stock, so be it. He did not even want to sell a single cell phone.
He could only produce three thousand cell phones in the beginning; any more, and he would lose out.
In any case, his goal was to incur losses. There was no need to have such a huge appetite; he would lose whatever amount he could.
Of course, he still had to think about all the details. He could only take action once failure was guaranteed.
When he arrived at the office, the first thing that Pei Qian did was check on Repent and be Saved's situation.
He could not determine much from a day's worth of figures. However, it was good enough for Pei Qian that the figures did not show signs of improvement.
He was just about to refresh the back end of the game editor when he heard a knock on his door.
Pei Qian looked up to see Li Yada.
Li Yada shyly pushed the door open, pushed her thick spectacles up her nose bridge, and twiddled her forefingers. "B-B-Boss Pei, there's been a serious problem. "According to the official platform's regulations, a warning would be issued if a game's refund rate exceeds 20%. If the refund rate exceeds 35%, the game developers would be forced to take the game off the shelves and edit it.
"At the moment, we're close to 30%. If this continues, the consequences would be… dire."
Pei Qian was confused.
Oh? Such a good thing existed?!
Pei Qian had never experienced this problem before because Tengda Games had always created games with hearts. They were priced inexpensively, and few people refunded them.
Even The Lonely Desert Road was priced extremely low; that was why very few players refunded it.
However, this situation was different. Repent and be Saved had attracted loads of ordinary and lousy players. Although most of these players might stay for various reasons, there was also bound to be a significant portion of them who would return the game out of anger.
Not only were the game's reviews reaching two extremes, but the refund problem was becoming more serious as well.
However, this was good news for Pei Qian!
If the game was forced off the shelves to be edited, he could take his time to edit it before releasing it again. This way, he could control the sales volume as well. As long as he could release the game again a week before settlement, he would be fine.
Pei Qian had not done this on purpose; the System probably would not fault him, right?
Pei Qian glanced at the platform and asked, "Where's the warning?"
Li Yada lowered her head. "Er, those are the official platform's regulations. I'm not sure why we haven't received a warning.
"It might be because we have a good reputation on the official platform.
"I'm just reporting this to you and asking for your advice on how we should move forward. Should we edit the game and lower its difficulty?"
"There's no need!" Pei Qian raised his hand to stop her. "I understand the current situation well. Don't worry."
"Alright… alright." Li Yada nodded and then left the room.
Pei Qian's heart hurt slightly as he looked at the refund rate, which had not yet reached thirty percent.
Ai, what a pity!
I should have worked harder back then to make sure that it reached 35%!
The refund rate was not increasing now. Instead, it was constantly decreasing. This pained Pei Qian.
Yet, this was expected. As news about the game spread across the internet, most newbie gamers would have learned that the game was extremely difficult. They would be well-prepared before entering the game.
That was why the percentage of gamers who refunded the game was decreasing.
Pei Qian pondered for a moment and then accessed Shaohu Reviews' chat window.
The fake reviewers whom he hired had proven useful; the game was being brutally criticized.
Since that was the case, he needed to intensify his efforts!
He had to get more people to curse it and add fuel to the fire. It would be best if he could persuade more gamers to refund the game. Even if he couldn't, he had to try to scare more gamers away. That would lower the game's sales.
Of course, he could give clear directions this time either.
Pei Qian had to use the same method that he used before and drop as many hints as he could.
On the flip side, Hu Xiao was deeply reflecting on his own rash behavior.
I regret this so much!
'Hehe' popped up on his screen again and again. Hu Xiao felt retarded; his character and pride had been gravely injured.
What's happening?! Why did my brain malfunction?! Why didn't I refund the game?!
The boss had poured money into hiring fake reviewers, and yet Hu Xiao gave over a hundred yuan back to him for no reason. He could not put how he felt in words.
"Did I fall for a trap? Did he know that there was bound to be people who would not refund the game? That's so scheming!
"If he speaks to me again, I will question him properly! I cannot let this go if I don't clarify the matter!"
Hu Xiao thought to himself angrily.
Just as raging, he received a new message from Hardcore Reviews.
"I'm buying a hundred thousand yuan worth of additional fake reviewers! Intensify your efforts!"
Hu Xiao paused and then quickly replied, "Alright, Brother! No problem!"
Earning a hundred thousand yuan more had cheered Hu Xiao up immediately.
Why would such a generous boss cheat me? I must have been thinking too much!
October 5th…
In Beijing…
Qiao Liang sat in his rented apartment, feeling anxious and nervous.
Painful!
He had been keeping a close eye on Repent and be Saved's situation ever since it was released. However, the more he observed, the more anxious he became.
The comments on the game's webpage were divided. Many people criticized it before understanding the true essence of the game.
Some UP Masters had uploaded introductory videos for the game, but most of them had not touched on its essence either. None of them even mentioned the game's rich story or plot design.
Most people were still thinking about whether they should refund the game or not or whether there was a mistake in the game's system design or none. To Qiao Liang, these topics were meaningless!
Repent and be Saved was a piece of treasure. These people were staying at the entrance of the cave containing the treasure and discussing if the entrance was too narrow. It was foolish!
Each time he thought about how sincerely Boss Pei had treated him and the King Crab that Boss Pei had fed him, Qiao Liang felt the urgent need to help Boss Pei out.
However, while he had an accurate answer in his hands, he could not display it to the world just yet.
This was because Qiao Liang had already promised Boss Pei that he would only publish a video about the game a week after its release. Within this one week, Qiao Liang could not leak the plot. He had to allow other gamers to enjoy the full, unique gaming experience without any interference whatsoever.
Thus, Qiao Liang had to turn his pain into motivation and continue working hard at reaching alternative endings in Repent and be Saved. He had to accumulate sufficient material for his next video.
The correct battle strategy for the game had already become clear to Qiao Liang who had unlocked multiple endings. Now, he had to focus on the game's plot.
After all, the plot and worldview were arguably important parts of any game; and Repent and be Saved was obviously rich in these aspects.
After playing the game for some time, Qiao Liang opened a document and began to write a plan for his video.
"If you are observant enough, you would realize that the beasts that appear in the video also appear in the official game flow. What's more, they would change.
"The corpse by the river twitched in the cut scene. This is a hint that it has turned into a monster. During the gameplay, a weapon appears beside the corpse. If the player attempts to take this weapon, the corpse would jump up and grab the player, instantly killing him.
"… The video also contains an old monk, seated in a worn-out temple outside the city and chanting. He manages to shield himself against the wandering ghosts' attacks. When the player arrives outside this temple, he will realize that the old monk has already lost his sanity. He will later crazily attack the player.
"…Once you kill the old monk, you will get his Buddha beads and staff. The former is a consumable item that would be useful in the early stages of the game. The latter has average stats and is barely worth storing as an alternative weapon. "…Since the Buddha beads are more important and the old monk is quite weak, I suggest that everyone go and kill him after getting out of the city. That way, you would be able to obtain these items.
"The crazy scholar set his house on fire. When the player arrives here, he would see that the house has been almost reduced to ashes. In a nearby corner, he would be able to find the scholar's corpse. You can get a torn and tattered letter from his body. From it, you will learn a bit of history about the village before it descended into chaos…
"… There are certain triggers in the plot that might lead you to a different ending in the game. At the moment, I am not sure how different endings there are. However, I am sure there are at least two."
As Qiao Liang played the game, he recorded the various details and Easter eggs he encountered.
The more he recorded, the more he appreciated the game!
He had not noticed all these things when he was playing the game before. He had only been thinking about how to complete the game, how to defeat a certain boss, and the like. There was no time to take note of the details.
However, he had already seen multiple endings of the game and returned to his own apartment. The game was no longer as challenging as it was before. Now, he could finally study the details that he missed out on.
The more he studied, the more he realized that the game was rich in content!
Qiao Liang began to suspect that there was a full team in charge of plot design. That was the only way they could have produced such a perfect, detailed story!
Of course, objectively speaking, Repent and be Saved did not have as much content as foreign AAA games with rich storylines. In fact, the former would be considered quite fragmented.
However, the feeling of uncovering treasure captivated Qiao Liang. He could not stop even if he wanted to!
After writing a long plan for his video, Qiao Liang decided to take a break.
He made a bowl of noodles and accessed his fan group, wanting to see what his fans were talking about.
Chapter 279 The Weapon is Too Well-Hidden
"When is the new video going to be published? I can't wait any longer…" "Stop rushing him. He's in the process of making it. Has Teacher Qiao ever lied to you?"
"Every time I ask, you say he's making it. As if that's true! I think it's hard to say whether Teacher Qiao even managed to complete the
game."
"Are you a fake fan? Teacher Qiao was officially invited to test the game a long time ago. It's said that he already completed it. He only made a deal with the officials not to expose the game's contents." "Sh*t, just talking about the game gets me mad. I've been playing it for four days, but I still can't pass the Road to the Underworld."
"My true brother who's stuck at the Road to the Underworld, I am stuck at Mengpo."
"You just need to fight a bit harder to defeat Mengpo, right? The magistrates after her are the real tough ones to beat. They'll kill you until you start doubting your own existence."
The fans were discussing the game's contents and their experience.
The atmosphere in Teacher Qiao's fan group was relatively good. People were not arguing over the game's difficulty.
Perhaps this was because most of Teacher Qiao's fans were hardcore gamers, and they were more patient than ordinary gamers.
"Ai, it looks like this game is not meant for lousy players like me. I really admire how far you guys are progressing in the game."
"I think it'll be alright; it depends on how you play. You can find some joy in your suffering. I'm a lousy gamer, too. I intend to run away from the monsters and keep going for the Buddha statues. I want to see how far I can
go."
"You're kidding, right? You haven't even completed the game properly, and you're trying to speed-run through it?"
"I'm not trying to speed-run through it; I'm just doing this for fun. I can't even beat the little monsters, hahaha."
There were even a couple of good-tempered players who tried various ways to progress in the game.
Qiao Liang sent a message to the group. "Take note of the plot's details while playing the game. If you find good material, I might include it in my video."
As an elite content creator, Qiao Liang believed that there was power in numbers.
The game was so rich in content. He would not be able to uncover everything on his own. Sometimes, lame netizens could contribute inspiration.
"Catch Old Qiao!" "Old Qiao, you're crowdsourcing your video again?"
"You're asking the wrong people. We're still being tortured by the little monsters at the mass grave. Who would have the time to take note of plot details for you?"
"…I think the game has an official novel, right? Go and read it."
Teacher Qiao paused. An official novel? How come I've never heard of it?
He quickly asked, "What official novel? They're not created by the same people, right?"
The replies from his friends came quickly. "I think it's an official novel. You can go to www.zhongdian.com."
"Do you know about TPDb? I think it's a website for Tengda's internal ratings. Zhongdian Chinese Network is on that site as well, and Repent and be Saved's novel is on its homepage. It should be an official novel."
Qiao Liang could not help but click his tongue in wonder.
There's such a thing? The lame netizens really had a way around the internet.
Qiao Liang quickly accessed the website and realized that it was true!
Repent and be Saved was being recommended on its homepage.
A cursory scan revealed tons of content in the novel, which was of the same high standard as the game's. It even included characters like the old monk in the newbie village and the scholar.
However, the novel's storyline seemed fragmented. Instead of calling it a novel, Qiao Liang thought it would be better to call it a plot design series for the game.
The novel seemed unstable, and there was a lack of continuity between the chapters so that Qiao Liang could not read it smoothly. However, he felt elated.
It proved all the more that this was Repent and be Saved's official novel!
This way, he could confirm the parts in the game's plot that he had been unsure about!
"Thanks, Brother. You've been a great help!"
Qiao Liang sent an emoticon with cupped fists in the chat and then closed the window at lightning speed. He began to read Repent and be Saved's official novel.
The first chapter was published in July, and the first comment was written at the end of July.
This added to Qiao Liang's belief that this was the game's official novel. This was because research and development of Repent and be Saved had just begun in July.
No author could have thought of the exact same ideas as Tengda and produced this book. It was practically impossible.
An employee of Tengda must have written this!
After reading for five minutes, Qiao Liang frowned. It was not because the book was badly written, but because the comments were disgusting! He had to admit that there were far too many haters. The first chapter was in an especially bad state.
The second and third chapters' situations were markedly better. This was probably because most readers had left.
"What are you writing?". "Is the author entertaining himself? This is toxic!"
"Why is this book still on the website's homepage? Was it done by a related person?"
"I have no idea what this novel is about. It has a negative rating in my book!"
"Hehe, it's no wonder that this website remains unpopular. The novels are all so lousy. Who even reads these things?"
The other comments were similar to the above.
It was obvious that these comments had been written before the game, Repent and be Saved, was released. Most people were reading this book as if it were an ordinary web novel. Naturally, they found it intolerable.
On the other hand, Qiao Liang was extremely engrossed in the novel. The official novel contained content that was invaluable to him.
All his hypotheses were being confirmed or denied by the novel. Some details in the novel also pointed him to uncover other details in the game.
"This is another neglected work. The storyline is not great, and it doesn't make a good web novel. However, when read together with the game, it becomes something else completely.
"Did Boss Pei start this website as well?
"That's strange. Why does Boss Pei like to emphasize his good works by first making them appear horrible? Could it be a unique but strange habit?
"Or does he just enjoy the roller coaster of emotions? Did he enjoy seeing his game and website fail before turning the tables and resurrecting them using special methods?
"I don't know.
"Perhaps that's just what talented businessmen do."
The book was filled with content. What's more, the plot was being written in fragments; and some parts did not seem to have made it into the game. From this, Qiao Liang guessed that a group of people had worked on the novel together. However, the game only used a small portion of what they had written. The remaining was either made into Easter eggs or slotted into the game through minor details. Some parts were not even added into the game.
"That's strange. A lot has been written about the old monk."
Qiao Liang noticed that the old monk seemed to play a large role in the official novel.
According to his understanding of the game, there was no Buddha in the game's world. There were only dilapidated statues, which represented the legendary Degenerate Age that the game was set in.
Boss Pei had probably only wanted to use Buddha as one of the many traditional Chinese elements blended together in the game.
Apart from the Buddha statues which acted as save points along the way, the only Buddhist elements were the worn down temple outside the village and the old monk inside that temple.
The old monk seemed very weak in the game. Qiao Liang thought his only purpose was to provide weapons after his death.
However, according to the official novel, this old monk had a very sad story behind him. What's more, after losing his sanity, he became very powerful. He should have been an undefeatable elite monster.
Qiao Liang scratched his head, visibly confused.
"Did the design team get it wrong? Why does the official novel seem to depict the monk differently?
"It would make more sense if he was an elite monster.
"A unique model was created for this old monk. Although he looks skinny and weak, he looks sturdier than ordinary little monsters. Even his movements were specially created and so detailed…
"It seems illogical that he ended up as a weak monster."
Qiao Liang entered the game once again. He had created a new account after the game was published, and had reached the second round with it. Now, he was near the town.
He found the old monk, saved a new folder, and began to adjust his gameplay.
He used different techniques to kill the monk.
He tried luring the monk out of the temple.
He died.
However, no matter what he tried, he did not uncover any special plots.
"Am I not supposed to kill this old monk? Must I find a special prop somewhere to trigger the plot development?" Qiao Liang was deeply confused. After trying for a long time, he still did not make any headway. Qiao Liang decided to crowdsource once again and ask his fan group for some help. "Hey, everyone. Do you know if I can unlock a hidden plot development using the old monk in the temple? Try every method in the book. I feel like something is amiss."
Qiao Liang did not harbor high hopes. He had just casually asked the question.
"The old monk? I killed him long ago."
"I killed him, too. He's so fragile. I just had to touch him to kill him."
"I haven't gotten there…"
"I can try, but I don't know if I'll be able to make it. I ran all the way here. I don't have any props or weapons…" Qiao Liang had an impression of the friend who posted the last comment. He was the player who said he would not kill any monsters and would see how far he could go just by running.
Qiao Liang did not think too much about this. After all, the official novel could have been wrong. Otherwise, there might have been some problems along the way. The developers might have adjusted the game's system, turning the old monk from an elite monster into nothing more than a toolbox.
A few minutes later…
"Old Qiao! Old Qiao, look! Look at this
weapon!"
"[Image]"
"[Image)" "[Image)"
The player may have accidentally posted three images out of excitement.
Qiao Liang was stunned as he opened the first image.
A golden staff!
He was confused because he had seen the staff before. He had even used it before; it was not good. It was low-impact and inconvenient.
However, the staff which the old monk had dropped before did not glow like that.
Yet, this staff had a golden glow around it. It looked eye-catching and aggressive as it hung on the player's back. It was obviously different from all the other weapons!
The next two images contained the weapon's name and description.
"Pudu…"
"Buddha says, 'the five aggregates that make up each human being amounts to nothing; this realization delivers from sorrow and suffering'."
Qiao Liang was astonished but elated. There really is a hidden plot here?!
He quickly asked, "How did you get this?"
The player replied, "I'm not sure either! I ran here to activate a nearby Buddha statue and then thought about coming in to take a look. I did not have any props or weapons on me, and so I could not defeat the old monk. Each time I met him, I was killed.
"I died a couple of times and realized that the monk had become an NPC! I went over and talked to him. He said a whole bunch of things and then gave me this weapon.
"Holy sh*t, this weapon is awesome!"
Qiao Liang could not express his excitement in words.
However, he was even more confused than before. "Why? That doesn't happen to me. I died a couple of times, too, but I did not activate this plot development. Is it because I'm on my second round? Is that why I can't unlock this hidden plot?"
The player replied, "Maybe."
Qiao Liang immediately became agitated.
This was huge news!
There is such a mysterious weapon hidden in the game?! I'll open a new folder and try dying in the first round! Qiao Liang recalled the entire journey leading up to finding this weapon and could not help but feel emotional. The weapon was too well-hidden. It was as if the designer had hidden it on purpose, so that gamers would not be able to find it!