July 18th, Monday...
Pei Qian came to the office early in the morning and was in a good mood. He even hummed a little song on the road. He gave Old Qiao a good deceiving yesterday.
It might be wrong to deceive others, but Pei Qian could not help it. He had repeatedly emphasized to Teacher Qiao that the video was okay and asked Teacher Qiao to give up, but the latter did not believe him!
Pei Qian did not dare let Teacher Qiao comprehend what he meant by himself. It would be much worse if he realized something terrible.
Therefore, Pei Qian came up with a plan to expel wolves by welcoming tigers!
Didn't you want to know how this video could be brought back to life?
That could be done, as long as you stop making videos on 'Products of the Gods' and 'Struggle'.
Pei Qian knew very well that Teacher Qiao would definitely over-interpret Struggle once it was released. The next Products of the Gods would definitely feature it.
If that was the case, why not take the initiative to strike?
Replace a video that was likely to make 'Struggle' popular with a random video. That would be bloody profitable!
He looked at Teacher Qiao and realized that he must have been convinced.
It was famous that Boss Pei's words were golden, oh no, had the ability to turn stones into gold. Tengda's employees and Qiao Liang believed firmly in it.
Pei Qian suddenly felt that everything seemed to be going smoothly for him. It was as though it was his turn to be offensive.
So happy!
Pei Qian checked the situation of each industry again after coming to the office while he waited for Rui Yuchen to arrive.
Fei Huang Workspace, in shock therapy...
Fish-Catching Take-Out, loss...
Upwind Logistics, loss...
Fully-Automated Bickering Machine, loss...
'Top Student, Come Quick', about to turn cold...
Thriller Hostel, can make a small profit but was not popular so it was still too early to recover the huge investment in the early stages...
DGE E-Sports Club, loss...
Deposit Fitness, seemed to be making more money but it was still at a loss...
Sloth Apartments, loss...
It seemed like there had not been a single project that was popular in this cycle after he carefully counted!
That was really a historical win!
Of course, there were some departments like Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, gaming department, and novel websites that were still profiting enormously. However, those were all problems left over from history to be solved slowly in the future.
Moreover, these departments basically spent all of their money. For example, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was working hard opening branches even if it was making money. However, the breakeven became longer. In theory, it would definitely not generate profit if they opened branches fast enough.
Thriller Hostel—which encouraged so many dangers—actually managed to pull through and not become popular. That was a happy surprise, which gave Boss Pei a shot in the arm.
It was the first time Pei Qian had such a great feeling.
Knock, knock.
Someone knocked on the door. Pei Qian looked up. It was Rui Yuchen as expected. He knew that Rui Yuchen would definitely come and report to him on Monday.
Rui Yuchen handed over the document in his hand.
"Boss Pei, I'll report the current status of Fish-Catching Take-Out.
"At present, Food Harmony has been launched in several flagship stores. Our reputation is good, but the profit gap is relatively large. It seems like... it is not easy to promote it.
"As for the branches, Fish-Catching Take-Out's branches had been opened in several representative first- to third-tier cities, which gives us a base in most cities.
"From current data, Fish-Catching Take-Out's popularity is positively correlated with the size of the city. In other words, we are most popular in first-tier cities while we fare the worst in third-tier cities.
"Moreover, Fish-Catching Take-Out in the same area seems to be competing for resources."
Pei Qian looked at the information and nodded frequently.
Good news!
Food Harmony's destiny was set. They had a good reputation, but they would definitely not make money.
Moreover, what made Pei Qian happier was the situation with Fish-Catching Take-Out.
Previously, Pei Qian allowed Rui Yuchen to spend money openly, and Rui Yuchen did not disappoint—opening Fish-Catching Take-Out branches all across the country.
The result this time could be seen as setting their base everywhere.
Pei Qian felt that the information basically met his expectations. The healthy, exquisite, and high-value meals like Fish-Catching Take-Out were definitely more popular in larger cities.
That was because there were a large number of white-collar workers and young people in the cities. They did not like to cook yet had a demand for healthy food. At the same time, they were not so sensitive towards prices so they would definitely welcome Fish-Catching Take-Out.
The young in third-tier cities were originally lesser. Their overall income was relatively lower, and it was not very possible for them to eat Fish-Catching Take-Out.
At the same time, a city with more Fish-Catching Take-Out would squeeze and grab resources from each other.
Because there were only so many customers ordering Fish-Catching Take-Out, both stores would be vying with each other for business that no one could dream of making more money.
Rui Yuchen said, "According to the contents of this report, I think we should focus on the super first-tier and first-tier cities as the main goal. At the same time, spread the storefronts and let them bloom as much as possible!"
Pei Qian was deep in thought.
Focus on the super first-tier cities? Make them bloom?
Obviously not, that would definitely make money.
Pei Qian thought for a while and said. "Open all new branches in second- and third-tier cities in Handong Province, especially Jingzhou—fill them all up!"
Rui Yuchen: "Huh?"
He felt slightly light-headed.
Boss Pei was not listening to the information that I sorted so seriously into a report?
Or did Boss Pei have something up his sleeve?
Not possible, no matter what he had up his sleeve, Boss Pei could not go up against the market, right?
Pei Qian continued. "Yes, and since the reputation of Food Harmony is good, seize the opportunity to promote it. Open them in all the Fish-Catching Internet Cafes!
"Sell them at the current price; never give any discounts, understood?"
Rui Yuchen gasped, wanting to speak but stopped.
What else could he say since Boss Pei had said everything...?
He could only nod. "Alright Boss Pei, I'll work on it now."
Pei Qian happily put on a blanket and began his drama marathon after Rui Yuchen left. No one else came to ask for instructions even after he had lunch.
Pei Qian was very happy; this seemed to be a good sign.
He was about to leave work happily when he received a message from Zhang Yuan.
"Boss Pei, we have spent all the budget. Our players are all discouraged and want to go back; can we return?"
Pei Qian was stunned.
Spent all their budget? The players were all discouraged?
Good news was coming one after another!
Zhang Yuan might not have said why the players were discouraged, but that was very easy to guess!
The training schedule of the DGE club was so unreasonable, without much time to train in games with their daily fitness regime. It was normal to be beaten by professional players from other clubs!
Obviously because they had been beaten too harshly, their morale totally collapsed and missed home.
Most welcome!
And it had to be a warm welcome!
Pei Qian counted on his fingers. It would be the 20th soon, which could be arranged directly at Ming Yun Private Kitchen. He would call on the Deposit Fitness branch manager together to celebrate.
I want to send everyone a wrong message:
Even if we were beaten in our mock competitions—even if the gym was losing money, Boss Pei would not care and still invite us to enjoy ourselves!
The DGE club and Deposit Fitness would always be stable as long as everyone could understand this point!
The more Pei Qian thought about, the more perfect this plan was. He replied immediately, "Okay, come back! I'm booking a room for us in the nameless restaurant to welcome the team home!"
...
...
July 20th, Wednesday...
DGE E-Sports Club...
The team members dragged their suitcases and returned to their own rooms.
"Ah, finally home!"
"The scenery here is still much better."
"I haven't been working out these few days. I feel fat coming out on me; shall we go to the gym after dinner?"
"Hehe, don't crack the wise. I have to undergo additional training until next month..."
There was only one word to describe the feeling Huang Wang had after he lied on his own bed: comfy!
If he were to use one word to summarize their experience outside for two weeks, it would be 'disappointment'!
Everyone was excited at the start of the journey. They would not need to gym and become as tired as a dog when outside.
They could visit the veteran clubs and meet their idols when they were younger. They would be able to play against the master and have hearty mock competitions.
They could go to the big cities to experience the world and experience the prosperity of the big cities...
In short, everyone was filled with expectations at the beginning of the trip!
However, everything changed when they returned to Jingzhou. Their fitness habit was broken, and they felt uncomfortable all over.
The veteran clubs were so shabby; they were basically a large internet cafe. Their images were completely collapsed.
The players in the other clubs were so noob that they could not even bear to look straight at them in the eyes. They were only evenly matched when Coach Ma was on the team. The trouble Coach Ma gave to them was even bigger than the five opponents opposite them; the mock competition was unbearable.
Shanghai was nothing more than that. There was no Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, no Fish-Catching Take-Out... particularly unable to adapt.
In fact, everyone wanted to return a long time ago because it really did not make sense to play mock competition with these clubs; they were too amateur!
However, Zhang Yuan said they had to use up the budget.
Therefore, everyone could only follow the original plan and run over all the other clubs one by one. The results were disappointing; none of them was their match!
They thought that the H4 club, whom they played against on the first day, was just the beginning. However, they were the best.
The other clubs were even more inferior to them!
They really did not know how to wrap it up if it was not because of Coach Ma.
The DGE club stayed with each club for three days and was abused for three days. After three days, they felt that the members of the clubs were nearly on the brink of collapse so they hurriedly changed to another.
They finally spent their budget and returned to Jingzhou.
Huang Wang put his suitcases away and returned to the training room.
Zhang Yuan had just packed his things and came out.
"Brother Zhang! Is Boss Pei treating us for dinner today? It seems to be the first time since the establishment of our club? Does that mean Boss Pei is going to celebrate for us?" Huang Wang asked.
Zhang Yuan thought for a while. "Probably. Oh, yes, everyone please take note. Don't take too much credit for yourself. Boss Pei hates such people.
"Boss Pei should be very clear about everyone's strengths. Our winning streak was probably within his expectations. Do not mention it repeatedly; it will definitely arouse Boss Pei's disgust."
"Ah?" Huang Wang was stunned for a moment. "Boss Pei doesn't like people who take credit? Then, what should we do?"
Zhang Yuan pondered. "Everyone, bury your heads in your meal tonight. If Boss Pei comes for a toast, you have to respond enthusiastically. However, don't get carried away and brag about yourself. Be humble and low-key.
"This is a bit of insight I have after working with Boss Pei for so long."
Chapter 591: Using Delicious Food to Cure the Mental Trauma the Players Suffered
In the afternoon, at Ming Yun Private Kitchen...
Pei Qian and the personal trainers of Deposit Fitness, such as Guo Licheng, arrived one after the other.
The members of the DGE club arrived a little later. That was because they were nearer so they left their place a little later.
Pei Qian expressed his satisfaction with the small increase in Guo Licheng's muscles, praising him publicly.
"Very good, Coach Guo is everyone's role model. Everyone has to learn from Coach Guo. Whoever did not have an obvious change in your muscle mass during the next meal gathering will be considered for replacement, understand?"
The branch managers nodded in unison, "Understood!"
Pei Qian was satisfied with this result. He knew from Guo Licheng's muscles that he must have spent all his time working out, not running the operations of the gym.
Very good, that was exactly what Boss Pei wanted!
Guo Licheng was a little embarrassed to be praised. He had not been able to turn Deposit Fitness profitable as the person-in-charge; even the flagship store was still far from it.
Everyone had been making appointments before coming for exercise, which had well dispersed the passenger flow with the Deposit Fitness application developed previously. The problem of crowded during peak periods had been solved.
However, it was not helpful for the popularity of the gym itself; it even had a certain inhibitory effect.
The other functions of the Deposit Fitness application were not bad, but the key was there were just so many users. No matter how good the other functions were, someone had to use it for it to show its usefulness, right?
Therefore, Guo Licheng had always felt a little ashamed towards the developers of the 'Deposit Fitness' application. There were not enough users for such good application functions.
Fortunately, Yu Pingan from 'Top Student, Come Quick' application came to him some time ago, hoping to integrate with Deposit Fitness—which solved the user volume problem. Guo Licheng was more than willing to do it.
Guo Licheng thought that it was probably all arranged by Boss Pei so he did not question. He said nothing at all.
Guo Licheng did not particularly understand the purpose of today's dinner.
Celebration?
It was definitely not possible. Deposit Fitness was still making a loss; what was there to celebrate?
Boost their morale and let the branch managers continue their efforts?
Well, that was possible.
It was just that no one dared ask when Boss Pei did not say anything. A department that made losses all year around was embarrassed to speak on such an occasion after all.
Pei Qian checked the time; the members of the DGE Esports Club should be coming soon. He felt that it was necessary to address the branch managers with him.
"There's a small problem; everyone, please take note."
"We're having dinner with DGE Esports Club members today. On the one hand, it is to welcome them home and also to comfort them. As a newly established e-sports club, our DGE Esports Club must have suffered miserable loss and are experiencing rock bottom now, having challenged veteran clubs.
"They need understanding and comfort. No one should take the initiative to bring up anything related to performance. Eat more, toast more, and chat more about fitness, understand?"
The branch managers nodded in unison, "Understood!"
That just made everyone even more puzzled now. Why the hell should they chat more about fitness?
Only very few people, like Guo Licheng who was more familiar with Coach Yaling, knew about the 'scientific training method' adopted by the DGE Esports Club.
Pei Qian was very satisfied with these 'yes men' branch managers. These people were basically carved out of the same model as Guo Licheng. They love fitness and have simple minds. They could not come up with all kinds of new tricks to backstab Boss Pei.
Moreover, they were very easy to supervise. He only needed to observe the changes in their muscles every time they met to determine if they were training seriously. There should not be many opportunities for them to mess things up as long as they trained hard.
The DGE club arrived after he explained.
"Brother Qian!"
Ma Yang took the lead.
Pei Qian went over and hugged him warmly. He then looked at the player following behind him. Every one of them... looked very calm.
They might not look disappointed, but they did not look happy as well. Well, obviously the frustration of being beaten had diminished a lot after arriving home, but their mood was still depressed.
Food was the best therapy at such a time!
"Come, everyone, take your seat; let's be prepared for a feast!"
Pei Qian did not engage in courtesy. Gathering for a meal meant everyone should eat as much as they wanted.
Ma Yang was very excited. "Brother Qian, I want to sit next to you! Let me tell you, I'm the team's strategist this time and played a very important role! If you don't believe it, you can ask these clubs. There wouldn't be anyone who does not know of Coach Ma of the DGE club!"
Huang Wang was startled and looked at Zhang Yuan subconsciously.
That look meant this: 'Didn't we agree about not getting credit? What was it with Coach Ma?'
Zhang Yuan shook his head helplessly. Boss Ma did not need to follow these unspoken rules. Don't ask, he blocked an atomic bomb for the boss previously.
Of course, others should never learn from that.
Pei Qian was filled with respect, hearing Old Ma's words. He found the reason why DGE was abused!
No wonder all the team members were now withdrawn. How could not be with you as a strategist? They had no possibility of winning in the first place; wouldn't they be beaten in 15 minutes flat if you were to command?
You did play an important role—don't doubt it; it must be a negative influence!
It was not all surprising to be famous all over. The other clubs had probably never encountered such a noob commander. After these battles, Coach Ma must have become synonymous with 'blind commander', spreading all over the world...
Pei Qian was even more certain now that the DGE players were being bullied hard outside. Only Old Ma could continue smiling in such a situation.
Pei Qian patted Ma Yang's shoulders. "There is no need to elaborate Old Ma, I understand!
"Alright, this matter is already over, there is no need to mention it anymore. Hurry eat, your favorite big lobster is on!"
Ma Yang was still very excited. He wanted to tell Pei Qian about how he played a core role in the brilliant performance in the mock competitions. However, his attention was immediately attracted away by the big lobster on the table.
Bragging was not as important as eating!
Ma Yang immediately forgot all about it as he picked up the big lobster to gnaw on.
Pei Qian sighed. Lucky for me that my reaction was fast!
Otherwise, how awkward would it be if Old Ma started telling tales of the DGE club's humiliating defeat in the mock competitions!
How could Zhang Yuan and the other players' faces be able to hang on in the presence of so many people? This meal would go bad, too!
Luckily, Old Ma had now shut up so no one should be mentioning it again insensitively. Everyone could now eat with peace of mind.
Zhang Yuan looked at Huang Wang and the others with a 'see, I told you so' expression.
The players understood now.
Boss Pei really did not like people who asked for credits!
See how Boss Ma, who had booked an atomic bomb, for Boss Pei was interrupted by Boss Pei when he just showed his intention to claim credit.
Therefore, they better buried their heads to eat and shut up!
Dishes were being sent up one by one. Everyone started digging in without reservations. These were really rare delicacies.
Someone asked Coach Yaling's recent moves and realized that she had become the coach for the esports players' club. She was in charge of their physical fitness, which could not help but elicit surprise from the others.
No wonder Boss Pei said that they could chat more about fitness with these esports players!
The esports players looked on at the opposite row of personal trainers with envy.
Look at those muscles! Boss Pei got us to have a meal with these personal trainers obviously to tell us not to become complacent and work harder for those muscles!
We were still very far from that!
They had to say that working out was something that one could become addicted to.
It was difficult to maintain it at first because the results were slow. However, after a while, the muscles of the body would enter a period of rapid growth. The body would start changing shape.
That was similar to savings. When people were earning little money, they did not care about savings and surplus. They spent money casually. However, once their savings increased, they would care more about their expenses because they would really enjoy seeing an increase in saving figures.
The members of the DGE club were currently in such a stage. They were very concerned about their own muscle growth, and fitness had become a habit.
These two groups actually had a rather merry time during the meal. They had fitness as a common topic after all.
Guo Licheng and Coach Yaling reminisced about the past while they feasted. He asked casually. "Will you head out to play mock competitions again?"
Coach Yaling shook her head. "No, there isn't much meaning to it."
Guo Licheng nodded, expressing that he understood. Indeed, frequently experiencing abuse was a very frustrating thing. It was normal to have a short-term escape mentality.
Pei Qian was even happier upon hearing it.
Obviously, losing the mock competitions had greatly affected the confidence of the players. They were now discouraged and had decided to use the ostrich tactic and began to escape!
That was a good thing as well. The DGE Esports Club might not be allowed to participate in official events, but it may obtain some influence elsewhere if they continued to be active and disrupt Boss Pei's overall plan.
When they were all discouraged and withdrawn, the two teams would continue mock competitions against each other and entertain themselves. Their level would only get lower and lower.
If that continued to develop this way, then this club would definitely lose a lot of money!
The more Pei Qian thought about it, the more satisfied he was.
...
At the same time in H4 Esports Club...
Team Leader Su looked at his phone with an incredible expression on his face.
"What does Huang Wang's newest update on his WeChat moments mean?
"Back at the base, Boss Pei personally held a celebration party... with a blocked booking at the nameless restaurant?!
"Show-off, naked show-off! That is going too far!"
Team Leader Su had nowhere to vent his anger.
Chapter 592: He An: Meeting Three Levels of Needs
Many of the members of the H4 club and the DGE club kept in contact after their three days of mock competitions. Team Leader Su felt that the player Huang Wang was rather interesting so he added him as a friend as well.
The DGE club then went to the other clubs.
In the end, Huang Wang actually updated his celebratory status today!
There might be no picture, but the words 'in nameless restaurant' were enough to make people feel unbalanced.
After the previous food blogger incident, Quanmin Reviews launched a wave or promotion for the nameless restaurant, making it so famous that Team Leader Su also heard of it.
Moreover, they even blocked the entire place down? It seemed like a privilege that only Tengda employees could enjoy!
As to why have a celebration party, was there any need to ask?
The DGE club slapped all the larger GOG clubs in the country in the face. They were almost invincible now. Such a KDA ratio really deserved a celebration party.
However, this state had other meanings to the eyes of the clubs which had been slapped in the face. Team Leader Su felt as though he had been provoked. The memory of being beaten emerged once again.
"We're going for competition again, increase the training frequency!
"Practice those tactics we learned from the DGE club again!
"Our H4 club must not lose when the weekend match comes!"
Team Leader Su was furious.
On the other hand, the members of the IOI club were solo training while they forcibly suppressed the smile on their faces.
Two members whispered.
"Team Leader Su seems to be furious again; what happened to the GOG branch?"
"Not sure, probably because they were beaten by that emerging club. I heard they were miserable in their abuse."
"I can only say that the GOG branch is too noob; they really make our club lose face."
"Forget it, say less. Warm up quickly, we'll have to fight in mock competitions with other clubs in no time."
"No problem, we are not noobs like those in the GOG branch. The IOI championship hosted by Tengda this time will be ours!"
...
...
July 21st, Thursday...
At the cafe near Handong University...
It was time for the monthly lesson.
He An drank his coffee and started talking about today's topic.
"The successful experience I'm going to talk about today is the shared needs theory. It is not only suitable for gaming; it is also suitable for other areas.
"This lesson today is a summary of previous sessions. Before this, Boss Ma, I want to test you first. Do you remember the contents of the previous three lessons?"
Pei Qian thought about it for two minutes before replying. "Choosing the target sales method for the game content, choosing the game type that is plenty in the market... allowing personal opinions appropriately in the game."
He An was very happy. "Hmm, not bad! You remember well!"
Pei Qian laughed hollowly in his heart. How could he not remember them? They were mostly related to my own blood-filled teachings...
He An continued, "The three lessons previously ascended in difficulty; most of them were also talking about creating the game flow.
"First, choose the right game type based on market demands, and then correctly express yourself in the process of making the game. Finally, choose a corresponding method of sales according to the game.
"The material we are going to talk about today will be more difficult: how to analyze the market demand. The contents of the lesson today are the precondition of the first three lessons, which is also the most basic step.
"Boss Ma, you must remember that every step in making a game is important. The most important first step is to correctly analyze the needs of the market, choose the right direction!
Pei Qian nodded, listening seriously.
He had to admit that Teacher He might have spoken a lot about the case studies of Tengda, but the contents were definitely still filled with useful tips. It was akin to revisiting every detail from the mission to creating the game.
Such systematic knowledge might not be obtainable even if one was to pay money.
Pei Qian still felt that he had some benefits. Of course, it would be much better if Teacher He did not always use Tengda Games as examples...
He An continued. "A good producer would be able to analyze the needs of players and make a corresponding game to sell to them. But the important point was that, sometimes, players did not know what they wanted as well.
"They thought they wanted A, but they actually needed B. When you give them A at this point in time, they would think that you did not give them the A they wanted in their hearts and would still not purchase.
"Therefore, the idea of 'giving players what they want' is not wrong, but you will fail badly if you were to do exactly that!"
Pei Qian was silent for a short while. "What if I don't give anything the players want?"
He An was taken aback. He paused before replying. "Then, I can only say you are awesome."
Pei Qian pressed on. "Teacher He, I'm serious. Would not giving the players what they want will definitely fail?"
He An shook his head after considering carefully. "There is a small possibility that the thing you think players do not want is something that they really wanted from the bottom of their hearts. If that is the case, not only will you not fail, but you will reap huge rewards!
"However, such situations... are too rare; one cannot hope for it to happen!"
Pei Qian: "..."
Too rare? Cannot hope for it to happen? Why do I meet them for every game then?
He An continued. "If you want to deeply understand this question, you'll have to understand meeting three layers of needs.
"The first layer is to decode the needs.
"The second layer is to dig deep into the needs.
"The third layer is to create the needs.
"Most producers would not even be able to meet the first layer. They will be stuck at decoding the need. In decoding the need, the producer would give the player what they want, but such a producer would usually fail. Sometimes, the players themselves did not know what they wanted.
"What they thought they wanted was generally different from what they really wanted; every player was different... with different positions, different tastes and biases. Their needs would naturally be different.
"If it was only to 'read and make what the players requested', then you would lose control of the entire project. That was a bad strategy.
"I give you a very simple example; some players saw the existence of the epic weapon and felt that this was rather expensive but selling well... so they suggested that your game should also have epic weapons.
"If you were to just 'recreate' the players' needs and actually did it thinking that the players need this and would be able to make money, then it would mostly end in failure.
"Have you considered if it was just a small number of players that wanted epic weapons and most players actually hate them?
"Maybe what this player wanted was not the epic weapon but a nice looking appearance or privileges that were different from other players?
"Maybe you made an epic weapon but did not make it in an appearance that satisfied him; therefore, he wouldn't buy it?"
"Obviously, if you don't think about such issues, you will inevitably face failure."
"You must first distinguish between the player's requests, which to take up and which to not take up. If you cannot even do this step, then it would never be possible to make any progress.
"Therefore, the first level is to interpret the need. Interpret their true desire from their many needs, analyze these demands carefully... whether these demands are in conflict with the majority of the game itself or most players or not.
"You should only really do it after you have carefully demonstrated its safety.
"You'll have to dig deeper into the demand as you get to the next level.
"Sometimes, a player could not even express what they want or realize what they want. For example, we may find a lot of players lost on the third day through data analysis, but if we were to do a questionnaire, they would find that there were no useful opinions.
"At this point, we have to analyze why we lose so many players on the third day? What is it that they are so dissatisfied with? Why do they need it?
"Unearth the hidden needs in players' hearts that they might not be aware of through various clues. That is the second level.
"Being able to do this would make you a successful game designer in a general sense. You would not go wrong and you would have the ability to make a better game.
"As for the third level..."
"Creating the needs that the players did not have in the first place, that was the highest level! I won't expand on this. It is too deep and complicated. They are often not duplicable either.
"That was because new demands would be widely accepted by players and would no longer be a new demand.
"At this point, I have only managed to peek into the door. It would be easy to mislead you to think there is a shortcut to heaven if I were to speak too much on it.
"Boss Ma, you only need to learn not to recreate the requirements but carefully interpret and dig into the requirements, that would be enough."
Pei Qian was silent for a moment and asked tentatively. "Then... Teacher He, can you tell me who had reached this level of demand creation?"
He An: "Boss Pei of Tengda Games.
"Making something that most people originally did not like previously and made it into something that most people like, Boss Pei is the unique one among domestic game designers!
"Boss Ma, you are a good friend of Boss Pei. If it is convenient, you can ask him a little about his experience. However, I still have the same advice. Don't try to mimic it rashly; it is very dangerous."
Pei Qian: "..."
He did not know what to say for a while.
Chapter 593: A Venue Dedicated to Whipping People while They were Down
July 22nd, Friday...
The team members of the H4 E-Sports Club stepped onto Jingzhou's soil for the first time.
Team Leader Su and two team managers led the GOG and IOI teams from the club. They were here to take part in the Jingzhou competition over the weekend.
The competition schedule was very simple. The finals would be 'best of five', and the other rounds would be 'best of three'. There would be eight teams competing in the single-elimination format for seven rounds in total. The entire competition would take two days—Saturday and Sunday.
The schedule was quite tight, but it made sense. After all, if they kept the events close together, they would be able to sustain the popularity of the competition, and the audience would not lose patience.
What Team Leader Su found more ridiculous was that the GOG and IOI competitions were taking place at the same time. Both were to be conducted this Saturday and Sunday!
Were they made to overlap so that the audience would have to choose either one?
What's more, both of those were Tengda's games. Was it trying to steal attention from itself? Was there an internal battle going on?
Wouldn't it have been better to schedule the competitions for separate weekends?
Team Leader Su found this very confusing. However, what everyone didn't know was that there was indeed an internal battle going on between GOG and IOI at the moment.
There was a reason behind such a schedule.
To organize a competition, organizers would have to contact teams, prepare a venue, set the program, and so on. Both organizers required approximately the same amount of time.
Whoever's competition took place first would enjoy more attention!
If GOG players knew that there would be an IOI competition this weekend and a GOG one next weekend, they would probably watch the IOI competitions over this weekend, just to observe the situation.
The same went for IOI players.
However, by the next week, when the GOG competition started, IOI players would not necessarily tune in.
The competition that took place first would inevitably enjoy more attention. It could be likened to cell phone manufacturers fighting to release their new model.
Thus, Tengda Games and Shang Yang Games refused to give each other any leeway, and both tried to hold their respective competitions first.
However, neither could shorten the preparation time required, and the competitions had to be held over a weekend when there would be a higher number of visitors. Since neither wanted to fall behind, both fought and struggled to be the faster team and used the minimum time required for preparation. In the end, both competitions were set for the same weekend.
Once the dates were set, it was too late to make any changes. They had no choice but to see it through!
Based on the gamers' data, GOG was undoubtedly the winner.
However, IOI had poured a huge sum of money into publicity as well. Apart from inviting a few local first-tier clubs, they had also invited several foreign clubs to join the competition. Now, they could use the title of an 'international competition'.
That was quite attractive to many people as well. After all, external battles were always the most entertaining and exciting.
Since both teams had run large quantities of advertisements to draw more attention to the competitions, whether IOI could be revived or not boiled down to this.
If GOG continued to suppress it, it could be much harder for IOI to run publicity in the future.
"Team Leader Su, we'll go to the hotel first. Let's work hard together and bring the trophy back. We'll be triumphant!" Once the team manager finished speaking, he left in a car with the other team members.
The two competition grounds were in different locations in Jingzhou, and they were quite far from each other. Obviously, this was to dissuade the audience from sitting on the fence. Everyone had to choose one competition to watch.
Thus, the H4 Club's two teams rented two different hotels to stay in, so that traveling to the competition grounds would be more convenient. Of course, the organizers would cover all expenses for accommodation and food.
Team Leader Su prepared to hail a taxi and go to his hotel as well.
At that moment, Captain Pang Ling said, "Team Leader Su, it's still early. We don't have to go to the hotel yet. Wouldn't it be better if we go to the DGE Club to train with Huang Wang, Jiang Huan, and the rest?"
Team Leader Su paused for a moment and then nodded. "That's true! We can grab the chance to check the results of the training we have been doing."
Since the DGE Club left Shanghai, the H4 Club had been training extremely rigorously. They repeatedly watched the recording of the DGE Club while they participated in mock competitions against other clubs online.
They had improved rapidly!
Both of the DGE's teams could beat H4 despite having 4-6 members due to many reasons. Some of those reasons were powerful individual skills, good teamwork, and unexpected battle strategies.
On top of that, there was another very important point: they understood the game very well.
When they should do what, what each person's role was, and how they should administer their battle tactics... everyone at the H4 Club had benefited a lot from observing all of those things.
Having learned from what they had observed, the H4 Club had employed the same tactics to fight other clubs and achieved excellent results.
Thus, their confidence had ballooned, and they itched to fight against the DGE Club's teams again, just to see how much they had improved.
Team Leader Su sent a message to Zhang Yuan who happily agreed and sent their location over.
The H4 Club's GOG team headed straight towards Ming Yun Villas.
"When the time comes, we can just have the mock competition in a random internet cafe, right?"
"I heard that there's a famous internet cafe chain in Jingzhou called the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. It's said that it has good hardware and a good environment. I wonder if we will go there for the mock competition."
"Is the hardware really good? How good can it be?"
"Who knows? I think the internet cafe is overrated online. It would definitely be better than the internet cafe we often visit, but it can't be that much better, right? Anyway, we'll find out when we get there..."
There were a total of six members in the H4 team. They hailed two taxis and then arrived at Ming Yun Villas half an hour later. Since they had nothing to do during the journey, they enjoyed the scenery outside the window.
The biggest sense that they got was that it was really different from Shanghai!
After all, Jingzhou was a second-tier city without the skyscrapers one could see in Shanghai. There were also no special-looking buildings like the Oriental Pearl Tower. As they looked around during the journey, they only saw ordinary city landscapes and nothing special.
That made all of them feel better about themselves. In fact, it made them all feel slightly superior.
That was because they had always heard about Jingzhou being a convenient city to live in, with internet cafes, take-out, and deliveries being easily within reach. In fact, some even said that Jingzhou was nicer to live in than Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou. That caused the H4 club to feel slightly indignant.
Now, from the looks of the situation, or at least in terms of the buildings; Shanghai was far better than Jingzhou.
The two cars stopped at Ming Yun Villas one by one. When they saw the wide and spacious villa, the first hint of admiration appeared on the team member's faces.
It looked much more impressive than the villa they were staying in on the outskirts of Shanghai!
However, they quickly recalled that land here was much cheaper. The cost of one villa in Shanghai was comparable to two over here. At once, they felt better again.
As H4's Captain Pang Ling surveyed the villa in front of him, he realized that he had been in an inexplicable state of competition ever since he stepped onto Jingzhou soil.
Once he realized that, he became shocked.
However, on further thought, it was not strange to feel this way.
That was because the H4 Club's team members had been miserably defeated by the DGE Club before. Of course, they would feel all sorts of indignance!
Everyone was a skilled master. They had only joined the H4 Club after undergoing rigorous training. The H4 Club was one of the longest standing clubs in the country. How many young internet addicts dreamt of joining this club and becoming professional gamers?
Pang Ling and the others had been extremely proud to become members of the H4 Club's GOG team.
However, the DGE Club's team had ruthlessly crushed their pride. Individually and as a team, H4 had been utterly defeated.
How could the H4 Club's team accept that?
They felt like a bunch of martial arts talents who had trained intensely from a young age to get into a proper sect. Yet, a small sect that had seemed to pop out of nowhere tore down their school and defeated them miserably.
Of course, they would feel emotionally unstable!
Thus, everyone in the H4 Club developed insecurity and began comparing subconsciously.
At that thought, Pang Ling became cautious. He warned himself to remain objective. As a professional esports athlete, managing one's emotions was the most important lesson.
Pang Ling sucked in a deep breath and told himself not to overthink but to focus on the mock competition that they would be having with the DGE Club.
Zhang Yuan walked out and welcomed them.
"Team Leader Su! Please, come in."
Zhang Yuan was very passionate. After all, DGE Club would have to build strong connections with many other local esports clubs in the future. He could not go wrong with nurturing those relationships now.
"Our training ground is very simple. Please take a seat wherever. It's going to be lunchtime, and so I've ordered take-out for everyone. We can go to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe for the mock competition once we've eaten."
Team Leader Su nodded. "Alright, we'll go with the host's plan. Brother Zhang, just do as you see fit."
H4's team members walked in and looked around with interest. The villa had a yard with well-maintained greenery. Obviously, a professional had been hired for that.
When they arrived at the training hall, everyone stopped speaking. Pang Ling had no idea how to express his feelings at that moment.
Is this what you meant when you said your training ground is simple?!
This villa had been Boss Li's, and they had kept the renovations the same after buying it over, instead of adding more luxurious decorations. However, the original renovations were already very exquisite!
Zhang Yuan had even bought various furniture and computers so that the entire training hall looked legitimate and harmonious. It looked nothing like a mere guesthouse.
Pang Ling compared it to H4's own training ground and immediately noticed a huge difference! H4 Club's villa was rented, and it contained the landlord's furniture and random items. Since they couldn't throw them away, they had no choice but to put them to good use.
Thus, the entire place looked quite haphazard.
They had furniture from the landlord and newly purchased furniture which were different in style. What's more, they didn't look that nice.
Needless to say, the hostel's conditions were even worse. Some slept on bunk beds, and some slept alone on double beds. Many team members also had to buy their own simple wardrobes because they did not have any.
Yet, look at DGE's villa! It was completely different!
All the furniture—including the computer tables, wardrobes, sofas for resting, beds for the team members, and so on—had obviously been bought at the same time. They were all the same style, and they fit perfectly into the villa.
Although there were more than ten computer tables in the training hall, it did not feel squeezy at all. Instead, everything looked like they belonged there. Every computer was flashing with the impressive RGB lights, making them look extremely futuristic and at least ten years ahead of H4 Club's computers.
All in all, the environment here was not much different from what one saw in movies. It looked like an intentionally created set, and nothing looked like it had been placed there by coincidence!
Pang Ling could not help but wonder what H4 Club's training ground would be called if this was 'simple'.
Would it be called a slum or a rubbish dump?
Manager Su felt the worst. To him, this looked like a venue dedicated to whipping people while they were down.
When the DGE Club had gone to look around the H4 Club, he had proudly brought the former around. The more he thought about his boasts back then, the more awkward he became now. He wondered how Zhang Yuan and the others had tolerated him...
Chapter 594: Where did It Go Wrong?
Team Leader Su and Zhang Yuan chatted in the hall while Huang Wang brought the team members around the villa.
"This is the massage room, where people will give us full-body massages regularly to prevent us from developing neck aches or backaches.
"We can come to the balcony once in a while to enjoy a breeze and some alcohol or something. However, we can't drink too much. We can only drink a little.
"This is our conference room, where we discuss battle strategies..."
Huang Wang casually introduced each room to the team members of H4 as the latter became green with envy.
They even had a massage room and a balcony to enjoy alcohol!
We didn't even dare to dream of such things!
Pang Ling stopped in front of the whiteboard in the conference room. He was becoming increasingly interested in the training schedule written on it.
"You wake up so early?
"You go to sleep so early?
"You even have additional meals?
"You work out for two hours every day?"
Pang Ling turned to look at Huang Wang as if finally understanding how he had developed his muscles. The training schedule had completely overturned Pang Ling's expectations!
After walking one round around the DGE Club, Pang Ling's competitive mindset had completely dissipated. It was not because he had figured things out or changed his mindset. Instead, it was because he had been dealt with such a huge blow that he could not afford to compare anymore!
The only thing that Pang Ling could be proud of before this was that the H4 Club was a longer-standing club with better living conditions and more legitimacy in various aspects.
However, after seeing DGE's living conditions, he immediately felt like H4 was nothing more than a peasant club.
DGE had a massage room and several additional meals for fuller nutrition each day!
Just one look, and he could tell how legitimate this place was. They probably had a nutritionist do up their training schedule!
Pang Ling could not understand some other details in the training schedule such as why they had to work out for two hours each day. However, if a professional had done up the training schedule, there must have been a deeper reason for it.
Pang Ling silently memorized the training schedule.
Now that he thought about it, there was a reason that they had lost the earlier mock competition. It was not because they were less talented... but because they were less scientific!
"It's time to eat! The take-out is here!" Zhang Yuan shouted from downstairs.
Huang Wang was almost done showing everyone the entire place. At once, he invited everyone back downstairs to eat.
Pang Ling heaved a long sigh and said to himself, "That's good. At least we can earn more points in terms of food."
Before this, H4 had ordered take-out as well. However, just two weeks ago, their boss decided that having take-out regularly would not be good for the members' health. As a result, they had just hired a cook for their meals.
Now, it looked like the DGE Club was still stuck at the take-out stage.
That meant H4 was leading in that aspect, and it had scored a win.
However, when Pang Ling got downstairs, he saw the rows of lunch boxes lined up in the cafeteria, and the exquisite, delicious, and flavorful dishes inside each of them. It was then that he realized a problem.
It was take-out, but it was very different from the kind that they had ordered...
After having a taste, Pang Ling felt that organizing a mock competition in the afternoon would be useless. They had already been attacked from all directions. He was now having a complete mental breakdown!
...
...
July 23rd, Saturday...
GOG and IOI's competitions were taking place on the same day!
One competition was being held in the east while the other was being held in the west, but both were in average-sized halls. The journey from one to the other would take more than half an hour.
Small halls would not be impressive enough, but large halls were difficult to rent and took longer to prepare. Thus, both organizing teams simultaneously chose the middle ground without prior discussion.
Although they chose halls of average size, the total amount of money they spent was anything but average. Needless to say, loads of money was spent on related facilities and advertising in the venues, so that they were beautifully done.
On top of that, both sides had also spent tons of money on marketing!
IOI, in particular, maniacally marketed the competition in games, websites, and other channels under the name of an 'international invitational tournament'. The posters of local and foreign players alike had garnered a lot of attention.
On the other hand, since GOG did not have locals and foreigners fighting head-to-head, it could not make a big issue out of the same thing. Instead, it had no choice but to depend on their huge player base.
In short, both organizing teams had done everything they could beforehand. What was left was to observe the results today.
At 1 PM, Pei Qian arrived at the site of IOI's international invitational tournament on time.
According to the schedule, there would be four games today, and the top four would be determined. Shang Yang Games had very intelligently arranged for a local team to go against a foreign team in every game. Obviously, they wanted to emphasize the confrontation between the Chinese and foreigners from the get-go, to attract as many viewers as possible.
Tickets for both competitions were priced so low that it was practically no different from giving them away. After all, neither side was aiming to earn money. They were only trying to get as much attention as possible.
Pei Qian had bought a ticket for a seat in the back row so that he could supervise the competition. He could only depend on the live-stream to observe how GOG was doing.
Tengda Games and Shang Yang Games had both prepared live streams without agreeing on it beforehand. What's more, they had done sufficient marketing for the live streams as well.
At the moment, the popularity of livestreaming was increasing at a rate that was visible to the naked eye.
If livestreaming had been 'on the up' two years ago before too much capital had been poured into the industry, then the figures for the livestreaming industry was looking different every single day now.
Moreover, livestreaming platforms were following Aili Island's model by including bullet screen comments, thus enhancing the viewing experience.
At the moment, competition between the two biggest live-streaming platforms—ZZ Livestream and Waiwai—was already getting heated. As more and more livestreaming platforms appeared, the competition would only get even more heated.
Pei Qian had thought about creating a live stream platform to burn more money as well, but he had to wait for the opportune moment.
It was still too early to enter the industry now. If he was not careful, he could accidentally monopolize the market. Then, he would be done for, wouldn't he?
Thus, Pei Qian wanted to wait for other live-streaming platforms to develop first. Once they took off and the industry became a sunset one where nothing could be gained, he would enter it. Only then would he be able to steadily incur losses, right?
Pei Qian had arrived just in time, but there were already so many people present that there were hardly any seats left.
That was to be expected. If the seats were empty, IOI would already lose out in terms of atmosphere. As a result, even if they had to hire actors, they had to ensure that the seats were filled.
Pei Qian accessed the live stream of GOG's competition using his cell phone, wanting to check how big the difference in popularity was.
Hmm... there was not much of a difference.
GOG's competition was slightly more popular, but IOI's was not bad as well.
Pei Qian was not sure if the numbers he was seeing were forged by the platform, but judging from the number of bullet screen comments, there was a significant number of people watching IOI's international invitational competition online.
A 'Sino-foreign confrontation' was very intriguing indeed.
Yes, it looked like the concept behind the competition was correct. IOI had hope of making a comeback!
Pei Qian could not help but celebrate inside. After all, he had thought of the idea himself.
There would be simple cosplay, as well as singing and dancing at the opening ceremony. After that, the teams would enter, introduce themselves, and warm up; the commentators would chat awkwardly, and then the games would begin.
The segments at the start were kept simple because most people were here to watch the competition. Singing and dancing could be used to balance out the event, but too much would cause the entire screen to fill with question marks.
Soon, the local and foreign teams started fighting. The two commentators were passionate and professional, and the audience was very supportive. From time to time, clapping and cheers would erupt.
Pei Qian observed the situation for a while before taking his phone out quietly.
The most embarrassing part was that he could not understand what was happening! That was because he hardly played IOI, and IOI released new heroes very quickly. Thus, Pei Qian did not recognize more than half of the heroes being used in the games.
At the same time, Pei Qian was very curious about how GOG was doing. Thus, he secretly checked their situation using his cell phone.
"I am definitely not surrendering to the enemy! My heart is still with IOI! I just want to check how badly GOG is failing."
Pei Qian found GOG's live stream platform on his cell phone and then clicked to access it.
The first games at both competitions were entering their most intense period. The situation was changing rapidly, and there was a barrage of bullet screen comments.
However, after reading the bullet screen comments, Pei Qian's entire body went cold.
That's not right...
Why weren't people discussing the competition itself, but trolling instead?
"GOG's competition is much better! It's so exciting!"
"That's right! There are all sorts of operations, traps, and teamwork, and their plays look very complete. Somehow, it looks different from 'professional rounds' in the game. Is this the strength of professional teams?"
"It's much better than IOI! There are only lousy teams fighting each other at IOI's competition!"
"Their battle skills are not even on the same level. I took a peek at IOI's competition as well. They say it's a 'Sino-foreign confrontation', but it looks no different from playing professional rounds with random people in the game. They're all in a state of disunity!"
"Exactly! I think I derive more joy from observing competitions in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe! The competition that took place at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's Live Esports Museum's opening ceremony was much more interesting than this 'Sino-foreign confrontation'!"
"We should just stick to watching GOG. It's no fun watching lousy teams fight each other there."
With a bad feeling rising in his gut, Pei Qian quickly accessed IOI's live stream. It was strange to watch the live stream while he was at the competition venue, but Pei Qian could not care less by now.
There were much fewer bullet screen comments here than in GOG's live-stream.
"What are they doing...? Is this the standard of the 'Sino-foreign confrontation'?"
"Lousy teams fighting one another."
"Is this a ranked promotion for Silvers?"
"How boring. I'm leaving, I'm leaving."
"That's it? That's it? That's it? That's it?"
"What are you talking about? I think it's quite interesting."
"Hehe, I pity you for being a country bumpkin. Look at GOG's competition. See what real professional teams are like. See how exciting competitions are meant to be!"
Pei Qian was furious.
Where were those trolls coming from?! Don't be bewitched by them, everyone!
However, when he returned to the room list on the livestreaming platform, he noticed that the gap between both rooms was expanding rapidly!
GOG was getting more viewers, but IOI was losing theirs.
Pei Qian began to panic.
Everyone, don't do this! This is only the first 'best-of-three' match on the first day. Just wait and see before you run away!
"I have to stand on IOI's side without wavering."
"What? GOG's teams have chosen Ruan and Modest?"
"No way, I have to control myself. I'm on IOI's side!"
"I'll just take a look... that's alright, right?"
"..."
"Strange... GOG's competition does seem to be of higher standards. The games look more exciting here..."
Unable to hold back, Pei Qian began watching GOG's competition. The more he watched, the clearer the problem became.
Most viewers were not experts, but they could differentiate between lousy teams and incredible teams and determine each team's tactical standard fairly easily.
GOG and IOI were of the same genre. Of course, they could easily compare them.
How solid were the players' basic skills? Were there exciting operations like limiting counter-attacks? How good were the teams' strategies, and how well-coordinated were they?
How many amateur mistakes were there?
Were the team battles exciting...?
Viewers could determine the difference in standards of each competition based on those factors.
Now, GOG's competition was far better than IOI's, both in terms of competition standards and pleasurability. On top of that, GOG was more well-known than IOI. As a result, many people jumped ship mid-way after watching IOI's competition.
"What's going on?" Pei Qian scratched his head, not being able to comprehend the situation.
Veteran clubs had established teams for GOG and IOI at about the same time, right? Some clubs had even established their IOI teams a bit earlier.
Why were the competitions so different now?