Meeting room.
Chen Xu was explaining the content of Undertale to Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue.
The part regarding Mirror (Game) wasn't too problematicâjust needed to follow previous templates, adding corresponding character portraits and written storylines, and it'd be done.
The main focus going forward would be on developing Undertale.
Undertale was a work created by an Independent Game Designer in Chen Xu's previous life.
Yet it touched countless players worldwide and could be considered a classic META game. However, unlike other META games such as Pony Island, ICEY, and The Stanley Parable, Undertale successfully integrated META elements with RPG mechanics, even reshaping players' perceptions of traditional RPG settings.
The game's core concept was very clear.
Undertale's main strength lay in its story, combined with META-style twists. Gameplay elements were merely seasoning.
Of course, Chen Xu did plan to improve certain aspects.
For instance, compared to its previous life version, the Art of Undertale would definitely be enhanced.
In its original form, Undertale's primitive pixel style and hand-drawn lines weren't chosen for artistic reasons.
It was simply due to lack of fundsâafter all, it was a solo independent project.
After Undertale became wildly popular, some so-called connoisseurs and media outlets claimed its art style was uniquely distinctiveâbut that was all nonsense.
Indeed, not all pixel games stem from financial constraints. For example, in Chen Xu's previous life, Octopath Traveler used pixel art to blend contemporary and nostalgic visual presentation, and some retro-themed games deliberately adopted the pixel aesthetic.
However, for a story-driven META game like Undertale, superior graphics would clearly enhance the experience rather than detract from it.
Take Minecraft: it used pixel-style visuals because its block-based gameplay naturally matched that aesthetic.
But Undertale's art style was clearly not a compromise made for the sake of gameplay.
Leaving aside visual presentation, Undertale's story and Music were undeniably classic.
In particular, Sans's "Megalovania" and Undyne's "Battle Against a True Hero" were iconic.
After briefly introducing the core elements of Undertale to the two, Chen Xu showed Ruan Ningxue some concept art of key characters.
Toriel, the kind and gentle motherly figure; Asgore, the king who appeared benevolent before battle but transformed into a war god wielding a trident once combat began; the two skeleton brothers (Sans and Papyrus), one tall and one short; and Flowey, the seemingly innocent flower who was actually an expression meme lord...
Chen Xu would personally handle quality control for the main characters' designs.
As for regular mobs, those would be outsourcedâjust needed to meet requirements and pass final inspection.
Next came the storylines: Neutral Route, Pacifist Route, Genocide Route, and Soulless Pacifist Route.
Chen Xu had used Memory Capsules obtained from the system to outline the key plot points for each path.
The rest would be filled in by Yang Xin.
After assigning their responsibilities, Chen Xu sat down at his desk and entered the official engine's backend, preparing to establish the foundational framework for Undertale.
"Ningxue, was Mirror (Game) developed like this when you worked on it before?"
Staring at the manuscriptâso detailed it couldn't possibly be more thoroughâYang Xin was still slightly dazed.
Beside her, Ruan Ningxue, already sketching with a reference sheet in hand, looked puzzled. "Yes, why? Is there something wrong with developing a game this way, Sister Xin?"
"Wrong? It's too smooth! Too clear-headed!" Yang Xin widened her eyes, though she lowered her voice.
In terms of scale, Undertale felt like a small project.
Yet the development process was so streamlined it gave Yang Xin the illusion that even a dog could do it.
Contrasting this with the chaotic development processes at her previous company, Yang Xin momentarily wondered if all the employees she'd hired before had just been pretending to work.
While sighing with emotion, she began carefully reviewing Undertale's story, thinking about how best to flesh it out.
...
Chen Xu, seated at his desk, didn't dwell on such random thoughts.
Right now, he was testing the official engine.
The available Computational Resources had increased by roughly twenty times compared to before.
In the backend, the current available resource was 0/1024MB.
Judged by previous life standards, that was about 1GB. But Chen Xu checked the tutorials and new features.
In this Parallel World, these resources were more than sufficient.
If he wanted more?
Either increase the Game Designer's Job Title level, or spend money.
How to level up? Either grind slowlyâwhat people called gaining experience.
Alternatively, win prestigious awards or make positive contributions to the gaming industry.
In a way, the creation of Mirror (Game) had indeed advanced the gentleman's game industry.
After getting a rough understanding, Chen Xu gently shook his head and stopped thinking about it.
He turned his focus to developing Undertale.
For Chen Xu, this Independent Game wasn't particularly difficult.
With Parallel World technology, creating such a game wouldn't take much effort.
The truly time-consuming and labor-intensive parts were the story text, character portraits, and Music.
After all, Undertale was renowned for its exceptional soundtrack.
This was also common among many other standout independent titles.
Story, Music, and Gameplay creativity had always been the three-pronged approach of independent games.
"Sister Xin, who the hell is this guy? Come out and bite us!"
"A hit-and-run dog. Probably jealous of Mirror's sales results, and since his new game is about to launch, he's deliberately staging a run-in to grab popularity. This guy's a habitual offender."
Noticing the commotion from Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue, Chen Xu grew curious. "What's going on?"
Seeing Chen Xu approach, Yang Xin picked up Ruan Ningxue's phone. "Look at thisâanother hit-and-run artist."
Chen Xu took the phone. On screen was a video reposted by a media outlet called Game Timespace.
After tapping to play, a middle-aged man appeared, reviewing a game. The game's image shown was Mirror (Game)âspecifically, a clothed character portrait.
"To capture players' attention, today's game designers will do anything."
"Vulgar! Utterly vulgar!"
"Game development is an artistic field. Calling such works 'games' feels like a desecration of gaming itself."
"Can such a game designer advance the gaming industry?"
"He cannot!"
"If my upcoming game Blooming (Game) contained such content, I'd be too ashamed to show my face."
"So I urge all fellow game designers: reduce gimmicks, and instead focus on creating truly great games. Stop resorting to vulgar content just to boost sales."
The roughly two-minute video was delivered with righteous indignation.
Yet when Chen Xu scrolled through the comments, something interesting emerged.
Alongside a group of supportive players, a large number of sarcastic ones appeared.
"Zhong 'Big Cannon', you're back again?"
"Vulgar? Then I must criticize it too!"
"Others' games? Vulgar! My game? Art!"
"Just say when you're advertising your new game already."
"Bro upstairs, you're not paying attention to Zhong 'Big Cannon's' bombastic performance. Didn't you see? It's already insertedâthe game's called Blooming."
After watching the entire video, reading the comment section, and hearing Yang Xin's explanation, Chen Xu got the full picture.
The man's name was Zhong Mei, a designer under Hapai Culture & Sportsâand also the company's owner.
His reputation in the gaming industry was mixed.
The praise stemmed from Zhong Mei actually having some solid past works.
Even in recent years, while his games hadn't exploded in popularity, their quality wasn't bad.
The criticism, however, was about Zhong Mei's character.
He frequently targeted games that were currently popular and somewhat controversial, disparaging them to promote and elevate his own upcoming titles.
It wasn't just Chen Xuâmany other game designers had been attacked this way before.
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