Chapter 141: Are Trophies Fun to Touch? They're All Mine! (Fourth Update, Subscription Requested)

Chapter 141: Are Trophies Fun to Touch? They're All Mine! (Fourth Update, Subscription Requested)

The host took the stage. Unlike previous events, this time there were no lengthy opening speeches or formalities.

It began with a brief introduction, followed by Yang Chen, Director of the Modu Game Department, stepping onto the stage to announce the list of designers selected for the senior job title this year.

Just as entering the industry requires certification as a Game Designer, obtaining the senior job title follows a similar process.

Generally, one must have over five years of experience in the Gaming Industry and a proven track record to qualify.

As for Chen Xu, although his tenure was technically insufficient, as the saying goes, outstanding achievements can compensate for lack of time.

Winning first place in the Game Department's competition within two years, along with successful titles like Fall Guys, Dark Souls, and Outlast, all delivering exceptional results,

he was naturally included in this year's list.

Alongside Chen Xu, another fourteen game designers were also honored.

Yet, clearly, Chen Xu stood out the most.

As Chen Xu took the stage to give his thanks and accepted the certificate from Yang Chen, a wave of applause erupted from the audience.

Countless game designers in the audience watched with envy and admiration.

'Well, this was expected.'

'To be fair, even though Chen Xu doesn't meet the time requirement, if someone with his achievements this past two years didn't make the list, that would be unreasonable.'

'So jealous! I've been in the industry for seven years—wonder if my application will pass next year.'

'Forget it, there's no way it'll pass.'

'Damn!'

After Chen Xu returned to his seat, several familiar game designers quietly exchanged remarks.

Once seated again, Meng Zuo beside him smiled and offered his congratulations.

Chen Xu smiled back in response.

But soon, both Chen Xu and Meng Zuo fell silent.

Because the highlight of the evening was about to begin.

At this moment, the game designers nominated and seated in the front row all straightened up, listening intently as the host prepared to announce the winners.

Under the spotlight, the first award was quickly revealed.

After listing all the nominated games, the host on stage raised the microphone and declared loudly: "I announce that the Game of the Year for Best Story goes to—Loulan, developed by designer Ling Hai!"

As the winner was announced, the audience erupted into enthusiastic applause.

Chen Xu clapped with a smile.

As the first award of the night, the designers in attendance generously offered their applause.

The winner, Ling Hai, walked onto the stage with immense excitement, received the trophy from the presenter, and delivered his acceptance speech.

After his speech concluded, the audience once again burst into applause.

Next came the second game award: Best Art Direction. The winner was, once again, an Independent Game.

Like the previous winner, the recipient appeared extremely excited, offering numerous thanks.

Essentially, the earlier awards were relatively minor categories—

such as Best Art, Best Performance, Best Independent Game, and so on.

These awards weren't considered major highlights of the ceremony.

Soon, after these warm-up awards were distributed,

the event moved into the truly significant categories.

The first of these was a genre-specific award:

Best Adventure-Puzzle Game of the Year.

Unsurprisingly, Chen Xu claimed his first award of the night.

"I announce that the Best Adventure-Puzzle Game of the Year is—Valiant Hearts: The Great War, developed by designer Chen Xu!"

Amid thunderous applause, Chen Xu stepped onto the stage, accepted the trophy, and gave a formal thank-you to the Game Department and all the players for their support.

For Chen Xu, this award was a pleasant surprise.

The award ceremony continued. Next was the Sports and Racing Game category. Domestically, only a few game developers focused on this genre, so the result held no real surprises.

Then came Best Action Game. Dark Souls received a nomination, but the award ultimately went to Goddess Adventure 3, a title developed by Platinum Interactive.

This game was a long-standing domestic action IP, so Chen Xu wasn't particularly disappointed.

He understood that Dark Souls being nominated was mostly symbolic.

After all, Dark Souls wasn't truly an action game. If it had won, it would've been due solely to weak competition.

Next came a particularly special award—one that, in everyone's eyes, had no suspense at all.

Unlike earlier when the host spoke slowly, building suspense, this time the announcement was direct and immediate.

"Congratulations! The winner of the Best Casual Game of the Year is—Fall Guys, developed by designer Chen Xu!"

As the announcement echoed, the venue erupted in passionate applause.

No one in the audience looked surprised.

This was undoubtedly the most predictable award of the night.

After all, Fall Guys had been immensely popular—truly a phenomenon.

Many game designers present couldn't help but sigh in admiration.

'This is the least surprising award of all!'

'Yeah, this is definitely the most viral game of the year. Even Dark Souls, released later by Chen Xu, couldn't match its popularity.'

'Chen Xu is literally a monster!'

'This is just the beginning. Wait and see—he'll probably win more. Don't forget, Dark Souls hasn't won a single award yet.'

'It's madness! And what's crazier is that every single award he's won is well-deserved.'

Next came several major game awards.

At this point, unlike earlier categories such as Best Sound Effects, Soundtrack, or Performance,

these awards carried far greater weight.

Each represented a game that, at the very least, had proven itself as exceptional within its genre this year.

Best Shooting Game, Best Adventure Game, Best Strategy-Type Game...

During this phase, Chen Xu picked up several more awards. Dark Souls won Best Level Design, and Overcooked took home Best Cooperative Game.

Additionally, compared to previous years, this year introduced a new category: Most Popular Game Among Players, voted entirely by players online.

This was the biggest difference between this year's event and past ones.

Dark Souls triumphed over NetDragon's Star God (Game Title) and claimed this award.

Watching Chen Xu walk back from the stage, Meng Zuo sitting beside him felt as if he were having a heart attack.

It was like reliving the scene from the award ceremony a year ago.

And this was only the beginning.

Once again, Chen Xu ascended the stage to accept another award.

This time, he won Best Mobile Game, with the award going to the mobile version of Sanguosha.

The applause from the audience was starting to sound numb. Even the host, after announcing the winner, looked slightly speechless.

Chen Xu held the trophy and, as usual, went through the motions of thanking everyone.

Meanwhile, in the live stream rooms covering the event, countless viewers flooded the chat with comments.

'Whoa, 2333333, did anyone count? How many awards has Chen Xu won now?'

'Bro, is he here to wholesale trophies or what?'

'LOL, did anyone notice? Mr. Chen just repeated the exact same thank-you speech he gave earlier!'

'Poor Mr. Chen, going up there so many times—how many different thank-you speeches can he even have?'

'LOL, show us Chen Xu on camera! I wanna see where he's gonna put all these trophies!'

Viewers in the live stream room spammed the bullet comments.

Many others, for the first time, realized just how awesome game designer Chen Xu really was.

And that was understandable.

After all, most players only cared about the games themselves. Game designers, or even game developers, were rarely of interest to the majority.

Some players didn't even realize that Dark Souls and Fall Guys were created by the same designer.

But compared to the curiosity and discussions online, Chen Xu himself was now in an awkward situation.

"Ahem, Teacher Meng, could you help me hold one of these trophies? There are too many, I can't carry them all," Chen Xu said, slightly embarrassed, turning to Meng Zuo beside him.

Although the trophies weren't large, quantity was an issue.

Six trophies in total.

While the awards varied in importance, the Game Department had treated them all equally in design—same shape and size, with only the inscriptions on the base differing.

And since there were no staff members available to temporarily hold them, Chen Xu couldn't just place them on the floor.

So he turned to Meng Zuo, the only designer he knew here.

Besides, based on their previous encounters, Chen Xu found Teacher Meng to be quite warm and friendly.

Hearing Chen Xu's request, the game designers seated nearby silently turned their heads.

Too many trophies to hold?

Have you no shame!

As for Meng Zuo, who was being asked, he finally understood why he had panicked earlier.

'I should've stayed outside, not inside.' For some reason, this sentence suddenly flashed through Meng Zuo's mind.

But what he actually said was: "No problem. I'll take advantage of Mr. Chen's success and touch the trophies—just to experience the feeling!"

Chen Xu: ...

The words were fine, but why did it sound so strange?

Before Chen Xu could ponder further, the host on stage called out another familiar name.

"Congratulations! The winner of Best Role-Playing Game of the Year is—Dark Souls, developed by designer Chen Xu!"

As the words fell, every game designer in the room turned their gaze toward Chen Xu's seat.

At the same time, a camera focused on him.

Instantly, viewers watching the live stream burst into laughter.

'Oh my god, him again!'

'LOL, Chen Xu hasn't even warmed his seat yet and he's up again!'

Casual players and designers laughed along.

But many designers began discussing among themselves.

'Best RPG went to Dark Souls?'

'Deserved, but still a bit of a pity.'

'Yeah, I guess it'll come down to Star God and Sin City for the final Game of the Year.'

Designers in the nomination area discussed animatedly.

One designer in his thirties, wearing glasses, closed his eyes and clasped his hands as if in prayer.

He was the designer of Sin City.

Meanwhile, Meng Zuo, now holding a pile of other people's trophies, perked up.

Chen Xu himself, however, didn't seem overly excited.

He accepted the trophy from the host, picked up the microphone, and delivered his acceptance speech.

"Thank you to all the players who supported me. I'm deeply moved."

"Dark Souls differs from many other ARPGs in several ways, but we're thrilled by the positive player feedback."

"I also want to share this joy with the employees of Nebula Games. This is a collective achievement. I thank the leadership and judges of the Game Department for their recognition."

"Finally, I want to sincerely thank all players once again. You made this possible, and we are truly honored."

"In the days ahead, I will continue to create even better games."

"Thank you all!"

As Chen Xu concluded his speech, the venue once again erupted into thunderous applause.

On various live streaming platforms, countless players went wild discussing Chen Xu's win.

'LOL, finally Mr. Chen said something new for this major award!'

'Didn't you guys notice? A certain producer who once called himself the Warrior of Love just said a crucial phrase—'player feedback makes us happy'!'

'Yeah! Dark Souls is a high-difficulty suffering game. So you're saying Mr. Chen is happy watching us suffer?'

'Confirmed (slang)! Confirmed! So this is who Chen Xu really is!'

'Still, a bit of a pity. Feels like winning this award means he'll miss out on the final Game of the Year?'

Countless online players fiercely debated the topic.

Meanwhile, Chen Xu had returned from the stage.

Next was the final award of the night: Game of the Year.

The designer from TengHua, whose game was nominated, stared intently at the giant screen on the main stage, gripping his knees tightly, clearly overwhelmed with emotion.

Meng Zuo beside Chen Xu, though outwardly calm and chatting with others, kept sneaking glances at the stage with his small eyes.

Suddenly, all the lights in the hall went out.

The giant screen on stage displayed short clips from the nominated games.

As each game clip played, its corresponding BGM and prompt appeared.

The grand Palaces of the Gods, collapsing from prosperity into ruins. Legendary monsters emerging across the land. Vast, breathtaking landscapes unfolding before players' eyes. A youth with a mysterious bloodline embarks on a journey to find the lost gods—Star God (Game Title)

Gang life drenched in blood, neon-lit nights in the city. As an undercover agent infiltrating a criminal syndicate, the protagonist struggles through this purgatory. Scenes of family, duty, and friendship flash by like a cinematic montage—Sin City (Game)

Gundyr the Ash, Farron Undead Legion, the nameless king, the Fire Keeper, the High Wall of Lothric, Farron Keep, Firelink Shrine—scene after scene, familiar and filled with 'cherished' memories for players. Finally, as the bell tolls, the Ashen One crawls out from the coffin—Dark Souls

After all the showcases ended, the hall lights came back on.

The host loudly announced the winner.

The designer from TengHua jumped up in excitement and cheered.

Meng Zuo beside Chen Xu covered his face with both hands.

The final Game of the Year award went to Sin City (Game).

From Chen Xu's perspective, this wasn't particularly surprising.

Honestly speaking, in terms of story depth, Sin City was indeed superior to Star God.

Technically, Sin City was also on par with Star God.

The only thing that surprised Chen Xu was that Star God left the event with zero awards.

"Teacher Meng... try to stay positive. Star God's market performance was still excellent, and players have given it positive feedback," Chen Xu said, looking at Meng Zuo, who was still holding his trophies with a dejected expression, and couldn't help but comfort him.

After all, Teacher Meng was a good person!

Hearing Chen Xu's words, Meng Zuo looked at the trophies in Chen Xu's hands, then down at the pile he was holding for Chen Xu. Suddenly, he felt like bursting into tears.

………………

Thus, all awards were presented. The reformed annual game awards ceremony came to a close.

Major media outlets rushed to publish their reports.

However, the hottest topic online wasn't Sin City (Game), the winner of Game of the Year.

Instead, it was Chen Xu and Nebula Games, a studio only two years old.

After all, sweeping awards throughout the ceremony was incredibly eye-catching. While only three of them were major genre awards, it was still astonishing.

Of course, another topic widely discussed by players was how Star God ended up with zero wins.

In terms of game popularity and player feedback, Star God had performed reasonably well. No one expected it to be the one completely shut out.

Especially when the live broadcast camera, during the finale, showed a split screen of Chen Xu and Meng Zuo side by side—it created a stark contrast.

Many players clipped the footage and turned it into memes.

In the image, Meng Zuo and Chen Xu each held several trophies. Players added speech bubbles beside them.

[Meng Zuo: Holding trophies feels so good!]

[Chen Xu: Are trophies fun to touch? Remember to return them later—they're all mine!]

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