Chapter 158: Ideas for the DEMO Game (Early Mid-Autumn Festival Wishes, 8 Updates, Requesting Subscriptions, Monthly Passes)

Chapter 158: Ideas for the DEMO Game (Early Mid-Autumn Festival Wishes, 8 Updates, Requesting Subscriptions, Monthly Passes)

After answering the call, Chen Xu was even more surprised to find that the person on the other end was Minister Yang, head of Modu's Game Department, someone he had met a few times before.

"Minister Yang, what's up?" Chen Xu asked directly, curiosity evident in his voice.

"Well, there's actually something quite important. Have you seen the news recently? Weigu Tech overseas has announced a major breakthrough in their next-generation VR gaming pods, allowing players a far more immersive experience," Yang Chen said through the phone.

"I saw it," Chen Xu replied.

Regarding this, Chen Xu had already seen the industry news collected daily by Lin Rou.

But at the time, Chen Xu hadn't paid much attention.

The reason was simple. According to current data, this immersive mode requires players to be fully immersed in the game with intense focus, subjecting them to massive amounts of information. Compared to regular PC games, VR games consume significantly more stamina.

As for technologies like the subconscious network from Chen Xu's previous life—where players entered deep sleep—such black technology clearly hadn't been achieved in this Parallel World yet.

Moreover, although the price of VR gaming pods had decreased since their initial release, it was still beyond what most players could afford.

Mainstream VR gaming pods cost around 50,000 Yuan, far more expensive than PCs capable of smoothly running mainstream blockbusters.

As for higher-tier VR equipment, the cost was even more prohibitive.

Therefore, most players still played in VR experience stores, places similar to internet cafes.

These factors meant that VR's market share had not yet surpassed the PC platform.

Then there was the cost of game development—VR development costs were generally higher than on PC.

Besides top-tier developers releasing dedicated VR titles annually, most second-tier game developers would first test the waters on the PC platform. Only after achieving excellent results would they proceed to port the game to VR.

Precisely because of this, Chen Xu had decided to focus Nebula Games' primary efforts on the PC platform for now.

"Domestically, our next-generation VR gaming pod has also entered the testing phase."

"However, we're lacking testable games. Also, since the new VR gaming pods will offer players a stronger sense of immersion, we need comprehensive safety testing. Some games might be harmless on PC, but under full immersion on VR, they could deliver intense, even harmful, stimuli to players."

"Of course, some details are hard to explain over the phone. Check your inbox on the Game Department official website's backend. If you're interested, come to the Game Department tomorrow afternoon," Yang Chen told Chen Xu.

Though still unclear about the specifics, after hearing Yang Chen's words, Chen Xu already had a rough idea.

Clearly, this was part of the high-stakes competition in cutting-edge platform technology.

For the Game Department, VR equipment held special significance.

Much like consoles in Chen Xu's previous life.

Back then, after the Atari crash, Nintendo rose to dominance. Everyone in the gaming industry had to follow Nintendo's lead—the Power Glove certification system was born from that era.

After hanging up, Chen Xu logged into the Game Department's official website and reviewed the message. He now had a clearer picture.

Just as he'd suspected.

The next day, in the meeting hall of the Game Department building.

Chen Xu was somewhat surprised—there were quite a few designers present.

TengHua, NetDragon, and other notable domestic game developers—all the major players had sent representatives.

Chen Xu also spotted some old acquaintances, including the ever-amiable Teacher Meng.

"Teacher Meng, you're here too?" Chen Xu greeted him.

Meng Zuo, who had been chatting with someone nearby, turned around upon hearing the voice. Seeing Chen Xu approaching with a friendly smile, Meng Zuo's mind flashed back to that night when he held someone else's trophy, and he offered a slightly awkward yet polite smile. "Mr. Chen, you're here too."

But before Chen Xu could engage in further small talk, Yang Chen from the Game Department took the stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, all of you are leaders in the gaming industry. The reason we've gathered you today is quite simple."

"The next-generation VR gaming device has now entered its testing phase."

"Additionally, the game engine on the development machines has been specially adapted for this new VR hardware, unlocking a new physics engine architecture."

As Yang Chen spoke, designers like Chen Xu quickly grasped the purpose of this gathering.

In short, the engine powering VR devices had made significant progress.

But it wasn't quite ready for market release. Overseas competitors, roughly at the same stage, had already begun promotional campaigns.

Domestically, they couldn't afford to fall behind. However, they lacked suitable game materials for testing.

Of course, they didn't need full games—just experience DEMOs.

And there were benefits.

First, the Game Department offered special subsidies. Intellectual property rights would remain with the designers and developers. Simply put, the Game Department was funding the development, with substantial subsidies—provided the quality met standards. They would also provide real-time follow-up on progress.

Naturally, only designers of at least mid-tier standing in the domestic industry had been invited. No one would be foolish enough to try scamming the subsidies.

Second, participating in the testing came with another advantage: when the new technology launched, it wouldn't be immediately available to all designers for free. Those who participated would gain priority access to the relevant permissions.

Designers who didn't participate would have to pay to access additional resources or permissions, just as before.

After Yang Chen finished his brief introduction, the group of designers followed Game Department staff onto vehicles, heading to their research and development park.

Under the guidance of staff members, they personally experienced the effects.

Soon, it was Chen Xu's turn.

Entering the gaming pod, he found himself in a scene resembling a bare shell apartment.

At once, Chen Xu understood what Yang Chen had meant earlier.

He had experienced VR gaming pods in this Parallel World before—while the immersion was strong, there were still flaws.

But the feedback from this new-generation VR pod was nearly flawless.

Wearing the haptic feedback suit and gloves, lying in the pod, every movement he made received extremely realistic feedback.

Walking, jumping, punching—Chen Xu tried several actions. Though there was still a slight difference from real life, the feedback was almost indistinguishable from reality.

"The level of immersion achieved by interactive VR devices in this Parallel World has reached such a degree!" Chen Xu exclaimed in amazement upon exiting the pod.

Yet he also clearly understood the issues that came with it.

The most direct problem was the negative effects of overly intense immersion.

Take Dark Souls, for example. If adapted into a VR game with the immersion level Chen Xu had just experienced, most players probably couldn't handle it—not because of the difficulty, but because the immersion would be too terrifying.

Imagine rats in the sewers, eerie scenes in the Irithyll Dungeon, not to mention full horror games!

After all the designers had completed their trials, Yang Chen explained the next steps.

In short, any designer interested could create a DEMO game for the Game Department to test. Based on feedback, adjustments would be made to the immersion levels of the gaming pod.

Because immersion was too strong, certain areas would need to have their feedback toned down.

It sounded paradoxical and a bit absurd, but after firsthand experience, Chen Xu understood exactly what was meant.

During the subsequent registration phase, aside from a few designers who were already occupied with existing projects, thirteen senior job title designers—including Chen Xu and Meng Zuo—remained.

"Mr. Chen, you're planning to participate in this Game Department DEMO project?" Meng Zuo asked curiously, standing beside Chen Xu in line.

After all, online rumors about the sequel to Dark Souls had been swirling—shouldn't Chen Xu be deeply immersed in developing Dark Souls right now?

How could he find time for this Game Department task?

Could it be that the development progress of Dark Souls was so fast that Chen Xu no longer needed to oversee it personally?

Now that he thought about it, it didn't seem impossible.

After all, sequels could reuse many art resources, greatly accelerating development. It was almost an unwritten rule in the gaming industry.

Completely unaware that Meng Zuo was already deep in mental visualization, Chen Xu smiled. "I'm curious. And this is my first time developing a VR game. I also have a few interesting ideas."

This was true. Given such an opportunity, Chen Xu was genuinely eager to try.

Hearing this, Meng Zuo's eyes lit up. "Actually, VR game design isn't that different from PC games. The main differences lie in control schemes and camera perspectives. While most VR games are first-person, third-person can be better for specific games or segments—especially action-focused titles where visual impact matters."

"Then Teacher Meng, we should definitely exchange insights later," Chen Xu said, watching Meng Zuo's enthusiasm with a sigh of emotion. Teacher Meng really was a great person!

"Of course," Meng Zuo replied with a happy smile. After losing the first competition, being overshadowed at the gameplay Expo, and winning nothing at the Game of the Year awards—while someone else swept the trophies—this time, he was finally going to reclaim his pride.

Since Chen Xu called him Teacher Meng, he'd truly step up and be a teacher this time!

"By the way, Mr. Chen, do you already have an idea for your new game?" Meng Zuo asked, suddenly remembering.

"Yes, I do. The name is PT," Chen Xu said with a smile, nodding.

"PT? What does that mean? Sounds a bit strange," Meng Zuo asked curiously.

"Short for Playable Teaser. Since this demo is essentially a playable trailer, we can also add a prefix—call it 'Silent Hill PT' for now," Chen Xu explained with a smile.

"Silent Hill PT—has a certain depth to it. Then Mr. Chen, we'll definitely discuss this in detail later!" Meng Zuo laughed.

"Absolutely," Chen Xu nodded in agreement.

Ahem, the chapter count in the title was mistakenly increased by one—my apologies, authors can't edit titles. Also, early Mid-Autumn Festival wishes to everyone! Tomorrow's update schedule may be unstable due to the holiday, but there will definitely be no fewer than 5 updates. I'll strive to finish writing this transitional game, PT. The reason is mainly that this game is truly a pity—anyone interested can search for it on Bilibili. It's especially interesting and heartwarming, and even gives you loving pats... Trust me (sincere face).

(End of Chapter)<>