Chapter 346: Two Plans (Requesting Subscriptions, Monthly Passes)

While major media outlets and players were still sighing with emotion over the content of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare,

Chen Xu was already making arrangements for subsequent work.

There were two main plans.

The first involved the multiplayer mode of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Regarding Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Chen Xu had no intention of turning it into a yearly-release title, as it had been in his previous life.

Because honestly, there was no need. In his previous life, Call of Duty had essentially released one title per year.

But if one were to ask whether there had been any major improvements, the answer would be no.

The single-player story content had been constantly criticized by countless players, declining in quality year after year.

By the 15th installment, the solo mode had been canceled altogether.

As for the multiplayer content, it could have easily been released as new versions built upon the original game.

Therefore, Chen Xu intended to treat Call of Duty: Modern Warfare as a game capable of long-term, continuous operation.

Additionally, the highly praised Zombie mode from his previous life was also planned for release in the future.

However, some fine-tuning would still be required.

After all, under the immersive experience of next-generation VR, implementing the original Zombie mode from his previous life would undoubtedly result in a horror game-level thriller.

Even if players could shoot the zombies to pieces, the pitch-black environment combined with terrifying sound effects and oppressive atmosphere

would be enough to scare most players out of their wits.

Besides the regular multiplayer mode, Chen Xu also planned to introduce another mode:

Warzone.

To put it more plainly: Battle Royale.

Speaking of Battle Royale, it was undoubtedly an innovation in game design philosophy.

H1Z1 was the first to reap its benefits but died quickly due to its own impressive tricks.

Later, more refined titles like PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Apex Legends, and others emerged.

It could be said that the Battle Royale mode had evolved gradually over time.

For example, Fortnite focused primarily on building. By combining construction mechanics with Battle Royale gameplay, it created a completely different feel.

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, on the other hand, emphasized a slow, relaxed pace. Unless players actively sought combat, most of the early game involved scavenging for gear in solitude before engaging in firefights.

Then there were Apex Legends and Call of Duty: Warzone, which leaned toward a fast-paced style.

Each Battle Royale game had its own unique core, along with respective strengths and weaknesses.

Among them, Fortnite was undoubtedly the hardest to master, primarily due to the building mechanics.

Skill in the game depended not only on marksmanship but also on the ability to construct structures effectively.

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds was more of a socially driven game. Why?

Because it had the slowest pace among all the aforementioned Battle Royale titles. During the long gear-scavenging phase, if players didn’t engage in constant banter and social interaction with teammates,

the frustration of spending 20 minutes searching only to die instantly upon encountering enemies would be far greater.

Meanwhile, Apex Legends and Call of Duty: Warzone leaned more toward traditional FPS gameplay,

with relatively lower frustration levels.

The fast pace meant lower sunk costs per match.

The main reason for launching Call of Duty: Warzone now was simple: the existing Call of Duty content was ready to use—essentially, only rule adjustments were needed.

As for the map, the existing art resources from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare were more than sufficient.

Furthermore, the established influence of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare itself was another key factor.

Besides the multiplayer mode plans for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Chen Xu’s second major plan was acquisition.

Although Nebula Games appeared large in scale currently, it still lacked substantial depth.

Take Call of Duty: Modern Warfare as an example—NetDragon had provided significant support during its development.

Otherwise, the progress could never have been this fast.

Compared to veteran game developers, Nebula Games was still missing certain specialized technical capabilities.

Currently, Nebula Games excelled most in the feel of action games,

an expertise accumulated through developing two Dark Souls titles and one Monster Hunter game.

Second was the shooting feel, learned partly from NetDragon and further refined through development of Rainbow Six Siege and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Therefore, Chen Xu had to plan ahead.

In the future, Nebula Games couldn’t possibly limit itself to only these two genres, nor could it rely on collaboration with NetDragon forever.

This time, the collaboration happened because of prior goodwill from Rainbow Six Siege and because NetDragon had no overlapping projects at the time, allowing them to assist with contract manufacturing.

They were partners now, but that might not last.

Allowing Nebula Games to slowly accumulate expertise in other genres would be too slow for Chen Xu’s ambitions.

Thus, the best solution was acquisition—despite the higher cost compared to nurturing talent internally.

But how big of a deal was that?

Minecraft, Warcraft, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and the upcoming multiplayer mode,

along with the Nebula Games Platform, now running smoothly and gradually becoming a cash cow.

Nebula Games’ cash reserves were more than sufficient. If money could solve it, was it really a problem?

"30 million USD? Hmm, this game developer from Switzerland is worth that price." Chen Xu nodded lightly, looking over a document in Lin Rou’s hands inside the office.

"Mr. Chen, the total amount we’ve allocated for acquiring game developers has already reached 510 million USD," Lin Rou said hesitantly.

Recently, she had been assigned a task: to acquire game developers and studios worldwide.

The primary focus was on studios with expertise in racing games, flight racing games, and character performance animation.

To date, Nebula Games had already invested nearly 510 million USD in this effort.

Although it had little impact on company operations, the figure was undeniably massive.

Added to that were the regular salaries and operational expenses of the acquired teams.

The annual expenditure in this area alone was enormous.

At least this year, no other company in the gaming industry had conducted acquisitions on such a scale.

"Everything is worth it, and we can certainly afford it," Chen Xu smiled at Lin Rou.

In Chen Xu’s eyes, every acquisition was justified.

He hadn’t made these decisions on a whim. They were the result of thorough deliberation, with multiple meetings held in advance with the finance and other departments.

These acquisitions would not disrupt Nebula Games’ normal operations.

Moreover, the selected developers and studios were carefully chosen.

Many were essentially underpaid workers or failed studios—technically skilled but poorly managed, releasing one flop after another.

Or those who lost everything, even their underwear, developing their own games,

yet consistently produced profitable titles when working as contractors for others.

They possessed certain technical capabilities but remained small in scale—perfectly digestible for Nebula Games without causing strain.

(End of Chapter) <>