Chapter 607: Brand New Technology (Requesting Subscriptions, Monthly Passes)

As The Last of Us was soaring in popularity, the A-round test for FOW's Wasteland 1981 had also begun.

Player and media reviews were quite good, generally staying between 8.5 and 9 points.

However, for an Early Access DEMO test, this score was actually already excellent.

Moreover, many players affirmed the game's gameplay.

But compared to The Last of Us, Wasteland 1981 clearly paled in comparison.

On one hand, it wasn't the full version, so players couldn't experience the entire game's storyline.

On the other hand, The Last of Us was simply too outstanding.

The story of Joel and Ellie was already excellent enough.

But the depiction of the post-apocalyptic world was equally brilliant.

The game's story was also full of reflection on human nature.

It wasn't merely presented as part of the main story content for players to see.

Instead, it was purely depicted through individual side stories, illustrating the dangers and human nature in the apocalypse.

The hunters of Pittsburgh, and the hunter organization led by David.

They cruelly cannibalized human flesh and enjoyed torturing and killing humans.

Although they were still human, they had long ceased to be so.

Tommy, Jackson County.

Even in the apocalypse, they could be self-sufficient and perpetuate human civilization.

These two extreme examples also proved one thing: human nature is complex.

The game contained dark, hazy, and incredibly oppressive battles.

But it also featured incredibly bright moments, like Ellie petting the giraffe.

Although The Last of Us depicted a world of utter despair and cruelty.

Within this cruel world, there was still a ray of hope.

But this ray of hope was definitely not the Fireflies at the beginning, who attacked the Boston quarantine zone and placed their hope in a vaccine.

Rather, it was people like Tommy, who, even in the apocalypse, adhered to their principles.

………………

Ordinary players were still immersed in the world of The Last of Us.

Game media continued to champion The Last of Us.

However, Alex at FOW was having a difficult time.

Although The Last of Us saw explosive sales and critical acclaim, to be honest, its impact on the subsequent Wasteland 1981 was present but not major.

After all, they had only launched an A-round test DEMO.

There was still a long time until the official launch, and the two games were not of the same genre.

From a gameplay content perspective, Wasteland 1981 actually possessed very strong advantages.

But the crucial point that made Alex feel a bit stifled was this:

The ambition he placed in Wasteland 1981 wasn't just to achieve market success; he also hoped to win awards from various game media outlets.

Even though his current standing at FOW and his influence in the gaming industry meant that awards weren't strictly necessary.

But as the saying goes, what you can't get is always stirring within you.

He had never touched a trophy before!

Last year, he felt it was the closest he had been to a trophy in recent years, but then The Witcher: Wild Hunt burst onto the scene.

And this year, he felt Wasteland 1981 wasn't without a chance to contend again.

As it turned out, before mid-year even arrived, The Last of Us completely shattered his hopes.

Although the game wasn't fully developed yet, Alex immediately jumped into playing The Last of Us after its launch.

He wanted to see for himself what made this game so strong, and whether the media's scores were inflated.

But after completing The Last of Us, Alex, even if he didn't want to admit it, had to concede one thing:

The Last of Us truly deserved the perfect score and masterpiece rating.

Furthermore, The Last of Us's theme and its emphasis on interaction gave it an even greater advantage for awards.

To use a film analogy, Wasteland 1981 leaned more towards commercial appeal, while The Last of Us balanced both commercial and artistic aspects.

Especially, everything presented in The Last of Us wasn't new.

Whether it was puzzles or stealth, these elements had essentially been around for many years and had already matured into established systems.

But the key was that The Last of Us perfectly combined these elements with the story, characters, and world interaction.

That's why players could completely immerse themselves in the game.

Although Chen Xu had elaborately explained the interactive elements of The Last of Us, actually achieving them was still incredibly difficult.

………………

The online buzz for The Last of Us continued to escalate.

However, at this time, Chen Xu was not at Nebula Games, but rather in the Modu Game Department's laboratory.

Besides Chen Xu, relevant heads from domestic gaming giants like NetDragon and TengHua, as well as some well-known industry designers, were also present.

This was a relatively core internal meeting; ordinary designers and companies would not be invited.

"Mature brainwave capture technology?" Listening to the introduction from Yang Chen, the head of the Game Department, and the surrounding technicians, Chen Xu and everyone else showed great surprise.

Brainwave intention capture and non-invasive brain-computer interface technology weren't new concepts, even in his previous life, they existed.

However, due to limitations in technology, cost, and safety, they hadn't scaled up.

In the Parallel World, although technology was stronger in all aspects, related technologies had always been applied in some specialized fields.

As for civilian use, it was relatively chicken rib, for example, in medical applications for patients with hearing and speech impairments or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), trying to express their thoughts quickly and completely through a brain-computer interface combined with voice equipment was still quite difficult.

This was because non-invasive devices, when collecting brainwaves, inherently had corresponding delays and information gaps.

But the latest technology filled this gap, and the mature development of the technology itself could also be applied in various fields.

"So, the gaming industry is also a field that will undergo widespread changes?" Chen Xu listened to Yang Chen's words, a surprised expression on his face.

He really hadn't been aware of this.

"Exactly. Even overseas, there's actually been some progress already."

"In the future, there will be specialized external devices paired with Huanyu VR, and then VR gaming equipment will open up various ports. Of course, currently, this is mainly aimed at first and second-tier game developers. Ordinary game developers don't have the funds or capabilities to venture into it."

"Additionally, Huanyu VR's market share has actually surpassed previous generation VR and PC. Your game companies should also be closely following this data," Yang Chen stated one by one.

"Indeed. However, this new technology can be said to be a huge change, even a revolution, for the gaming industry," Chen Xu also exclaimed.

People like NetDragon and others next to him nodded.

To some extent, this new technology might overturn current player control habits.

Current VR games still use traditional controller modes, meaning the gaming pod has built-in button systems similar to gamepads. Players operate through controllers, but it's essentially a shift from dual-wielding gamepads or using a mouse and keyboard to dual-wielding controllers, similar to the detachable Joy-Cons of the Switch.

But if the new technology can be integrated with game projects, it will undoubtedly be revolutionary for players.

Of course, the actual effectiveness still needs to be seen.

For instance, feedback delay is a very important point. Just like input delay between game controllers and real-world devices, 0.5 seconds versus 1 second might sound like a small difference, but it leads to a world of difference in game experience.

It sounds great, but we still need to see how far it can go before we can judge whether it will become mainstream.

Similar to motion control games, which are destined to target only blue ocean users and casual players.

As for why?

Imagine playing an FPS game or an action game, where you need to constantly run in place, waving your motion controller to make attacking movements.

It might be fine at first, but can you endure it for thirty minutes, an hour, or even longer?

By the same logic, what types of games and what demographics this new technology can be applied to.

It still depends on the actual results.

But for now, it will clearly be at the forefront of the trend in the short term.

(End of Chapter) <>