Chapter 756: Brother, Look at My Inventory

Chapter 756: Brother, Look at My Inventory

Although Firework (Game) is a VR game, its gameplay duration and scale are not large, and there are no elements that require collection in between.

It's basically a purely linear game, with a total playtime of only three or four hours if you play straight through.

However, for domestic players, the topics sparked by this game generated a lot of buzz.

The main point was the reason for the tragedy in the game, as well as the game's theme itself.

Feudal superstitions seemed very distant, but in reality, they were not far from the players. Even today, various tragedies due to feudal superstitions, or people being deceived by them, can still be seen.

However, with more and more players completing Firework (Game), some different discussion points gradually emerged compared to the initial unanimous positive reviews.

This was mainly concerning the horror aspect. Although the content of Firework (Game) was good, it was, after all, a horror game.

While the Chinese horror atmosphere was excellently created, the entire game lacked any truly scary moments, leaving many players who were hoping for a scare-fest a little disappointed.

On the game's community forum, many players were discussing this:

'I feel like the narrative of Firework (Game) is great, especially the transitions between various scenes, but as a horror game, it might not be up to par, right?'

'Exactly, apart from being a bit grim at the beginning, the overall mode didn't feel too scary.'

'From a storytelling and metaphorical depth perspective, Firework (Game) is quite good, but as a horror game, it's lacking.'

'Yes, yes, and also in terms of gameplay, while the various puzzle designs complement the story scenes perfectly, they basically feel like just a lubricant.'

'Actually, I feel like Firework (Game) might have been even better if it hadn't been made into a horror game.'

Many players were posting various reviews online.

However, most of these reviews came from overseas.

After all, the content of Firework (Game) is more Chinese-oriented. Even though the game itself was translated and annotated, it was difficult for most people unfamiliar with Chinese funeral culture to truly feel the horror.

At most, the frightening feeling came from unsettling visuals like paper figures and dark environments.

This is why most mainstream horror films focus on visual effects.

Because it's the most direct type, with the lowest barrier to entry, and doesn't require the audience to understand the underlying culture and connotations.

And through the discussion points about Firework (Game), many players' conversations shifted from this game to the horror game genre itself.

'It feels like horror games rarely give a sense of real horror anymore, not counting jump-scare horror, of course.'

'Right, even Chen Xu isn't an exception. The previous Resident Evil Village only had the doll level going for it, and Lady Dimitrescu's popularity actually surpassed the horror elements.'

'Am I the only one who thinks Village was great? I felt the oppressive fear in the beginning, and Ethan's concern for his daughter and worry for his wife were very touching later on.'

'Touching is one thing, but there were too few horror elements.'

'There's nothing we can do, horror games are just like that. But as a horror game enthusiast, I really miss the days of playing Outlast.'

'Speaking of Outlast, I remembered a game that never officially saw the light of day. Who still remembers the DEMO Nebula Games released before Huanyu VR launched?'

'Silent Hill PT? Now that you mention it, I remember it too. Has anyone noticed that Firework (Game) seems to have many points similar to PT? Wasn't that alley scene in the convenience store an Infinite Corridor? And the protagonist entering another world and seeing things ordinary people can't—isn't that the otherworld?'

'Verdict: The bro upstairs is definitely not Chinese!'

'Verdict +1. Although what you said does sound a bit similar, that's called a 'ghost hitting the wall' and 'communing with spirits'! They're two different things, okay?!'

'Don't say so much, I just ask if it's similar!'

'How great would it be if Silent Hill PT could be made into a full version and released? Currently, only the cut-down PC version is available.'

Many horror game fans online were chatting about this topic. As they chatted, everyone, by coincidence, also brought up the DEMO Nebula Games used for Huanyu VR testing.

Because the appearance of Silent Hill PT at the time truly scared a lot of players, and its Infinite Corridor setting influenced many later horror games. To this day, many horror games still use some of Silent Hill PT's settings, such as the combination of an endlessly looping corridor in the same scene and a turn-around jump scare.

Now, from discussing Firework (Game) to horror games, some horror game enthusiasts invariably thought of Silent Hill PT.

And the players' voices grew louder and louder. Of course, how many of them were just cheering for the fun of it was unknown.

Many players even @-mentioned Chen Xu constantly.

Until a message was released from the silent official Weibo account, leaving all players speechless, as if the Silencer from DOTA had cast his ultimate.

On Chen Xu's official Weibo account, a new message had just been posted.

The content of the message was also very simple, just a few short sentences.

'Outlast VR version: 11.2% completion rate to date. Resident Evil VR version: 22% completion rate. Resident Evil Village VR version: 41.9% completion rate.'

'Players who have completed all three games can register on the Nebula Games Platform. If 1.5 million slots are filled within two weeks, we will release an IP that meets your requirements.'

The straightforward official Weibo post also included two accompanying images.

The first concept art showed a hazy gray mist, with three faint words visible in the mist: Silent Hill.

As for the second image, it was a discount notice. After a glance at the discount image, it was undoubtedly a massive price cut. But the object of this price cut left all players silent: Outlast, Resident Evil, and Resident Evil Village—everything from individual purchases to grand bundles was available.

So Mr. Chen was waiting here? How could anyone compete with that?

Many players felt a very strange sensation looking at Chen Xu's Weibo post.

In reality, such petitions are not uncommon in the gaming circle. In simple terms, this behavior is crowdfunding.

Some manufacturers with insufficient financial strength would hold similar activities. They would first make grand promises, enticing players to pay up.

However, in the Parallel World, this was basically limited to some niche game types, or designers who started their own independent ventures but were well-known in the industry.

As for Star Citizen from his previous life, which evolved from crowdfunding to selling ships, even becoming a business model where progress was announced and ships were sold monthly, making people feel like the game was about to become a Ponzi scheme in the game crowdfunding world—that situation had not yet occurred.

So Chen Xu's Weibo post astonished many players.

'What kind of move is this, Mr. Chen!?'

'Holy cow, is Mr. Chen serious about this!?'

'So don't just talk about being excited, at least take some action! Go register on the Nebula Games Platform! 1.5 million shouldn't be hard, right?!'

'Not hard? LOL, bro, look at my platform inventory: Outlast playtime 6 minutes, Resident Evil playtime 11 minutes. Do you think I meet the requirements?'

'Exactly, exactly! We strongly demand Mr. Chen change the conditions! Why must we complete the game to participate? Can't we participate if we bought the game but didn't finish it?'

'That's right, Mr. Chen, this discriminatory practice is unacceptable! You're dividing our player base. Why do we have to complete the game even after buying it!?'

'By the way, hasn't anyone noticed something? How is the completion rate for Village so high? The doll level was pretty grim!'

'Bro upstairs, while the doll level was grim, Lady Dimitrescu was just too awesome!'

'Mr. Chen, if you're brave enough, open up a MOD editor. Let me change all the monsters in the game into mature big sisters, and I'll clear it for you in minutes!'

'Bro, can your body handle that?'

'Brothers, the number of registered players on the Nebula Games Platform has already exceeded 30,000! All the bros who have completed the games, hurry up and register! Players who haven't completed them, hurry up and do it!'

'Complete it? No way I'm completing it this lifetime. I just tried, and I've already peed myself!'

Following Chen Xu's Weibo post, many horror game enthusiasts who had completed all three games flocked to the Nebula Games Platform to register. At the same time, they called upon friends in various community forums to gather votes.

Meanwhile, some players who were very interested in this event and owned Outlast and Resident Evil but hadn't completed them, were now preparing to jump into the games to experience them.

After all, many players felt that so many years had passed; both Outlast and Resident Evil were games from long ago. As Lu Meng once said, when scholars separate for three days, they should be looked at with new eyes.

They were no longer the simple Wu Xia A Meng of yesteryear. What was there to be afraid of? Was the VR version so great?

So, these players who had bought the games but never dared to play them downloaded them again.

Then, they opened the games, walked around the asylum entrance and the farm entrance, seeing the gloomy sky and eerie atmosphere.

These players quickly made a decision. Friends, take care, I'm out of here!

Damn it, even after all these years, they were still scared senseless!

Let the actual brave ones handle the registration and head-counting. They had bought the games, which counted as support.

(End of Chapter) <>