Chapter 826: Are You Sure the Players Are Happy! ?

Nebula Games Headquarters' lounge.

Chen Xu was sipping tea, looking at the relevant data.

“Mr. Chen, the merchandise for Final Fantasy is selling so fast.” Qin Yi remarked with some emotion from beside him.

“That’s normal. On one hand, it’s a new game project, and the hype is high right now,” Chen Xu said with a smile. “Also, its character designs are indeed excellent.”

It could be said that besides the plot, the character design is a crucial part of this game. Because the characters in the game are all quite handsome and beautiful. No matter which installment, you can criticize its gameplay, criticize its story. But in terms of art and character design, Final Fantasy is impeccable. Characters like Sephiroth, Zack, and Cloud are simply too impressive.

And if you observe carefully, you’ll find that Sephiroth, Cloud, and Zack each have distinct personalities: aloof, sunny, and introverted, covering all bases!

“I feel like the future profits from merchandise might even surpass the game’s sales!” Meng Zuo couldn’t help but exclaim from the side.

“That’s normal, because there are more varieties,” Chen Xu chuckled, hearing Meng Zuo’s words. Merchandise is a completely different beast. Collectible figures, in fact, are the least profitable products. Small items like phone cases, keychains, and mousepads, along with various collaborative products – these low-priced collaborations are the real big earners.

“The only regrettable thing is, why are these players so cunning!?” Chen Xu shook his head, leaning back on the sofa, sighing deeply as he read the players' online discussions.

Why did he introduce that particular conversation earlier? Of course, it was to distract the players. But he hadn't expected these players to understand him so well, like tapeworms in his stomach. Not only did they not extinguish the topic, but it burned even brighter.

“Mr. Chen, with your reputation, players don’t even need to think!” Ruan Ningxue complained from beside him.

“Exactly! Before, Mr. Chen, you would at least try to struggle a bit, but now struggling is useless.” Yang Xin, holding a cup of milk tea, also sat down and chimed in.

In the past, when Chen Xu dealt emotional blows to players, he would give them a piece of candy before stabbing them, and then pretend to have turned over a new leaf, hoping to change their impression of him. Two years ago, this tactic was indeed very effective, tricking large groups of players. But as time went on, the games Nebula Games released over the years basically conveyed one message: The jig is up, no more pretending; I'm here to mess with you!

“It’s like resistance. Players' resistance started at 0, and then Mr. Chen, you stacked it to 100%!” Yang Xin summarized.

“That’s right, that’s right! And in the past two years, other game developers have leaned more towards creating perfectly happy, family-friendly endings. This is also thanks to you, Mr. Chen!” Ruan Ningxue added.

Although games are products, excellent games are also a form of art. Many imaginative designers often create profound content. Dark, profound, and cruel themes have too small an audience and could affect sales, so more designers choose tragic stories to deliver emotional blows to players. However, among Nebula Games' titles, if you blindly pick a handful, seven out of ten are filled with tragedy.

This has made players' psychological endurance increasingly strong. If they happen to encounter a game with a tragic slant from Nebula Games, players will naturally compare it. If it can't win by gameplay and the story proportion is heavy, then compared to Nebula Games' tragedies, their own character's tragic fate would be eighty percent less impactful.

But a happy ending is different. The tears players shed and the regrets they experienced with Nebula Games can be compensated for here! It might not be profound, but the sales figures look good!

Right after Final Fantasy concluded, a whole bunch of joyful games were launched, and surprisingly, they sold quite well.

“Don’t make it sound like I’m a great evil. You see players cursing me, but their wallets never stop opening. What does that mean? They’re being disingenuous!” Chen Xu chuckled, addressing Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue.

Hearing Chen Xu’s words, the two on the sofa couldn't help but curl their lips.

“By the way, Mr. Chen, should we continue to remake our older games?” Qin Yi suddenly asked, thinking of something.

Game remakes are currently a hot trend in the industry. The main reason is a trend started by overseas Atari. Several of their new games, while not losing money, didn't gain much popularity. So Atari changed its strategy, shifting its focus to its old IPs.

The original intention was to capitalize on players' nostalgia, but unexpectedly, they sold exceptionally well, with remake sales even exceeding the originals.

This instantly ignited a remake craze in the industry. Some of Nebula Games' classic titles were also put on the agenda by players. For example, for Monster Hunter: World and Dark Souls, which were among Nebula Games' first PC releases, players proposed remake plans.

Although these games were also ported to VR platforms by Nebula Games, they were the earliest VR versions. Forget the latest technology, even during the platform rivalry between Zeus and Huanyu a few years ago, these games didn't release next-gen versions.

Now, both Huanyu and Zeus platforms have successively launched higher-spec Pro versions. The visual performance of Nebula Games' older titles is indeed no longer impressive. Even Red Dead Redemption, which once shocked the industry, could only be described as decent, and titles like Uncharted are no longer industry benchmarks.

“Remake? No need for that. The graphics aren't so outdated that they're unplayable,” Chen Xu shook his head, indicating it wasn’t necessary.

The visual presentation is indeed very old, but in reality, despite no official remakes, various community-made graphics enhancement MODs have always been abundant. In fact, for many single-player games, after their content updates ceased after a year or two, new bugs were discovered. Players would usually release corresponding patches, and then Nebula Games would consolidate them into a major official bug fix through the community forums.

In such circumstances, simply remaking the graphics actually doesn't hold much significance.

“However, I did notice something: players are always yearning for high-difficulty games!” Chen Xu mused.

Everyone: “????”

“Mr. Chen, how did you notice that?” Qin Yi was a bit bewildered. When he just mentioned it, he could tell Chen Xu wasn't aware of the remake matter.

“Didn't you tell me? Dark Souls, Monster Hunter: World — it’s so obvious!” Chen Xu said solemnly.

It can be interpreted that way?

Yang Xin and Ruan Ningxue were stunned.

“But now that you mention it, I think this direction is excellent! We haven’t made a high-difficulty game in many years; the last time was Sekiro.”

Hearing Chen Xu’s words, everyone thought of something. Qin Yi’s voice trembled slightly: “So, Mr. Chen...?”

“Didn’t players say that Final Fantasy was too depressing and they didn’t want to see tragedies? This time, let’s find some fun for the players. Hmm, the next project will be a Souls-like game!” Chen Xu smiled faintly.

Ruan Ningxue, Yang Xin, and the others: “…………”

Are you sure you’re finding fun for the players, and not just for yourself?

Everyone felt numb.

…………………………

The popularity of Final Fantasy was already starting to decline day by day. After all, it was a story-driven single-player game with not much replayable content, making a second playthrough unnecessary unless one was a hardcore fan.

However, the popularity of the game's various characters showed no signs of decreasing. Major video platforms were filled with fan-made video mashups and various fan works featuring charming characters like Sephiroth, Zack, Aerith, Cloud, and Tifa, making players sigh in admiration: indeed, good looks are incredibly powerful!

Just then, a piece of news that shocked many players emerged.

On their official Weibo account, Nebula Games announced that an online press conference for a new project would be held soon, with Mr. Chen personally introducing the project type.

Instantly, countless players were stunned!

Isn’t it too soon after Final Fantasy launched? According to usual practice, shouldn't Nebula Games be slacking off for a while?

Why are they so productive this time?

‘Holy cow, Mr. Chen has a new game out again? Has he gone into overdrive?’

‘This frequency is unheard of! I just want to know, was this project established before Final Fantasy, or after!?’

‘I wonder what type it is!’

‘No need to ask, it’s definitely big news!’

Players were perplexed, and even gaming media in the industry were shocked. While Nebula Games did hold press conferences for new titles, unlike in earlier years, Chen Xu no longer personally appeared. But this time, Chen Xu himself was making an appearance?

Big news!

However, what frustrated many gaming media outlets was that interview requests were completely rejected, even from media like Game Starry Sky and GameSpot, which had close collaborations with Nebula Games.

On the day of the online press conference, Chen Xu's live stream room was packed with countless players from all over the world. Due to the sheer number of people, the official platform had no choice but to limit bullet comment sending to one every five minutes. Yet, even so, comments scrolled like a waterfall, and with bullet comments open, the stream's content became invisible.

‘Holy cow! Why hasn’t it started yet!?’

‘Every second feels like a year! It’s been over a hundred years, why hasn’t Mr. Chen started yet!’

‘I wonder what type it is!’

‘No need to ask, it must be big news!’

Amidst the anticipation of countless players, Chen Xu's image soon appeared in the live stream. However, what surprised many players was that the screen showed a blank piece of paper.

At this moment, Chen Xu’s voice came through.

“I believe countless players are curious about the new project we wish to announce at today’s online press conference.”

“First, let us understand the type of this unknown game: it will be an open-world game with a vast map!”

As Chen Xu’s words fell, countless bullet comments began to flood the screen.

‘Holy cow! Here it comes, open world again!’

‘Zelda? Red Dead? Elder Scrolls? Witcher?’

Numerous open-world enthusiasts grew excited!

Chen Xu’s voice continued.

“This will be a game with ARPG attributes!”

Players who enjoyed Red Dead Redemption couldn’t help but slump.

“The game will feature certain puzzle-solving elements, a diverse weapon system, and numerous side quests that require careful exploration by players.”

Enthusiastic The Witcher: Wild Hunt fans sighed.

Meanwhile, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild players felt a slight tremble, as these descriptions fit their games perfectly!

“Finally, the theme of this game is an epic fantasy masterpiece!”

As Chen Xu’s words fell, bullet comments went wild.

‘Awesome! Dovahkiin! Awesome!’

‘Long live the Empire!’

‘Long live the Stormcloaks!’

‘Invincible! Dovahkiin invincible!’

Numerous fans of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim cheered in front of their computers.

But the next moment, the sound from their headphones and speakers froze their expressions.

“Yes! That’s right, the name of this game is—Elden Ring!”

<>