Chapter 859: Winning Big

For many players, Payday still offered a lot of fun.

Although in terms of media scores, Payday couldn't compare to Nebula Games' other titles, especially Elden Ring, which had once again garnered perfect scores from countless media outlets.

But in terms of enjoyment, Payday didn't hold back at all. What seemed like simple content offered surprisingly high replayability.

Player comments became increasingly brilliant. Points like the drill and the chainsaw were frequently joked about by players.

Of course, there was another very important point: R6 players were furious. “We’re actively engaged in counter-terrorism here, and you’re globally sourcing and expanding your criminal enterprise? Furious! Absolutely furious!”

However, while players were happily chuckling and enjoying the fun Payday brought, Nebula Games was also constantly active internally.

The news that leaked out thrilled many players and made countless developers, who were preparing to launch and promote new games, stop in their tracks.

The reason was simple: World of Warcraft, which was no longer young, was finally about to welcome a new expansion.

After expansions like The Burning Crusade, World of Warcraft was set to launch its most anticipated new expansion in the excited eyes of global players: Wrath of the Lich King.

Compared to the previous Ahn'Qiraj, when The Burning Crusade expansion launched, countless familiar characters appeared before the players.

If one were to ask who the most memorable Warcraft character was for players.

Currently, among ten Warcraft players, six would probably say: Arthas.

And among the remaining four, three might say Illidan.

Because these two game characters left too deep an impression on players in Warcraft. It can be said that as the most brilliant existence in RTS games, Warcraft was etched into the hearts of countless players.

Illidan and Arthas, although they were only protagonists of a certain stage of the story within the game, and not the main protagonists of the entire Warcraft universe, many players still associated these two characters with Warcraft.

In their final showdown, Arthas emerged victorious, ascending the Frozen Throne to merge with the Lich King. Illidan, on the other hand, left Azeroth for Outland.

However, with Doom Lord Kazzak reopening The Dark Portal to Outland, a tide of Burning Legion demons engulfed Azeroth, and that man once again returned to Azeroth.

The Burning Crusade, back then, excited countless players.

Brand new maps, crossing The Dark Portal to Outland.

The newly added Draenei and Blood Elves also led many players to create new characters and re-experience the fresh world of Azeroth.

Illidan, who had transformed into a demon, dropped the Warglaives of Azzinoth, which became a new friendship detector.

Up until now, Kael'thas and Illidan had been defeated countless times by players; they were already tired of it. Now, Arthas, whom players had been yearning for, was finally entering the raid.

With the Scourge once again appearing on the lands of Azeroth, the Lich King made his return.

In truth, for most ordinary players, they don't play World of Warcraft every day; many are far from being 'graduated,' and items like Warglaives of Azzinoth and Phoenix are quite distant for them. Some casual players might not have even attempted large-scale raid dungeons.

But one thing is certain: when a new expansion updates, countless heroes of Azeroth, whether from the Horde or the Alliance, will once again venture into that familiar world to explore.

After all, from Warcraft to World of Warcraft, this game isn't just a game.

The moment the official announcement of the new expansion hit, it instantly soared to the top of the trending searches, demonstrating just how highly players regarded World of Warcraft.

Innumerable players who had temporarily gone AFK from the continent of Azeroth for various reasons were preparing to once again pick up their swords and shields and return to the world they once dreamed of.

Molten Core was their first encounter with a large-scale raid dungeon.

Fighting a decisive battle against Nefarian in Blackwing Lair.

When a legendary item drops, there are no more brothers.

Opposing Alliance and Horde factions joined forces to open the Scarab Wall to resist a crisis.

Venturing deep into Ahn'Qiraj Temple, experiencing the terror of Old God C'Thun wiping out an entire raid with a single glance.

Then came the Scourge invasion, engulfing all of Azeroth in the shadow of Naxxramas.

Player characters rose up, defeated the Four Horsemen, and fought Frost Dragons to crush Kel'Thuzad.

Southshore saw the first war erupt between the Alliance and the Horde.

Players were thrilled by their first piece of purple-tier equipment.

When The Burning Crusade began, players crossed The Dark Portal into a world beyond Azeroth.

The appearance of the Blood Elves made countless staunch Alliance soldiers turn their heads and rush to the Horde purely for their looks.

Kael'thas, Illidan—countless NPCs who once had names in Warcraft fell under the swords of player characters in dungeons.

Warglaives of Azzinoth and Phoenix became the motivation for players to grind dungeons day and night.

And now, that man who was once a Paladin, fell to become a Death Knight, and finally became the Lich King—Arthas.

He too was finally entering the raid, just like Illidan.

Players had waited too long for this moment.

Herm of Domination, Frostmourne, and Arthas's mount, Invincible.

They were ready!

………………

While players were in a state of excitement, even frenzy, because of the impending launch of World of Warcraft's new expansion, 'Wrath of the Lich King',

Chen Xu at Nebula Games wasn't paying too much attention to World of Warcraft.

The main reason was that Warcraft's subsequent development and expansion update plans had already been set after World of Warcraft was initially developed. For 'Wrath of the Lich King,' he only needed to review and confirm data, and that was it.

Moreover, he had more important matters to attend to right now.

That was discussing IP licensing with major domestic and international game developers.

It seemed quite difficult, but in reality, it wasn't too hard. If Nebula Games were just an ordinary game developer, few would pay attention.

But today, Nebula Games and Chen Xu were no longer unknown entities.

What's more, the first batch of IPs Chen Xu selected were generally well-known but had been shelved by major developers. They had once been prosperous but were now in a somewhat embarrassing decline.

For these game developers holding IPs, when Nebula Games approached them, they were initially surprised, but then overjoyed.

IPs are valuable because they can be converted into revenue, but in reality, many IPs have suffered repeated Waterloos and had to be shelved, only to be brought out a decade or so later to see if they could be revived on the back of nostalgia.

If they could be revived, that would be great. But if they couldn't, the IP's value would only diminish.

Who was the most prominent in the gaming industry right now? None other than Nebula Games and Chen Xu. Now, for him to approach them to discuss IP licensing, and it seemed not just for simple collaborative licensing but for actual game content, how could these developers not be excited?

On one hand, Nebula Games wasn't stingy in acquiring these licensed IPs. On the other hand, Nebula Games' involvement might even revitalize these IPs. For these game developers, it was like Qin Shi Huang eating Sichuan peppers and touching an electric wire—doubly exhilarating, winning big!

(End of Chapter) <>