Hai City.
That day, after their chance encounter, Lu Li and Bai Zhiyuan had a very enjoyable conversation.
Although neither of them openly confessed their feelings, they both understood each other implicitly.
Upon returning to Hai City, Lu Li plunged back into his work.
He had already accumulated a staggering 8 billion player emotional values generated from games.
At the earliest opportunity, he redeemed them for "The Last of Us." The old thief believed in swift revenge.
He would accompany the idiotic company Wanwei Games in their pretense to the very end.
In the following days, Wanwei Games announced that its new VR game, "To a New World," would be launched a week earlier than scheduled.
Players were utterly bewildered.
Such a sudden change to the planned release date was a major taboo in the industry, as it disrupted players' established schedules.
However.
Wanwei Games' unconventional move did not stir much of a ripple online.
This was because shortly after Wanwei Games' announcement, Ling Jing followed suit, declaring that "The Last of Us" would also launch a week earlier.
Subsequently, Tencent, NetEase, and other major game developers, as if by prearrangement, uniformly announced the early release of their newly developed games.
At this point, even the slowest to react.
Netizens began to catch on!
The air was thick with tension, a palpable sense of rivalry!
Was Ling Jing challenging Wanwei Games head-on?
Were other major developers, unwilling to be outshone by Ling Jing and Wanwei, begrudgingly following suit?
After all, this second act of "divine battle" had already garnered significant attention, a battle fought without gunpowder.
To fall behind now would mean missing out on a peak wave of traffic.
Fueled by media hype, the highly anticipated showdown between the old and new gaming giants, like needles meeting at their tips, commenced as expected.
On that day.
The sky was clear, and the weather was fair.
Countless players eagerly gathered before their computers, awaiting the new game update at 8:00 AM.
As eight o'clock struck, millions of players simultaneously flooded various gaming platforms.
Some were searching for "Valorant."
Some were searching for "To a New World."
Some were searching for "The Last of Us."
…and so on!
However, the hottest contenders were "To a New World" from Wanwei Games and "The Last of Us" from Ling Jing!
Both shared a post-apocalyptic theme, survival competition, and FPS shooting VR gameplay.
The competition was blatant, fierce competition!
It was inevitable that one major game company would fall in this battle.
Sina Weibo, eager to capitalize on the excitement, even set up real-time sales data and player discussion heat for the new games from both companies.
Initially, thanks to its established fanbase, "To a New World," bolstered by the loyal patrons of Wanwei Games, maintained sales and popularity on par with "The Last of Us."
Fifteen minutes later, through the promotional content streamed by streamers playing the game.
The audience watching "The Last of Us" was in an uproar!
They could never have imagined that Sarah, the adorable daughter portrayed in the first ten minutes of the game, would die so abruptly.
It felt like a master craftsman, after years of pouring their heart into creating a work of art, had smashed it to pieces in front of everyone.
Why would he do this?
All sorts of questions flooded their minds, compelling players to continue playing out of curiosity.
They then came to understand Joel's psychological changes, growth, and transformation after losing his daughter in the post-apocalyptic world.
When, two hours later, another little girl, resembling Sarah, made a destined appearance in the main storyline and encountered Joel, netizens were completely blown away!
The coincidences, conflicts, foreshadowing, and dramatic flair were all exceptional, causing discussion topics to skyrocket across the internet.
In contrast, "To a New World," which peaked at the start, became rather uneventful and ordinary after its initial surge. While there were elements to keep players engaged, they were few.
Moreover, there were no particularly impactful talking points to ignite netizens' passion.
It was the kind of game where, upon seeing the beginning, one could predict the ending – a standardized game. In normal circumstances, it might have attracted a wave of players with its post-apocalyptic setting and the fun of VR gameplay.
While it might not have been a massive hit, recovering costs and even making a small profit was possible.
However, the misfortune was that comparison is the thief of joy!
When a similar game, with the same post-apocalyptic theme, a more perfect and clearer worldview, and even superior gameplay, emerged.
Being merely ordinary was no longer enough to support a steady increase in its sales.
Visibly, starting from the third day of its launch, "To a New World"'s sales plummeted.
Conversely,
"The Last of Us," with its excellent reputation and popularity, saw its sales soar like a rocket.
Wanwei Games' stock price, severely hit, fell as precipitously as "To a New World"'s sales, on the verge of delisting.
Not only that, Lu Li was also secretly shorting Wanwei Games aggressively.
Whether he made money or not was secondary; he wanted Wanwei Games to die.
Ultimately, the overwhelmed Wanwei Games was absorbed and acquired by Tencent, becoming a division under Tencent VR.
The legend of Wanwei Games, the perennial third-place contender, vanished from the gaming world.
Time.
Like a married couple, it always seems to speed up with continuous intimacy.
Especially when immersed in it, it's so fast that the partner might not even realize it's over before it's done.
In the blink of an eye, a month passed.
"The Last of Us" was nearing its end. After experiencing numerous life-or-death situations with the little girl.
Players, as Joel, found their feelings for this little girl changing.
When faced with the choice of sacrificing the little girl for the research institute to develop a cure for the spore virus, or abandoning the world for the little girl, the vast majority chose to abandon the world.
Finally, watching the battered car speed along the green, overgrown highway, players couldn't help but shed a tear.
Afterward.
Some international disputes arose, and a new era of war began.
The intensity of the fighting was unprecedented in recent years.
Many recalled the traumas of World War II, and nations from all sides appealed for peace in various forms.
Concurrently.
Various anti-war themes emerged in the gaming industry.
Of course, Lu Li was not idle.
"Battlefield" was born, and in the VR world, players felt the brutal reality of war as if they were experiencing it firsthand.
Ling Jing's reputation began to extend beyond the gaming circle and onto the international stage.
Lu Li, determined to achieve greatness, released the horror trilogy: "Outlast," "Silent Hill," and "Dead Space" in one go.
He then pioneered the asymmetrical competitive immersive VR game "Dawn of the Dead," and unusually, held a game launch event, inviting lucky players for a trial.
The invited lucky players at the time didn't find anything amiss; they were thrilled to be so fortunate to be selected by Ling Jing.
As for the police cordons surrounding the venue and the rows of ambulances, they subconsciously ignored them, attributing it to the local government's thorough security and logistical arrangements.
When they were carried out of the VR game access pods on stretchers, the shaken lucky winners finally realized—
These were all prepared for them. No wonder the old thief had shaken their hands with a wicked grin before they entered the game.
He was truly.
Awesome!
Following this grand spectacle, Ling Jing's mobile gaming division, Mihoyo, exerted its influence.
"Honkai Impact"
"Honkai Impact 2"
"Honkai Impact 3rd," "Genshin Impact," and "Honkai: Star Rail" were subsequently released!
Ling Jing, with its singular effort, broke through barriers and climbed to the pinnacle!
This small game studio, with its rich history, quietly developed in its early stages, and then soared to prominence.
Finally, it stood on the historical stage, becoming an indelible mark in the development history of VR games in China!
Lu Li, the experience of this designer, was legendary, becoming an industry benchmark that inspired countless aspiring designers.
On this day.
The legendary designer, at the center of attention, secretly boarded a train bound for Shen City.
His legend awaited him there.
...
(All finished)
(I wrote these thousands of words in a hospital corridor. I know I can't drag this out any longer; I should put an end to my first work on Tomato.)
(It might not be perfect; there were various criticisms in the early, middle, and late stages. The journey was indeed bumpy. I won't say much more; thank you for your companionship.)
(I want to write about this theme again in a new book, bringing the unwritten games to life with more skill, refinement, and dedication.)
The story is not over, please look forward to it!