Game Director from Hell

Chapter 12: Tally Sales

Creators cannot control the player.

They shouldn't try to control, nor should they hope to be controlled.

Because play belongs to the realm of the customers.

The proper way to enjoy play is to leave it entirely to the customer's freedom, which is the attitude that a creator should display.

From that perspective, the stance that a creator should take in uncontrollable situations... situations that go beyond intent and expectation, is clear.

Observation and analysis.

Understanding the reason behind the event and grasping the mechanism to extract the necessary sources for the next creation.

I carefully read the summary posts in the community.

"A certain named user in the U.S. hardcore gaming community called 'Challengers' posted a review about Helic.

It seems like the rumor spread within the community and leaked to an external community.

(...)

...Ultimately, they discovered the Easter egg through data mining, which became the topic.

They challenged collectively in a large community, and eventually, with a reward on the line, they succeeded in solving it in a day, lol."

<Comment>

FlowerHeeAngDuLips: Wow, the scale in the U.S. is crazy, lol.

┕ClearWithoutT: Korean users seem totally clueless about the Easter egg, lol.

Lord of Bangbae-dong Pie: So, what's the Easter egg?

┕ReinInMyReins: Are you curious about that? I was more curious about the face of the person who received the reward."

Indeed, reading the post, I grasped the rough causality.

In short, it's a "meme-like success."

Various situations cleverly intertwining to create temporary success.

Sudden trends within online communities leading to an increase in sales.

The key was data mining and the reward for finding the Easter egg.

"A $4.99 challenge. If you succeed, you get $1,000. They probably thought it was a challenge worth trying."

Beyond just the interest in Helic itself, it instilled motivation to play.

I felt a rush of excitement.

Achieving results was truly exhilarating.

"Well, do you roughly understand what happened?"

"Well... in a word, it's a trend."

"A trend?"

"Yeah, I mean..."

I explained the causality to Han Seorim.

Then, Han Seorim's expression became a bit strange.

"Wait, so this is like a fleeting flame? Sales and rankings will go down again?"

With a disappointed attitude, I firmly denied that.

"That's not it."

"Huh?"

"A quickly extinguishing flame is due to insufficient firewood. Because there's little room for players to dig into the game, trends fade quickly. But this isn't the case, right?"

Well, it's not just that.

While creating Helic, what I paid the most attention to was the depth of the system.

The time I spent completing the growth of weapons and the combination system accounted for over 70% of my planning and development time.

To complete Helic's representative recommended combinations alone, it would take more than five playthroughs.

Converted into playtime, that's 20 hours.

If you delve into it even more crazily, who knows what combinations might emerge? How could I uncover all of this in a short time and extinguish the flames?

This is just the beginning, and I was confident.

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Even excluding this meme-like success, Helic is already a great game on its own.

From now on, the focus is on "how to manage this well and gain profit."

"It's our game. Have confidence."

Han Seorim's eyes sparkled.

Her gaze turned back to the monitor.

The corners of her mouth lifted slightly, a sign of relief.

"Right? Yeah, since I personally participated in making the game, it should do this much!"

I wonder when that habit of hers of quickly becoming overconfident will change.

No, maybe I should let it be for now.

In the midst of it, Han Seorim asked.

"By the way, who's the person who cracked the Easter egg?"

Coincidentally, I had been curious too.

Finding out was easy.

I immediately logged into the North American community and saw a bold post on the main page.

I clicked on it right away.

It was at that moment that I read the contents of the post.

"James Han, the owner of the first prize."

On the screen was a monitor displaying the corpse of Cancer Giant, and in front of it, a photo of an Asian man smiling.

"Ah."

My eyes widened.

"So, it was this person."

Joy surged within me.

"James Han? What is it? Do you know who this senior is?"

"...I know, kind of."

More accurately, I'll get to know in the future.

In a few years from now, in an era where media outlets are more widely spread and simplified, an era where "one-person broadcasts" become universal, this guy will become a giant in the gaming industry, having a name synonymous with the most famous broadcaster in the field.

James Han, a third-generation Korean-American.

The nemesis of all creators and an idol to all gamers.

His content was no less.

Alright, today's content: Speed run of Lost Kingdom! The goal is, of course, to set a new record!

Breaking all the mechanics prepared by the developers and turning the final content of the game into a laughingstock with the "speed run" and "boss exploits."

Even Lost Kingdom was thoroughly dominated by him, which speaks volumes about his wickedness.

"Back when he was young, was he really like this?"

Now, he's barely in his twenties, right? No, he's well into his twenties, but that realization made his face look a bit awkward.

The James Han I remember had unruly facial hair as his trademark.

"What's going on? Well, who is it that's making you react like that?"

"Well, he's good at games."

"Is that so?"

After regaining my composure, I moved my finger.

Right below, there was a post detailing James Han's strategies.

Summarizing roughly, it's his characteristic way.

I dodged while hitting, and that's how he died.

He showcased his overwhelming physical prowess that the culprit could hardly replicate.

Tap, tap.

My thoughts deepened.

"I never expected a connection to be formed like this..."

We don't even know each other's faces, but as creators and gamers, there's a corner of the future where we can make use of this connection.

Well, in the future of the gaming industry, a single playthrough by a giant broadcaster like him will undoubtedly have the effect of massive promotion, right? It's hard not to feel a bit envious.

Desire wells up within me.

A desire to develop this connection a bit deeper, in a direction mutually beneficial to both of us.

The contemplation wasn't lengthy.

"A message."

Might as well take the plunge.

There was no need to be afraid.

I sent a message directly to James Han's private inbox.

In a home in California, USA.

In a room filled with various game packages, a young Asian man named James turned on his computer today as well.

He was about to write a post revealing the Easter egg and its reward from the game 'Helic,' a game he had been playing in the community.

It was at that moment that he discovered a message.

"What's this?"

The sender was Rewind Studio.'

As James squinted for a moment in thought, he soon exclaimed, "Ah!" and stood up from his seat.

"Helic's developers!"

The name of the development studio that appeared on the intro screen was Rewind Studio.'

He had definitely heard that it was a Korean development studio, so why were they reaching out to him?

Ah, they must have seen his posts in the community!

James's mouth curled up with satisfaction.

Naturally attention-seeking, his personality was gladly embracing this situation.

Developers are a presence that's both close and distant to gamers.

They are always close in terms of consuming their content, yet creating a personal connection with them is a distant possibility.

So, receiving a message from a game developer, especially from someone behind a game that's currently attracting a lot of attention, makes one feel like they've become someone important.

With a strange sense of anticipation, James opened the message.

"Hi James."

That's how the lengthy letter began.

As James read the message with a racing heart, his expression turned from a greeting to a blossoming smile as he continued reading through the complimentary words that followed.

But then, at a certain point, he became puzzled.

"What's this supposed to mean?"

With a slightly furrowed brow, James read the letter over several times.

In the end, it could be summarized as follows:

"Hey, James. Are you by any chance into live internet broadcasts? If you're planning to reveal the Easter egg reward, how about doing it through a live broadcast?"

Live internet broadcast.

He knew what it was, but he hadn't really paid much attention to that field.

But now, they're suggesting that he tries it himself.

"Reveal the reward in real-time?"

James imagined that scene.

Himself reflected on countless monitors.

"It could be fun, right?"

Curiosity sparked within him.

***

The year 2009 marked the dawn of the internet broadcasting industry.

Korea, which had yet to catch up with the world in terms of internet speed, was in that state, and overseas conditions were even more challenging.

"Before proving its commercial value."

In the case of the United States, the broadcasting environment was a problem due to its extreme shortcomings.

With the internet infrastructure not yet fully established to cover its vast land, real-time data streaming systems were bound to have many issues.

In this era, internet broadcasting in the United States was situated as such.

It was a niche market, especially during a time when the sponsorship system had not been properly established.

Consequently, during this time, James Han was not involved in internet broadcasting.

Or, to be more precise, he was practically a stranger to the internet broadcasting industry.

Sometime he mentioned during a broadcast:

I really got interested around 2011? It was after platforms specializing in game broadcasting were established. If I had been interested earlier, I would have started a few years ahead. It's more about the quality of the broadcast than the money issue.

If he had shown interest earlier, he would have jumped into broadcasting sooner.

That's why he's pushing him forward.

From James's perspective, it was good that he got to know this industry quickly, and from my perspective, it was good that I became an ally.

Isn't it a win-win situation?

I read the response that came back.

"Ok."

A brief response.

But since the purpose was achieved, it was fine.

I immediately provided the necessary programs, broadcast schedule, and proposed promotional methods for him.

The conversation went on casually, and eventually, we settled on a final broadcast schedule.

"The broadcast will be a week from now."

Just three days before the next sales calculation.

To maximize participation and feedback, it was a good time to increase the number of participants and pump up sales.

"See you then."

After sending the last message, I looked at the clock and realized that two hours had passed in no time.

Only then could I step away from the computer.

Han Seorim asked with an annoyed expression, "Why are you typing so vigorously?"

"Promotion."

"What kind of promotion? In the community?"

"Something like that. You're more of a community person. How can you be so fixated on it right after you've returned?"

"You're being way too picky."

Han Seorim turned off the community with pursed lips.

But it would be a big problem if she got addicted to that.

As I was staring, I noticed Han Seorim changing the topic.

"So, are you going to take a break for a while?"

"Technically, it was taking a break for work."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"The plans have changed."

I tapped Han Seorim's monitor lightly.

Visible on the screen was the Steam sales ranking.

It had climbed to 91st place.

"I think we're going to make money faster than I expected. I'm going to start preparing for the next game."

The fundamental reason for taking a break was money.

And now, that problem seemed to be resolving itself earlier and more smoothly than anticipated.

I didn't know how successful it would be until the next sales calculation, but since we were already in the ranking and if my intentions hit the mark, we would be able to accumulate a considerable amount of money.

"The next game requires a lot of preparation."

So, there's no time to rest.

Han Seorim's eyes sparkled, showing that she was pleased with what I said.

"That's great. I was getting restless anyway. What should I start with?"

I answered, "Study."

"?"

"You should study, Seorim."

Han Seorim looked puzzled.

I explained a little more.

"We're going to make a 3D game. You need to learn 3D modelling."