Game Development: Starting with Recreating the Anime Game Style

Chapter 102 Guan Lei
Once aboard, the staff were having a blast, exploring the cruise ship in small groups, with camera shutters clicking constantly. The decks, cabins, buffet area, and even the area outside the bridge became popular spots for taking photos.

Chu Chen is actually quite busy.

However, instead of eating, drinking, or sightseeing, he was chatting with a man in his thirties as they moved around the deck.

Instead of seeking out Su Qing and Song Yueying, Chu Chen was spending this precious time with a middle-aged man. Naturally, he had his reasons.

~~~
On the cruise ship deck, a gentle sea breeze brings a touch of salty coolness.

The setting sun painted the sky a brilliant orange-red, reflecting on the shimmering sea, creating a dreamlike scene.

For Guan Lei...

The location of this "dinner" was completely beyond his imagination. He never expected that Jiao Xiaofei had invited him on behalf of Starry Sky Games, nor did he expect that Chu Chen was the founder of Starry Sky Games.

As perhaps the most watched "celebrity boss" in the country right now, he actually spent a lot of time chatting with an "outsider" during this team building activity.

Although this move does indeed have the suspicion of "winning people's hearts" to some extent.

However, as the person involved, Guan Lei still felt quite satisfied. From Meteor Butterfly Sword to now, Guan Lei has been working in the game industry for many years and has met too many bosses.

Some are aloof and unsmiling; others are shrewd and calculating, their words filled with self-interest.

But Chu Chen gives off a strange feeling.

Perhaps the other person is also a game developer, rather than a pure businessman. Plus, he's young and handsome, and when he talks about games, he's like a big boy who simply loves games.

When discussing game development, he transforms into a bright and ambitious "junior."

Along the way, only those Starry Night employees who would excitedly shout "Hello, President Chen!" and "President Chen is awesome!" upon seeing Chu Chen were able to connect him with the identity of the owner of Starry Night Games.

This was the first time the two had met.

But both the feeling Chu Chen gave him and the communication between Xingchen employees and Chu Chen were very novel to Guan Lei.

In response to the employees' greetings.

Chu Chen could call out almost everyone's name. Sometimes he would stop and chat briefly with the employees, asking them if they had fun and if there was anything they wanted to eat.

The attitude was very natural; clearly, this was how the other party usually acted.

Chu Chen could even call out the names of some people from Japanese animation studios and communicate with them in Japanese.
This is a bit scary.

This kind of relationship and atmosphere with employees cannot be created by high pressure or empty promises.

"There are actually quite a few domestic teams that can make action games, such as the one called Moonlight Blade from a while ago, which has a pretty good foundation in action games."

As they chatted, the conversation naturally turned to action games.

Chu Chen glanced at the sea and sighed a few times.

“There are actually no real action games in China right now. Everyone making games is pursuing the so-called ‘big and comprehensive’ approach, trying to cram in every element.”

"Every game genre wants to be profitable, and every game only cares about money, but no one has ever thought that the prerequisite for profitability is that the game must be fun."

"Just like a skit, you have to be funny first. If you're not funny, then it's just too funny."

"The same applies to games. You have to be fun first. If you're not fun, how can you expect to monetize them?"

Guan Lei nodded repeatedly as he listened.

Chu Chen's words really struck a chord with him.

As a team specializing in action games, Guan Lei has been involved in almost all of his online game projects since 02. The boss at the top has never been most concerned about what breakthroughs his team has made in the action game sub-field.

The real question is how his games will generate revenue and how he will monetize the core elements of action games.

How do you attract users to pay?

He has been answering this question ever since Meteor, Butterfly, and Sword, through various platforms including Wanmei, Kongzhong.com, and Tencent. He has given his answer each time.

But each time, his answer failed to satisfy those "above".

Therefore, his team could only go from one "failure" to another.

"Take 'Meteor Butterfly Sword,' which you made back then, for example. Why did it become so popular? Because it satisfied players' fantasies about martial arts action, and the gameplay was deep and challenging, allowing players to immerse themselves in it."

"But what about now? How many games can actually do that? The so-called action is just a gimmick."

Hearing this, Guan Lei sighed.

"That's definitely the state of the gaming environment in China. Everyone is focused on quick profits and making money, forgetting the fundamental joy of gaming. Nobody is willing to settle down and make a truly fun game."

Upon hearing this, Chu Chen suddenly turned around.

"Starry Sky Games is willing."

"We at Starry Sky are willing to give this opportunity."

Guan Lei's pupils contracted slightly. From the moment he boarded the ship and saw Chu Chen, he guessed that the other party wanted to poach people, but... he didn't expect Chu Chen to be so direct.

If someone else said this, it would sound really strange. Who do you think you are? Just give me a chance.

But when Chu Chen said it, it sounded so natural.

"I've played Meteor Butterfly Sword. Back then, it was remarkable that they could create such a sense of impact and depth of operation."

“I’ve always felt that China doesn’t lack talented producers, but rather a platform that allows them to work freely, and a boss who understands games and respects creativity.” Guan Lei didn’t respond immediately, but listened silently.

He knew that Starry Sky Games was very popular and that Chu Chen was a legendary figure, but their conversation was a bit too intimate.

He is 38 years old this year and has been in the industry for more than ten years, which can be described as full of ups and downs.

There are also those who make grand promises beforehand but then turn around and do nothing. Even though Guan Lei felt that Chu Chen was indeed different from other bosses, he didn't say anything at this moment.

Chu Chen clearly sensed this as well.

So Chu Chen didn't continue talking about the acquisition, but instead started discussing the gameplay of FATE Holy Grail War.

"An action game centered around heroes?"

Chu Chen nodded, and then gave a general overview of his planned gameplay. This gameplay was based on the core of Eternal Calamity, so Guan Lei got a general idea as soon as he heard it.

"This...this sounds interesting."

Guan Lei muttered to himself, as images began to surface in his mind.

Guan Lei could immediately picture the gameplay Chu Chen had described – it would definitely be fun! He even felt that this kind of game would be great as a martial arts story.
"Seven classes, corresponding to different Servants, each Servant possessing a different Noble Phantasm, and corresponding to different animation sequences... Wouldn't that be a huge workload?"

As soon as Chu Chen saw Guan Lei start talking to him about game development, he knew that the other party had taken the bait.

"It is a big deal, but in martial arts games, don't each weapon also need to be made into an independent module?"

"That makes sense. If that's the case, then since they are Heroic Spirits, can they be Heroic Spirits from within China? From what you just said, it seems like they're all foreigners?"

"Of course, like Mulan."

"Why Mulan? I think Bai Qi or Lü Bu would be more suitable."

Chu Chen was stunned for a moment. There was nothing he could do; that's just how LSPs are in the world of anime and manga. Even in an action game, his first instinct was still to play a female character.

"Guan Yu is also an option."

"For Guan Yu, we need a separate animation set... Since it's a mythology version, should we use the Azure Dragon?"

"Isn't the Azure Dragon a bit too tacky?"

"Actually, no..."

The two quickly started talking about some details of the game, chatting for about ten minutes, when Guan Lei suddenly asked a question that other bosses often asked him.

"This gameplay is indeed very interesting, but... how can a pure PVP game like this make a profit?"

Chu Chen thought to himself, "Here it comes, that's a good question."

"I've designed two profit models... Brother Lei, could you give me your feedback?"

For large-scale PVP games like this, finding a balance between profitability and gameplay has always been a major challenge. The previous version of Naraka: Bladepoint initially relied on a model of "buy-to-play" + "skins" + "seasonal pass".

This model is indeed good, but the buyout system has too high a barrier to entry for promotion in China.

Especially in 16.

Players are not used to having to spend money right from the start.

Instead of a buy-to-play model, another well-regarded option is the early World of Tanks model of "Resource Boost VIP" + "Gold Tanks".

Chu Chen's approach was to integrate these two models.

First, Holy Grail War adopts a free-to-play model, allowing players to play directly. Second, the Servants in the game are unlocked.

In short, after the tutorial, there will be "free" Servants available for players to use.

To acquire more characters, you need to gain experience and in-game currency through battles.

In-game currency can be used to purchase "Artifacts" to unlock new characters, while experience can be used to level up Servants, unlocking optional skills and ultimate abilities.

This is the first paid feature: the character.

For whales (players who spend real money), characters can be purchased directly with real money.

For players who spend a little money, characters can be acquired faster by purchasing a monthly card to gain resource bonuses.

For free-to-play players, characters can also be obtained through grinding.

Trading time for money has no impact on the game's balance and is a monetization strategy that everyone can accept.

Besides this paid feature, the second major source of revenue is skins.

Saber Lily limited edition, Rin's white stockings, Illya's shrine maiden outfit, these sexy skins were a huge hit back then, thanks to the FATE IP and the visual impact of the 3D game.

Chu Chen felt that as long as he released a skin...

Someone will buy it.

Especially in the Japanese market, Chu Chen felt that these two revenue streams alone could sustain them for a long time.

After listening to Chu Chen's description, Guan Lei nodded silently. It was clear that Chu Chen was quite restrained in his approach to spending money on in-game purchases, and this mode indeed didn't have a significant impact on in-game PvP.
However, Guan Lei still had some doubts at this point, mainly because he was still thinking about his martial arts world. Although Chu Chen's plan was good, it was ultimately still about hero PvP.
It was similar to, yet different from, what he wanted to do, and for a while he couldn't decide what to do.

(End of this chapter)