Game Development: Starting with Recreating the Anime Game Style

Chapter 234 Kneeling was quite "pleasant".

More and more people are criticizing them, but this may not be a bad thing for IGN. So what if other media outlets give them high ratings? That's the kind of "I'm the only one who's sober when everyone else is drunk" attitude they're after.
Then, a video started going viral on YouTube. The video's title was quite ordinary: "The Dirty Deal Behind IGN Ratings."

The video was created by a little-known channel.

But the content is extremely impactful.

The first half of the video is a quick edit of several low-scoring reviews from IGN that have caused huge controversy in recent years, from Beyond: Two Souls to Doom, and now The Last Survivor.

Coupled with screenshots of players' angry comments, it quickly stirred up the audience's emotions. If that were all, it would just be a normal "riding the wave" behavior.

However, the reason this video went viral is because the latter half of the video included a blurred audio recording.

In the recording, two men's voices are talking.

"Regarding this evaluation, we certainly hope to see a number that will satisfy everyone."

"Of course, once we have the money, we will give a fair and objective rating."

Following the recording was a blurred "payment screenshot".

Well known.

In the United States, conspiracy theories have become the norm for almost all Americans.

Furthermore, given that IGN's low score already went against players' expectations, this "bribery theory" evidence immediately became a powerful tool for supporting StarCraft fans.

An IGN editor giving End of Days a 6 out of 10 is his own business.

Although the players were angry, their anger stemmed from the feeling that the editor hadn't played the game properly.

But as evidence emerged regarding the "money-for-hire" theory, everything changed.

Soon, the video, or more accurately, the audio recording following it, began to circulate, and then more "dirt" emerged like mushrooms after rain.

An anonymous account claiming to be a "former IGN employee" revealed details of IGN's internal "review payment" process on a forum.

A data analyst posted an analysis pointing out that the high scores IGN gave to certain AAA games were released at the same time that the publisher was placing huge amounts of advertising on the IGN website.

Screenshots and so-called "insider information," their veracity uncertain, all point to the same conclusion: IGN is no longer the objective and neutral media outlet it once was, but rather a "score broker" with a price tag.

Now, IGN really couldn't sit still anymore.

They weren't afraid of the players' complaints. Although the incident had generated more buzz than they had imagined, the players' anger came and went quickly. After a while, a new game was released, and the buzz naturally died down.

But the current situation is completely different.

The atmosphere in the conference room at IGN's Los Angeles headquarters was so oppressive it felt like you could wring water out of it.

"They're insane! Have they gone mad?!"

Giles Hawke, the marketing director, slammed his hand on the conference table.

"That recording is fake!! What are those squinty-eyed people up to?! How dare they release payment screenshots?! Aren't they afraid we'll expose the truth? The one who sent us the money, isn't that Starry Sky Games themselves?!"

His voice echoed in the empty conference room, tinged with a hint of exasperated confusion.

That's right, that recording is fake.

But the content of the recording was real, and the screenshots taken after the recording were also real, so almost instantly, IGN found the person behind the "video".

"I'll issue a statement right now to clarify! Tell everyone that Starry Sky Games tried to bribe us, but we firmly refused!" Giles' voice was furious.

However, he was interrupted by an IGN board member as soon as he finished speaking.

"and then?"

"What then?"

"By issuing this announcement, are you trying to tell the whole world that IGN took money from StarCraft and then gave them a 6?"

The moment those words were spoken, the room fell into a deathly silence.

In fact, IGN's arrogance was still evident at this point.

Because up to this point, none of them felt there was anything wrong with accepting money from Xingchen and then from a second company.
The reason they are so "bold" is actually quite simple: on the one hand, paying for reviews is an open secret within the industry.

Secondly, this matter is based on the same logic as bribery. Once the matter is exposed, not only will the person who received the money not benefit, but will the person who gave the money benefit?

It's the same principle as officials taking money but not doing anything? There are plenty of people like that.

To put it bluntly, IGN is convinced that these smaller companies won't dare to cross them. And IGN isn't just IGN; they have connections throughout the entire American media industry.
Didn't you see that all the pictures Xingchen posted were pixelated?
However..
IGN's dominance isn't truly due to its inherent strength.

For example, right now, IGN is completely unsure what Star is thinking—whether he's using a fake recording to put pressure on IGN, or if he's really going to fight to the death.

I'm not sure about this.

We can't make any further judgments. If they remain silent and insist that they didn't receive any money, the evidence is slander.

This is equivalent to handing over the initiative to the stars.

If Starry Sky were just a small manufacturer, as they envisioned, that would be fine...
Who could have imagined that a $6 game could create such a massive uproar?

Although IGN is stubborn, the current momentum of online criticism against IGN is probably genuine, just like how IGN kept patching up Black Myth in the past.

Once the wave of public opinion started, IGN was also quite nervous.

In such a situation, if StarCraft really goes all out, IGN's credibility will completely collapse.

It's not just about credibility with gamers, but even more so in the business world. You know, what's more terrifying than "taking money" is "not keeping your word." IGN took the money, but didn't deliver.

Who would dare to "cooperate" with you after that?
What does IGN feel like right now? It's like they took money from a country bumpkin, only to have that bumpkin actually hold a knife to their throat.

Such a madman is perhaps one in a hundred years, yet they actually encountered him.

"Damn it... what do we do now...?"

"Let's retract the paper. Things have escalated to this point, and we've done everything we could. We have no choice but to find a reason to retract it. Dragging this out any longer will be bad for everyone."

"Also, give Xingchen a call to apologize, and promise to offer them a discount next time they come, and guarantee they get what they want."

"Shouldn't I go there myself?"

"Also, compile a list of the tasks Google asked us to do. When we meet the people from Xingchen later, we need to distance ourselves from the situation; we were forced into it..."

In the world of capital, there are never any enemies.

IGN previously looked down on StarCraft, thinking that since it was their first PC game and a small-scale project that hadn't even been released on Steam, what kind of impact could they possibly have?
But when Xingchen actually stabbed them in the back, they knelt down quite "happily."

(End of this chapter)