Game Development: Starting with Recreating the Anime Game Style

Chapter 407 Cat DLC
The entire process of leaving home was completed in one go.

However, as soon as he drove off, before he even arrived at the company, Chu Chen felt something was inexplicably wrong.

Why are there no cars on this road?

Although the industrial park where Xingchen is located is not a particularly bustling area and usually doesn't experience traffic jams, the number of people and vehicles today is noticeably less than usual.

He didn't think much of it at first, but when the car entered the park where Starry Sky Games was located and he saw a few scattered cars in the parking lot, Chu Chen suddenly realized what was going on.

Today, it seems, is still a holiday?

A familiar sense of embarrassment arose, much like the feeling of mistakenly remembering the start date of school and excitedly running to the empty school gate with a backpack.

Chu Chen shook his head, both amused and exasperated. It seemed his workaholic tendencies were getting worse.

As the boss of Xingchen.

Life and work have become completely intertwined for Chu Chen, which is actually the state of many single entrepreneurs in the early stages.

Having spent quite a while in Japan, Chu Chen's mind was constantly focused on finishing up his business there and getting back as soon as possible.

Last night before going to bed, I was still thinking about what I was going to do today.

I completely forgot that today is a holiday.

He parked his car, intending to turn around and go home to catch up on some more sleep.

But what was that saying again?

"It's all here."

Since everyone had arrived at the company, Chu Chen went upstairs, intending to take the opportunity to do a live stream and record some games or something. Since he was on vacation anyway, he might as well record this month's live streams.

It can only be said that Chu Chen, as a "capitalist," is ruthless not only to others but also to himself.

While pondering what to broadcast later, he walked to the door of his office. However, before he could even push the door open, a faint yet familiar voice drifted out through the crack in the door.

"Kitty background music?"

Chu Chen recognized the voice; it was the background music for "What Mischief Can a Cat Have?" The reason he recognized it was because he often came across related videos on Titok.

It's not just game videos; many videos featuring cute pets also use this music as background music.

A strange feeling rose in Chu Chen's heart.

The company is on holiday, and the whole building is almost empty. Who would be playing games in his office?

He grasped the doorknob, gave it a gentle twist, and the door opened with a click.

~~~
As the door opened, the view suddenly opened up.

In the spacious office, only the TV in the lounge area was on. There was a large L-shaped sofa there, which he usually used to test console games or relax.

Normally, almost no one else sits there, even though Chu Chen kept emphasizing that this rest area was for public use.
However, the sofa now has a new owner.

Song Yueying was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, her two fair and slender legs curled up, holding a soft cushion in her arms, her beautiful eyes fixed intently on the huge screen on the wall.

On the screen, an adorable orange cat is scurrying around in a charming little town with its short legs.

Although Chu Chen spent most of the October National Day holiday in Japan, focusing on promoting "FGO", it doesn't mean that Starry Night Games didn't have any other activities.

For example, a game like "Neko Neko" that is more mainstream chose to release its online DLC at this point.

I heard the door open.

Song Yueying was startled and almost dropped the controller. When she turned around and saw that it was Chu Chen, she visibly breathed a sigh of relief, then patted her chest and scolded, "Why do you walk so quietly? You scared me to death."

"I'm the one who's scared! Coming to the company to work overtime during the National Day holiday? That's some serious awareness?"

The two were already quite familiar with each other, and they could tease each other without any awkwardness. Song Yueying put the pillow in her arms aside and asked with a smile.

"Same here, aren't you the same? Taking a holiday instead of resting, you came to the company to inspect the work?"

"I'm jet-lagged and my biological clock is messed up."

Chu Chen casually made up an excuse, closed the office door, and his gaze fell on the orange cat jumping around on the screen.

"What about you? The Cat Cat DLC is so appealing, are you going to come to the company to play during the holidays?"

“The TV at home is too small, so it’s not fun to play games.” Song Yueying said matter-of-factly, and then added, “Besides, I live nearby, it only takes me about ten minutes to get here. It’s quite boring to be home alone.”

"Perfect timing! The new online mode is a bit boring playing alone. Want to join me?"

After finishing speaking, Song Yueying moved to the side, patted the empty sofa space, and handed over the other handle.

Chu Chen initially wanted to refuse, but then he realized that he didn't actually have anything to do.

It's nice to relax and play for a while.

"Cat Cat" was launched in August this year, and it has only been a little over a month, less than two months, and its popularity is at its peak.

So in October, a new online multiplayer DLC mode was launched.

This DLC includes a free online system, meaning players can invite up to six friends to their town. It also includes two mini-games on the map that can be played together.

In addition to the free content, this DLC also includes paid unlockable content, including new areas and new missions, and the new area also has several online mini-games.

This can be understood as the "standard version" being free, while the "deluxe version" is priced at 19.9 yuan.

It's neither expensive nor cheap.

The reason A2 Studios released this DLC is essentially to explore another possibility for monetization, namely long-term single-player operation, a model that has precedents.

For example, many Paradox Interactive games make money by constantly releasing DLC.

Take Cities: Skylines as an example, in addition to the base game...

From its release in 15 to 23, a total of 60 DLCs were released over 8 years.

A new DLC is released roughly every two months.

As DLC, this number is indeed a lot, but if you think about it another way, these DLCs are essentially just "monthly subscriptions".

For players who consistently play single-player games, paying for regularly released new content is actually quite similar to the core of playing second-generation games, except that the cost of single-player DLC is lower and more fixed.

Based on this "business model"

Xingchen is also considering whether it can leverage the larger player base in China to find a middle ground between "single-player games" and "long-term online games" using this new payment model.

For example, each version update is divided into a free update part and a paid DLC update part.

Since Paradox Interactive could only offer a possibility in his previous life, Chu Chen didn't know if domestic players would accept this approach.

So I decided to test the waters with "Cat Cat".

(End of this chapter)