Game Development: Starting with Recreating the Anime Game Style

Chapter 534 Win-win means winning twice?

In the half hour we've just talked, although many details are still undecided, the overall framework and general direction of the game have been set.

From the battlefields of the north, where swords clash and horses gallop, to the undercurrents of passion in the boudoir.

From the tragic tale of Yue Fei's army's loyalty and bravery to the ultimate questioning of Assassin's Creed.

From the lofty ambition of "It is easier to shake a mountain than to shake Yue Fei's army" to "If the ruler is not upright, even if the boat capsizes, it is in accordance with Heaven and the people's will," every turn and every emotional progression makes this seem like a project proposal that was just casually put together.

Chu Chen, on the other hand, didn't think there was anything wrong with his actions.

After all, good ideas are not difficult to come up with. What is difficult is that the company's senior management can identify what are good ideas and implement them. Xingchen's success today is not solely due to Chu Chen's ideas, but also because he happens to be Xingchen's boss.

Hearing Tian Qixuan's question, Chu Chen did not answer it directly, but instead asked for some details.

Tian Qixuan had recovered his composure a bit by now, and his managerial and producer mindset began to take over, his brain working at lightning speed.

"It would be difficult to achieve the same effect as you, especially for us at Starry Sky."

"To recreate a 'living' Lin'an city, it's not something that can be solved by just textures and modeling. The current Star Engine has never made this type of product, which means we have to follow Ubisoft's path again."

"The action system, the dynamic weather system, and the complex social interactions required are not just art and technology issues; they are a major test for the entire game industry pipeline."

"And the script framework you mentioned relies too much on the mobilization of emotions and the performance presentation, from the peak of the Yingchang Victory to the frustration of the Twelve Gold Medals, and then to Fengbo Pavilion, where the emperor is killed."

"This requires a very high level of control over the narrative performance. If you make one wrong move, the player will not feel the tragedy, but rather feel like they are being fed garbage."

Tian Qixuan said a lot in one breath.

It sounds a bit disheartening, but it's actually a very real problem.

Don't be fooled by StarCraft's steady growth and annual revenue of tens of billions; when it comes to producing AAA games, StarCraft is a complete novice.

Or, for the entire Chinese gaming industry, currently only *Black Myth* is truly moving towards the AAA genre.

The problem is that at this time, Black Myth was just starting out and was still exploring various methods. Moreover, Black Myth actually took a shortcut, using the easiest AAA game to make: a BOSS-centric gameplay.

It's not even in the same league as the kernel Chu Chen just mentioned.

It's no exaggeration to say that if StarCraft had started this game now, it would have taken at least four or five years to develop.

but
For StarCraft, there are shortcuts, and the biggest shortcut is the current relationship between StarCraft and Ubisoft.

"Who said we have to pave this road from scratch ourselves?"

Tian Qixuan was stunned for a moment, not understanding what Chu Chen meant.

"Did we only buy a 7% stake with our $500 million? Yves said at the press conference that we are 'strategic partners.' That's not a word to be taken lightly."

Chu Chen's lips curled into a smile.

“Technological barriers, industrial pipelines, project experience… these are things we lack, but Ubisoft has them. So why don’t we ‘borrow’ them?”

"borrow?"

"Yes, I'll borrow it."

"You mean, let Ubisoft's team develop it?" Tian Qixuan's voice was a little dry. "But Ubisoft is also developing its own project; they probably can't spare the manpower..."

Within the industry, it's not uncommon for two companies to collaborate on a game, but this is usually for mobile games. For example, Tencent frequently collaborates with large overseas companies to develop mobile games based on well-known IPs. However, in the AAA game sector, such collaborative development is extremely rare.

The core competitiveness of AAA studios, besides their intellectual property, lies in their well-established industrialized pipeline and studio culture.

Would Rockstar lend out its GTA team? Would Naughty Dog offer up the team that made The Last of Us? No way.

Every top studio is an independent kingdom with its own technological barriers and workflows. If you try to force an outside team into it, forget about collaboration; the technical integration and project management alone can drive you crazy.

Besides, why would someone teach you their best skills?

That's why Tian Qixuan thought Chu Chen was daydreaming.

"Everything you said is right."

Chu Chen did not refute, but instead nodded, acknowledging Tian Qixuan's professional judgment.

“But we went to Ubisoft. Ubisoft is probably the world’s best company at ‘multi-location collaborative development,’ bar none. For example, for an Assassin’s Creed main game, Montreal was in charge, Quebec was responsible for a part, Singapore was for naval battles, Sofia was for levels, and Barcelona was for testing…”

"They are already used to this cross-continental, cross-cultural, and cross-studio collaboration model."

Chu Chen paused.

“For Ubisoft, it’s not inconceivable, in terms of process, to pull out a studio and do joint development with us, their ‘strategic partner’.”

"For example, Ubisoft Bashu."

"Ubisoft Bashu?"

Tian Qixuan was certainly aware of Ubisoft's two studios in the country.

Ubisoft China's two studios are essentially the Whampoa Military Academy of the domestic game industry. For a long time, these two studios have played a "supporting" and "outsourcing" role in Ubisoft's global system.

They rarely have the opportunity to lead a project, let alone an IP of the caliber of Assassin's Creed.

The only truly independently developed project came in 21 with the Chinese-themed DLC "Mending the Sky" for *Immortals Fenyx Rising*.

However, this does not mean that Ubisoft China Studio lacks strength. In fact, Ubisoft Sichuan is quite capable, having participated in the development of many AAA titles, handling everything from art and level design to localization. Their technical strength is beyond doubt.

more importantly.

At that time, Ubisoft could never have imagined how weak it would become a few years later.

Therefore, if Chu Chen were to seek help from Yves now, using his own money and their people to promote a joint project...

For Ubisoft at this moment, this cooperation plan carries extremely low risk and extremely high returns.

On the one hand, it revitalized the productivity of Ubisoft's Chinese studio, which was considered "marginalized," allowing them to take on a top-tier project. This is significant for stabilizing and motivating talent in these studios, essentially meaning that StarCraft is spending money to help Ubisoft cultivate talent.

On the other hand, the main funding and creative risks of the project are borne by StarCraft, making it almost a guaranteed profit for Ubisoft.

For Starry Sky, this joint research and development not only provides Starry Sky headquarters with a teacher who can provide hands-on instruction, but more importantly, it also allows for collaboration once the partnership begins.

Chu Chen was absolutely confident that he could bring Ubisoft China's two studios to his side.

If the time is right and Ubisoft weakens, it's not impossible to take down both of Ubisoft's Chinese studios in one fell swoop.
(End of this chapter)